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PIMEX 2005 ANNOUNCES AGRESSIVE MEDIA PLAN
With 85 percent of air-conditioned space sold, more than half the water berths taken and a good chunk of hardstand space reserved, Phuket International Marine Expo (PIMEX) 2005 has just launched its strongest media campaign yet for the show’s third year. “We are especially pleased to have forged some strong media partnerships this year,” said PIMEX managing director, Grenville Fordham. The lead PIMEX media partner, Asia's top luxury yachting magazine, Asia-Pacific Boating, is joined for the first time by Seaspray, SEA Yachting and Phuket’s long-established English language newspaper, The Phuket Gazette. “Having the Phuket Gazette behind us will make a world of difference to our visitor potential,” said Fordham, noting that the Gazette has a wide international readership as well as its home-grown audience. Backing up these partnerships, PIMEX organizers start a campaign next week through UK-based IBI News’ website and newsletter, one of the leading marine industry information sources. “PIMEX, though, is about much more than the marine industry in isolation,” said Fordham. “Thailand, the show’s home base, is unique in its combination of great marine playgrounds, top quality tropical homes and world-class resorts. It is this combination, together with the progressive liberalization on regulations affecting boat ownership and usage, which drive PIMEX and ensure it remains the premier boating and lifestyle show in the region,” he added. This is a view borne out by Phil Vidal, Business Manager of Australian International Marine Export Group (AIMEX), a veteran of countless international boatshows: “With the current activity in the Asian leisure market, AIMEX and its members feel we are getting greater value by exhibiting at the Phuket Boatshow, rather than any other show in the region". Nevertheless, the greatest challenge facing PIMEX is attracting high numbers of visitors to the island. “We don’t have a huge resident population like Hong Kong or Singapore. This means we need to work harder to get people to come to the show. At the same time, it means those who do come are seriously interested,” said Fordham. As part of that drive, and recognizing the synergy between the tropical homes and the marine leisure markets, PIMEX has reached agreement this year to publish a full colour supplement in one Thailand’s leading English language daily newspapers, with a circulation of 75,000 and readership in the hundreds of thousands. Further targeting this market, PIMEX organizers will run a series of advertisements in other regional property and lifestyle publications. “This is in addition to an intensified campaign aimed at placing editorial in regional and national, Thai language, media,” said Fordham, adding, “When you compare our 2004 visitor numbers at 4,000 with a ‘record attendance’ of 6,000 at a recent boatshow in the region, and take into account the comparative size of the resident populations, it is clear that PIMEX draws more serious visitors than any other regional show. Our marketing push this year is aimed at further strengthening that position.” |
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an event by IMAGE asia |
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