Las Vegas Tourism Authority Japan Influencer Campaign
The Challenge
The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority sought to attract young Japanese travelers to Las Vegas, as these tourists typically favored major US cities like New York and Los Angeles, overlooking Las Vegas as a potential travel destination.
To address this challenge, Ogilvy Japan developed a targeted Instagram-first influencer campaign based on in-depth research into the digital and travel behaviors of the target audience. The insight we came across was that younger Japanese travelers loved to post photos of food when they visit new places. So we decided to attract Key steps included:
Influencer Campaign: We identified and sent 10 mid-sized Japanese influencers to Las Vegas to experience and showcase the city. These influencers created engaging posts highlighting the sights, sounds, and tastes of Las Vegas, aiming to generate reach, engagement, and interest among their followers.
Focus on Food Culture: Based on insights that the target audience preferred food-focused content, we shifted our strategy to emphasize Las Vegas's diverse restaurant scene and food culture rather than conventional tourist attractions.
Social Media Launch: Successfully launched the Las Vegas Japan Facebook and Instagram pages, providing platforms to amplify the influencer content and engage directly with the target audience.
Paid Social Media: We launched a series of paid ads on Instagram and Twitter to drive awareness and engagement.
Results
The campaign achieved significant success, surpassing engagement benchmarks and increasing interest (measured using social listening tools as well as package tour bookings) in Las Vegas as a travel destination among young Japanese travelers:
High Engagement: The influencer posts garnered substantial reach and engagement, raising awareness and consideration for Las Vegas as a lesser-known travel destination in the US.
Effective Content Strategy: The focus on food culture resonated well with the target audience, making Las Vegas more appealing as a travel destination. Social listening tools were used to track and measure social conversations.
Successful Social Media Presence: The new Las Vegas Japan Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages proved to be effective channels for ongoing engagement with Japanese travelers.
Responsibilities
Developed and executed social strategy
Created and curated content
Conducted bilingual audience research
Managed influencer relationships
Handled community management
Scouted locations in Las Vegas
Conducted social listening and monitoring
Analyzed campaign performance and metrics