Experience DC
ABOUT THE CAMPAIGN
Experience DC was first and foremost a recovery campaign. Created in partnership with Events DC, and launched on June 23, 2021 with DC Mayor Muriel E. Bowser, the campaign was aimed at generating broad economic impact by bringing visitors back to Washington, DC in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
To bring this campaign to life, we created a campaign that was local at every touch point – from the headline font on our ads to the voice in our commercial – seamlessly blending the iconic aspects of our city and local flavor to tell a distinctly DC story.
CAMPAIGN strategy
The Experience DC media plan – and the creative that fulfilled its placements – targeted four audiences whose interests included family activities, history, local culture and dining. Additionally, the media plan reached individuals who resided within three target geographic markets: locals, consumers within a four-hour drive and a broader national audience of consumers who show travel intent. We also layered an additional buy specifically aimed at Black, Latinx and LGBTQ+ travelers.
Recovery advertising buys are mostly digital and include streaming video networks, interactive mobile units, targeted email blasts, digital out-of-home and more. The placements were developed alongside MMGY Global, whose work on Destination DC’s Discover the Real DC campaign yielded the highest return on investment in the organization’s history.
Role: Developing creative strategy to achieve specific marketing goals
CREATIVE EXECUTIONS
Imagery for Experience DC was captured through the lens of two local photographers, Jared Soares and Joshua Cogan. Each image speaks directly to a traveler-type and corresponding travel motivation – whether we’re engaging Cultured DC Fans with a stunning image of the REACH at the Kennedy Center, or exciting Family Travelers with a family-fun photo at a Washington Capitals game.
Our print and digital ads were designed to evoke DC at every turn – from the more obvious inclusion of unique-to-DC experiences captured by our photographers, to little nuances like a Civil Rights Era protest-inspired font designed by a local artist, Tré Seals.
Our digital-forward strategy allowed us to target specific traveler-types by designing static and HTML5 ads tailored to our audience’s individual travel motivations and interests.
Role: Creative direction of photography, art direction of ad layouts
Commercials
Experience DC is brought to life in seven :15s and two :30s commercials, all with Spanish language alts. Commercials are narrated by local poet Charity Blackwell, with music by local band The Funk Ark. All video content drives potential visitors to relevant, interest-based landing pages on washington.org where they can begin trip-planning and book travel.
Role: Consultation and creative direction in partnership with production agency, This January.
Out-of-home
In addition to traditional media, the creative team brought Experience DC to life through unique out-of-home placements, including a full “station domination” of Philadelphia’s 30th Street Station. This station takeover included 140 print, digital and video placements with 68 unique designs. Placements at eye-level featured headlines specifically targeting the Philly traveler with QR codes driving directly to complimentary content on washington.org.
Role: Ideation, copy writing, art direction
PERFORMANCE
The campaign produced a positive ROI for the District: $3.49 in taxes for every $1 spent on the campaign, compared to $2.90 in 2018 and $3.09 in 2020 (pre-Pandemic).