With a $22 million investment spanning January through June 2025, the SDTA’s advertising programs will increase brand visibility, engage key audiences, and drive consideration and intent to visit as consumers plan for Spring – Summer travel.
New Brand Commercials: The Campaign’s Cornerstone
Central to the campaign are five new brand commercials produced in partnership with SDTA’s brand agency, The Shipyard. The series of commercials inspire optimism and positivity while highlighting San Diego’s product offerings.
- “When You’re Smiling”: 30-second and 15-second brand spots that evoke the vibrant and welcoming spirit of San Diego while reinforcing the emotional resonance of our brand.
- “When You’re Smiling” – Golf-Focused Spot: A 15-second spot tailored for golf enthusiasts, showcasing San Diego’s outdoor recreation, scenic coastline and ideal climate.
- “Good, Good Day”: 30-second and 15-second family-focused spots, celebrating moments of joy and togetherness.
SDTA’s brand campaign launches with the Brand :30 and Golf :15 commercials airing during the national broadcast of the Farmers Insurance Open PGA Golf Tournament on Jan. 25. This prestigious event held at the Torrey Pines Golf Course serves as an ideal platform to debut the new creative, reaching a highly engaged audience.
Increasing Brand Awareness
SDTA’s brand awareness campaign incorporates an extensive national digital program which will launch in February and continue through June. Digital video, display, audio, and social media tactics will be distributed through Amazon, Paramount, Hulu, The Trade Desk, Nexxen, Kargo, Meta, YouTube, Pinterest, TikTok, Pandora and Spotify.
An added layer of spot market television and digital out-of-home will run January through May (flight dates varying by market) in the following nine markets:
- Los Angeles, Phoenix, San Francisco, Seattle, Salt Lake City, Denver, Dallas, Chicago, and New York.
Integrated Multimedia Approach
SDTA’s advertising strategy utilizes an integrated, multifaceted approach designed to maximize impact, educate consumers on San Diego’s brand pillars and drive additional hotel bookings to SDTMD properties. Key elements include:
- Always-On Content & Storytelling: Distributing branded video, articles and social-forward content that highlights San Diego’s core brand pillars—Outdoor Recreation, Family, Culinary, Arts & History, and Entertainment. This approach is paired with content creator partnerships to deliver authentic, engaging storytelling. By maintaining an active presence across digital and social platforms like YouTube, Meta, TikTok and Pinterest, San Diego remains top of mind while fostering trust with audiences.
- Performance-Driven Call-to-Action Advertising: Digital display advertisements in online travel agency (OTA) environments, coupled with a foundational Search Engine Marketing (SEM) strategy, are designed to convert audience interest into bookings. This “Pull-Through” campaign approach targets high-intent travelers, maximizing conversion opportunities in booking platforms like Expedia, Priceline and Tripadvisor.
Advanced Audience Campaigns
SDTA’s advanced audience campaigns will relaunch in the Spring to boost awareness of San Diego amongst 4 target audiences; Family, Luxury, LGBTQIA+ and Los Angeles. Campaign highlights include:
- Family Campaign: Custom articles and itineraries, social-forward video listicles and the family-focused “Good, Good Day” 30-sec commercial will be distributed through Disney+, Atlas Obscura, Pinterest and Tripadvisor.
- Luxury Campaign: San Diego’s array of premium experiences will be promoted through custom content, digital display and social amplification across Conde Nast and will extend reach across additional luxury sites with programmatic video through The Trade Desk.
- LGBTQIA+ Campaign: A partnership with Equalpride includes partner-produced video series, digital display and print placements.
- Los Angeles Campaign: A combination of high-impact out-of-home placements and television partnerships paired with digital, social and custom content will target travelers from our largest volume market, Los Angeles. The LA targeted campaign will launch in March with media running with Dotdash Meredith/Travel + Leisure, Kargo, Amazon, Hulu, The Trade Desk, Expedia, Priceline, Booking.com, Clear Channel and six Los Angeles based TV stations.
Event Promotion Strategy
Building off the success of the Fall 2024 program, the “Awesome All Year” events promotion campaign will relaunch in March, driving demand and immediate travel to San Diego through the promotion of key tentpole events happening throughout the Spring and early Summer. The digital campaign will reach consumers in Los Angeles, Phoenix and Las Vegas with custom content produced by Thrillist paired with programmatic digital ads.
Meetings & Groups: Connecting with Meeting Planners and C-Suite Executives
SDTA’s Meetings & Groups advertising efforts continue with the “Meet America’s Brightest City” campaign, a comprehensive B2B marketing strategy engaging meeting planners, event strategists and C-Suite executives. The national digital advertising campaign launches in January and will continue through June with the following media tactics:
- Awareness: Generate impact of San Diego, distributing “Meet America’s Brightest City” video assets in high reach, high visibility platforms including LinkedIn, YouTube and Meta
- Engagement: Deepen educational opportunities through a new video content series highlighting San Diego’s distinct regions
- Conversion: Capitalize on interested customers with relevant messaging through Google SEM and in contextual environments like Cvent.
An added layer of media will leverage Entrepreneur’s extensive reach among C-Suite executives and utilize custom content to highlight San Diego as a premier meetings and conventions destination.
To learn more about SDTA’s advertising programs and to leverage the destination’s strategy in your own marketing programs, please log in to Membernet.
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