Brought to you by JNTO
Japan is aiming to become Asia’s leading destination for business events with “New Ideas Start Here”, a campaign by Japan National Tourism Organisation (JNTO) based on four core values. These values bring forward Japan’s most distinguishing qualities in MICE: First, Japan’s world-leading scientific and industrial sectors are brimming with extraordinary talents and innovative technologies; second, it is a society with a distinct culture that delights the senses and inspires visitors with new insights; third, its workforce is exceptionally skilled in planning and managing conferences and events; and fourth is the overall public safety and cleanliness of Japanese cities and venues that put organisers and visitors at ease.
Japan has certainly impressed the world in recent years as a MICE destination. It was ranked seventh in the world with 414 meetings — the highest for an Asia-Pacific country — by International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) in its 2017 Country & City Rankings Report. In terms of the total number of participants, Japan is ranked 10th in the world with an estimated 133,025 participants. This was also the highest for an Asia-Pacific country.
Creative incentive ideas
In the incentive sector, planners from Asia are achieving great results by aligning their concepts with the values of JNTO’s MICE brand as mentioned earlier. EVO Communications from Singapore, a winner of JNTO’s JAPAN Best Incentive Travel Awards, designed a programme that delivered new insights on the client company’s origin through immersive cultural experiences. The strong support from local partners ensured everything proceeded smoothly.
The winning incentive trip was for a global conference in Kyoto for a leading luxury skincare brand. 360 participants attended the four-day event. EVO Communications’ itinerary integrated authentic Japanese cultural experiences with the client company’s business objectives.
Customised for the client company
Etsuko Kawasaki, the Executive Director of Japan Convention Bureau, said EVO Communications’ itinerary stood out because it successfully combined Japan’s “Koji making” experience with teambuilding in a way that enlightened participants to the client company’s history.
“We were also impressed with the organiser’s attention-to-detail displayed throughout all aspects of the programme, which included an award ceremony and training sessions.”
Another contributing factor to the win was the wide use of social media by the organiser and participants. This gave the event an influencer effect, she added.
While EVO Communications’ programme was four days long, all official activities were scheduled only for Day 2, which consist of four segments.
Thoughtful mix of business and leisure
The first activity was a business review and training session for all participants. This took place at a venue decorated in a welcoming Japanese theme with cherry blossoms, shoji screens and sake barrels. Participants received gift scarves and souvenirs embellished with Japanese crane and cherry blossom motifs.
The second activity had a distinct Japanese flavour. The brewing workshop gave participants hands-on experience in Japanese traditional Koji-making (fermentation) process. It concluded with a tasting of one of the most famous products from the Koji-making process — the Japanese rice wine sake. The other activity is a kimono-dressing experience, where participants learned how to put on a kimono before going for a leisurely stroll. Looking very elegant in their brightly patterned kimonos, participants took photos of themselves and colleagues for a kimono photo contest on Instagram.
The third activity was the award and certificate-presentation ceremonies, which was followed by the fourth and perhaps most memorable activity — a Gala Dinner complete with a sake barrel-breaking ceremony and masu toast. A drum performance courtesy of Kyoto Convention & Visitors Bureau and a Japanese fusion dance brought the evening’s entertainment to a climax.
On the third day, with official business concluded, participants explored many beautiful sights of Kyoto to their hearts’ content. From shopping to sightseeing to sampling local delicacies, they got a taste of the real Japan and went home with sweet memories to last a lifetime.
For more information contact:
Susan Ong (Japan National Tourism Organization, Singapore Office)
Tel: +65 6223 8205 ext.105
Email: susan_ong@jnto.go.jp, sin_mice@jnto.go.jp
Web: https://www.japanmeetings.org/
Inspiring Business Events: Japan Photo and Video Contest
Share your best moments in Japan and win a prize! JNTO has launched “Inspiring Business Events: Japan Photo & Video Contest” to highlight the diversity of Japan’s business events. If you are a MICE professional or participant at a MICE event in Japan and have taken a photo or video that captures the success of your event, do share it with JNTO. The images can be about an impressive scene or Japanese culture.
Four awards will be given out: Innovative Japan Award, Unique Japan Award, Hospitable Japan Award and New Idea Video Award. There will also be prizes for approximately 80 finalists.
Submission period: September 18, 2018 to January 7, 2019.
More details at: www.japanmeetings.org/contest/
