The old city was transformed into "Erbin": another great success in cultural tourism marketing

Entering a new era, the old city of Harbin has undergone a remarkable renovation and remodeling. This article will explore the successful transformation of this old city, explore the story behind Harbin, and reveal its re-emergence of cultural and tourism charm and market influence.

This winter, the tourism industry welcomed a new "top city" - Harbin.

The trend of Harbin having at least one hot search a day makes us think back to the time when Zibo was made popular by a large number of college students engaged in "special forces-style tourism" as if it were yesterday.

Harbin-related terms are trending on the Internet (excerpt)

With such a heated discussion, TOP also had new thoughts on the causes and consequences of Harbin's explosion:

Why has Harbin become the most popular tourist destination this winter? What thoughts does Harbin's popularity bring to the topic of brand growth? In a city with explosive growth in tourism revenue, how can brands leverage this to expand their voice?

01. Harbin’s secret weapon: appeasing “Southern Little Potatoes”

Let’s first review the timeline of Harbin’s explosion in popularity.

Harbin topic heat map

As we all know, Harbin’s most famous attraction is the "Ice and Snow World" which has been open for more than 20 years. The topic of this cultural tourism started with the ticket refund incident of the Ice and Snow World.

Many tourists from other places went to Harbin before the Ice and Snow World opened. In order to not disappoint the tourists who had come from afar, the authorities opened the attraction for trial operation in advance. Unexpectedly, the incomplete attraction caused dissatisfaction among tourists.

As a result, the tourists shouted "refund" at the scenic spot, and Harbin chose to refund the tickets to compensate the tourists. This incident also caused controversy among many netizens, and some even took advantage of the refund mechanism to get free tickets to the Ice and Snow World.

Ice and Snow World Ticket Refund Event

But Harbin's culture and tourism did not remain silent. When everyone was worried about it, Harbin's "A Letter to the People of the City" won a wave of goodwill with the attitude of "putting customers first, respecting customers, treating customers as friends, and treating customers as relatives."

Harbin: A letter to the people of the city

Harbin’s actions and this letter can be said to be an excellent brand crisis public relations . Not only did it respond to tourists’ dissatisfaction in a timely and sincere manner, it also caught up with the first wave of popularity and established a hospitable city image.

Afterwards, Harbin quickly became popular under the pursuit of "Southern Little Potato", receiving a total of 3.0479 million tourists during the New Year's Day. It topped the list again with the news that "Harbin's total tourism revenue in the three days of New Year's Day was 5.914 billion yuan." The tourism revenue of Sanya, a popular "hibernation" destination, this winter is only one-fifth of Harbin's.

Harbin's total tourism revenue for the three days of New Year's Day was 5.914 billion yuan

Harbin's popularity is not in vain, and the above events are just a few important nodes of this popularity. More importantly, Harbin's kindness to "Southern Little Potatoes" is well known to everyone, and some netizens even joked that Harbin is a "pleaser city."

The salient features of information dissemination in the era of short videos are the immediacy of dissemination speed, the low threshold for creators, the entertainment and fragmentation of content, and precise algorithms .

Topics related to Harbin Culture and Tourism have built an interactive information cocoon for tourists interested in Harbin, Harbin citizens and even the Harbin Municipal Government. It not only allows Harbin Culture and Tourism to clearly understand the needs of tourists, but also allows tourists to witness the positive efforts made by Harbin from the government to the private sector.

A Harbin citizen posted a video, saying that a bus stop sign was too old and worn out, which might cause the "Southern Little Potato" to be unable to see the words clearly. The day after the video was posted, the old sign was replaced, and within a week the bus stop was completely new. The speed of action also made the citizens say: Let's take advantage of the southern tourists to make more suggestions, they will definitely be adopted!

Not to mention the frozen pear platter that locals rarely see, the exquisite Hagia Sophia cake, the anti-slip carpet on Central Avenue... Every detail in food, clothing, housing and transportation is filled with Harbin's warm attitude towards southern tourists, "holding them in their hands for fear of breaking them."

Many tourists were so excited after their visit that they called on more cities to learn from Harbin's "rolling up". After all, who can not love such a city that is covered in snow but warms the heart?

02. Unrepeatable winter cultural tourism marketing

Some people may say that Harbin’s cultural and tourism success can only be replicated in the three northeastern provinces covered with ice and snow, but in fact, Harbin’s success is not limited to the magnificent scenery of ice and snow.

For Harbin, the heat this winter is like a "burst of wealth", but Harbin has taken it. As a former trade distribution center and an old industrial city not good at tourism, "Harbin" is already very remarkable.

During this tourism carnival in Harbin, TOP saw three values ​​of Harbin as a city brand.

First of all, Harbin has the characteristics of the Northeast region .

The Northeast region has always had a down-to-earth and mysterious impression for people across the country.

Whether it is Tieling, the "end of the universe", or Hegang, a city with low prices and livable environment, they have occupied a place in the hearts of netizens to a small extent. Unlike small cities in the northeast, Harbin in Heilongjiang has urban characteristics that other cities do not have.

Netizens suggest other cities learn from Harbin

Ice and snow are its best business cards . The Ice and Snow World, which opened in 1999, continues to this day, with amazing ice sculptures and gorgeous ice lanterns creating a spectacle every year.

In addition, European and Russian-style buildings such as Central Street, St. Sophia Cathedral, and Harbin Pharmaceutical Factory No. 6 also add elegance to Harbin's city image beyond its "rough flavor."

Secondly, sincerity in exchange for sincerity leads to high cost-effectiveness .

The 2023 May Day Holiday Tourism Forecast Report released by Ctrip in 2023 shows that 48% of Heilongjiang tourists are born in the 2000s, 22% are born in the 1990s, and 20% are born in the 1980s. The phenomenon of "Southern Little Potatoes" gathering in Harbin is also dominated by tourists of Generation Z. In the book "The Fourth Consumer Age" written by Sanpu Hideo, it is mentioned that young consumers pay more attention to cost-effectiveness, which is one of the reasons for the explosion of Harbin tourism .

The products in Northeast China are of good quality and low price. Even in the face of "enormous wealth", there is no excessive price increase. In essence, it is a two-way exchange of sincerity between tourist destinations and tourists.

Finally, the traffic sensitivity brought by algorithms and short videos is also the most important point for the great success of Harbin and even Heilongjiang tourism .

He Jing, director of the Heilongjiang Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism, said in an interview: Harbin's popularity is not accidental. We have been preparing for a year, making full use of various new media platforms to promote Heilongjiang in multiple dimensions and thinking from the perspective of tourists . Since January 2023, two 100-day actions have been launched: the "100-day Summer Tourism Action" and the "100-day Winter Ice and Snow Tourism Action".

From "Southern Little Potatoes" to Guangxi's "Small Tangerines", Harbin's popularity is inseparable from the cooperation between Heilongjiang Culture and Tourism and Internet tourism KOLs and the rapid dissemination of information on social media such as Douyin and Weibo.

What are "Southern Potatoes"

Can Harbin replicate its path to becoming a top-tier city? This question was actually answered during the Zibo BBQ period.

A city's creation of a cultural tourism brand does not rely on a single feature such as barbecue or ice and snow, but on a comprehensive integration of everything from objects to people. Neither ice and snow nor European-style architecture is unique to Harbin, but only by combining the policies and implementation of Heilongjiang's cultural tourism can it go a long way in the hearts of consumers .

03. Does the ice and snow season bring opportunities for brands?

Of course, Harbin’s popularity not only provides inspiration for city brand marketing, but also provides an excellent opportunity for brand implantation .

Harbin-based brands such as Qiulin Red Sausage, Madiel Popsicles and Wandashan are on the must-eat list for tourists, and other local or non-local brands are not to be outdone.

Ele.me's "I'll Treat You" campaign landed in Harbin, and launched the "Harbin·Mobile Postcard" campaign in cooperation with the Harbin Culture and Tourism Bureau. The brand combines the milk tea cup set with a celebrity card. When users buy milk tea, they will receive a postcard with the beautiful scenery of Harbin printed on it and can be mailed for free.

Ele.me×Harbin Culture and Tourism Bureau

In addition, the brand also set up a giant movable postcard offline to "freeze" the beautiful scenery of Harbin, and also convey Harbin's natural and cultural scenery with cups of milk tea.

Ele.me postcard billboard

Mixue Bingcheng’s launch of city-limited cup sleeves and KFC’s launch of city-limited peripheral products have also attracted the attention of some consumers.

KFC Harbin Limited Peripheral Area

Sijimuge has joined hands with Harbin Ice and Snow World, Songhua River Ice and Snow Carnival, and Sophia Church Ice and Snow Festival, three major "ice and snow IPs", to set up warm stations near the churches and inside the Ice and Snow World. It warms tourists with physical sensations, highlights the brand's technological upgrades, and conveys brand warmth.

Four Seasons Muge "Warm Station"

At this feast, the local brand Fuerjia declared that "My brother and I in Harbin are open and pampered." Not only did they set up brand ice sculptures in the Ice and Snow World, the highlight of Harbin, but they also initiated interactive topics to convey the brand message of "Come to Harbin to repair your soul, and use Fuerjia to repair your skin."

Fuerjia×Ice and Snow World

Fulijia is not the only brand that has set its sights on the Ice and Snow World. Lancôme has also achieved brand breakthrough with its high-end and exquisite ice sculptures.

Lancome Ice Sculpture

The off-site ice sculptures also include brand ice sculptures of various wine companies.

Ice sculptures of wine companies (Photo source: Xiaohongshu netizen Yueyuetu)

There are also many film and television IPs in the Ice and Snow World . Last year, the ice and snow sculptures of the "Rural Love Story" series cooperated with Youku broke the circle, and this year the scope of cooperation between the two parties has been further expanded. Snow sculptures of "The Legend of Zhen Huan", "This! Street Dance", "The Moon Embers", "The Legend of Zhen Huan" and other snow sculptures have achieved a win-win situation for the scenic spot and the platform.

Even the movie "Twinkle Twinkle Star", which is currently in its promotional period, has joined the Ice and Snow World to attract movie fans to check in.

From physical brands to film and television IPs, the ice and snow trend has not only brought impressive tourism results to Harbin, but also provided brands with an opportunity to communicate with consumers thanks to the plasticity of tourist attractions .

Conclusion

Harbin’s success is not only the result of the right time, place and people, but also thanks to the marketing planning of the Heilongjiang Culture and Tourism Bureau and its control of topics in the Internet era.

With the changes in the economic situation and people's consumption concepts, cities have more unique ways to go global. Whether this path is replicable or not, Harbin and Zibo have shown the possibility of building a city brand.

Author: TOP Jun

WeChat public account: TopMarketing (WeChat public account: TMarketing)