Brand USA Newsletter - April 2019

New Road Campaign Starts in South Dakota, Shifts to Puerto Rico

Brand USA’s United Stories – an always-on, storytelling campaign designed to highlight local and authentic travel experiences throughout the United States to travelers from around the world – had its launch in January with a three-day trek across South Dakota. 

The campaign, a collaboration between Brand USA and its agency partner Beautiful Destinations, allows Brand USA to capture and distribute content at the speed of consumer consumption. Beautiful Destinations generates much of the creative for the campaign. Brand USA is also using a global network of influencers on social media to amplify the messaging of the campaign.

Teams of content creators are traveling in dedicated, branded vehicles, “content-creation labs,” to crisscross the country throughout this year as they acquire the videos and images for use in the campaign.

Spotlight on Puerto Rico
In March, content creators also went to Puerto Rico. They generated videos that highlighted a range of attractions and destinations on the island, including Old San Juan, the Toroverde Nature Adventure Park (home of perhaps the world’s longest zip line) in the Central Mountain Range, and a fourth-generation eatery called Café Don Ruiz. They even visited Culebra, a small island municipality of Puerto Rico off the main island’s east coast. Another video allows PJ Sin Suela, a 29-year-old Puerto Rican doctor who became an urban singer, to introduce the island.

“During our visit to Puerto Rico, we were focused on the resilience of this beautiful island and the magical experiences available to visitors," said Christopher Thompson, Brand USA’s president and CEO.

Brad Dean, CEO of Discover Puerto Rico, said: "As a result of our partnership with Brand USA, Puerto Rico has a unique opportunity to present its culture, its people and its tourism value that makes it a unique destination.”

Results from South Dakota

The content produced and posted during the South Dakota trip resulted in 1.7 million engagements (comments, likes and shares) on Facebook and Instagram. Overall, as transmitted across the online channels used by Brand USA, Beautiful Destinations, and the six influencers on this trip, the content reached 75 million people.

According to January measurements, United Stories content has realized significant upticks in engagement rates when compared with previous Brand USA social campaigns, said Nick Mattera, senior director, Consumer Marketing.

Another platform, Instagram Stories, also reflected the power of United Stories content, he said. Viewer engagement has been noticeably higher for this campaign, compared to previous ones.

A performance metric tied to Instagram Stories reveals the rate at which viewers will stay engaged with the stories. The stories are generally created across multiple “tiles,” or segments. Viewers simply have to tap their screens to see the next pieces of content. The platform allows content creators to post photos and videos that can only viewed during a 24-hour window.

“As a nation, we want to share our stories with the world and invite them to experience our people and destinations first-hand,” said Tom Garzilli, Brand USA’s chief marketing officer. “United Stories will help travelers understand places more deeply, meet real people, and uncover local perspectives to activate their wanderlust.”

In tribute to the storied American road trip, the vehicles being used in the campaign include a Volkswagen camper van and a vintage Chevrolet Impala. Depending on the location of each month’s trip, the campaign will also use other forms of transportation, such as bicycles and boats. A minimum of two vehicles will travel to at least two different locations each month.

The influencers on the South Dakota trip, collectively, have 7 million followers on social media. Three of the influencers are from the United Kingdom. The other three are from Australia, Canada, and Germany.

South Dakota’s itinerary included Badlands National Park, Mount Rushmore, Custer State Park, Belle Fourche, and Spearfish Canyon. The town of Belle Fourche is reputed to be the geographic center of the United States.

‘Many voices’

Impetus for the United Stories campaign emerged out of Brand USA’s desire to show the world that the United States is a nation of “many voices” – a mosaic of numerous traditions, stories, and outlooks that makes up the entirety of the USA. As a result, the United States presents a diverse and limitless range of travel experiences in, near and beyond traditional gateway destinations, Brand USA officials say.