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eTourism Summit Announces Winners in Fourth Annual eTSY Awards

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Derek Price, Patrick Harrison, Santiago Corrado, Adam Stoker

LIVE FROM LAS VEGAS! — Sept. 21, 2021 — Connect Travel, owner and producer of eTourism Summit, is pleased to announce the winners of the 4th Annual Excellence “eTSY” Awards in partnership with Expedia Group Media Solutions and Destination Marketing Podcast.

The recognition goes to destination marketing organizations and their media partners to recognize and celebrate the best of 2020-2021 campaigns and programs with awards in a dozen original categories, including website content, video, email, augmented and virtual reality, influencer marketing and innovation. 

The awards were presented live on Sept. 21 during the 22nd Annual eTourism Summit in Las Vegas, co-located with IPW and Connect THRIVE Summit.

“The quality of digital marketing in the travel and tourism industry is always impressive. This year, every category was highly competitive,” said J. William Seccombe, president of Connect Travel. “We applaud everyone for submitting such outstanding entries and congratulate the winners.

The call for entries opened in May 2021 and concluded four months later, garnering strong interest from city, state, county, regional, and international DMOs and attractions. 

In accepting the award for Best Campaign That Went Viral on behalf of VisitLEX, Gathan Borden, Vice President of Marketing, said, “One of our key tactics is following culture, and when we saw all the accolades and hype around ‘The Queen’s Gambit’ with its direct ties to Lexington, Kentucky we felt it was a prime opportunity to showcase our amazing city and allow the creative culture and community that exists here to be a part of marketing Lexington as a travel destination.” 

California’s Visit Napa Valley explained the inspiration behind its Best Website award. “We brought the Napa Valley experience to life digitally with a new website design that is a blend of world-class elegance and rustic charm. [It] features the destination with stunning images and videos, hand-drawn illustrations inspired by wine labels, user-generated images and tips, expansive FAQ sections, playful custom maps, and an expanded showcase of our business partners on nearly every page of the website.”  

 

Appreciation goes to a panel of five expert judges: Manya Mandich, Global Vice President, Marketing at Expedia Group Media Solutions; Derek Price, Director of Business Development North America at Expedia Group Media Solutions; Adam Stoker, President & CEO of Relic Advertising, and producer of Destination Marketing Podcast; Zeek Coleman, Senior Director, Product Marketing at ADARA, Inc.; and Alvaro Melendez, Co-founder & CEO at CRANT. Judges considered budget as well as three key criteria: strategy and objective, creativity, and impact/measurability.

​​2021 eTSY Award Winners

  • Best Campaign That Went Viral

“The Queen’s Gambit”

VisitLEX in partnership with Cornett

  • Best Content Marketing Program (large budget) 
Congrats to Visit Williamsburg

“Life. At Your Pace.”

Visit Williamsburg

— AND —  

South Carolina wins big
  • Best Content Marketing Program (large budget) 

South Carolina State Parks Virtual Programming

South Carolina Department of Parks, Recreation & Tourism

  • Best Content Marketing Program (small budget)

“My Happy Place” COVID-19 Recovery Strategy Campaign

Traverse City Tourism in partnership with Madden Media

  • Best Email Marketing Campaign

Costa Rica Essentials Email Campaign

Costa Rica Tourism Board in partnership with MMGY Global

  • Best Influencer Marketing Campaign (large budget) 

Support Local Restaurants Influencer Campaign

South Carolina Department of Parks, Recreation & Tourism 

  • Best Influencer Marketing Campaign (small budget)

Escape to Taiwan

Taiwan Tourism Bureau 

  • Best Use of Augmented, Mixed or Virtual Reality

Atlantic City Virtual Reality Experience

Meet AC 

  • Best Use of Video (large budget) 

Alabama Tourism Department’s Take It All In Responsibly

Alabama Tourism Department in partnership with Intermark Group

—AND—

Leroy Bridges accepts for “Life’s Rewards”
  • Best Use of Video (large budget)

“Life’s Rewards” Series

Visit St. Pete Clearwater and Visit Florida in partnership with Miles

Winnipeg is awesome
  • Best Use of Video (small budget)

What is Economic Development? – LEGO edition

Economic Development Winnipeg

  • Best Website (small budget)

VisitNapaValley.com

Visit Napa Valley in partnership with Bellweather Agency and Simpleview

  • Best Website (large budget) 

DiscoverAtlanta.com 

Atlanta Convention & Visitors Bureau in partnership with Madden Media

  • Innovation Award

Visit Savannah Midweek Campaign

Visit Savannah

Innovation! Visit Tampa Bay

Innovation Award

How Visit Tampa Bay Went From Selling to Leading

Visit Tampa Bay

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ABOUT eTOURISM SUMMIT: Founded in 2000, eTourism Summit is the signature event for destination marketing professionals focused on digital media. Attendees at the annual eTourism Summit get up-to-the-minute, real life examples of the latest applications in video, content marketing, email marketing, search, social media, AI and VR, mobile and web design. They share case studies that demonstrate how fellow tourism marketers, vendors and other partners innovate to build incremental traffic at every stage of the funnel. For more information, visit www.eTourismSummit.com.                    

ABOUT CONNECT TRAVEL: Connect Travel creates efficient and effective environments to expedite the sales process by connecting tourism professionals with the products, services, people and ideas that allow them to thrive in a rapidly evolving and highly competitive global marketplace. For more information, visit connecttravel.com. 

How Many Days Until?

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Juneteenth, Father’s Day, Summer Solstice, and Amazon Prime Day are history. More milestones are coming.

*** The only list you’ll ever see that mentions Bruce Springsteen, Queen Elizabeth II and eTourism Summit. ***

Countdown is from Wednesday, June 23, 2021.

  • Microsoft reveals major Windows update — 1
  • Bruce Springsteen revives solo show, “Springsteen on Broadway” — 3
  • eTSY Awards applications close — 4
  • Fourth of July — 11
  • Jeff Bezos travels into space on Blue Origin’s first passenger flight — 27
  • Opening of Tokyo Olympics — 30
  • NBA Draft — 40
  • TravelAbility Summit in Tampa — 68
  • Labor Day — 75
  • NFL regular season begins — 78
  • Connect THRIVE Summit begins in Las Vegas — 87
  • IPW begins in Las Vegas — 87
  • 22nd Annual eTourism Summit begins in Las Vegas — 89
  • Connect TOUR begins in Las Vegas — 89
  • eTSY Awards and Emerging Tourism Stars presentations at #eTS21 — 90
  • World Series Game 1 — 118
  • Broadway’s full-capacity reopening — 131
  • U.N. Climate Change Conference begins in Glasgow — 134
  • Steven Spielberg’s movie revival of “West Side Story’’ premieres — 170
  • New Year’s Day — 192
  • Super Bowl LVI — 235
  • Platinum Jubilee for Queen Elizabeth II — 344

Salt Lake City – Rebrand | Alabama = Worth the Wait | New Mexico + Airbnb and Destination Inspiration

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Reminder: The 4th Annual eTSY Awards is the place to showcase excellence in digital destination marketing.

Visit Salt Lake City is launching a destination re-brand, “West of Conventional.” The Travel Vertical Podcast is excited to share more about it when President & CEO Kaitlin Eskelson joins us as a guest. Watch for the episode to go live soon.

Quoted in the Salt Lake Tribune, Eskelson says, “A main goal of the rebranding was to create an elevator pitch to describe the area in 15 seconds or less. Research revealed that articulating the Salt Lake City area and its story was usually a long-winded explanation. We’re a city full of juxtapositions. We have the urban and the mountains, so we have all these things that really shouldn’t go together, but miraculously do. So when we started looking at all the different juxtapositions that we have in the market… Salt Lake really can offer something that is not conventional.”

Image, flickr: Kei Rothblack

A new social media and email campaign is based on a partnership between New Mexico Department of Tourism and Airbnb to promote accommodations and experiences. “New Mexico is able to again open its doors for visitors at a time when travel is beginning to pick back up. Creative partnerships in the travel planning and booking space will allow us to reignite demand and inspire prospective travelers to choose New Mexico for their next vacation,” said Tourism Secretary Jen Paul Schroer. “This partnership with Airbnb is a great opportunity to rebuild awareness of New Mexico as a premier destination for leisure travel in a manner that is inclusive of every region of our state.”

Courtesy of Gulf Shores & Orange Beach Tourism

Alabama Tourism Department officials say busy businesses are grappling with a shortage of workers while visitors are experiencing longer waits at restaurants, more traffic to the beaches, even longer lines at grocery stores. Kay Maghan, spokesperson for Gulf Shores & Orange Beach Tourism, told AL.com ,”With staffing shortages happening nationwide, especially in the tourism industry, we want to help guests understand what to expect or anticipate in our destination.” Alabama Tourism Department has launched a summer marketing campaign based on the slogan, “Worth the Wait.”

image: Visit Cumberland County

Visit Cumberland Valley Is Cool

Ale trails, taco trails…and ice cream trails. Marketing Manager Ashley Kurtz says, “Here’s the Scoop.” We love the Bandwango collaboration with Pennsylvania’s Visit Cumberland County where summer for ice cream lovers means discovering a tempting string of 16+ locations that go way beyond chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry. “To top it off, every five check-ins will enter you in a monthly $10 gift card drawing!”

Photo credit: YESCO

Off the Beaten Track

In Nevada, Carson Valley Visitors Authority has placed 21 wayfinding signs throughout the destination. The project initially started with support from Travel Nevada’s infrastructure grant program and included multiple steps to identify needs and additional funding sources. “One of the primary messages we use when speaking to potential visitors is to encourage them to ‘drive to it, not through it,’ and having this vital component complete helps in further paying off that statement,” said Jan Vandermade, executive director, Visit Carson Valley, as quoted in the Record Courier.

Image courtesy Sonoma County Tourism

Sonoma County Tourism Goes Pro

To help enhance the training of the county-wide hospitality workforce and elevate the visitor experience, Sonoma County Tourism has a new Accredited Hospitality Professional (AHP) program. The program is available to local hospitality and tourism professionals as well as residents.

Curriculum is known as the “Foundational Five,” customized to what makes Sonoma County, California unique.

  • The power of tourism
  • Customer service and visitor safety
  • Wineries and American Viticultural Areas (AVAs)
  • Natural environment and sustainability
  • Art, history and culture

Classes begin July 8 and registration for monthly classes will be ongoing. The cost of initial accreditation is $45 per person. The annual renewal fee will be $20.

Screen shot #VisitChicagoland

#VisitChicagoland. Nine DMOs within an hour’s drive of downtown Chicago have joined forces to launch a digital summer campaign for northeastern Illinois. “The Only Thing Missing is You” runs through August to target locals plus visitors within a one-hour drive of downtown Chicago. Partnering tourism organizations are: Chicago Southland, Chicago’s North Shore, Choose Chicago, Discover DuPage, Explore Elgin Area, Heritage Corridor, Meet Chicago Northwest, Visit Lake County and Visit McHenry County.

And in Florida, Frontier Airlines held an Orlando promotional contest to highlight some of the local animal species and conservation efforts on their behalf. They searched for a winner to embellish the tail of an aircraft and found one in Ted, the Sea Turtle. He beat out three contenders: Ella, the Florida black bear; Larry, the American alligator; Flurry, the albino hatchling alligator. “Oh woozers, I can’t believe I’m gonna be on an airplane,” said Ted from Sea Life Aquarium upon hearing the news that he’d won and would receive extra squid at dinner.

LGBTQ+ Post-Covid Travel Survey Results & More Connect THRIVE Summit News

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Hello, Pride Month!

Since 1983, IGLTA has provided free travel resources while promoting equality and safety within LGBTQ+ tourism globally. Last year, they conducted a survey to gauge LGBTQ+ traveler sentiment while the pandemic was in its early days. One year later (March 26 through to April 9, 2021), they fielded a second survey with the support of the IGLTA Foundation to get a take on LGBTQ+ traveler sentiment as the tourism industry begins recovery.

John Tanzella, IGLTA President/CEO says, “We wanted to revisit this project a year into this challenging time to reinforce the resilience of LGBTQ+ travelers, and to champion the importance of equity, diversity and inclusion in destination outreach. Again, the results undeniably show that LGBTQ+ travelers are ready to travel, and represent a valuable, loyal audience for tourism businesses that make the effort to genuinely welcome them.”

Survey highlights are being shared with the DMO community.

And there’s more news.

Aequalitas Media, one of the fastest growing LGBTQ+ media companies in the U.S., announced the formation of the Gay Travel Business Network (GTBN), a new LGBTQ+ B2B travel organization. Ed Salvato is executive director, advised by a founding board of directors—including some of the best and brightest in the industry, said Aequalitas Media CEO, DJ Doran.

“The Connect THRIVE Summit and GBTN share the mission of creating meaningful and valuable connections with the intention of exploring opportunities to work together,” says Will Seccombe, president, Connect Travel. “We believe that our partnership with GBTN is a win/win for all businesses and destinations interested in community development through LGBTQ+ travel.”

Do join us for the tourism comeback—virtual or in-person— for Connect THRIVE Summit in Las Vegas, co-locating with eTourism Summit, Connect TOUR, and IPW.

Reminder for eTourism Summit:

Submissions for Emerging Tourism Stars are closing on June 14, 2021.

Submissions for the 4th Annual eTSY Awards are closing on June 28, 2021.

We Want to Say Thanks for 200K Views

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This B2B newsletter was introduced in December 2015 as a way to keep the eTourism Community connected between annual gatherings at eTourism Summit. Our four P’s are people, places, promotions, and open positions. Our tone of voice is fun, funny (sometimes), factual, fascinating, fast to read and…above all…relevant in an unpredictable world.

Oh, and now at the 200K mark, beginning this week there’s a fifth P for Podcast, where we talk about highlights from the week that was and the week that will be. Starts April 21, 2021.

Subscribe here and send us your news or come on as a guest.

The eTourism Community is everything. We’re always looking to create new opportunities for deeper, more meaningful connections (and always keeping an emphasis on “fun.”) Check out events that are close to our hearts.

eTourism Summit co-locates with IPW in Las Vegas on Sept. 20-22, 2021. Registration is now open.

Emerging Tourism Stars is presented in partnership with MMGY Global to recognize up-and-coming industry movers and shakers of all ages. Those selected receive a scholarship to attend eTourism Summit with an invitation to share their personal story in a panel conversation. Nominate a star today.

eTSY Awards celebrates excellence in digital tourism marketing in its fourth year, in partnership with Expedia Group and Destination Marketing Podcast. Now accepting submissions in a dozen categories.

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Laurie Jo Miller Farr, Editor
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