"A place of many stories": Bulgaria’s Southern Black Sea Coast is subject of a new promotional clip (video)

The Burgas Municipality's latest tourism video ad is already here. It was created under the "Program for financing marketing activities of tourist services in the Black Sea municipalities in the Republic of Bulgaria" of the country’s Ministry of Tourism.

The ministry’s budget for the entire program, for which Bulgarian municipalities can apply, is 200,000 euros. It includes various advertising activities.

This is the budget for the entire campaign. We have invested in billboards and online advertising. The production of the video itself is part of the activities of the project," the Marketing and Advertising Directorate of the Municipality of Burgas told Economic.bg.

The amount spent on the video itself never became clear even after additional questions from Economic.bg to the municipality's accounting department. Its staff said they couldn't give the exact amount invested in the production.

You may recall that in the autumn of last year, the Bulgarian Ministry of Tourism decided to completely change its strategy in promoting the country as a sea tourism destination. For this purpose, Zaritsa Dinkova, the Minister of Tourism, announced that she was creating a public-private partnership between local authorities and the state. She invited municipalities to be actively involved in the creation of promotional videos. 

Distribution of the video

The Southern Black Sea Coast video is aimed at the markets of Great Britain and Central Europe showing the tourism and leisure opportunities in that destination.

The municipalities of Burgas, Nessebar, Pomorie, Primorsko, Tsarevo and Malko Tarnovo are behind the creation of the advertising clip.

Don't trust other people’s stories, experience them for yourself in the #SouthernBlackSeaCoast. This is the main message of the video. It presents the beauty of the Southern Black Sea coast, the clear sea waters, as well as the endless possibilities for entertainment. From a relaxing family vacation to endless parties and concerts on the beach.

More of the same

Weak, impersonal and devoid of a concept. It's as if some really beautiful footage was captured and simply edited. There is not even any proper targeting," Dessislava Alexova, manager of Creativo, an advertising agency specializing in tourism, told Economic.bg.

According to Alexova, the ad is proof that we keep showing the same thing to the world – nice nature, nightlife, but nothing that is unique.

These are things that can be seen anywhere in the world. We have to be different. Nothing in this clip even hints that we have places under the auspices of UNESCO along the Black Sea," says the expert.

In order for an ad to be successful, it must have a message, a brand story and recognition – and none of this is visible in the Southern Black Sea Coast commercial, says Alexova.

According to her, these types of advertising clips should be directed at retirees and senior travellers, since charter programs usually serve these tourists. Young people and families tend to travel independently.

Commenting on the errors made in a video is simple enough. But [the problem is that there is] an overall concept missing here. I don't even know how to evaluate it – it’s just a bunch of beautiful shots."

Translated by Tzvetozar Vincent Iolov