Chasing relevance: marketing Alaska as a visitor destination.

• Author: Griffin, Judy
• Position: VISITOR INDUSTRY

Emerging electronic tools and changing consumer communication habits are morphing the way Alaska is marketed as a visitor destination. Selling tourism today requires nimbleness and immediacy.

The polished copy of rack cards, brochures, and vacation planners still plays a role, but the content of electronic vehicles such as websites, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and YouTube increasingly serves as the tool for closing sales and tailoring visitor experiences. Frequent postings of fresh content and dialog with the audience attract new business and keep those interested engaged. The ability to retarget with online advertising even reminds shoppers about products and services they've viewed.

As a visitor destination, Alaska retains tremendous appeal among travelers and would-be travelers. The vision of a trip to the 49th state is often nurtured for decades before the dream is realized. Although the Alaska mystique is an enticing notion, other grand adventures, alluring scenery, and wildlife habitats beckon. Repeated and refreshed messages are often needed to close the sale in destination marketing.

"Alaska is still very relevant in the marketplace," says Julie Saupe, president and CEO of Visit Anchorage. Research funded by the State of Alaska has profiled the typical traveler as age fifty-five and older, but a lot of young people are interested in Alaska. Often that interest doesn't turn into travel until the person is older because of time and money issues, explains Saupe.

Every individual and organization selling tourism-related products and services benefits from the collective sowing of and sustaining the notion of an Alaska visit. A wide array of advertising media, sales programs, and public relations activities feed the desire to experience Alaska as well as communicate the possibilities for packaging travel.

Businesses providing lodging, transportation, tours, and activities work together to create travel options that appeal to varied preferences for adventure, cultural experiences, and comfort. "We work as partners in the industry," says Bruce LaLonde, director of Guest Services and Passenger Marketing for the Alaska Railroad Corporation. He notes that as part of keeping products fresh, new offerings added to the railroad's packaged tours this year include zipline tours in Seward and Talkeetna and a Mahay's Jet Boat Adventures trip to a camp demonstrating Alaska Native culture.

Cooperation Provides Advantages

Marketing Alaska as a travel destination is a cooperative effort--in spirit, affiliations are forged to create attractive itineraries and especially shared costs for promotions. Destination marketing organizations (DMOs) at the local, regional, and state level provide marketing that benefits members, offer cooperative advertising, and provide opportunities such as shared trade show space and participation in sales missions.

Dee Buchanon, Director of Marketing for CIRI Alaska Tourism Corporation, says, "We rely heavily on the State of Alaska Department of Commerce and Economic Development program, as well as the local DMOs such as Visit Anchorage, Seward Chamber of Commerce, and Mat-Su Convention and Visitors Bureau to generate interest in travel to Alaska. The memberships we have in those organizations provide us with opportunities for cooperative marketing, and we take advantage of those to reach potential visitors who are interested in traveling to Alaska."

The State of Alaska Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development and the Alaska Tourism Marketing Board work together to guide Alaska's tourism marketing program. Created in July 2014, the Alaska Tourism Marketing Board is...