Aloha!
Just wondering, guys and gals, if you need to be “reminded” about Maui. The reason I’m asking: in yesterday’s Maui News, www.mauinews.com there was a letter to the Editor commenting on the battle that is always raging here between those who think we need to spend more money on Tourism (Maui Visiors Bureau, et al) and those who feel we’ve already spent quite enough, thank you.
The letter writer (Bob Pure) stated that “residents seem to forget that 75 percent of all jobs on Maui are directly or indirectly related to the visitor industry. They either believe we have too many tourists or everybody already knows about Maui so we don’t have to spend any more money to promote tourism to our island.” He went on to say that the complaint that the MVB spends too much is “the same logic that says that Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, Toyota and Apple should reduce their advertising because everybody already knows who they are. It doesn’t work that way. Vacationers need reminders.”
So I ask you…is that true?
Bob stated that “if we get smug and complacent and reduce our promotional footprint, vacationers, will, assuredly, go elsewhere.”
I know when I lived in California and was coming to Maui on vacations, I was saving my pennies to do so. I didn’t need any reminders that Maui was here. I will say that every time a commercial for Hawaii came on, it just reinforced my resolve to save more. So, what about you? Does a promtional advertisement with stunning photograpy and the message of Aloha get you off your seat and to the computer to start booking reservations?
I’m interested to see if the assertions of this letter writer are true, or if you already have your tickets to Maui bought for next year.
A hui hou (til next time). If you would like to Subscribe to this blog, please click the “Follow” button on the Home Page.
Aloha! Jamaica
Your Daily Dose of Paradise with Jamaica Michaels--A Maui Blog 
I read that article you referenced yesterday when it was posted, and thought it was worded strangely, so I didn’t respond to it. Now that I’ve been to Maui, I don’t want to stop feeling connected to it through online resources. But I would say that before I began planning my trip this past fall, I never saw any advertising (that stuck out at me) for Hawaii. We just wanted a tropical vacation and Hawaii was at the top of our list. From there we took the visitor’s quiz to figure out which island was best for what we wanted from our vacation and chose Maui. So YES, as a New Yorker, I’d say there isn’t enough advertising to the East Coast United States. I’m sure Hawaii advertising is all over the place online, but here in New York I see much more advertising on TV for California and Michigan (2 big campaigns from those states lately). In short, there could always be more. =)