My Two Cents - Would a single Caribbean brand work?

When people who live outside the Caribbean speak of the region they speak of it as The Caribbean, like it's a single entity, one long strip of white sand, turquoise blue water and endless palm trees gently swaying in light breezes.

That was reinforced to me during a class presentation while studying in England. Presenting on Caricom, the Caribbean's political and economic organisation, I started my presentation with a diagram depicting all the islands that comprise the Caribbean archipelago.

Many of my classmates commented that they never knew the Caribbean was so vast. Even the lecturer, who worked for the United Nations, I believe, was really blown away by what that diagram showed - the vastness and implied differences of the region.

And that's what many people do not understand about the Caribbean, we may live in the same region, and may share a common history with colonialism and slavery, but each and every island is different, with its own culture and beliefs, attitude and approaches to life.

These differences have played a huge part in delaying any real political union similar to the European Union. Each island jealously guards its uniqueness, unwilling to let go and be part of a real Caribbean whole. And that has translated into how each island markets its tourism product. Forget The Caribbean, when it comes to tourism, it has always been each island for itself.

So with this in mind, I wonder, can attempts to market the Caribbean as one entity really work? Can it work, even as islands compete with each other to market themselves to what is now a challenging market, thanks to the economic decline.

In an article in the The Trinidad Express Caricom Ambassador Irwin Larocque, assistant secretary-general of trade and economic integration, says the establishment of a Caribbean brand for regional tourism sector will not impact negatively national branding.

"The plan that we put forward now is to provide avenues or a niche for the national brand..."

"The two - the national and the Caribbean brands - will coexist. As a matter of fact the Caribbean brand will enhance and augment the promotion of the national brand."

Larocque said, during a video conference to the media, that many times when people think of a vacation they first think of the Caribbean, and then within the Caribbean context, they will go for a particular destination or a particular experience and this is what the Caribbean brand will help to promote.

Caricom secretary-general Edwin Carrington said at a special one day meeting earlier this year, a task force was established to look into the regional development of the tourism sector.

"Part of the critical role of that task force is the designing of a regional marketing plan for the Caribbean brand of tourism that we hope to unveil to the international market as a way of attracting greater support in that area," he reportedly said.

Will it? Only time will tell.