Goals: Clearly state your marketing goals. What did you strive to achieve using this piece or program?
Santa Rosa County, Florida, launched a highly successful experiential marketing campaign at the 2024 Atlanta Dogwood Festival, held from April 12-14, 2024. The activation aimed to showcase Navarre Beach as a premier destination, emphasizing its appeal as “Florida’s Most Relaxing Place.” Positioned at a prime location between the main performance stage and the art loop, the activation captivated the festival’s affluent attendees, driving significant engagement and interest in Navarre Beach.
Campaign Goals and Objectives: The primary goal of this activation was to increase awareness and drive visitation to Navarre Beach from the Atlanta market. Specific objectives included:
- Enhance Brand Awareness: Position Navarre Beach as the ultimate relaxation destination for Atlanta’s affluent travelers.
- Engage Visitors: Provide an interactive and immersive experience that allows festival-goers to experience the relaxing atmosphere of
Navarre Beach.
- Collect First-Party Data: Capture visitor information for future marketing efforts, with a focus on increasing email engagement and social media retargeting.
- Boost Online Presence: Leverage the offline activation to drive traffic to Santa Rosa County’s digital platforms, increasing social media engagement and website traffic.
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)
Results: The Navarre Beach activation at the Atlanta Dogwood Festival delivered outstanding results:
- High Engagement: The Moke photo station generated 1,096 social media engagements, significantly increasing brand visibility. Additionally, the photo kiosk captured hundreds of emails, leading to a 3x increase in email engagement with targeted recipients.
- Increased Awareness: The activation generated substantial interest, with attendees actively engaging with the brand both onsite and online.
- Substantial Online Traffic Growth: Google Analytics data showed a 193.8% increase in organic search website traffic and a 160% increase in new website users. Notably, there was a 13,900% increase in new website users from Atlanta during the festival period compared to the same period the previous year.
- Effective Follow-Up: The follow-up email campaign maintained engagement with festival-goers, converting initial interest into potential visits to Navarre Beach.
- Enhanced Social Media Presence: The activation led to a 25% increase in social media engagement and a 33% increase in impressions on - Facebook and Instagram compared to the three-month weekly average. The campaign also boosted Santa Rosa County’s social media followers, creating a strong foundation for future retargeting efforts.
Return on Investment: How much revenue has the piece or campaign generated and how does this compare to your goal? What was the return on investment?
Santa Rosa County’s innovative and immersive activation at the Atlanta Dogwood Festival successfully introduced Navarre Beach to a key target market, driving significant engagement both offline and online. This campaign not only increased awareness of Navarre Beach but also effectively converted interest into potential visits, showcasing the power of experiential marketing in driving tourism.
Entry Title
Santa Rosa County: Atlanta Dogwood Festival
Division
Integrated Campaign - Experiential Marketing