There was this craze about the sunset over in Kota Kinabalu especially by tourists from China and Korea that started about 3 to 5 years ago. People were swarming at the Tanjung Aru Beach and most notably, there were sunset enthusiasts over at the city's 2 major resorts (namely Shangri-La Tanjung Aru Resort and Sutera Harbour Resort).
I didn't seem to care at that time about what was happening mainly because I had this typical mindset as a local that the sunset over here, well, to put it simply, I've literally seen it thousands of times.
Then I remembered there's this one time when I was having a hang out session with a friend who happens to be working at a tour agency. I asked him, why do Chinese and Korean tourists love our sunset so much. He gave me 2 answers:
A) The sunset in the west coast of Sabah Borneo, we have to admit, it's heavenly when the weather is great.
B)Never underestimate the power of marketing. China and Korea tour agencies often promote destinations by upselling products, in this case, the product being the setting of the sun. Kota Kinabalu's sunset is currently marketed towards the Chinese and Korean market as one of the best in the world.
This got me thinking a tad bit. Told myself to try and get a picture of the sunset on my own and see what the fuss is about. As you can see from the picture I took, one word, AMAZING!
On a different note, being in communications and events for over 10 years, I've come across endless number of marketing tactics. One stands out the most for me, and it might work for you. I believe this was how it started with the marketing of the sunset as well. Understand your market first, then market products or services that fits the needs of that particular market. Eventually it will sell itself.
Those who are in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah Borneo, and are interested in having the best sunset viewing, here are easy to access location suggestions for you (best time between 5:30pm to 6:30pm):
