Meet LA, the sales & marketing team for Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board’s meetings & conventions sector, is being honored for travel marketing excellence by the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International (HSMAI).
Digital Edge is proud to support Meet LA in its achievement of a Bronze Adrian Award for its winning entry in the Advertising – Group Sales/Travel Trade category.
The Winning Entry
The partnership between Meet LA and Digital Edge goes back to 2020, but the media campaign for FY 2024 (July 2023–June 2024) added a new chapter in the collaboration.
The Goals
The media campaign’s goals were to drive year-round exposure to continue to keep LA at the forefront of the minds of meeting planners, effectively showcasing LA as the ultimate destination for meetings & events, and to increase awareness of the destination’s meeting districts. Another goal was to increase meetings website visitation from planners in key target geographic markets.
Meet LA’s campaign messaging and creative incorporated LA Tourism’s brand and message, “Now Playing” — an invitation to the Southern California city as it celebrates landmark centennials in 2024 and rolls out the red carpet to some of the biggest events in the world over the next decade—and adapted it to planners’ needs, telling them now is the time to host an event this destination unlike any other. Ads were designed to showcase each of LA’s regions: Downtown, Beach Cities/LAX, Westside, Hollywood and the Valley.
The Results
The campaign employed an omnichannel strategy, utilizing a wide variety of placements to effectively engage group audiences and reach users in all stages of their browsing journey. As part of the quantitative results, the campaign earned 16,924,771 total impressions, 47.4% more than the goal of 11,482,000. A total of 153,165 website users were reached, achieving a 120.64% year-over-year (YoY) rise. The site saw major increases in users in the key geographic locations, seeing an average YoY increase of 1,258%.
The ROI
This can be seen in the campaign’s support of the Meet LA Team in bringing 21 citywide conventions to the Los Angeles Convention Center in 2023, drawing more than 390,000 attendees, generating nearly 182,000 hotel room nights in the LA area and contributing almost $422 million in total sending.
“Los Angeles Tourism’s ’Now Playing’ campaign showcases the incomparable breadth of attractions, experiences, entertainment, and accommodations found only in LA while also being ownable, authentic, and inclusive. We employed an omnichannel strategy to effectively engage group audiences and showcase LA as the ultimate destination for meetings and events. By working with Digital Edge and breaking down the content by the regions of LA – Downtown, Beach Cities/LAX, Westside, Hollywood and the Valley – we were able to successfully position all that the city has to offer in a digestible way through integrated messaging and creative across brand marketing, communications, and advertising,” said Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board Director of Sales Marketing Hilary Feutz.
“Digital Edge’s relationship with the LA team has only continued to grow, and I am proud that our partnership can add a new milestone with the achievement of the Adrian Award for Meet LA’s campaign encompassing group sales and travel trade.”
– Digital Edge Founder Mya Surrency
Read Digital Edge’s case study for a deeper look at the partnership.
The HSMAI Adrian Awards
This Adrian Awards year’s theme, Wish You Were Here, highlights the stories of the memorable and successful travel marketing and public relations campaigns, ads, earned media programs, and experiential and digital experiences that inspired the notion that travel is about more than just the destination, cultivating a passion for the journey and memories collected along the way.
“The Adrian Awards honors the creativity and vision that drives our industry forward, shining a spotlight on the marketing and communication leaders whose outstanding work truly inspires people to embrace travel and create unforgettable memories in the journey.”
– HSMAI President and CEO Brian Hicks
The award winners — selected out of more than 800 entries submitted this year — will be formally recognized at the annual Adrian Awards Celebration on February 18, 2025, at the New York Marriott Marquis.
The Adrian Awards, now in their 68th year, are the largest and most prestigious competition in global travel marketing. For 2024, Adrian Awards are being presented in advertising, digital, PR/communications and integrated campaign categories. These include awards for digital creators, reputation management, affiliate marketing and broadcast integration.
Winning entries will be viewable in the winners’ gallery on the Adrian Awards website following the February 18 Celebration. Visit adrianawards.hsmai.org for more information.
About HSMAI
The Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International (HSMAI) is committed to growing business for hotels and their partners and is the industry’s leading advocate for intelligent, sustainable hotel revenue growth. The association provides hotel professionals and their partners with tools, insights, and expertise to fuel sales, inspire marketing, and optimize revenue through programs such as the Commercial Strategy Conference, Sales Leader Forum, and Adrian Awards. Founded in 1927, HSMAI is a membership organization comprising more than 5,000 members worldwide, with 40 chapters in the Americas Region. Connect with HSMAI at hsmai.org.
About Digital Edge
Founded in 2011, Digital Edge, a part of the Agital collective, provides cutting-edge digital marketing solutions, off-the-charts creativity, and meetings, sales and travel trade expertise for sales & marketing teams on the B2B side of travel & tourism organizations. The agency’s services for destination organizations, convention centers, hotels and beyond include strategy, creative, media, content, sales, research and video. Visit digitaledge.marketing to learn more.
