The Argentine tango
It takes two to tango and the Argentinean seller is busy looking for its perfect partner in the Indian buyer. Helping the twain is Medha Sampat, Director, Knack Marketing, the India representative for Argentina Tourism. Her views on industry:
How was the response to the three-city seminar?
We are thrilled with the overwhelming response from the trade in all three cities (Bengaluru, Kolkata and Mumbai). The agents were very pleased with the seminar and have realised that the country offers so many attrac- tions that can be used to create innovative itineraries for their clients. They now want to know more about the destination and are excited to include Argentina in their brochures next year.
There has been a huge movement in the MICE segment as well. Needless to say, Argentina is also the highest receiver of tourists in South America.
How to you plan to engage the trade?
We have conducted many interactive training sessions in the past and have restarted the same. We will also continue with mono Argentina trade shows. We have been participating in trade fairs that were held in Mumbai and Delhi and have begun targetting other regional markets and cities as well. The idea is to develop the market with a longterm perspective.
The Argentinean suppliers have been visiting India regularly for the past two years and have interacted with the Indian trade forging solid relationships. FAM trips for the agents will obviously continue.
Any plans for a specialist training programme for agents?
We are planning a training programme. Our ‘International Marketing Plan 2012-15 ConectAR’ provides us with some guidelines on that front. Various strategies have been implemented based on the needs, wants and expectations of Indian tourists. In fact, the Argentina Tourism has developed a new experiential, user- friendly website: www.argentina.travel.
The agents can also refer to the list of suppliers mentioned on the website that also includes innovative concepts, and the lat- est and emerging trends. About 200 unique experiences have been developed for travelers.
What are the main source markets in India?
We now want to target cities beyond Mumbai and Delhi such as Ahmedabad, Pune, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Chennai. Argentina receives over 5,000 Indians every year and increasing. We have been working closely with the travel trade to understand their needs and preferences.
How are you positioning Argentina in India?
We are focusing on promoting it as a country of ‘ Experiences’. It is a diverse country and offers many options to Indians like cruises, self- drives and unique train journeys that can be packaged innovatively. We have observed that Indian travellers are looking for new, fresh, bold experiences, and Argentina offers exactly that. Agents too have recog- nised this and want to offer innovative itineraries to their clients. Argentina is well- equipped to handle Indian tourists with quite a few Indian restaurants in Buenos Aires. All cities in Argentina also offer plenty of vegetarian options. We are also open to special requests.