Taking a Destination into the Big Leagues

Background
As with many Florida destinations, Florida’s Bradenton Area offers beautiful beaches and extraordinary escape, but it is also one of Florida’s most diverse and developed sports destinations. Although possessing a storied history and broad association with a variety of sports at every level, the destination needed guidance as to how to integrate its story, define its sports attributes and position itself competitively against other destinations in the state. Previously, the client relied solely on one-on-one sales in an attempt to advance sports marketing for the destination, and had no defined position, target-focused campaign, or sales materials. In addition, the client showed little knowledge of the destination’s facilities, sports infrastructure or opportunities.

The agency made the deep dive
The agency’s first step was to determine the county’s sports assets – the fields, the courts, the training facilities, support and hospitality assets – all that any sports destination will need in order to succeed. Aqua took the initiative to dive deep into the destination, with its staff researching every aspect of the county. As it did, it looked for discernable differences that the county might offer in order to compete against other destinations.

The discovery period revealed three extraordinary differences for the county: 1. An expansive and unexpected mix of sports venues, including Olympic swimming, rowing, and ice hockey, 2. A massive sports infrastructure, including some of the country’s leading sports rehabilitation experts and performance research by top athletic and health brands, and 3. The quiet presence of some of the country’s top professional teams and sports training groups who had long made the area their home.

The destination had a long history of being the spring training home of the Pittsburgh Pirates and the headquarters campus of the famed IMG Academy, where over 200,000 amateur and pro athletes a year from over 100 countries trained and improved. Tennis stars Monica Seles, Jim Courier and Maria Sharapova and more began their tennis careers in the area. Additionally, the area had attracted some of sports’ largest amateur and pro tournaments, including the World Rowing Championships and had become a national center for rowing training. As the area attracted athletes and coaches, it had also gained the attention of those in the sports performance arena as well, with brands such as Gatorade and Under Armour establishing research facilities in the area. Additionally some of the nation’s top sports rehabilitation experts were headquartered in the area.

Taking our best shot
Armed with a deep knowledge of the destination’s expansive sports offerings and infrastructure, the agency produced a targeted campaign, aimed specifically to audiences such as coaches and tournament organizers, segmented by specific sport. With the campaign creating the “top funnel” of awareness and interest, the agency bolstered the county’s sales support and outreach efforts by creating a new Convention Center guide, highlighting the many sports uses of the county’s owned facility. Most significantly, all aspects of the county’s sports offerings – from tournaments to training, from sports research to rehab – were chronicled for the first time in a single “Sports Playbook,” providing complete information on all aspects of the county’s sports opportunities. The agency’s research and collection of assets was also used to create a unique informational video for use by both the CVB’s Sports Marketing division as well as the area’s Economic Development Corporation.

The outcome
Within just two years, the area was rapidly repositioned as one of Florida’s leading year-round sports marketing hubs, leading to increased tournaments, training as well as first-time and repeat visitors. It achieved a 40% increase in sports-related events and realized a total of 42 new events covering eight separate sports, bringing 54,200 overnight visitors – up a whopping 23% over previous years. Events included Major League Soccer’s pre-season games with U.S. and international teams, U.S. Soccer’s Nike Friendlies, and 2014 training in Olympic ice skating.
Since that time, the destination has gone on to generate an estimated $300 million annually in economic impact from sports events, including soccer tournaments, lacrosse, and baseball. The destination’s marketing efforts were credited with achieving a strong $5 return on investment per each $1 spent on marketing. As importantly, the effort allowed the destination to achieve the desired objective of visitation diversification beyond its sparkling beaches, helping to sustain 12-month tourism activity with the combined family/at athlete draw.

The county’s new “Sports Playbook” developed by the agency went on to be recognized as the top tourism effort in the entire state of Florida, and awarded the coveted “Henry Award” by the state’s official marketing arm, Visit Florida.