‘BVI Love’ slogan a dud? Former BVITB boss slams new catchphrase
A switch by the BVI from the ‘Nature’s Little Secrets’ marketing slogan to the now ubiquitous ‘BVI Love’ branding, has been given a scathing review by former director of the BVI Tourist Board (BVITB), Sharon Flax-Brutus.
When asked recently by co-host of the Talking Points radio show, Damion Grange, what she felt the impact of the new messaging on visitors has been, Flax-Brutus offered no hesitation in deconstructing the new catchphrase.
“I would say there is no impact, and not because there’s no impact to not having ‘Nature’s Little Secrets’. I think ‘Nature‘s Little Secrets’ had a lot of cachets and had a lot of marketing and brand equity for identifying the BVI,” the former BVITB boss stated.
“When you heard the words Nature’s Little Secrets – especially looking at a vacation experience – it connoted something very special,” Flax-Brutus argues.
Financial services issue should note dilute BVI’s brand
The former Tourist Board Director who said she now calls herself a Tourism Experience Curator, noted that she was well aware of the argument from the financial services sector and the wordplay on the ‘Nature’s Little Secrets’ slogan.
The BVI has been dogged for decades by allegations that it is a tax haven for persons who desire to keep details of their wealth secret from others and has been spirited in refuting these claims over the years.
Meanwhile, Flax Brutus said that it was her personal and professional opinion that the financial services sector should find another approach to dealing with this challenge.
“I would say to financial services folks, ‘you know what, deal with your problems another way. Don’t dilute a brand that has worked for tourism for all of these years to try to solve your problem’,” she stated.
Flax-Brutus expressed that the two sectors were two entirely different industries that offered different priorities and questioned why the priority for financial services should be deemed greater than that of tourism.
I will never use that term
The former Tourist Board boss shared that she is even hesitant to utter the new catchphrase.
“I vowed never to use the words of the new logo and I stand by it, so I will say whatever that logo is, it says nothing internationally for the BVI,” Flax-Brutus said.
“It may mean a lot in the BVI [but]… in my opinion, as a marketer and a tourism person, it should’ve been used as a local campaign,” she added.
She questioned rhetorically whether there is an appreciation for the distinction between a campaign and a full-on marketing strategy and whether there is an appreciation for the fact that there are different campaigns for different markets, designed to achieve different things.
“I recall when the branding for Nature’s Little Secrets went away, I got quite a few calls from former colleagues in the industry internationally who said to me, ‘Sharon, we would have given anything for your logo and the equity, the brand equity that that said, because it sold itself,” Flax Brutus said.
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Ask The Moorings about BVI LOVE
LOL
An audit should have been done when this individual vacated that office, because the same thing she has been complaining about is what she perpetuated. Just a case of the pot calling the kettle black.
She no longer has her hands on the government pu**e and is having a difficult time adjusting to that new norm. We all would be better served if you offered suggestions that can help this country instead of just finding fault.
In order to improve or help, the faults must be brought to the surface Hun.
Here we go again with the reactive notion from this lady and when she was in office no proactive approach was taken.
Then a set of dummies saying she was out before covid! I guess you all don’t know what proactive mean!
Putting measures in place in case something is to happen. Be preventative with any unforeseen event. Her 20/20 vision on now because she can now focus on the job she had but when she was in there she was focus on her pocket.
Shew Fly!!!!
Now she finding fault.
If the bvi really loved us they wouldn’t charge 10 Dollars on a bogus environmental tax just before you get through customs it’s a joke
I pay all the taxes when I travel, whether through the Caribbean or elsewhere.
It’s an absolutely foolish slogan and needs to be changed as soon as the Virgin Islands Party is removed.
Well, many people jumped and bought the hoodies,shirts,etc.
That’s anything for them to do? The love to be in thing and love new thing! It’s a stupid slogan.
Dumb dumb, that’s why I said many jumped and swallowed up the new slogan and bought every piece of clothing they could with BVI LOVE printed on them, but yet they are a hateful bunch. Anyway carry on
I thought “Nature’s Little Secrets” was a great catch-phrase.
This country slogan should be Gossip Island ,where your business is everyone business ?
BVI HATE!
I thought Natures little Secret was great not sure which imbecile came up with that BVI Love nonsense
So what if we insult you, detain you and impound your boat, we’re doing it with “BVI Love”
FOR BREAKING THE LAW.
Yall people seem to always leave out that part.
If anyone really understands the BVI and our culture you will know this is a VERY appropriate slogan. Family, religion, cooperation, tolerance, a little nepotism from seeing familiar faces on a small island year after year. Its BVI love.
Without this base of knowing who is who “who you fa?” there would be much more violence, theft, violence against women, every sin.
Before you could not drop a pin without being recognized. One of Natures little secrets is its hard to keep secrets in the BVI.
Now we’ve become a minority in this country chalked full of strangers with something to prove. Most of the population arent from here and sadly are very proud of it.
Despite recent occurrences I feel safe in the BVI at all hours. I can go for a walk at 1am no problem. Thats BVI love. Cmon where else can you do this.
You must be a man to walk at at 1am no problem. Not recommended for women please.
DMV need call back all of our plates the catch phrase is out date so the plates aren’t valid no BVI LOVE
Before Nature’s Little Secret and BVI Love was “Yes, We’re Different”
#bvinice…
Sharon is right, it was a mistake to remove Natures Little Secret, it was a powerful tagline. BVI Love is great but for a local campaign. You have to know what works in the regional and international market and Natures little secret was perfect, BVI Love is only mention locally, it is not a marketing tagline.
Yes we are different
The BVI Love slogan means different things to different people. To baby boomers from the USA it connotes the 1969 Woodstock music festival during the Vietnam War. Not exactly a good time for most male boomers who got shipped off to die in the Asian jungle.
Commune clearly smokin something. In the top 10 asinine comments so far this year.
First of all, why were using the word “British” in our branding of these Virgin Islands?? What do the British have to do with it really? I thought it is our goal to get our act together and be a sovereign nation ….
Ask the man who own the website!
Interesting! I heard about “BVI LOVE”, but I thought it was added to the BVI’s tourism portfolio. I didn’t know it replaced “Nature’s Little Secrets”!
Ms Flax has a point. Anyone who has a limited knowledge of marketing can relate. The original slogan worked, period. The new slogan, in my opinion does not and cannot create the impact that we need to revive the tourism sector. Hate the messenger if you want but right will still be right.
That is the stupidest name!!!! You all need to keep Natures Little Secrets!!!!
SUE THY NEIGHBOR!