13 unique marketing ways in Wudang

Officials in the Wudang Mountain areas have resorted to 13 marketing strategies to promote the tourism.

Good ideas are crucial

Because creation is the “soul” of development, officials had set up a tourist economic zone in 2003 in the Wudang Mountain area, throwing its tourism into the “expressway” of growth. The ticket revenue had increased by 20 percent.

Create a brand

In 2008, the management officials put more focus on publicity by using central and local media to enhance its popularity, and more importantly, to create a “brand”. Tourist visit s to this mountain has increased dramatically.

In 2010, they accommodated 2.3 million people, increasing 30 percent of the year before; the income exceeded more than 1.1 billion yuan ($173 million).

Upgrade services

The basic elements of eating, housing, transportation, and shopping are critical elements in the development of a scenic spot. Although Wudang Mountain has natural resources and cultural heritage, comfortable services and diverse products to satisfy the visitors are still required.

Attract travel agencies

Since 2008, officials in the management committee has launched financial preferential polices rewarding those travel agencies exhibiting outstanding performance, promoting enthusiasm in Chinese travel agencies.

Increase the market share

The officials are trying to enhance popularity by setting up posters and featuring videos in travel agencies to attract tourists.

Conferences and exhibitions

Dozens of domestic and international promotions were held to popularize the Wudang brand and attract more business partners, such as Tourism Week of Norway, Malaysia International Tourism Trade and Singapore International Tourism Fair.

Finance guarantee

Local government has provided swift and solid finance support for effective and timely marketing strategies.

Moving Advertisements

Advertisements have been printed onto buses in major Chinese cities, which are not only eye-catching, but also cash absorbing.

Online promotion

Micro-blogs have been set up to provide dynamic information about the site, appealing to a younger and a more diverse audience. Advertisements have been showcased on several of China’s most popular social networks.

Magazine publicity

The Chinese magazine Da Wudang have been distributed to star-rated hotels, restaurants, coffee houses and automobile 4s shops in Wuhan to keep the visitor’s attention. A Wudang Mountains column has also been set up in the bullet train magazine Tourism News. Tabletop advertisements have been integrated onto planes belonging to China Eastern Airlines and China Southern Airlines.

Promotion activities

The local government has launched different types of activities attempting to reach various social groups, including seminars located in the Imperial Palace, national youth art festival, international martial arts festival and tourism trade fairs.

Film shooting

Wudang Mountains have risen as a new hot-site for film shooting. The domestic TV shows Journey to the West and Heavenly Sword Dragon Saber, as well as Hollywood blockbuster The Karate Kid (2010), all took shoots there.

A series of documentaries have also been broadcasted.

Forerunner in the tourism industry

Wudang Mountain tourism areas, combining the natural landscape and cultural relics, would keep the number of the tourist visits at a high level, whether in off-season or in peak-season.

Through the distinctive efforts of the local government, the site has gained many honors such as the World Cultural Heritage, a 5A (the highest level) National Tourism Site and the Top 10 Summer Resorts. These honorable titles make Wudang Mountains outstanding in domestic tourism industry.