With a US$200-million global budget, the U.S. wants tourists – especially Canadians – and their vacation budgets
In the coming weeks, the U.S. government organization once known as the (yawn!) Corporation for Travel Promotion and relaunched last year as Brand USA will officially open for business with $200 million to get the world’s attention.
Created for the purpose of luring international travellers to the States, it’s the first coordinated effort to unify a disparate, massive travel market that to the vacation-researching foreigner can seem downright internally competitive.
“We finally realized that travel and tourism is a huge economic driver,” says Joel Secundy, vice-president of strategic outreach for Brand USA. “Every tourist who visits the States spends an average of $4,500 per person.”
And there are no lower hanging fruits for the hungry destination marketer than heat-deprived Canadians buoyed by record home prices and an enviable knack for avoiding recessions. It’s why Brand USA’s first targets to start spending its $200 million are Canada, the U.K. and Japan.
“Canadians are coming to the U.S. in record numbers,” notes Secundy. “Between 2010 and 2011, visits by Canadians increased by more than 11%.” Brand USA figures a big marketing push now is a smart investment if it keeps the Canucks coming down. That means $20 million on marketing in Canada over the next year across all platforms—“billboards, social, print,” says Secundy—trying to keep Canadians interested.
“Because we are seeing increased demand, our strategy is figuring out how we look at giving them more to do. We want to get them off the beaten path.”
Secundy will be speaking at the “A Giant Awakens: Brand USA. The New American Marketplace” session at the Canadian Tourism Marketing Summit in Toronto on March 7 at the Sheraton Centre Hotel.
Are Canadians truly low-hanging fruit for a U.S. tourism campaign? Post your thoughts in our comment section.
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