Greece as a Dreamy Destination Through the Creation of e-Branded Content: The Case of the Greek National Tourism Organization

Abstract

Greece has been building its image in a systematic way since the founding of the Greek National Tourism Organisation (henceforth GNTO) back to the late 20s, when tourism began to evolve into a strong pillar of the Greek economy. Through the campaigns the GNTO has launched over the past 60 years, it has decisively shaped the country’s personality, and it has used the country’s symbols to reflect its brand values. In the realm of destination branding, a destination brand is often built in accordance with Maslow’s hierarchy of needs which takes us upwards from the satisfaction of basically physiological needs to self-actualization ones. In this study, we use this pyramid-shaped methodological tool to introduce the brand building methodology into the creation of the e-branded content. Social media posts and e-newsletter teasers promote Greece all over the world and help build the country’s identity. Using pyramids for every type of tourism we analyse Greece’s assets in concert with each sector, till we reach the top where the brand essence is formed. We end up showing that images and texts work together in order to lure the potential visitors and to make them feel that what is being shown as a tangible asset, and then described as a quality, now starts to be woven into an experience, a feeling or a wish. From this point upwards, all the promotional material used serves the sole purpose of helping visitors reach the top of the pyramid, and conquer the destination’s brand essence.