JTB targets Generation Z audience

LONDON:

A new project designed to attract a younger audience of visitors to Jamaica will be launched next month during the Jamaica House showcase in Birmingham to celebrate the island’s participation in the Commonwealth Games.

Aptly named ‘NexGen Jamaica’,the Jamaica Tourist Board-inspired project will target young people of Jamaican heritage who are curious about the homeland of their parents and grandparents and are eager to learn and experience its culture, both in the UK and Jamaica.

The campaign will focus on promoting Jamaica to the Gen Z and millennial population within the diaspora, sustaining its rich heritage and culture, and will see the members themselves becoming ‘ambassadors’ who will encourage their counterparts to embrace their cultural heritage as well as build a stronger connection within the community.

The launch event on Saturday, August 6, at 5.00 p.m. during Jamaica House at the Glee Club in the Arcadian Centre will be a sensory experience including a dance class to the latest reggae dancehall music along with Jamaican food and rum tasting. There will also be information on how to open a bank account in Jamaica, invest, and purchase property.

Following the launch, the NexGen Jamaica campaign will be an ongoing programme targeting major UK cities with roadshows promoting Jamaica and signing up new members. The partnership with the JTB in the UK will be the first pilot, and if successful, could be rolled out to other diaspora regions.

Commenting on the launch of NexGen, Jamaica Tourist Board’s UK district manager Torrance Lewis said: “The diaspora is an important part of the visitors from the UK and the age profiles are constantly changing.

“There are fewer first- and second-generation Jamaicans now travelling while the number of third and fourth are growing. It’s a logical progression of the marketing cycle to include this increasingly savvy traveller in our messaging and communication.

“As an organisation, we have to ensure that we are communicating with them at every level about their relationship with Jamaica, whether it’s through cuisine, entertainment, travel, or simply giving them spaces to network. It’s about keeping the relationship alive.

“The JTB has partnered with the Grace Kennedy Foundation to provide the travel element and discover part of the Birthright programme to the UK Gen Z community. We are piloting the discover part with a view to creating travel experiences for ‘Gen-z-eers’, and with this launch, we hope to be able to excite as many as possible about joining future trips to Jamaica, which are geared at exposing them to the real Jamaica, their culture, identity, and keeping them in the conversation as much as possible.”

The launch on August 6 will be at 5.00 p.m. after which the NexGenJamaica cultural and heritage ambassadors will join the Commonwealth Games Watch Party, starting at 6.00 p.m., to celebrate Jamaica’s 60th year of Independence from the United Kingdom as well as to cheer on the Jamaican athletes competing in the games.

Jamaica House will run from August 3 to 7 at the Glee Club in Birmingham’s city centre, and patrons may view the track and field events live on big screens while savouring delicious rum cocktails as well as some authentically cooked jerk chicken and patties over the five days. Jamaican UK-based artistes will also provide entertainment with the best of reggae, dancehall, gospel, and comedy.

Persons interested in participating in the NexGen launch event can email mail@visitjamaica.com by Tuesday, August 2.