Goals: Clearly state your marketing goals. What did you strive to achieve using this piece or program?
Following an ambitious makeover that not only reimagined its purpose, overall design and aesthetic, Uniworld Boutique River Cruises made plans in the fall of 2019 to debut its newest Super Ship, the transformed S.S. Bon Voyage. Offering three itineraries along the Garonne, Dordogne and Gironde rivers, the ship was built with a singular purpose: to share the authentic marvels of France’s Bordeaux region with guests in singular Uniworld style.
Marketing objectives were straightforward:
• Introduce Uniworld’s S.S. Bon Voyage to the widest and most apt audience of genuine travel enthusiasts
• Extoll the virtues of river cruising with Uniworld, emphasizing the brand’s distinguishing elements including design, food, tours, service and amenities
• Support the sales and marketing effort
Results: Which of your original goals did you achieve and how? How did you measure the effectiveness of the piece or campaign? Entrants should provide quantifiable results of their tactics or campaigns. (for example, click through rates or ad equivalency)
To achieve our goals, D/R approached Travel + Leisure Editor in Chief, Jacqui Gifford. With a mission to empower and inspire the world’s most passionate travel audience and boasting a print readership of 6.1 million, the imperative to secure significant coverage in one of the country’s most trusted travel publications was paramount.
• D/R pitched the new ship and river cruising as the epitome of Uniworld’s effort to immerse travelers in destination. An intrigued Gifford assigned renowned freelance journalist Heidi Mitchell to cover the story
• D/R arranged for Mitchell and an accompanying T+L photographer to experience the ship’s inaugural sailing, providing background information and up-to-date details on the S. S. Bon Voyage’ and overall “why river cruising” messaging
• D/R exceeded objectives:
o 6-page feature story in print version of Travel + Leisure reaching 6.1 million readers. In addition, story was also shared on travelandleisure.com, foodandwine.com and syndicated to Yahoo for an additional 3.5 billion+ impressions
o Uniworld and the S.S. Bon Voyage were positively represented throughout the feature, with messaging clearly commending the ship and the overall brand’s unique features “…this was no ordinary ship. In addition to four new suites, the renovation added antiques and original French artworks – a ship built for Bordeaux”
o Story concludes, “At the last supper, I settled into our final soufflé and scanned Le Grand Fromage as it grew loud and boisterous. My fellow adventurers, all just as sauced as me, somehow looked brand-new. “Who are all these partiers we’ve been traveling with?” I asked Michelle. Her answer: “They are us. And we are river cruisers.”
o In addition to print, this piece was also carried on travelandleisure.com (7.6M impressions, 3 backlinks, DA88) and syndicated to foodandwine.com (7.8M impressions, 3 backlinks, DA88) and Yahoo.com (3.4B impressions, 3 backlinks, DA92) driving quality leads to Uniworld.com
Entry Title
And Now We Are River Cruisers
Division
Public Relations - FEATURE PLACEMENT PRINT - Consumer Magazine or Newspaper