Bulgaria’s promotional clips hit nearly 190 million views on four pan-European TV channels

In the period between March and May 2015, the promotional clips of Bulgaria were broadcast 673 times by the four pan-European TV channels (Eurosport, Discovery Channel, Euronews and National Geographic Channel), reaching nearly 190 million views. This is said in the interim report of the implementation team of the project funded under Operational Program “Regional Development” 2007-2013, unveiled earlier today.

The campaign is carried out in three waves of promotional clips broadcast, each wave lasting about eight weeks with an average of three daily broadcasts. Two waves have already been completed and the third is to be run by the end of November. The videos broadcast on the four television channels last 30 seconds and have two versions each - an image-spot and a video focused on cultural tourism. They are in German, French, English, Russian, Spanish and Bulgarian language. The videos are broadcast in prime time and in the evening and morning broadcasts. “One of the outcomes of the promotion campaign is that our country was ranked first among the most popular destinations for tourism in Europe by the viewers of Discovery Channel”, stressed Ani Haralambieva, Project Manager at the Ministry of Tourism.

TV crew visits were agreed as a bonus under the signed contracts for filming, production and broadcast of televised reports as part of the year-round campaign conducted by the Ministry. A team of Euronews visited our country at the end of August to shoot a reportage on Apolonia Art Festival in Sozopol. The Eurosport team filmed five stories (Sport Trips) on the opportunities to practice different sports in the country. As a bonus aimed to diversify the marketing mix, static and pre-roll banners were agreed on the official portals of the TV channels. National Geographic are working on the production of a clip with thematic focus on the natural attractions of our country, to be broadcast within the framework of the campaign.

The broadcasting of image spots for Bulgaria is financed under the project “Conducting a year-round promotion campaign of Bulgaria on leading pan-European TV channels”. The total project value is about 3 million Euros funded under “Regional Development” OP. The project implementation has been delayed over the years, however at the beginning of this calendar year the team of the Ministry of Tourism expedited all necessary procedures in order to complete the project and prevent loss of European funding. In practical terms, the four pan-European media cover almost the entire territory of Europe, along with countries of the Middle East, Africa and Asia.

The coverage of Eurosport is 15 million viewers per day in 54 countries. Euronews is broadcast in 156 countries and reaches 419 million households through cable and digital platforms. Discovery Channel covers up to 97 million households in Europe, the Middle East and Asia. National Geographic Channel has an audience of 458 million households in 173 countries worldwide. According to studies and analyzes, it is namely the European countries that are among the main target and generating markets for Bulgarian tourism.