The current economic climate has necessitated more road trips closer to home.
Funding provided by the Carlsbad City Council, Carlsbad Tourism Business Improvement District and the generosity of NRG-enabled Mindgruve, a digital marketing firm, to actively market Carlsbad to the leisure visitor. Visit Carlsbad's Endless Summer marketing campaign was launched June 1 while people were still planning their summer travel plans and ran through the month of August.
The campaign focused on the notion that endless family recreational activities abound in Carlsbad, and brought to mind fond childhood memories of road trips that inspired travelers to vacation here. With climbing gas prices and the economy still ailing, families found that by staying close to home they could stretch their travel budget and still enjoy some of the most popular attractions and beaches in the country, in their own backyard.
“This campaign has shown us the power the Internet and interactive marketing has in driving visitors to a destination,” said Sam Ross, Visit Carlsbad's executive director. “For that reason, we will focus less on print and more on digital marketing, such as banner advertising, e-mail marketing and paid search.”
Carlsbad's target drive markets are Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Diego counties. Other key markets are Phoenix and Nevada.
The objectives for marketing to these areas are to boost visitation and occupancy, drive traffic to visitcarlsbad.com, create awareness of the destination and provide co-opportunities for Visit Carlsbad's marketing partners. Our target audience looks for family-friendly locations that are close to the beach, major attractions shopping and killer hotel deals.
Consider two types of travelers, active shoppers and browsers. Active shoppers already have an idea that they want to visit a certain destination, so it's very important to get in front of these qualified leads. Browsers are spontaneous leisure travelers looking for ideas for their next vacation or getaway.
Our goal is to influence them before they plan and book their trip. The campaign by Mindgruve has focused on these markets with online banner advertising, micro sites, paid search and direct e-mail marketing to qualified audiences.
The results have been very good. By early August, 866 rooms were booked through Advanced Reservations Systems Inc., room revenues were at $128,896 and attraction ticket revenues were $63,230.
“I believe this campaign has allowed Carlsbad to maintain its position in the marketplace with very little decline. Considering we didn't have a large sum of money to spend on summer promotions for Carlsbad, the Endless Summer campaign has been good for our destination,” Ross said. “The campaign started the momentum we needed and will allow us to build on that momentum for the fall and winter, when the number of visitors decline.”
Visitors to Carlsbad know that summer's energy lingers late into autumn. Fall in Carlsbad is much more about a state of mind than a season; it's a place for those not ready to bid farewell to that summer feeling of escape.
Travel research is increasingly showing that Americans are looking for long weekend vacations options. Visit Carlsbad's Endless Summer campaign delivers the location, accommodations, activities and events, and offers to create a perfect summer and autumn getaway.
Robert Moore, vice-chairman of Visit Carlsbad's board, said he thinks the campaign is great.
“It shows we are heading in the right direction with a call to action, something we never had before,” he said. “All of the hotels are benefitting, especially those offering a larger discount. I am really pleased that we are supporting the Carlsbad lodging industry.”
Funding provided by the Carlsbad City Council, Carlsbad Tourism Business Improvement District and the generosity of NRG-enabled Mindgruve, a digital marketing firm, to actively market Carlsbad to the leisure visitor. Visit Carlsbad's Endless Summer marketing campaign was launched June 1 while people were still planning their summer travel plans and ran through the month of August.
The campaign focused on the notion that endless family recreational activities abound in Carlsbad, and brought to mind fond childhood memories of road trips that inspired travelers to vacation here. With climbing gas prices and the economy still ailing, families found that by staying close to home they could stretch their travel budget and still enjoy some of the most popular attractions and beaches in the country, in their own backyard.
“This campaign has shown us the power the Internet and interactive marketing has in driving visitors to a destination,” said Sam Ross, Visit Carlsbad's executive director. “For that reason, we will focus less on print and more on digital marketing, such as banner advertising, e-mail marketing and paid search.”
Carlsbad's target drive markets are Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Diego counties. Other key markets are Phoenix and Nevada.
The objectives for marketing to these areas are to boost visitation and occupancy, drive traffic to visitcarlsbad.com, create awareness of the destination and provide co-opportunities for Visit Carlsbad's marketing partners. Our target audience looks for family-friendly locations that are close to the beach, major attractions shopping and killer hotel deals.
Consider two types of travelers, active shoppers and browsers. Active shoppers already have an idea that they want to visit a certain destination, so it's very important to get in front of these qualified leads. Browsers are spontaneous leisure travelers looking for ideas for their next vacation or getaway.
Our goal is to influence them before they plan and book their trip. The campaign by Mindgruve has focused on these markets with online banner advertising, micro sites, paid search and direct e-mail marketing to qualified audiences.
The results have been very good. By early August, 866 rooms were booked through Advanced Reservations Systems Inc., room revenues were at $128,896 and attraction ticket revenues were $63,230.
“I believe this campaign has allowed Carlsbad to maintain its position in the marketplace with very little decline. Considering we didn't have a large sum of money to spend on summer promotions for Carlsbad, the Endless Summer campaign has been good for our destination,” Ross said. “The campaign started the momentum we needed and will allow us to build on that momentum for the fall and winter, when the number of visitors decline.”
Visitors to Carlsbad know that summer's energy lingers late into autumn. Fall in Carlsbad is much more about a state of mind than a season; it's a place for those not ready to bid farewell to that summer feeling of escape.
Travel research is increasingly showing that Americans are looking for long weekend vacations options. Visit Carlsbad's Endless Summer campaign delivers the location, accommodations, activities and events, and offers to create a perfect summer and autumn getaway.
Robert Moore, vice-chairman of Visit Carlsbad's board, said he thinks the campaign is great.
“It shows we are heading in the right direction with a call to action, something we never had before,” he said. “All of the hotels are benefitting, especially those offering a larger discount. I am really pleased that we are supporting the Carlsbad lodging industry.”