Sunshine Matters

VISIT FLORIDA recently wrapped up the sixth year of our marketing partnership with Peter Miller and his popular television show Bass2Billfish that airs on NBC Sports Outdoors and the World Fishing Network.  Bass2Billfish is a hybrid reality TV show that incorporates travel and Florida’s diverse fishing environment, known as “The Fishing Capital of the World.”

Bass2Billfish is consistently rated the top fishing/travel reality show in the nation. Last year’s season garnered 10 million TV viewers and 6 million print impressions. The show also touts a strong online following that is consistently growing, with more than 111,000 Facebook fans, 30,000 Twitter followers, 16,000 Instagram followers and 3 million YouTube views.

Season 6 premiered on December 31, 2014 and aired 10 unique episodes.  Throughout the season, each episode not only featured different fish species, but also different locations, guests and their experiences throughout Florida.  Along with taking families, couples, buddies, father/son teams and mother/daughter teams out on the water this year, Peter and his crew also hosted Make-a-Wish-Foundation kids and NFL pros.

As part of a two-episode feature, Peter took Luke from the Make-A-Wish-Foundation for a once-in-a-lifetime fishing experience at Captiva Island.  Along with Captain Ozzie Fischer, the group fished for redfish, snook, gag grouper, goliath grouper and barracuda.  They also went to Cayo Costa State Park for a Gulf Beach shelling tour.

In another episode, Peter took NFL professional Jarret Johnson from the San Diego Chargers fishing with Captain Russell Kleppinger.  Within eyesight of Miami Beach, they partnered with Dr. Ault from the University of Miami to tag multiple large tarpon.

In addition to episodes aired on NBC Sports Outdoors and the World Fishing Network, this season also featured special online vignettes that can be seen on VISIT FLORIDA’s YouTube Channel.

Through this ongoing partnership, VISIT FLORIDA is able to expand the awareness of specific fishing destinations and related activities within Florida, and also create emotional engagement via VISITFLORIDA.com with specific target audiences, including sportfishing and outdoor enthusiasts.