Banana QR codes encourage tourism in Ecuador

The Ecuador Ministry of Tourism is attaching QR code stickers to one of its largest exports, with the hope of boosting visits to the country.

Consumers today can easily get their hands on the culture of another country without having to leave their armchair, never mind getting on a plane. However, this isn’t great for tourism. We’ve already seen the government of Thailand encourage trips to the country through the opening of themed restaurants around the world, and now Ecuador is letting one of its largest exports advertise the country as a tourist destination through QR codes, with its Banana Ambassador campaign.

One of the problems the country faces when it comes to tourism is that it isn’t well known around the world and is too small to have a large budget for advertising through traditional routes. Instead, it is relying on the 24 million tons of bananas that it exports worldwide each year. Each banana now contains a QR code on its sticker to encourage consumers to learn more about where their food comes from. When they scan the code, they are led through to a promotional video for the country, and then the Ministry of Tourism website. The video below offers more details about the campaign:

Ecuador hopes that the scheme – created in collaboration with the/zimmerman/agency – will increase the chances of consumers abroad engaging with Ecuador, with the potential of boosting tourism numbers. Are there other ways for smaller countries to take advantage of their exported goods?

Spotted by: Murtaza Patel