Mitchelmore's tourism ad intro unnecessary, awkward says specialist

While Newfoundland and Labrador tourism adsare known for drawingoohs, ahhs, and plenty of awards, avideo of Tourism Minister Christopher Mitchelmore introducingthe province's latest campaign is drawing questions andsharpcriticism on social media.

That's likelybecause Mitchelmoremisses the mark on both the message andthe medium, says Conway Fraser, a communications specialist withFraser Torosay.

"This is a video that I would never let a client post online,"Frasersaid in an interview withCBC'sHere & Now."It just doesn't jive with the professionalism and the authenticity of the actual video that's being put out for promotional purposes."

Mitchelmore'svideo, which was shared and later deleted fromthe Department of Tourism'sTwitter account,showshim in an office, alone,in a chair, reading from notes onhis lap about Newfoundlanders' andLabradorians' knackfor storytelling.

He tellsviewers to "tune in" to the province's websitetocheck out the latest tourism campaign.

"Clearly, it's scripted," said Fraser. "It looks uncomfortable, awkward."

Extra message not needed

In contrast, the new tourism ad Mitchelmore introduces in his videois much like the province's other award-winning ads: slow, sweeping drone footage of waves crashing against jagged shores, roads winding intohillsides, and people steeringdories, playing music, or looking out of windows at towns thatseem to sit at the edgeof the world.

It's been viewed nearly 200,000 times across government's social media channels since it was released last week, according to a statementfrom theDepartmentof Tourism.

"Newfoundland and Labrador is known globally for its promotional videos," Fraser said. "They're stunning, they work. I've done workin the tourism sector, and governments that I've worked with have said, 'We want to do what Newfoundland and Labrador is doing.'"

"Why did the minister even needto do the video?" he said. "The actual campaign ad is so brilliant."

If the message of the campaign is about story, Mitchelmore could have told a story in his video, and he could have shot it in a bar or in a cafplaces where stories are often told, he said.

The video doesn't meetthe expectations of social media either, he said.

"Social media is all about being authentic and being credible," said Fraser. "People almost expect a little bit of edginess, a little bit of roughness."

A stiff reading in a leather high-back chair doesn't accomplish that, he said.

Video taken off Twitter

Many people on social media agreewith Fraser, posting comments asking why the video was done, andwhat the provincial government was thinking when it was released.

The video was deleted from the tourism department's Twitter page.

In a statementemailedto CBC News,Mitchelmorewrote it was removed "now that the new ad is airing on national television."

Not the time to take communications risks

Ultimately, Fraser said,Mitchelmore'svideo was unnecessary and came at an inopportune time.

With an election coming up, Fraser said he'd advise even Mitchelmore, a politician who won with 89 per cent of the vote in the last election, to be more careful.

"This is not the time to be taking big risks," he said.

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