CEBU’S new branding tagline, “Cebu, where the heart sings”, has earned praise from various sectors.
They believe that the brand, created out of tourism advocates’ shared love for Cebu, will sustain Cebu’s footing in the tourism and business arenas, and expand further its gains.
“I think it is spot on. It has a sense of place and captures, more than anything else, the soul of Cebu. This soul, this Cebu, is something worth sharing with the world,” said Gordon Alan Joseph, president of Cebu Business Club.
A festival dancer holding up a bright red heart is the brand’s main image. She stands next to the word Cebu, marked in four colors, under which is the tagline “where the heart sings.”
“The choice of colors reflects how fun Cebuanos are and, yes, true enough the line ‘where the heart sings’ really reflects how Cebuanos put their love in everything,” said travel agent Mary Yuletide “Juliet” Amazona.
The red in “Cebu” stands for faith and passion; yellow for warmth and friendliness; green for nature and creativity; and blue for the sea and resilience.
“Personally, I love the brand. They say when you can’t express your feelings through words, you sing. When your heart sings, it is a good reflection of Cebu as a multi-sensory experience,” said Cebuano travel blogger Sinjin Pineda.
The creation of Cebu’s brand took months of collaborative work among Cebu’s key tourism stakeholders, led by the Cebu City Tourism Commission (CCTC), Cebu Provincial Tourism Commission, Cebu Association of Tour Operators and GMR-Megawide, along with Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI), Mega Cebu, Department of Tourism, Hotel, Resort and Restaurant Association of Cebu and individual volunteers.
“After so much consultation and brainstorming...Yes, the brand best represents Cebu and its people. People say Cebu is nice yet they cannot identify any specific reason for that comment or feeling. Yes, Cebu makes one’s heart happy, makes it love the world... makes it sing,” said CCCI President Ma. Teresa Chan.
‘What Cebu really is’
Gov. Hilario Davide III, in a message read by Provincial Administrator Mark Tolentino during the brand’s launching last Friday in Ayala Center Cebu, said the unveiling of Cebu’s new brand comes at the right time--immediately after Cebu’s hosting of international events such as the APEC meetings, which gave the province positive exposure.
The challenge now is to use the brand to rev up the tourism industry as an engine of economic growth of Cebu. “(This new brand) will reinforce our standing in both tourism and trade. Moreover, the brand represents effective collaboration of all stakeholders,” Davide said.
CCTC chair Tetta Baad said the brand marks Cebu’s official entry to the world stage of tourist destinations, where a multitude of brands all compete for a good share of the global tourism market. She likened Cebu to David, the Old Testament shepherd boy who faced and conquered Goliath.
“The brand truly captures what Cebu is identified for—talent, culture, faith, and people, among others. It’s a fitting triumphant banner to recognize more of what Cebu really is and what it can offer to the world,” said Alfred Compra II, a BPO employee in Cebu who is also a frequent traveler.
After its launching, the Cebu Brand team will now work on creating marketing materials to promote the brand and engage all Cebuanos to own it.
Chan is confident the brand will be supported by whoever wins in the 2016 elections, as its creation is a product of a private and public partnership.
“There is much work to be done to support the brand... We want tourists to leave the island with a smile on their faces and lasting memories that will draw them back again and again. As they say, the proof of the pudding is in the eating. It takes a communal effort to achieve this,” said Baad.