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By M.J.R.S. Fernando fter the recovery of being a long term victim of three decades old ethnic problem, Sri Lanka is now on its way to build up the international image to attract different kind of tourists from all over the world. It is true that Sri Lanka has pool of resources when it comes to tourism development. The burning issue is that we are far behind from the main rivals' marketing techniques. India for an instance is the biggest competitor of Sri Lanka tourism industry, but as a nation we have the same resources, may be more than that. The difference is the tools that are used in brand building. A great effort of stakeholders together will support to lift up Sri Lanka's international brand image. Internet plays a major role in this issue. It has a helped the world to become a single village by removing all the boundaries. Especially the blogs are more popular these days as it has become the virtual word of mouth in the current scenario. People tend to visit places that are recommended by whom have visited those places. Even technology has reached its peak; still people are the same people who used to be long ago. Therefore Sri Lanka should have a way of using virtual word of mouth as a marketing tool. For that providing an unforgettable first impression is important. The first step of making international image is to concentrate on
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Even technology has reached its peak; still people are the same people who used to be long ago. Therefore Sri Lanka should have a way of using virtual word of mouth as a marketing tool. For that providing an unforgettable first impression is important. The first step of making international image is to concentrate on providing a remarkable product Countries such as France, India, Maldives, Australia, United Kingdom, Germany, South Africa are within leading tourist destinations because of the by combining all political, economic and social factors. If we can build up the overall image of the country, the tourism brand image will increase undoubtedly. Therefore creating a healthy environment is a cheap way to build the international image but it will be the final outcome of a lot of hard work. It's about creating a real yet an inspirational longterm vision for the development of the country and supporting that aim through good leadership, economic and social changes, effective cultural and political relations, infrastructure, and education and specially change of attitudes. Desiring a better image won't make Sri Lanka a better country. But making a better country will successfully produce a better image and there are many ways of making this process more reliable, faster, and more durable with the essential support of government and virtual word of mouth will do its piece of work at the end.