CASE STUDY

Tourism marketing drew foodies and wineaus to McMinnville, Oregon.

With a strategy centered around an easy-to-use website and a message highlighting impressive numbers, the multi-media tourism marketing campaign, TasteMac, generated buzz locally and drew crowds of visitors.

Business

Destination promotion to draw tourists to McMinnville, Oregon

Audience

Upscale, regional tourists looking for exceptional dining and wine tasting experiences.

Challenge

In 2014 McMinnville, Oregon began a lodging tax to fund tourism. The town's burgeoning food and wine scene had been drawing visitors from around the country even without promotion. \

The McMinnville Downtown Association applied for a grant to fund a campaign to draw more visitor's interested in downtown’s food and wine offerings. With a small budget, the goal was to build on the many accolades as one of America’s “foodiest” towns, and the “Best Main Street in the West.” Creative Company was chosen to plan, design, build and manage the campaign.

Optimized

Once the list of restaurants, wineries and tasting rooms, and breweries and tap rooms was tallied, we knew the numbers said it all--34 dining options, 17 wineries and tasting rooms and 7 breweries and tap rooms in just 14 strollable blocks.

We chose the “Taste Mac” theme, created the brand system, compiled reviews and built the various components of the campaign.

A website was the centerpiece, helping visitors find dining options or places to taste wine or sip a brew. Reviews and photos of our tree-lined downtown added context and engagement. Print ads using bold blocks of numbers supported by photos were designed and placed in high-end magazines targeted to tourists. An AdWords campaign drew more visitors to the website.

Rack cards, posters, static clings and coasters brought the message into each location. A launch party formally introduced the tourism marketing campaign to the McMinnville community and campaign participants to build excitement, conversation, and the desire to share.

An ongoing social presence on Facebook and Instagram shared posts from participants and pictures during the year.

The long home page (right) offers quick navigation to website sections. A map locates McMinnville within the region, while links at the bottom go to the MDA website for events, lodging and more. Inside pages (left) continue the bold, visual layout, with tiles opening to deliver detailed information on each entity listed.

Components

Results

Launched in mid-March, 2015, the campaign drove web traffic and raised regional attention to McMinnville's food and wine scene. Numerous accolades from the McMinnville community and others in the region were heard. Website visitors came from around the country. Downtown visitor volume boomed. Overnight stays increased nearly 10% based on lodging tax collections.

At the end of 2015, a new organization, Visit McMinnville, was establshed to promote tourism for the City of McMInnville. 

Awards

The campaign captured a Silver in Integrated Campaigns category of the SIAAwards for 2015

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