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Residents' Videos Aim to Boost Baltimore Tourism
To encourage tourism to Charm City, the Baltimore Area Convention and Visitors Association are recruiting Baltimore's biggest fans: Baltimoreans. BACVA, with the help of WOMMA member company Carton Donofrio Partners, created www.visitmybaltimore.com to attract tourists -- using Baltimorean-generated videos as bait.
Based on research that indicated people who "try" Baltimore like it, the site was conceived as a way for potential tourists to virtually sample the city. And who best to showcase a city's hidden treasures than its fans? With the understanding that residents of Baltimore are the best source of positive information about their city, BACVA is hoping to put their enthusiasm for their home town to work attracting others. Margo Amelia, BACVA's former VP of marketing, noted that the strategy is based on people's increasing reliance on peer reviews for travel decisions. "People want their peers' comments," she said. "I won't book a trip unless I've gone to TripAdvisor and see what my peers think of the hotel I'm thinking of booking -- it's a real seismic shift in how travel is being planned and thought about."
To drive Baltimoreans to submit videos to the site, Carton Donofrio Partners launched a grassroots campaign that included a booth at the Inner Harbor where people could create a video, as well as costumed street teams. There were also prizes for video submissions, including a stay in Baltimore, a digital video camera, and $2,007 cash.
Learn more (TMCNet)
Learn more (Visit My Baltimore)