Small Budget, Big Campaign

Washington, North Carolina, is a charming town on the Pamlico Sound, and it has a lot to offer a visitor: over thirty-seven listed Historic Homes, a lovely waterfront area, unique shopping and dining opportunities, and numerous festivals throughout the year. And aside from the city itself, the Washington area also offers convenient access to attractions in Beaufort County and beyond.

The Washington Tourism Authority turned to Eye Integrated for help promoting all these sites to their prospective visitors.

The Opportunity
Washington Tourism had two clear objectives they needed to achieve with their modest budget: boosting hotel room sales in the Washington area, as well as increasing the traffic at their Visitor’s Center.

Often, the largest challenge with promotions is simply too much need and too little resources. Eye Integrated had to find a way to help Washington Tourism get the most out of their budget while working with them to achieve their goals.

The Solution
Eye Integrated and Washington Tourism defined what most needed to be said with Washington’s promotional material. Since Washington not only offers its own charms but is also conveniently located near many other attractions in the area, it was decided that the best marketing strategy would highlight both the city and its place in eastern North Carolina: Washington – The Hub for Experiencing The Inner Banks of North Carolina.

After researching the various attractions in the area, we identified five distinct audiences for the tourism promotion, each interested in different aspects of Washington:

1. The History Buff: Historical Attractions
2. The Culturalist: Arts and Culture
3. The Day Tripper: Shopping and Dining
4. The ICW Traveler: The Waterways
5. The Eco Tourist: Environmental Attractions

The Process
Needless to say, recognizing five separate audiences didn’t make the challenge of stretching a small budget any easier. Working with Lynn Lewis, Director of Tourism, Eye Integrated produced a two-year plan to address Washington Tourism’s highest priority needs. Two items were identified: material for the brochure racks at Interstate rest stops and other high traffic areas, and a walking tour to help visitors see the historic sites in the downtown area.

The Brochure Rack Envelope
To distinguish Washington’s promotional material from the many other folders in the racks, we designed a unique envelope stuffed with six separate cards. Each card appealed to one of our five target audiences, and included a list of what specific activities and sites Washington offered their interests, as well as a daily itinerary. A sixth card included general information about Washington.

The Walking Tour
Again, Eye Integrated used a non-conventional approach: we created a spiral-bound book featuring forty-three historical sites in the downtown area, including a photo of each location and the history of that site, as well as a detailed map. The high-quality guidebooks are now sold in the Tourism Office in downtown Washington and have become a popular gift for events like wedding parties and family reunions.

We wanted to help Washington Tourism make the most efficient use of their promotions budget, so our designers kept costs down by repeating the use of graphic materials and photography. For example, the photography used in the brochure rack envelope has been creatively re-used in trade ads, billboards, and newspaper advertising. This saves on production costs and provides repetition, one of the keys to effective communication.

The Result
Both the brochure rack envelope and the walking tour guidebook have won numerous awards in the tourism industry for innovation and customer appeal. Additionally, the popular walking tour book has become a source of income for Washington Tourism…what was originally viewed as taking money out of the promotions budget is now putting revenue back in.

Eye Integrated was able to collaborate successfully with Washington Tourism because we understand that marketing budgets come in all shapes and sizes. By working closely with our clients and identifying their true needs, we’re able to maximize the impact of their campaigns while making the best use of their promotional resources.

Wanna hear what Lynn Lewis, the director of the Tourism Authority, has to say about working with us? Go over to the Testimonial section and see.