MANILA, PHILIPPINES — At a webinar recently organized by the Department of Tourism (DOT), Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said that the tourism industry needs to transition into the digital world in order to survive.
“E-commerce, digital marketing, payment, and delivery apps flourish as we have no choice but to rely on online shopping,” Puyat said in her welcoming remarks.
The webinar entitled, “Digital as the New Normal,” also featured resource speaker Mark Joseph Panganiban, executive director of the Digital Commerce Association of the Philippines, who discussed the power of photos and digital marketing, creating effective content, establishing an online presence, target marketing, and other relevant topics to help the tourism stakeholders start digital marketing or upgrade their current social media accounts.
Puyat also expressed her enthusiasm for how the digital landscape has been made more accessible to all, including purchasing of vegetables from the Benguet farmers.
On April 22, DOT launched the online leg of the Philippine Harvest trade fair in partnership with retail group Stores Specialists Inc. (SSI) in an effort to continue promoting and giving access to fresh produce and local food products from Micro, Small and Medium-Scale Enterprises (MSME) and farmers amid the pandemic. Interested Filipino consumers may support this endeavor here.
In the end, Puyat invited the participants to travel from home and use travel photos as a background on video meetings.
“It’s also a way of promoting your place, so you’re proud of where you came from.”
In April, DOT encouraged the public to “Travel From Home” by providing free downloadable background photos for video conferencing platforms like Zoom in the Philippines until travel would be allowed again.
All webinars can be accessed through the DOT Facebook
