VISIT PHILADELPHIA® launched its latest African-American marketing initiative—the key component of which is a documentary-style travel video series hosted by Philly native Tarik "Black Thought" Trotter of The Roots.
The five-episode series, dubbed We Got You: Philly by Tarik, taps into the power of a national celebrity, pairing Trotter with trendsetting influencers to show off Philadelphia. The videos will be promoted across all of VISIT PHILADELPHIA's marketing channels to gain video views, visits and, of course, hotel stays.
"VISIT PHILADELPHIA's latest African-American campaign recognizes and takes full advantage of the trends in digital storytelling—focusing on food, culture, public art, history, the outdoors and shopping—and the new channels available to attract this travel-ready market," said Meryl Levitz, president and CEO, VISIT PHILADELPHIA.
According to a 2015 national African-American traveler research, African-American travelers seek fun and affordable experiences, local and independently owned stores, walkability and vibrant restaurants.
The black travel movement also informed the campaign's direction. In recent years, dozens of social media accounts, media outlets and community groups were created to promote the black travel experience through authentic storytelling and stunning photography.
"We're tapping into the energy of the black travel movement in our newest campaign inviting African-American travelers to visit," said Jenea Robinson, senior media relations manager, VISIT PHILADELPHIA. "The videos have an insider feel that will resonate with this audience and spark word-of-mouth and social sharing from residents, visitors, media and influencers. As far as we know, no other destination marketing organization is speaking to African-American travelers in this way."
VISIT PHILADELPHIA created the series in partnership with two Philadelphia-based creative agencies: Skai Blue Media, led by VISIT PHILADELPHIA's Entrepreneur-in-Residence Rakia Reynolds, and the Palette Group. The Palette Group developed the creative concept for the We Got You video series and created digital With Love advertisements to drive views to the series.
Visit Philly's social media channels will distribute the videos through paid and organic posts, and the series can be viewed online at visitphilly.com/wegotyou.
