A 5”x7” post card was inserted into the May 2022 issue of Group Tour magazine, a subscription-based publication which actively targets group tour planners and operators. According to Group Tour Media this magazine is delivered to over 15,000 certified group tour planners.
The card featured an eye-catching photo of Cedar Point amusement park, which featured a QR Code that receivers could use to enter a giveaway for a four-pack of tickets to the park. The reverse side featured the co-op partners along with the Shores & Islands website and contact info for S&IO Group Tour Manager, Tiffany Frisch. Once an interested planner scanned the code to enter the giveaway, they were directed to answer a series of questions regarding their contact information, had they visited the destination previously, and if they are currently actively planning group trips.
This project was a cost-effective way to gain leads verses the high cost of attending in-person group trade shows and resulted in roughly the same amount of leads. Leads were shared with the partners to follow up with and invite to visit. Shores & Islands received 37 active qualified leads of planners who are actively planning trips. This amount is roughly equivalent to the number of leads obtained from past in-person trade shows.
S&IO has directly booked two new groups for 2023 from this promotion, equating to about 75 guests and roughly 40 room nights. Additionally, 5-10 planners reached out to us directly with interest in the destination just from seeing the postcard insert.
