By Madigan Pratt

In an interview several years ago, John Wooden, the incredibly successful coach of the UCLA Bruins men's basketball team was asked what one thing he felt contributed most to the team's unprecedented performance. Without hesitation Coach Wooden said it was the team's ability to execute the fundamentals better than the competition. You can't have a great team if you have lousy fundamentals.

This is true in basketball and it's also true in business.

Last summer's issue of Travel Marketing Decisions pointed out that the most fundamental ingredient in a successful Integrated Marketing Communications program is a solid brand positioning. Having a consumer benefit-oriented position that clearly differentiates your product or service from competition is the surest way to achieve strategic advantage and above average ROI.

Package Goods manufacturers have practiced brand positioning fundamentals for years and the travel business is now beginning to follow suit. But having a good positioning isn't all that's needed. Once developed, the positioning needs to be executed in all marketing activities including communications and product development.

The positioning must be carried through in all aspects of communications - right down to your tag-line. A tag-line should capture the essence of your positioning. It shouldn't be a throw-away line. Good advertising reflects your positioning, is benefit oriented and differentiates you from competitors. Sounds like Communications 101, doesn't it?

Well then, now would be a good time for a pop quiz! Below I have listed fifteen tag-lines either currently or recently used to promote state tourism. The objective is to match the tag-line with the correct state.

MATCH THE TAG LINE...

WITH THE CORRECT STATE:

1. Grand Canyon State (Had to start with an easy one.) 2. _____ Is What America Used To Be 3. The Way Life Should Be 4. Like No Other Place On Earth 5. You Could Use A Little ____ 6. What You've Been Looking For 7. It Will Change The Way You Look At Things 8. Things Look Different Here 9. We're Full Of Surprises 10. You're Among Friends (Hint: It's not Pennsylvania!) 11. Smiling Faces, Beautiful Places 12. Great Faces, Great Places 13. The World Is Welcome Here 14. What a Difference a State Makes 15. The Natural State

(In no particular order) Indiana Kentucky South Dakota Arkansas Maine Arizona Wisconsin Utah Oregon Idaho New Jersey Wyoming Vermont Connecticut South Carolina

More difficult than you thought? If, like many package goods marketers, the fundamental principles of positioning and Integrated Marketing Communications were followed, then the quiz would have been considerably easier.

Take a look at the segment of the travel industry in which you compete. What are you saying about your product? What's your position? Is it a solid consumer benefit? Does it differentiate your product - make it better in consumers' minds? How is competition positioned? Is it reflected in their positionings, advertising and product development?

There's a good chance that your segment of the industry, like state marketing campaigns, could follow some of Coach Wooden's advice and focus more on the fundamentals.

I just administered the quiz to several people in the office and everyone failed miserably! And no one correctly identified the tag-line for our own state. Makes you wonder whether it's the result of poor positioning, bad execution or lack of funding - three all too prevalent characteristics of state tourism marketing programs.

A $100 donation was made in the winner's name to The Academy of Travel & Tourism, which provides rigorous training in the three R's, hands on computer training and a challenging travel industry curriculum in over 200 inner city high schools nationwide.

For more information about The Academy of Travel & Tourism and how you can help a very worthy cause, contact Nancy Kahn, National Director at 235 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10003. Telephone (212)420-8400 x118.