Case Study
Barbados Remote Work Campaign Forges a Path to COVID-19 Tourism Recovery
Tourism
Background
With more than a third of its GDP coming from tourism, Barbados faced a huge challenge when COVID-19 brought the travel industry to a standstill. As travel brands began saturating the global marketplace with “visit later” messaging, it became clear Barbados would need to get creative to stimulate its economy and ensure the island stayed top of mind for when international travel resumed.
Services Provided
Strategy
Leveraging the rise in people working and learning from home, DCI partnered with Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc. to launch the 12-month Barbados Welcome Stamp – the world’s first remote work visa program – via an aggressive earned media campaign.
Results
- The campaign launch went viral – DCI secured more than 1,796 stories in top-tier media outlets, such as CBC News, Conde Nast Traveler, CNN, CTV News, Good Morning America, National Post, NY Times and Travel + Leisure.
- Coverage generated 4.8 billion+ impressions, resulting in 2000+ applications for the Welcome Stamp– nearly twice the original goal of 1,000 applications.
- The success and influence of the campaign’s launch sparked a new trend, with destinations across the globe replicating the Barbados remote work program.
- DCI worked to further position Barbados as a leader in the global tourism community by coordinating an opportunity for BTMI to advise the World Bank on policy for future remote worker visa programs.
1,796
Top-Tier Stories
4.8B
Impressions
2,000+
Program Applicants