Last year represented the potential growth of a developing industry for the United States. Brand USA, the tourist marketing program supported by airlines and travel agencies alike, attracted 1 million more visitors to come to the United States last year. The large group of consumers spent $3.4 billion in the USA according to a report released on Thursday. Of course this profit comes at a cost as Brand USA spent a combined $81.6 million on marketing and overhead.
Though traditionally not expected as one of the USA’s top industry, international tourism represents an interesting prospect for the country. As Delaware Online quoted from the CEO of Brand USA Christopher Thompson, “International tourism is not only one of the USA’s best levers for creating jobs, growing exports and driving economic growth, the benefits also extend well beyond the travel industry to include retail, restaurants, transportation and other businesses,”.
Congress passed legislation in 2010 that first created the program that would spend $100 million a year in airline fees in order to match the forceful travel industry. Brand USA represents a combined overall initiative to market the United States as an international destination rather than relying on specific resort attractions. This program stems from advocates who were strongly concerned about the notable other countries that were spending millions of dollars more than the United States to promote their multiple destinations.
According to a report on the tourism sector by Oxford Economics, markets such as Australia, Germany, and Canada all featured steady growth. The most surprising finding is that developing countries such as South Korea and Brazil are displaying a heightened rate of growth than any other markets. This would indicate a poor future for the United States traveling market but thanks to the efforts of Brand USA, the US can hopefully surpass the data and continue the increased profit.
