PHILADELPHIA, March 7, 2001 – The Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation today announced that it would launch a new advertising campaign in late April to lure increased numbers of tourists to the five-county region. While the new campaign will feature a new advertising theme, the tagline created in 1997 – Philadelphia, the Place that LOVES YOU BACK – will remain in all television and print advertising. GPTMC will spend a total of $4.3 million in spring and summer, which includes advertising in the following categories: general image, niche markets, Web site, cooperative and trade, and Cultural Cooperative Grant Program.

"We’re ready to unveil the next generation of television commercials, which build on the three years of successful television image advertising," said Meryl Levitz, president and CEO of GPTMC. "Three years ago, we needed celebrities to draw attention to Philadelphia and to give us credibility as a tourism destination. Now the destination can stand on its own as a unique getaway destination." Levitz added that GPTMC would be unveiling its new commercials and travel year research at its Annual Report to the Industry meeting on May 9 during National Tourism Week.

GPTMC’s previous campaign theme was "This is MY Philadelphia," spoken by celebrities. The new campaign theme is "Philadelphia. For the Pursuit of happiness – yours." GPTMC and advertising agency Earle Palmer Brown in July 2000 convened focus groups in five feeder cities to assess the destination’s image and identify strengths and weaknesses. The resulting 30-second television commercials position Philadelphia as an ideal place for a getaway vacation, playing off the stress of everyday life and touting Philadelphia’s unique combination of enrichment and relaxation.

Television commercials will begin airing in late April in the regional Harrisburg and regional New York (including northern New Jersey and southern Connecticut) markets, which supply the largest percentages of visitors to the region.

A magazine campaign, running from April – July, will utilize directory ads in the April – July issues of 19 publications and will reach a total of 25 million people. Publications include Martha Stewart Living, Travel America, American Legacy, Preservation, Natural History, Family Fun, Southern Living, Better Homes & Gardens, Good Housekeeping, Reader’s Digest, Conde Nast Traveler, National Geographic Traveler, Travel & Leisure, Parade magazine, AAA Car & Travel, New York Magazine, The New York Times Sophisticated Traveler section.

Newspapers in the New York and Harrisburg markets will also be targeted with advertising that promotes events in the region. Media selected include the New York Times, New York Daily News, Newark Star Ledger and Harrisburg Patriot News.

In addition to general advertising, GPTMC advertises in niche media to speak directly to special markets, such as African Americans and families selecting colleges in the region. African American media targeted include newspapers: Amsterdam News, New York Beacon, and Afro American (Baltimore) and magazines: Sojourner, American Legacy and Pathfinders. Radio in key markets will also be included. To reach the campus visitation market, GPTMC sponsors Campus Visit Philadelphia, which reaches out to college-bound students and their families with the Campus Visit Philadelphia magazine, a Web site (www.onebigcampus.com), direct mail and online advertising.

GPTMC ran the first national television and print advertising campaigns promoting the Philadelphia region in spring 1997. In the past three years (1997, 1998 and 1999), GPTMC general advertising has generated more than 3.26 million incremental overnight trips and $335 million in related traveler expenditures versus a media budget of $5.2 million (image campaign only), according to a study by Longwoods International.

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