In the wake of current national events, I have been reminded of the importance of crisis communications skills for public relations professionals. It has led me to revisit several case studies involving destinations in the wake of crisis in order to understand (and learn from) tourism leaders. In this vast historical search, very few destinations know this sequence of violence and visitor recovery efforts as well as the country of Egypt, and today’s destination marketing leaders should take note that learning from past experiences can help navigate future situations.
The relationship between tourism and terrorism is extremely fragile. In some countries where tourism is a significant economic revenue source, terrorists have used acts of violence against tourists to hit the government where it hurts the most: the reduction of visitor arrivals and expenditures. According to Sonmez, Apostolopoulos and Tarlow (1999), when travel stops being enjoyable on account of perceived risk, tourists employ their liberty and power to dodge precarious situations or destinations.
I want to analyze three communication sectors of a specific terrorism crisis response: overall efforts by Egyptian officials in the 1990’s to minimize violence to media, how other countries have successfully framed similar situations and why communicating too quickly with certainty can backfire for tourism organizations. This post includes a summation of Egypt’s plight of terrorism during that time, responses of both the Egyptian government and tourism board and successful cases of rebound by Middle Eastern countries to similar acts of violence. While much has changed in the world since the 90’s, fundamental crisis communications principles remain the same.
Situation
Egyptian tourism has suffered for decades due to reoccurring violent acts by terrorists. In one example of September 1997, several Islamic radicals threw flaming bottles of gasoline at an Egyptian tour bus and unleashed gunfire on the passengers; consequently, nine tourists and the Egyptian bus driver died in front of the Cairo Eqyptian Museum. Cancellations by potential visitors and police force followed in mass, and over time, the economic loss in the tourism sector for this country reached more than one billion dollars. According to Feichtinger, Haryl, Kort and Novak (2001), violence erupted even more severely after the Egyptian government publicly declared victory over terrorism in hopes to improve public perception.
With a goal to keep tourists coming, the Egyptian tourism bureau was quick to respond. According to Hagerty (1993), Mr. Fouad Sultan, the Egyptian tourism minister, chose to respond to reporters immediately with statements communicating Egypt was safe, that terrorism was common in life and that the odds of risk for three million visitors were slim. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case as acts of terrorism continued to increase and tourism continued to decrease dramatically. Avraham (2013) noted that Egypt overall ignored the crises, known as a “total disregard strategy,” in their marketing efforts. For example, when the terrorist bombings continued in Cairo, Egyptian officials tried to portray the crisis as marginal (limited the size of the bomb, reduced the injury impact and moving blame to non-terrorists) in interviews.
Outcome
The Egyptian government’s initial statement of certainty that terrorism was eradicated proved disastrous for the country. While Egypt acknowledged the media as a primary audience and communicated early, they failed to assure the public of current and future risk. The tourism bureau also failed make empathy a priority in messaging, which would have helped tremendously under the unfortunate circumstance of lost lives.
Focusing on the potential positive rather than ignoring or minimizing the issue completely would have been a more advantageous strategy for Egypt. Ulmer, Sellnow and Seeger (2015) suggest that successful leaders- equipped with strong communication skills- know how to frame events in order to move past them. Avraham (2013) recommends the “new era” technique as a successful strategy in communicating opportunity through violence. Several nations, like Oman, Jordan and Algeria, have positively used a message of evolving from a problematic past to a promising future. This effort helps to maintain or regain trust with stakeholders.
Middle Eastern countries still struggle with destination marketing in the aftermath of terrorism. For professional communicators within the tourism sector, the case of Egypt can be used as a gentle reminder to think deliberately, empathetically and strategically when disaster strikes. Minimizing or ignoring violence isn’t advisable, and expressing certainty too soon can have serious consequences. Positive thinking is also powerful and offers opportunity for restoration.
DMO Crisis Planning for Today
Now, in the unfortunate wake of domestic and international violence becoming almost part of everyday life for citizens, risk planning and continued relationship building by tourism leaders with media and residents are critical to averting damage. Understanding each audience’s needs and how they search for information is critical in message dissemination planning. Furthermore, continuous learning by tourism leaders of case studies related to crisis communications – specifically terrorism attacks- can help efforts to manage future disasters.
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Tiffany Russell, APR is a corporate marketing communications executive serving both the destination marketing industry and local government services. LEARN MORE
Tiffany M. Russell, APR, CDME 