Blog Posts
Our team has lots of great ideas - and we're willing to share
What is Juneteenth and How Do You Celebrate?
Is this the first you’re hearing about the holiday? If so, we’ve got you covered on what you should know about Juneteenth, ways that you can celebrate inclusively and what destinations are doing nationally to commemorate the holiday.
History of Juneteenth
So, let’s start with the basics. What is Juneteenth? Juneteenth, also known as Freedom Day, Emancipation Day, Liberation Day and Jubilee Day, is a holiday that commemorates the emancipation of enslaved people in the U.S. On June 19, 1865, the Union Army entered Galveston, Texas, informing the enslaved people there that slavery had been abolished. To bring you up to speed, the Emancipation Proclamation, which states, “that all persons held as slaves,” within the rebellious states, “are, and henceforward shall be free,” was signed in January 1863. That means it took over two years...
Click Bots, Apple Privacy and Email Reporting
Over the past few years, a lot has happened in email marketing. Not only did COVID-19 throw everyone for a loop, but click bots were rampant and then, last fall, Apple decided to throw in their new Mail Privacy Protection setting. Open rate numbers have gone crazy and click rates are wonky as well. Some have said this might be a nail in email marketing’s coffin—but I think email marketing is still here to stay. It just needs a fresh look.
When Apple came out with their new privacy setting, it allowed people to choose if they wanted marketers to track their email opens. This meant that if somebody was knowledgeable enough to turn on this setting (and it is very easy to do), they could essentially hide when and if they opened your email. To achieve this, Apple now automatically downloads all images in your email, which unfortunately also automatically downloads...
Gallery of Content that Inspires Travel
The latest research from The State of the American Traveler, Destinations Edition, showed that Americans want to travel and are ready to travel again. People are more motivated to travel and are reprioritizing travel and different experiences.
Having content that highlights these in a destination can help appeal to audiences looking for something they might not have before, and below are a few examples of destinations and organizations doing that already.
Traveling to Visit Families and Friends
One of the top priorities right now for people traveling is to spend time with families and loved ones. Destin Fort Walton Beach curated a hub on their site called “Little Adventures...
2022 STS Marketing College Scholarship Recipients
Miles recently held its annual scholarship program to award one industry professional in each of the STS member states with a scholarship to Marketing College. Recipients receive a scholarship covering tuition, dorm room accommodations and most meals for the 2022 session.
The 2022 recipients are:
Seth Barlow, Little Rock Convention & Visitors Bureau
Amber Fortenberry, East Brainerd Chamber Council
Mason Jordan, Marietta Visitors Bureau
Jennifer Kiser, City of Waynesboro
Megan McConachie, City of Columbia Convention and Visitors Bureau
Kristen McIntosh, VTrips
Jessica Morrow, Tampa Bay Beaches Chamber of Commerce
Valerie Pritt, Greenbrier County Convention & Visitors Bureau
Zoe Roberts, Destination DC
Mary Rosbach, City of Aiken
Thomas Salley, Wilkesboro TDA
Anna Strider, Visit Lake Charles...
Multichannel Storytelling Strategy
"Picture it, Sicily 1912…" so begins the opening to almost every unforgettable story told by the incomparable Sophia Petrillo, TV's original Golden Girl. Though a fictional character from a 1980s sitcom, when Sophia tells you to "picture it," you know you're in for a story you're not likely to forget. The same holds true for brands: inviting an audience to "picture it," allows destinations to draw their audiences into stories about everything that is memorable, sensational and intriguing about their destination—whether it be a thrilling new rollercoaster, a hot new restaurant or the best place to go snorkeling. The stories behind the places in a destination are the building blocks to an impactful content strategy.
Before diving deeper, let’s go back to basics: what is storytelling and what exactly could a storytelling content strategy look like? In its...