We love "Best Of's" and when you are talking travel... even better! 

That's why we have compiled some of the best tourism marketing campaigns in one place! Destinations using unique ways to bring travelers to them is nothing new, but how they are doing it has shifted and we love it! Below are just a few examples of some new spins to some tried and true tourism campaigns. 

 

 

Philadelphia, PA

Of course, the first highlight in our tourism marketing campaign roundup is a city that is close to home for Stratus Interactive, literally and figuratively. VisitPhilly does inbound marketing right! From their very successful hashtag: #visitphilly to their booming Facebook page of over 452K likes, they are reaching both outbound and inbound travelers! Plus, Philadelphia has a lot of tourism angles: Rocky, the City of Brotherly Love, History and Culture. And let's not forget about the amazing restaurants!  

What's unique about their marketing strategies is their ability to target specific niches via a multitude of campaigns and channels. For example, their "Philly's More Fun When You Sleep Over" target all types of travelers; the "Philadelphia - Get Your History Straight and Your Nightlife Gay" was ground breaking for the gay tourists.  Truly, a solid mix of inbound and outbound marketing techniques, not to mention their website alone generates revenue from the many advertising opportunities they support for the local community. 

The amount of quality content on their website is amazing! They have content marketing down!

Visit their website: VisitPhilly

South Carolina

South Carolina is only a one-day drive for us here at our West Chester, PA headquarters, so naturally we love to travel there.  DiscoverSouthCarolina.com and the South Carolina Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism has made significant changes that greatly impacted their revenue in a positive way. Their Interstate 26 East @ Landrum Welcome Center has gone technical! Outbound travelers can interact with travel counselors at three different concierge systems in a much more open floor plan. There are charging stations and work stations (although if you are on vacations, you shouldn't be working). What's really cool about this new welcome center are the interactive screens that provide you travel information, gas stations, weather and traffic at your fingertips! You know when you have something this cool, travelers are tweeting and facebooking about their experience, which produces pretty spectacular inbound marketing activity!

Content is also top of mind for DiscoverSouthCarolina! Their video featuring the artisans of South Carolina is amazing and is a MUST-WATCH! I mean, just check out their website! Content is king! 

Their South Carolina BBQ Trail campaign is huge and "included out of home, print and digital advertising, social media, public relations and custom web content strategies. Other key elements were a dedicated microsite, www.SCBBQTrail.com, and a print and digital SC BBQ Trail Map that features more than 220 barbecue joints throughout the state." - article from TheTandD.com

Idaho

Idaho? Would you think this would be a travel destination? For ski-bums, absolutely! But Idaho has so much more to offer and their year-round "Adventures In Living" campaign is pretty kick-ass. Twitter alone with their 13.9k followers and their branded hashtag #visitidaho is introducing amazing adventures to engaged audiences. From base jumping to some unbelievable prestige State Parks, there is so much more to explore other than skiing and just by following them on Twitter or follow #visitidaho hashtag, you are invited into a world of adventure that will make you want to plan your next trip to this great State! I mean, a serious amount of adventure: Just check out their "Things To Do" site page!  Did you know that Idaho is the home to some of the top ghost tours in America? 

In the Spring/Summer of 2013, the Idaho Department of Commerce Division of Tourism launched a marketing campaign that allows potential visitors to be the star of the campaign. Idaho Tourism partnered with PixFusion to use innovative patented photo-personalization technology which allows visitors to become a part of seven online adventure videos highlighting the state’s scenic beauty and outdoor recreational activities, reports SYTA. Some of the adventures include:

• The Adventurers – Everyone is a super hero during an Idaho vacation.
• Agent 208 – Experience the mystery and intrigue of Idaho in this spy adventure.
• Are We There Yet? – Everyone will enjoy this RV trip through Idaho.
• Adventures in Loving – Romance is alive and well in Idaho.

You wanna book your next vacation here now, don't you? You could WIN free prizes by putting yourself in videos and participating in the "Adventures In Living" campaign!

 

Virginia

One of the longest running successful tourism marketing campaigns is the “Virginia is for Lovers” campaign which has been going strong since 1969. Forbes gives us the history of the long-lived tagline. In 1969, a copywriter at a Richmond, VA-based advertising agency originally developed the tagline, “Virginia is for history lovers”, but decided it was too long and dropped the “history”. This campaign is the longest-running tourist campaign in history and has seeped into social media. A Facebook page dedicated to this campaign and appropriately named "Virgina Is For Lovers" has over 400K likes and incredible engagement. This is a great example of taking a solid campaign and going "inbound" with it. 

Australia

There is a lot of international tourism marketing that has been a raving success, but there is one country in particular that has truly stood out for its uniqueness - Australia. In recent years, Australia has looked at tourism marketing from a few different angles with many programs and promotions aimed at attracting visitors in an innovative way. One such program is their Working Holiday Maker Program, launched in June of 2013, is a cultural exchange program that enables young travelers between the ages of 18 and 30 to enjoy an extended holiday while they work short-term in the Country. To increase participants in this program and tourism in general, Tourism Australia launched a competition for the Best Jobs in the World in the summer of 2013. The competition promoted six incredible jobs: Park Ranger, Outback Adventurer, Wildlife Caretaker, Lifestyle Photographer, Taste Master, and Chief Funster. They received over 330,000 entries from people in 196 countries. The winners were announced in June and will be paid $100,000 to execute their 6 month positions which include tasks such as eating your way through the country, caring for indigenous wildlife and photographing the country.

They also have a Facebook page dedicated specifically to this campaign! Way to go inbound at over 600k likes!

 

Las Vegas, NV

We couldn’t compile a tourism marketing list without including perhaps one of the most well known campaigns: “What Happens Here Stays Here”. So catchy and well known that it even inspired the title of a Cameron Diaz and Ashton Kutcher movie (What Happens in Vegas) and countless other pop culture references. Not only that, but they have dedicated a site page on LasVegas.com, called "Know The Code". This is inbound at its finest! So what is "Know The Code"? It's an oath to swear your "responsibility" to not post, tag, tell, whisper, share anything about your Vegas stay and your friends on social media. BUT, when you sign this oath, you are directed to share it on social media so that the friends AKA travel companions know you will not throw them under the bus while you are participating in the "What Happens Here, Stays Here" activities! GENIUS! 

So just a quick example of how tourism marketing is taking the inbound marketing world by storm! What type of "inbound" ways have you participated in when traveling? Share your experiences! Have you tagged the hotel you were staying at and you received an immediate response? Have you shared your vacations photos via twitter and used a branded hashtag? 

On a side note, there are so many wonderful ideas you can take from the tourism industry's marketing campaigns and great examples of why you need inbound in your marketing life! If you aren't sure where to start, we are always available to answer questions! Just click below!