Coordinated Recovery Marketing by MA Regional Tourism Councils Results in Statewide Billboard Campaign
- David Ginisi
With love from” campaign will feature fourteen tourism regions in Massachusetts on 17 billboards over three months
Boston, MA (June 30, 2020) – Beginning in July, expect to see billboards sending “postcards of love” across the Commonwealth from the state’s own tourism destinations. Over the next three months, statewide digital billboards and MBTA stations will display “With Love From…” postcards from the tourism regions around Massachusetts. It is meant to help restart the industry as the state slowly reopens, and to remind locals that they can be a tourist at home.
“At the same moment Governor Baker declared a state of emergency on March 10, the 16 Regional Tourism Council directors were meeting in Boston,” said Ann Marie Casey, Co-chair of MA RTCs. “It was immediately evident to us that the damage to the tourism industry was going to be historic and we needed to plan for the day we could reopen.”
A marketing subcommittee of the councils quickly convened, reviewed the emerging research, committed funding and produced the “With Love From” theme with a new SpiritofMa.com landing page. The billboards will lead to a landing page where visitors may choose a region of interest and click through to destination websites for regional updates and travel info.
“Congratulations to the Regional Tourism Councils (RTCs) for this innovative and creative way to promote the true spirit of Massachusetts,” said Keiko Orrall, executive director of Massachusetts Office of Travel & Tourism (MOTT). “During these challenging times, we applaud this unified effort to market the Commonwealth as an ideal place to vacation when the time is right.”
Recent traveler sentiment surveys show that people will travel close to home and will look for accommodations, dining and activities outdoors that are attesting to safety guidelines. Travel and tourism is one of Massachusetts’ key industries, accounting for nearly $24.2 billion in direct spending in 2018 and generating $1.6 billion in state and local taxes. The industry supports 153,200 jobs across the Commonwealth and $5.6 billion in wages. This sector has suffered the largest job loss during the pandemic, touching every part of the state. The “With Love From” campaign reminds Massachusetts residents that the travel industry is open and safely caring for guests, and that its family and neighbors who work in the tourism industry are looking forward to going back to work.
To see images of the billboards and landing page, go to SpiritofMa.com.
About the Massachusetts Regional Tourism Councils (RTCs)
Organized into 16 tourism regions in Massachusetts, Regional Tourism Councils are nonprofit membership-based organizations whose missions are to develop and implement regional tourism advertising, public relations, and other marketing initiatives. RTCs are partially funded through the Mass. Tourism Trust Fund and work in concert with the Mass. Office of Travel and Tourism. Tourism is one of Massachusetts’ key industries, accounting for nearly $24.2 billion in direct spending in 2018 and generating $1.6 billion in state and local taxes. The tourism industry in MA supports 153,200 jobs and $5.6 billion in wages. Website: SpiritofMA.com
