Sunshine Matters

VISIT FLORIDA’s 2011 spring advertising campaign generated $177 in incremental traveler spending in Florida for every $1 in advertising spend.

VISIT FLORIDA once again contracted with Strategic Marketing and Research, Inc.  to determine the Return on Investment from the “Your Florida Side” domestic advertising campaign.

The campaign, now in its second year,  used the proven “Your Florida Side” creative and utilized an increased budget quite efficiently.  The result was a significant increase in advertising recall – from 35 percent to 52 percent.  Beyond just the efficient media buy, the creative continued to receive excellent ratings from consumers.  The campaign communicates key messages and motivates consumers to take action.  The ratings of this campaign place it among the top 10 percent of destination campaigns that Strategic Marketing and Research, Inc.  has measured.

The campaign used multiple media channels to reach a wider audience and create synergy through exposure with a mix of television, radio, online, print and outdoor (transit) advertising.  The advertising was focused in six spot markets: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, New York City, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.  The budget this year increased 23 percent overall and 35 percent within the spot markets.

Overall, the spring 2011 “Your Florida Side” campaign generated nearly 268,000 trips that are directly attributable to the advertising, a 47% increase from last year.  More incremental trips, coupled with steady visitor spending, resulted in a significant increase in spending and taxes generated as a direct result of the advertising.  This campaign generated more than $37 million in taxes with an expenditure of less than $3.5 million.  As a result, the ROI and Tax ROI for the campaign also improved significantly.

The advertising efforts returned $177 in travel revenue for every dollar spent, up from $147 in 2010, and $11 in new tax revenue for every dollar spent, up from $9 in 2010.