The Promotional Idea Showcase - Winter 2000 - Updated
Quarterly
CLAWS ITS WAY TO THE TOP
Conventions
and meetings are big business for cities – hotels, restaurants,
convention centers, transportation, even retailers. In fact, one of the
key reasons cities often heavily tout themselves is to secure more of that
business.
But how does a smaller city manage to get its share of the convention pie
when the big metropolitan areas seem to hold all the cards?
This was the problem faced by the Newport County Convention and Visitors
Bureau (NCCVB) when it wanted to sell Newport, RI, as an ideal place for
conventions and meetings. NCCVB’s publicity agency decided to
capitalize on one of Newport’s best-known local foods to help accomplish
the trick. It created a lobster-oriented campaign to encourage 1,500
qualified meeting planners nationwide to consider Newport for their next
meeting. The resulting direct-mail package, the “Newport Lobster Kit,”
incorporated the tagline, “Where the Best Lobsters Meet.”
The agency’s vice president of tourism/hospitality, Martha Sheridan,
says it focused on the primary “feeder” markets of Washington, DC,
Chicago and New York City. “These are the actual people who make
decisions about where and when large-scale meetings and conventions will
be held,” she explains.
The kit consisted of a small plush lobster wrapped in black netting
(straight from a boat dock in Newport) and tied with white nautical rope.
The package also included a lobster cracker, an imprinted plastic bib and
a four-color invitation with scenic photographs of Newport. The invitation
also asked recipients to enter a “Lobster Anyone?” contest, which
required them to complete the pre-paid reply card and mail it in before
the end of June. Winners were selected in early July. The grand prize: a
trip for two to Newport, including round-trip air, accommodations for two
nights and a lobster dinner at one of the city’s finest restaurants.
Second and third place winners received live lobsters to enjoy at home.
“We wanted to approach the challenge in a playful way, with the stuffed
lobster, the contest and an all-around fun attitude,” Sheridan says.
“It was a big success. In advertising, the average rate of return on a
direct-mail campaign is about 2%-3%. Our campaign produced a 10% response,
meaning that 10% of the 1,500 meeting planners entered the contest that
was promoted in the mailing.”
“[The return rate] was outstanding for a direct mail campaign,” adds
Bill Dougherty, NCCVB vice president. “We generated significant interest
through this unique promotion.”