Sunshine Matters

VISIT FLORIDA recently concluded our highly successful 2010-11 media missions and receptions program with two final events held last week in New York City.  Working with our tourism industry Partners and Communications Committee members, VISIT FLORIDA made a change to the program this year by converting all the desk-side media missions in our key feeder markets to media receptions.  Amid the post-oil spill misperception fall-out regarding the condition of Florida beaches, this shift to receptions allowed more Partners to reach a greater number of media in each market.

Starting with a special reception in New York in October 2010, VISIT FLORIDA then hosted media receptions in Washington, D.C., Atlanta, Boston and Chicago before concluding with two back-to-back receptions in New York last week.  Collectively, the VISIT FLORIDA media receptions were attended by 84 tourism industry Partners who met with 74 media guests, representing one or more media outlets each.

VISIT FLORIDA’s media missions and receptions program positions VISIT FLORIDA and its tourism Partners as the official resource for travel journalists and bloggers and provides an important networking opportunity for our Partners to promote Florida’s tourism assets for future earned media opportunities.  The most recent New York City outings were attended by 17 Partners at a consumer-media focused reception on April 26 and a blogger/social media reception on April 27.

This year marked the first time VISIT FLORIDA has lead a reception exclusively focused on travel bloggers and social media influencers.  Our goal to strengthen relationships with this important community of media, while sustaining and continuing to grow media relations with the traditional consumer media group, was successful as seen by the strong media turnout at both receptions.  Twenty-eight media attended the Consumer Media reception and 17 bloggers/digital media guests attended the Bloggers/Social Media reception.

Combined, the media guests at these two New York events represent a leading indicator of more than 10 million in circulation and nearly 20 million in unique visitors per month at their respective media outlets.  Among the 28 media outlets represented, some highlights include Good Morning America on ABC, Go Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, Daily Newspaper, Travel + Leisure magazine, Town & Country magazine, Meetings & Conventions magazine, Condé Nast Traveler magazine, Frommers.com, Fodors.com, EBONY magazine, HuffingtonPost.com, and TheTravelingMom.com.

VISIT FLORIDA would like to thank all of our Partners who participated in the media receptions program this past year.  The most recent April NYC media receptions were attended by Discover Martin County, Florida Keys & Key West, the Greater Fort Lauderdale CVB, Visit Jacksonville, St. Augustine/Ponte Vedra, the Seminole County CVB, The Beaches of Fort Myers & Sanibel, the Sarasota & Her Islands CVB, Visit St. Pete/Clearwater, Visit Pensacola, Visit Orlando, The Dali Museum, Naples-Marco Island-Everglades, the Greater Miami CVB, Visit Tallahassee, the Daytona Beach Area CVB and Discover The Palm Beaches & Boca Raton.