VISIT PHILADELPHIA® earned two Destiny Awards for its innovative work in destination marketing from the U.S. Travel Association. The awards recognize excellence in destination marketing on the local and regional level and are among the highest honors in the travel industry.
VISIT PHILADELPHIA took home its first award for a retargeting marketing program done in conjunction with the Pennsylvania Convention Center. Using new technologies to pinpoint interests, geofence specific areas and retarget device IDs, the organizations invited event attendees to fully experience the region while in town and come back again by serving up mobile advertisements up to 30 days after their initial visit. Many of these ads focused on the Visit Philly Overnight Hotel Package. Overall, the effort captured more than 1.6 million device IDs for future travel invitations and drove 1,265 leisure-driven overnight hotel stays, resulting in $252,520 in direct revenue.
The second award was for work done with the City of Philadelphia and Independence National Historical Park (INHP) to reopen the city’s most iconic attractions (the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall) after the federal government’s partial shutdown forced them to close in December 2018. During one of the busiest weekends for tourism (between Christmas and New Year’s Day), 30,000 people toured the sites, generating $1 million in estimated visitor spending.
“At VISIT PHILADELPHIA, our greatest successes come from putting our visitors first, partnering with other organizations and using innovative technologies. That’s exactly the approach we took with our Destiny Award-winning projects and all of the work we do,” said Jeff Guaracino, president & CEO, VISIT PHILADELPHIA.
VISIT PHILADELPHIA was one of only six destination marketing organizations to take home more than one honor at the 36th annual Educational Seminar for Tourism Organizations (ESTO) conference. In addition to the Destiny Awards, the U.S. Travel Association also handed out Mercury Awards, which recognize excellence in destination marketing on the state level. For a full list of winners, click here.
VISIT PHILADELPHIA® is our name and our mission. As the region’s official tourism marketing agency, we build Greater Philadelphia’s image, drive visitation and boost the economy.
On Greater Philadelphia’s official visitor website and blog, visitphilly.com and uwishunu.com, visitors can explore things to do, upcoming events, themed itineraries and hotel packages. Compelling photography and videos, interactive maps and detailed visitor information make the sites effective trip-planning tools. Along with Visit Philly social media channels, the online platforms communicate directly with consumers. Travelers can also call and stop into the Independence Visitor Center for additional information and tickets.
