The high-profile visit of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge to Calgary later this week has opened a cornucopia of travel marketing opportunities for the province.
“I think that from a marketing perspective, this visit by the royal couple is equal to the publicity Alberta received from the Vancouver Olympics,” said Travel Alberta CEO Bruce Okabe. “This will be absolutely phenomenal for us, especially in terms of marketing to the U.K., which is our biggest overseas market.”
In the lead up to the visit, Travel Alberta bought a series of advertorials in the Daily Mail, which with two million readers has the third-largest circulation of any English-language newspaper, said Okabe. Travel Alberta is also working with the Canadian Tourism Commission to “embed” representatives with the media covering the Canadian tour, as well as hosting a reception for those media in Calgary on Thursday.
During the two-day royal visit, Travel Alberta will be onsite at the accredited media centre in Calgary providing more than 300 international journalists with story ideas, video and photos. The organization is also providing real-time updates on the visit through Twitter.
The royal couple will also be officially kicking off this year’s Stampede Parade, something that will “multiply the exposure of an event that is already know world-wide,” said Doug Fraser, media relations manager for the Stampede. “We are thrilled to welcome the exposure they bring, especially since we are gearing up for our centennial next year.”
The Duke and Duchess will drive the parade route in reverse Friday morning and are scheduled to attend a reception on the Stampede grounds hosted by Prime Minister Steven Harper Thursday night.
The Calgary Herald speculated in a story Monday that the royals may choose to spend one of their free days in Alberta before they kick off their official duties Thursday night, and has asked its readers to submit suggestions for “Alberta adventures.”
Okabe said tour security is so tight he is unsure whether or not the couple will actually be spending their free time in the province, but if they do, he has a suggestion. “Since Prince William is a helicopter pilot and we have stunning mountain scenery, my suggestion is he flies his bride out into the mountains for a private picnic.”
