Black Meetings & Tourism - "My BMore" Advertising Campaign Featuring Well-Known Personalities

Industry Briefs
"My BMore" Advertising Campaign Featuring Well-Known Personalities
Visit Baltimore, the city's official sales and marketing organization, announced recently the launch of "My BMore," a new meetings and tourism advertising campaign showcasing the city through the genuine experiences of well-known personalities who were either born in the area or have authentic connections to the city. The first round of ads will feature actors Josh Charles, Johnathon Schaech and two-time Emmy winner Julie Bowen; Oscar, Golden Globe and Grammy award winner Common; TV personality Mike Rowe; Baltimore Symphony Orchestra Music Director Marin Alsop; former Harlem Globetrotter Choo Smith; Hall of Famer Cal Ripken, Jr.; and business leader Kevin Plank. Each ad will showcase a different aspect of the city that resonates with each personality from family-friendly attractions to arts and culture, and history and heritage sites to food, neighborhoods, sports and more. The goal of the campaign is to raise awareness of all that Baltimore offers as a meeting and tourism destination and to entice potential travelers to visit the Baltimore.org website to begin planning their next meeting, convention or visit in Baltimore. "The My BMore campaign is an opportunity for us to elevate the conversation regarding Baltimore as a meetings and tourism destination by amplifying a variety of Baltimore experiences and opportunities for exploration as told by well-known personalities," said Tom Noonan, president and CEO, Visit Baltimore. The campaign is an extension of the new Visit Baltimore logo offering applications for both leisure messages like "Play More," "Explore More" and "Discover More" and the new meetings execution of "Meetings with More." Research within the meetings industry ranked Baltimore number one or two over its competitors in 18 core attributes identified as "value." The Meetings with More speaks to the "value" in meeting in Baltimore in terms of service, convenience, and return on investment. Developed by Baltimore agency TBC, the "My BMore" campaign features full-page ads in major national magazines including Ebony, Oprah, Better Homes and Gardens, El Tiempo, and Family Circle for leisure-focused messages, and Successful Meetings, Associations Now and Convene in the meetings industry, to name just a few. A four-page spread in the April issues of the Washington Post Magazine and the New York Times "T" Magazine culture edition will feature multiple personalities together touting what they love about the city. Additionally a special Baltimore cover wrap featuring the "BMore" personalities will be included on subscriptions of Fortune magazine distributed to Visit Baltimore's meeting professionals list. Other highlights include a radio and video campaign on Pandora that will target online radio users east of the Mississippi; radio spots in Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia; and outdoor digital boards. "Tourism is a major economic engine in our city and state," said Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake. "Encouraging visitation to Baltimore through this new campaign benefits the entire city, helping to support a strong job base, ensuring our local businesses thrive and funding important city services through taxes paid by visitors." Tourism is a key industry in Baltimore. In 2013 23.9 million visitors spent $5.15 billion in the region supporting more than 80,500 jobs generating $266.3 million in city taxes and fees and saving each Baltimore household $615 a year. Today's launch is the first phase in a multi-year campaign. Conversations continue with other personalities regarding future additions including NBA player Carmelo Anthony, who has committed to participating in round two of the campaign. Travelers seeking itinerary suggestions and inspiration on how to create their own "BMore" experience can visit www.baltimore.org or join the conversation on social media at facebook.com/Bmoremd or @BaltimoreMD. About Visit Baltimore Visit Baltimore is the official sales and marketing organization for Baltimore that generates economic benefits for stakeholders through the attraction of convention, group and leisure visitors. For more information, please visit www.baltimore.org.

Industry Briefs

"My BMore" Advertising Campaign Featuring Well-Known Personalities

Visit Baltimore, the city's official sales and marketing organization, announced recently the launch of "My BMore," a new meetings and tourism advertising campaign showcasing the city through the genuine experiences of well-known personalities who were either born in the area or have authentic connections to the city. The first round of ads will feature actors Josh Charles, Johnathon Schaech and two-time Emmy winner Julie Bowen; Oscar, Golden Globe and Grammy award winner Common; TV personality Mike Rowe; Baltimore Symphony Orchestra Music Director Marin Alsop; former Harlem Globetrotter Choo Smith; Hall of Famer Cal Ripken, Jr.; and business leader Kevin Plank.

Each ad will showcase a different aspect of the city that resonates with each personality from family-friendly attractions to arts and culture, and history and heritage sites to food, neighborhoods, sports and more. The goal of the campaign is to raise awareness of all that Baltimore offers as a meeting and tourism destination and to entice potential travelers to visit the Baltimore.org website to begin planning their next meeting, convention or visit in Baltimore.

"The My BMore campaign is an opportunity for us to elevate the conversation regarding Baltimore as a meetings and tourism destination by amplifying a variety of Baltimore experiences and opportunities for exploration as told by well-known personalities," said Tom Noonan, president and CEO, Visit Baltimore.

The campaign is an extension of the new Visit Baltimore logo offering applications for both leisure messages like "Play More," "Explore More" and "Discover More" and the new meetings execution of "Meetings with More." Research within the meetings industry ranked Baltimore number one or two over its competitors in 18 core attributes identified as "value." The Meetings with More speaks to the "value" in meeting in Baltimore in terms of service, convenience, and return on investment.

Developed by Baltimore agency TBC, the "My BMore" campaign features full-page ads in major national magazines including Ebony, Oprah, Better Homes and Gardens, El Tiempo, and Family Circle for leisure-focused messages, and Successful Meetings, Associations Now and Convene in the meetings industry, to name just a few. A four-page spread in the April issues of the Washington Post Magazine and the New York Times "T" Magazine culture edition will feature multiple personalities together touting what they love about the city.

Additionally a special Baltimore cover wrap featuring the "BMore" personalities will be included on subscriptions of Fortune magazine distributed to Visit Baltimore's meeting professionals list. Other highlights include a radio and video campaign on Pandora that will target online radio users east of the Mississippi; radio spots in Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia; and outdoor digital boards.

"Tourism is a major economic engine in our city and state," said Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake. "Encouraging visitation to Baltimore through this new campaign benefits the entire city, helping to support a strong job base, ensuring our local businesses thrive and funding important city services through taxes paid by visitors."

Tourism is a key industry in Baltimore. In 2013 23.9 million visitors spent $5.15 billion in the region supporting more than 80,500 jobs generating $266.3 million in city taxes and fees and saving each Baltimore household $615 a year.

Today's launch is the first phase in a multi-year campaign. Conversations continue with other personalities regarding future additions including NBA player Carmelo Anthony, who has committed to participating in round two of the campaign. Travelers seeking itinerary suggestions and inspiration on how to create their own "BMore" experience can visit www.baltimore.org or join the conversation on social media at facebook.com/Bmoremd or @BaltimoreMD.

About Visit Baltimore

Visit Baltimore is the official sales and marketing organization for Baltimore that generates economic benefits for stakeholders through the attraction of convention, group and leisure visitors. For more information, please visit www.baltimore.org.