Pushing Traditional Limits: California Culture’s Edge

In California, a coalition has had enormous success in reaching targeted audiences to promote the state’s three major urban centers as cultural destinations. Recognized as a national model for multicultural tourism, the Travel Industry Association (TIA) awarded California: Culture’s Edge the 1998 TIA Odyssey Award.

California: Culture’s Edge partnered arts councils, hotels, and CVBs in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and San Diego with American Express and Hyatt Hotels and Resorts to promote the cultural aspects of each urban region. Through a collection of 13 themed itineraries—including African American Heritage, California Fiesta (Latino heritage), Jewish Heritage, Pride (Gay and Lesbian Culture), East is West (Asian culture), and On the Edge (avant-garde art scene)—travelers were invited to experience exotic urban and rural adventures through museums, theaters, ethnic communities, festivals, historic sites, galleries, architecture, and more.

In each city, hundreds of community and cultural leaders volunteered to help identify attractions, restaurants, shops, and night spots appropriate for each of the 13 itineraries.

The huge cross-promotional effort included: A 32-page Travel Planner distributed to 950,000 targeted consumers and travel agents.

A 120-page Itinerary Book distributed to 50,000 prospective California travelers who requested more information after seeing the Travel Planner.‚ A 24-page American Express Guide to Great Values, which was distributed to 25,000 consumers at American Express Travel Service locations throughout the United States.

The $2 million marketing campaign, funded largely by American Express along with a National Endowment for the Arts grant of $150,000 and additional funding from coalition members and advertising sales, was launched in 1998 with same-day business-section articles in the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times.

Of 200,000 Travel Planners mailed to targeted American Express cardmember households in California feeder markets, 115,000 (58.16 percent) traveled to California in the six-month period following the mailing, spending $154,664,870 while there.

“The response by our cardmembers was outstanding and proved that a good cultural product can increase the amount of time and money travelers will spend in market,” states Stan Washington, Vice President and General Manager, American Express Establishment Services, Western Region.

“This campaign proved that when the nonprofit arts and for-profit travel industries work together, when true public/private partnerships are developed around common goals, the sky’s the limit,” says Laura Zucker, executive director, Los Angeles County Arts Commission.

For more information, contact the Los Angeles Convention and Visitors Bureau at (213) 236-2364.