Sunshine Matters

As media change how they deliver travel content, VISIT FLORIDA’s Public Relations Department is making changes, too – including a new way to foster media relationships in-market.  For the first time, PR staff led a media mission that carried four Partners to five target designated market areas, a footprint larger than any mission before.  The itinerary spanned three states – Pennsylvania, Ohio and Michigan – where the four Partners visited markets each having strong media assets that influence their regional audiences.

Through multi-market linkage, Partners met with travel writers and editors at daily newspapers, including the Cleveland Plain Dealer, the Detroit Free Press and the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, as well as Pittsburgh-based AAA Motorist and Columbus-based AAA Home & Away (covering eight states, combined) and a widely-read, Akron-based family blogger.

The cities visited rank high among Florida’s marketing priorities, representing important feeder markets.  Partners who participated in the mission provided feedback during the planning stages for the mission and approved the city-by-city tour, which allowed VISIT FLORIDA and our industry to maximize the time and cost effectiveness of the program.

Well-received story ideas pitched during the mission included: the summer launch of VISIT FLORIDA’s Florida Beach Finder, new accolades for Florida beaches, upcoming 450th year commemorations in Northeast Florida, lesser-known islands of Southwest Florida, the new Streamsong Resort and golf courses in Polk County, the new Ale Trail of Jacksonville craft breweries and experiential eco-tours such as Dolphin Explorer cruises, which National Geographic Editor Keith Bellows cites in his book 100 Places That Can Change Your Child’s Life.

Thanks to VISIT FLORIDA’s Industry Partners who participated in the Midwest-North Atlantic media mission: The Beaches of Fort Myers & Sanibel, Visit Central Florida, Visit Jacksonville and the Naples, Marco Island, Everglades Convention & Visitors Bureau.  To learn more about our upcoming media missions and other PR programs, check out the VISIT FLORIDA Marketing Planner or contact me at lcassels@VISITFLORIDA.org.

Laura Cassels
Public Relations Representative