National State Tourism Directors Mercury Awards > Special Projects

Mississippi Runs Deep

About This Entry:

As Mississippi approached its 200th birthday, the state’s Bicentennial Committee launched a major tourism campaign. The objective? To tell the Mississippi story in a way that would inspire out-of-state tourism and increase revenue.

More specifically the tourism campaign would (1) Enhance Mississippi’s image as a significant cultural center for music, history, food, arts, creativity, museums and outdoor experiences;

(2) Create top-of-mind awareness of Mississippi's newest major attractions, especially the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum, the Museum of Mississippi History and The Mississippi Arts + Entertainment Experience;

(3) Drive more traffic to Visit Mississippi’s website and social media channels;

(4) Increase hotel bookings, and

(5) Increase the average length of a visitor's stay by one night.

Every decision made — from the “Runs Deep” creative concept, to the meticulously targeted digital and traditional media strategy, to the stories pitched through PR — paid strategic support to the Bicentennial Committee's challenge and goals.

Mississippi Runs Deep targeted travelers from select drive-in states along with targeted corresponding key markets including:

Florida + Mobile/Pensacola
Georgia + Atlanta
Alabama + Birmingham/Tuscaloosa
Alabama + Montgomery
Louisiana + New Orleans
Louisiana + Baton Rouge
Louisiana + Lafayette
Louisiana + Monroe
Arkansas + Little Rock
Tennessee + Memphis
Texas + Houston

Chicago was targeted for a specific event, the Chicago Blues Festival.

Print advertising was utilized for one channel, British Airways in-flight magazine Highlife, which reached travelers flying direct from Frankfurt and London to destinations in the South, within driving distance to Mississippi.

The Mississippi Runs Deep tourism campaign launched January 2018 with a hard-stop on June 30; the end of Mississippi's fiscal year. An intensive six-month tourism campaign to tell the Mississippi story and impact tourism like never before. The result, the most successful tourism endeavor in state history.

Mississippi runs deep. So do our results. The Bicentennial Committee's 2018 tourism campaign generated 90,395 visitors, 93,765 room nights booked and more than $54 million in visitor spending ­— all in just six months. This represents a 21:1 ratio of visitor spending to marketing investment. On top of that, the campaign was responsible for an estimated 700 sustained jobs.

Campaign Strategy:

Mississippi Tourism Campaign Assignment:
Tell the Mississippi story in a fresh way that would increase visitors and return on investment.

Mississippi Tourism Campaign Strategy:
Convey the tremendous depth of Mississippi's offerings, encouraging visitors to stay longer, venture farther and look deeper into Mississippi.

The Cooperation Chart for Mississippi Runs Deep included the:

Mississippi Bicentennial Committee
Mississippi Department of Archives and History
Mississippi Development Authority / Visit Mississippi
Mississippi Tourism Association
Mississippi Gaming and Hospitality Association
Mississippi Hospitality & Restaurant Association
GodwinGroup Advertising
Minority Marketing Specialists and
Mississippi's Convention and Visitor Bureaus

Mississippi Tourism Campaign Methodology:
The Mississippi Runs Deep campaign creative was predicated off research revealing the number one reason people visit Mississippi is to spend time with family and friends (yes, even more than gaming).

Family runs deep in Mississippi as does music, literature, history, civil rights, arts, food, entertainment and mystique. With "Runs Deep" as the campaign's unifying theme, the creative strategy played up Mississippi's legendary mystique and informed those looking to connect with family and friends that Mississippi offers a wealth of experiences with depth and authenticity.

Mississippi Runs Deep Tourism Campaign Overview and Evaluation:

Integrated marketing with digital, TV, radio, outdoor, print, social media and public relations.

All marketing outside Mississippi or in Mississippi's Welcome Centers.

Tracking research and verification in cooperation with Tom Van Hyning, Tourism Economist and Data Analyst for the Mississippi Development Authority in conjunction with the State Economist for Mississippi.

Digital marketing tracked and verified through hotel bookings and confirmed travelers.

Television and other traditional media tracked with post-buy analysis. Booking results are estimated to be far higher than the campaign's verified digital results.

The Mississippi Bicentennial Committee's Mississippi Runs Deep tourism campaign was the recipient of the Research-in-Action Award from the Mississippi Tourism Association during the 2018 Mississippi Governor's Conference on Tourism.

Results:

The 2018 Mississippi Bicentennial Committee's tourism campaign, Mississippi Runs Deep, generated 90,395 visitors, 93,765 room nights booked and more than $54 million in visitor spending — all in just six months.

Note: information noted above includes the campaign's digital media results only, and do not include any casino-resort room bookings or other direct bookings resulting from television, outdoor or any other traditional media utilized during the Mississippi Runs Deep campaign.

The Mississippi Runs Deep tourism campaign represents a 21:1 ratio of visitor spending to marketing investment. On top of that, the campaign was responsible for an estimated 700 sustained jobs according to Mississippi's Tourism Economist.

Mississippi Runs Deep Tourism Campaign Performance:
The Mississippi Bicentennial Committee's Mississippi Runs Deep tourism campaign ran from January 2018 to June 30, 2018 generating - -

Digital:
57,440,597 impressions

TV:
90,961,305 impressions

Radio:
40,118,727 impressions

Outdoor:
58,351,310 impressions

Print:
883,220 impressions

Total Campaign Impressions: 247,755,159

Tourism Campaign's Impact on Local Mississippi Economies:

90,395 Visitors with 93,765 Rooms Booked

$54,428,635 Visitor Spending

700 Jobs Sustained

$544, 286 Local Tax Revenue

Note: Hotel rooms and rates were confirmed through software tracking. Visitor spending calculated by State Tourism Economist based on hotel spending.

Tourism Campaign's Impact on Mississippi's State Budget:

21:1
Ratio of Visitor Spending to Marketing Investment

$1.73 to $1.00
Benefit to Cost Ratio for the State of Mississippi - for every dollar spent the campaign returned $1.73 to the State Treasury

$4,393,004
Total Contributions to the State of Mississippi General Fund

Note: 21:1 ratio means for each dollar in marketing, visitors spent $21 inside the state. For every tax dollar spent, $1.73 went back to the state treasury in tax income.

Note: Tracking research in cooperation with Tom Van Hyning, Tourism Economist and Data Analyst for the Mississippi Development Authority.

Note: Mississippi Runs Deep Campaign received the 2018 Research-in-Action Award.

Why This Is A Finalist: 

This campaign developed a creative brand and effectively executed a strategy that included well-produced ads across multiple media platforms. The objectives were clearly outlined and it achieved its desired results. The campaign met the objectives and the results were far better than they expected. They had strategic targeting, a variety of media and consistent messaging and imagery lured visitors. The “runs deep” branding was creative and the campaign successfully used an integrated approach to reach a wide audience in the targeted areas. The video spots were especially well done and the strategy behind selecting specific audiences by location was well thought out. This campaign utilized effective tracking methods to measure which objectives were being met. This demonstrated impressive reach statistics.