I am excited to formally announce VISIT FLORIDA’s first round of cooperative marketing programs for our partners today. As you know, our co-op marketing programs are designed to allow any partner to buy into a larger VISIT FLORIDA marketing campaign and promote their specific destination. Simply put, these programs allow a business of any size to reach a larger audience.

Our entire marketing staff has been working tirelessly over the past months to put together these cooperative programs, which are being rolled out weeks ahead of schedule. They include some of the best programs of the past, based on the results of the recent survey of DMOs on March 31^st, as well as fresh new tactics based on cutting-edge marketing trends. As such, I am proud to say that these marketing programs are the most innovative and affordable in VISIT FLORIDA’s history, and are designed to be accessible to small, medium and large businesses alike.

Below is a short summary of each program. The full listing can be found HERE.

International

• Our international program uses a “coalition-tiered” approach, which allows partners to buy in for as little as $900 all the way up to $175,000 and select the specific countries in which they want to promote their destination.
• Targeted countries in the first roll-out include Canada, Germany and the U.K.
• Tactics include country “take-overs,” exchange rate programs to decrease the cost of travel to Florida, digital platform positioning, and aggressive digital and social media initiatives.

Social Media

• Facebook promoted video allows our partners to promote their destination with engaging, eye-catching content to a targeted audience.
• Facebook carousel program allows you to put your destination in 21 designated market areas, including Canada, with a carousel Facebook ad.

Digital and Out of Home

• Reaches consumers on the go and away from home.
• Digital billboards, digital transit screens and urban panels will be in top Florida markets, including Canada.
• Digital TV will showcase a destination on platforms such as Roku, Apple TV and Amazon Fire.
• Multiple other opportunities will include the Attractions Finder and Florida Beach Finder tools on visitflorida.com.

Sanctioned Co-op

• This successful program includes our print program, which prominently markets a partner’s destination in top-shelf magazines and travel publications at very affordable rates.

Promotions

• The Promotional exchange program allows partners to be featured in contests and sweepstakes in key markets that generate thousands of dollars of exposure and impressions.
• Prize winners are able to share their experiences, increasing a destination’s exposure even further.

Meetings and Trade Events

• There are multiple partner activation opportunities offering brand to brand exposure. They include Florida Governor’s Conference on Tourism, Florida Encounter, Florida Tourism Day, New York Times Travel Show, World Travel Market, and Florida Huddle.

Grant Programs

• The new and improved Air Team Florida program will allow for more participation from partners, airlines and other stakeholders.
• This program will include proposals not just for new air service, but also enhancements on existing service where demand has declined.

Additional Opportunities

• More opportunities include our Florida Welcome Centers, with options for brochure rack space, lobby booths, monthly theme programs and backlit transparencies.
• We are also offering research subscriptions, including monthly newsletters, data, real time trends and VisaVue Travel Data.

To enroll in any of these opportunities, you can follow the links provided HERE. If you have any questions, contact Elizabeth Albrizio at 850.312.0053 or ealbrizio@visitflorida.org.

These are just a few of the new and exciting opportunities VISIT FLORIDA has to offer. In the coming weeks, we’ll continue to announce our next round of cooperative opportunities, which will include more international programs, media opportunities focused on impulse getaways and winter sun seekers, and new ventures with Air Canada, Allegiant Airlines, JetBlue, Google, Expedia and Pandora.

We are working every day with over 12,000 industry businesses to aggressively market our state and reach our goal of 120 million visitors this year. Together, we will fulfill our mission of making Florida the number one global destination.