Ecuador will make history by becoming the first foreign country to have a tourism commercial during the Super Bowl. The 30-second ad will be to the tune of “All You Need Is Love,” by the Beatles, as a part of a larger “All You Need Is Ecuador” campaign aimed at American tourists.
Ecuador, a nation of just 15.7 million people, would spend $3.8 million for the promotion. But this is no whim: Ecuador is spending billions on improving its travel infrastructure, and the United States is the country’s second-largest tourist market after Colombia.
Ecuador’s ambassador to the U.S., Nathalie Cely, said U.S. tourism has grown 4 per cent a year for the last 10 years, and the country wants to double that over the next five. The country said that if it saw just 1 per cent growth in U.S. visitors to Ecuador, it would recover the money spent on the ad.
An estimated one in four American tourists visit Ecuador for the Galapagos Islands, but the country wants to shed a spotlight on a lot more than the famous archipelago. For one thing, Cely pointed out, Ecuador has become a premier option for American expatriates — in fact, it was named the top country for expats in a report evaluating 160 nations earlier this year.
“We have been sort of shy the last 10 years about promoting our country, which I think is beautiful and unique,” Cely said. “We wanted to do something big in this market, and we thought that having the opportunity to have Ecuador at halftime in the Super Bowl will give us the kind of exposure we want.”
“We’re going to try very hard to tell the world in 30 seconds what Ecuador is about and how unique a proposition it is for Americans to visit,” Cely said.
The country also wants to promote such attractions as Quito’s urban life, Cuenca’s colonial charm, and the diverse rainforests.
The country isn’t revealing the exact contents of the pricey ad but the ambassador said we can expect something of the other spots during this campaign.
