National State Tourism Directors Mercury Awards > Integrated Marketing and Messaging Campaign: State Marketing Budget Less Than $10 Million

It's Time Campaign

About This Entry:

COVID-19 changed everything. As the world as we knew it came to a screeching halt, Discover Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico’s Destination Marketing Organization, reacted by appropriately pausing all advertising media while working to determine its next move. Prior to the breakout of the pandemic, travel bookings to Puerto Rico were robust, even while operating in crisis mode from the recent earthquakes that rattled the island in January 2020. And so, for Discover Puerto Rico, it made no sense to stay silent and lose the momentum generated in 2019 and in the early months of 2020. Instead, the DMO worked to craft the right message using a data-driven approach to keep Puerto Rico on traveler’s minds, to ensure that they could capture demand once the world opened its doors to travel again. And so, Discover Puerto Rico adapted, modified, adjusted, and began preparations for Puerto Rico’s biggest comeback ever.

The campaign strategy was built around the insight that while living through the unpleasant reality of lockdowns and quarantine, everyone was dreaming of a place they’d rather be. The creative platform emphasized all the good that was just over the horizon – that there would be a time when the unpleasantness of pandemic life would eventually pass. When it was time to get back to living, and laughter, and sun, and frozen drinks, and turquoise water. And when that time came, Discover Puerto Rico would be ready to remind people what they’ve been missing and exactly where to find it.

Using data, the DMO and agency partners developed a strategy to target responsible travelers, those who are more likely to adhere to safety protocols and local guidelines and restrictions. Discover Puerto Rico targeted known purchasers of COVID-19 health and safety products such as masks and hand sanitizer, as well as those who had traveled by air during the pandemic, who, based on airline requirements, would already be following known health and safety protocols. As vaccine distribution took priority in older demos, we removed our age cap, widening our audience to focus on those most likely to have been vaccinated first.

Campaign Strategy:

The DMO and agency partners (R&R Partners, Ketchum, and Miles Partnerships) developed a phased messaging strategy to encourage people to daydream and escape – even for a moment – the “new normal” of pandemic life. Simultaneously, this allowed Discover Puerto Rico to evaluate performance while turning up the messaging dial as the world began to reopen.

Phase One Messaging: “All in Good Time”
Run dates: April – June 2020
Channels: Organic social media, digital media (WeTransfer), public relations
Approach: Phase One used the message “All in Good Time” and promised better days ahead. The campaign spoke to what people needed to do during quarantine to stay safe, while simultaneously serving as a visual vacation by keeping Puerto Rico – with its dreamy beaches, colorful cities, and vibrant culture – top of mind. In a sense, positioning the destination as the warm light at the end of a dark tunnel.

Phase 1.5 Messaging: “It’s Almost Time”
Run Dates: June 2020 – Fall 2020
Channels: Digital media; social media, public relations
Approach: As the pandemic dragged on and the Island’s reopening was pushed to Fall 2020, the DMO adapted to a less redundant message, that instead continued to build the momentum of “All in Good Time” at the right and responsible pace. This served as a short-term, intermediate “bridge” to transition between lock-down and opening, with the tagline, “It’s Almost Time.” This messaging was our fallback position for the extended summer and fall period and allowed us to pivot while continuing to build momentum around the dream of future travel.

Phase Two Messaging: “It’s Time to Book/Plan”
Run Dates: Fall 2020 – current date
Channels: Upper funnel awareness (Spot TV, OTT, Digital, Social), public relations
Our final phase gave our audience the opportunity to turn their “daydream” into a reality as Puerto Rico reopened its doors to travel. This messaging is more direct, letting our audiences know “It’s Time to Plan” or “It’s Time to Book” travel to Puerto Rico and closes the campaign loop by actively encouraging travelers to visit the Island now, underscoring the beauty, relaxation, and adventure that awaits.

Results:

2020 delivered unprecedented challenges that many destinations thought they would never face. However, Discover Puerto Rico’s campaign strategy allowed the island to remain top of mind throughout the pandemic. And the results speak for themselves. Across the entire campaign lifetime, digital media has delivered over 30 million display/native impressions, driving a high engagement rate; with traditional media delivering over 280 million impressions across the entire campaign.

According to Destination Insights, Puerto Rico has become one of the fastest-growing destinations in the world with the highest travel interest between January 2021 and April 2021 – based on Google search – exceeding awareness goals established by the DMO when the campaign first launched. Moreover, there’s been a 107% increase in website visitation over the course of the campaign, with 94% of those visits being new users and a 56% increase in page views.

Finally, Puerto Rico is currently outperforming the rest of the Caribbean in Q1, and with occupancy at 66% is surging past the U.S. at 54% during March of 2021 (Source. STR). Our phased messaging approach and laser-focused media strategies allowed us to reach audiences throughout the pandemic with messages that not only resonated but produced awareness and momentum for visitation levels surpassing 2019 benchmarks.

Why This Is A Finalist: 

This campaign was superb by appealing to travelers during different phases of the visitor experience. They had a clear and articulated message to a well defined target audience.

A great example of a nature to lead generation campaign with strong, quantifiable ROI.

The three phase tactics made complete sense in light of the pandemic, and the creative messaging helped keep the brand top of mind.