WASHINGTON, D.C.
Working to maximizing the opportunity to get in front of thousands of politically active and connected Americans, the U.S. Travel Association announced several initiatives it’s planning for the Republican and Democratic National Conventions—taking place in the next couple of weeks in Tampa, Fla. and Charlotte, N.C., respectively. The measures are part of the association’s Vote Travel 2.0 campaign, launched earlier this year as a means of tying industry promotion efforts to the election season.
U.S. Travel will run a contest on Twitter, sending out trivia questions about the travel industry through its VoteTravel2012 hashtag and via the hashtags of the conventions, #RNC2012 and #DNC2012. Winners of the contest will receive a two-night stay at any MGM property in Las Vegas, tickets to a Cirque de Soleil performance, a $300 food voucher and a $1,000 American Express giftcard.
In addition, guestroom keycards at Marriott properties will feature the VoteTravel2.0 logo; all taxis in the two cities have been outfitted with air fresheners featuring the VoteTravel logo and bus drivers have been given VoteTravel pins. Travelers who rent a car from Hertz or Enterprise will receive a VoteTravel digi-clean, micro-fiber screen cleaners. All delegates who enter the "Vote Travel" code on the website of taxi company Uber will receive a $20 discount on their first ound-trip Uber ride.
Finally, street marketing teams will push the Vote Travel message by handing out t-shirts, squishy buses and buttons in both cities, and the association is working with Marriott to set-up back-of-the-house tours at area hotels for policymakers and delegates to see what it takes to put on the conventions.
“We just wanted to enforce that it’s the travel industry that makes meetings and conventions possible,” said Blain Rethmeier, senior vice president of public affairs.
