South Dakota Tourism Media Strategies

Have you ever wondered what it's like to implement a national advertising campaign for an entire state? Well, wonder no more. Wanda Goodman, Media and PR Manager for the South Dakota Department of Tourism, has been busy putting the current summer campaign together, which carries the theme, "The Places of a Lifetime" or "The Memories of a Lifetime."

"The campaign includes several elements, including newspaper inserts, national magazines, television and online advertising in various markets, social media integration, and cooperative marketing with partners throughout South Dakota," Goodman said. Some of the past SD Tourism campaigns have included Vikings game sponsorship, tailgating at three Vikings games, and a pheasant hunt giveaway, and other contests and promotions through Facebook.

Because of the current economic status, the tourism industry has become even more competitive. Goodman said South Dakota markets heavily in Wisconsin, Minnesota, North Dakota, Iowa, Nebraska, and Colorado because "they have the highest propensity to travel to South Dakota, and they consistently show up in our top states for inquiries, booking, and web traffic."

Frequency and consistency are very important when advertising tourism. "People in these markets recognize our ads, they relate to the product we offer, and will sometimes even come up to us at a travel show booth and start singing our jingle. That's when you know you have fantastic brand recognition and you're making an impact," Goodman said. Research is also key to getting return on media in any business. Goodman and the media/PR department conduct focus groups, website usability studies, and audience profiling to determine who to target, what media they use, and where they are located.

Along with the developing public relation strategies for campaigns, handling media communication, and ensuring a positive reputation and brand image, Goodman and her team are responsible for monitoring traditional and social media coverage to see what's being said about South Dakota as a travel destination. "All of our traditional efforts plant the seed, and drive people to our website, which is where they continue the process of planning and purchasing by way of our online trip planner and booking capability. In addition, our social media efforts are good ways to promote short-time offers and upcoming events," Goodman said.

To learn more about South Dakota Tourism, follow them on Twitter, "Like" their Facebook page, subscribe to their YouTube channel, and visit their blog.

Protecting Connections

By: Kaitlyn Hemmingson

The “bunker” is what employees call it, a fitting name for the new high security building complete with 16-inch thick concrete walls and 24-hour video surveillance. What resembles a maximum-security penitentiary is in fact nothing of the sort, although its importance compares. It is the new building, designed specifically to house and protect all broadband services for the entire state of South Dakota and some surrounding areas. In an interview with Vernon Brown, marketing and relations manager for SDN communications, he expressed the importance of the new building for the communication in South Dakota, “I don’t think people fully understand the process or the importance of what we do here at SDN Communications. Any activity from an emergency 911 phone call to logging onto your Facebook account is supported by the SDN broadband network.”

SDN, the leading provider of broadband for the state, has been awarded a $20 million stimulus grant from the state of South Dakota for its new building. The “bunker” will serve to protect the exceedingly important connections of hospitals, banks, schools, government and private individuals statewide. Internet connection is something people rely upon and take for granted daily, and in South Dakota we can thank SDN Communications for keeping our network up and running every day. Communication is an essential part of our daily lives as advertisers and without such extensive protection our jobs would be rather difficult.

The new building will be located in northwest of Sioux Falls and is scheduled to open in the fall of this year. Extensive research went into planning the location of the building, which was determined by examining weather patterns that would be most suitable for keeping information safe. The staff at SDN is very excited to open the new building Vernon noted, “we feel like it is our obligation to protect the information that we provide.”

Strategimedia

Strategimedia: a combination of the words strategy and media. Yes, the word is fictional, but this one-word, six-syllable description of media planning brings simplicity to a complex task.

Lee Larson of Paulsen Marketing is a strategimedia type of guy. He is a media planner and buyer for Paulsen Marketing in Sioux Falls. His daily duties change constantly and depend on what plan is first priority at a particular time. He works with the account executives to hash out a plan to bring the budget, timelines and target audience in harmony with one another. Once plans are approved, Larson starts negotiating and contracting with media outlets.

One of his favorite projects to work on was for South Dakota’s Corn Utilization Council’s “True Environmentalist” campaign. Larson said he planned, negotiated and purchased all the media for the campaign. He planned for a variety of media including: broadcast TV, cable TV, radio, cinema, newsprint, specialty print, digital online, and billboards.

Larson had some words of wisdom for college students looking into media planning as a career. Check mark number one: you like math in a way you can simplify complex data for non-media people to understand. Check mark number two: you have an open mind. Check mark number three: you are an analytical, detail-oriented and strategic thinker.

Now all you strategimedia type of people, consider going into media planning for a career and remember the words of Lee Larson, “Creativity doesn’t come from copycats.”

SDGolfTV Delivers Content For Local Enthusiasts

With the ever-growing interest in golf, more and more enthusiasts are looking for an online source for everything golf. Well, look no more. SDGolfTV is an online buffet of everything that is or will be golf. There’s constantly-growing blog, golf equipment reviews and stores, classifieds, lists of events, and more. However, arguably the most beneficial tool for golfers (and important for advertisers) is the family of “channels” available for viewing. Within these channels, you are able to see the latest on gear, news, tips, fitness, SDGA, and the PGA Show. The content is either shot locally or at trade shows. The beauty of the channels is the incorporation of brands and the money that comes with the addition of their media to them. They partner with SDGolfTV to put together relative and fresh content.

So who is in charge of maintaining all of the media and content within the site? A company in Sioux Falls called Vision Video Interactive powers SDGolfTV. VVI works directly with SDGolfTV to produce, maintain, and add content to the site, including the videos for channels, banner ads, newsletters, mobile coupons, guest bloggers, and the commercials that play between videos. They are also in charge of the user interface and branding for the site.

Marc Rasmussen, President of the digital media firm, explained to me the idea with the multiple media platforms. “We are able to take all of these platforms and have them work together to give the user a unique experience.” He continued to explain the opportunity for advertisers to be able to reach their target audiences through interactive communities, special promotions, and more. There are now ways that brands can reach the truly devoted patrons to the sport in fun, interactive ways. Some advertise via a banner ad on the splash page, but also include a mobile coupon somewhere else within the site. Others might choose to be a guest blogger or pay to include content about their latest gear from a tradeshow.

SDGolfTV works as a continuous advertising campaign, constantly growing and refining its target audience to give the best experience for consumers and advertisers alike.

Here's a screenshot of the site