Sunshine Matters

Florida ranks second among all 50 states in total international visitation and first in visitor spending.  In 2010 alone, Florida’s tourism industry brought in 11.1 million international visitors from 144 different countries who spent $10.6 billion. As a unique opportunity for increasing international visitation to the state and improving the Sunshine State’s economy, VISIT FLORIDA has now expanded the Florida Insider Program to reach overseas audiences.

In addition to our nine Florida-based Insiders, VISIT FLORIDA has added two international Insiders to our roster of vacation experts. Kylie Jenkins, representing the United Kingdom-Ireland and Wiebke Flegel-Wult from Germany, are the newest internationally-based Florida Insiders generating content and providing insight specifically for international visitors to the Sunshine State. Continue reading »

I am proud to announce that VISIT FLORIDA is working with Google to publish travel stories on a new smartphone and tablet application called Google Currents that has just been released.

Launching on Android devices, iPads and iPhones, Currents lets users explore online magazines and other content with the swipe of a finger.  VISIT FLORIDA’s work with Google is the first of its kind between the search engine giant and a destination marketing organization. Continue reading »

Three new vacation experts join VISITFLORIDA.com’s Insiders team for 2011-2012. And their online home has received an elegant makeover.

Accomplished bloggers Jeanette Thwing (Shopping) and Rachelle Lucas (Dining, Entertainment and Luxury) and popular guidebook author Gary McKechnie (Off the Beaten Path) bolster an already strong lineup of reporters.

Each of the nine Insiders covers a Florida-specific topic, using all the quick-response tools of the 21st-century journalist. They post daily reports in their blogs, answer users’ questions and write feature stories. They take photographs and shoot informal videos. They appear on camera in highly produced travel pieces. They maintain an active social media presence on Twitter and Facebook. Continue reading »

Today, VISIT FLORIDA announced the launch of our integrated digital “Sunshine Moments” summer marketing campaign.  The campaign’s media plan focuses on reaching families through highly-targeted digital advertising buys on Facebook, AOL, Yahoo and several other key social media sites.  The $1.1 million, five-week social media-driven campaign is expected to result in more than 315 million online impressions.  The announcement was made during a satellite media tour held in St. Petersburg, which included nearly 30 media outlets from around the country. Continue reading »