Special effort funded by BP money
BATON ROUGE -- People fishing and golfing, paddling on the Atchafalaya Swamp or walking through Jackson Square and eating hearty portions of gumbo and meat pies are the images that state tourism officials want the region and nation to know about Louisiana, not the oil-stained pelicans or globs of oil washing up on the coastline from a sunken, leaking rig in the Gulf.
Joe Smith and his wife, Mary, of St. Louis, Missouri, look at a zoned map of the different oyster areas located off the coast of south Louisiana as they eat at the Desire Oyster Bar last month. Oyster shucker Rodney Thomas, back right, said the maps were given out before the oil spill to let people know where the oysters they were eating came from but he said there has been more interest lately because of the spill. Shucker Augustus Marshall, right, points out exactly where they came from on the map. In an advertising campaign starting today and paid for with money from the BP oil company, an alluring voice begins the pitch: "Hey, America! Despite what you may have heard, Louisiana is still a great place to visit -- all across the state."
It then cuts to scenes of brass bands, gambling, food and bayou sunrises.
Pam Breaux, secretary of the Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism, says she hopes the images and the open invitation will help offset the hit state tourism is taking as a result of the Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf.
The friendlier images will be flashed throughout Louisiana's regional "drive-in market" from Texas to Florida on 26 television stations, in print publications and on the Internet at least through June 30. Other regional ads also are in the works, she said.
"We are hoping it will make a difference in our drive markets first, " Breaux said of the Texas-to-Florida visitors who make up about 75 percent of Louisiana's tourists.
Another round of ads, featuring "Louisiana icons of music and food," will follow and will air nationally starting around July 1 and run through Labor Day, she said.
The national campaign will hit large and small media markets from San Diego to cities on the East Coast.
The special ad campaign is one component of a regional and national push by state and local officials designed to tell visitors that the entire state is not awash in oil and is still welcoming tourists.
The state campaign will cost about $5 million, one-third of the $15 million BP has given the state for marketing to offset possible tourist hits.
Breaux said another $5 million campaign is being assembled by tourism officials in the New Orleans area and the third $5 million will be used to promote tourism and visits to coastal parishes like Terrebonne and Lafourche.
The state's campaign is the first to roll out, with the coastal campaign and the one highlighting the New Orleans area to follow shortly, Breaux said.
The three campaigns are designed to supplement, not compete, with each other, she said.
Breaux said although the state advertises during the summer, this campaign is heavier than normal and "specific to the oil spill."
Breaux said a recent national survey indicated that 26 percent of those polled were "actively canceling" trips to the state they had planned before the spill, and 43 percent "believe the oil spill devastation is about the same as or worse than that of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita" in 2005.
The coastal component, Breaux said, will target trade shows and boat shows touting the virtues of outdoor activities and locations in non-affected coastal areas.
Breaux said the campaigns will be supplemented by public service announcements and possible interviews with national media outlets for stories to counter the daily bad news coming out of Grand Isle and Venice.
Breaux said the message of the campaign is that "despite what you may have heard ... you can still fish and camp and bike and boat" and eat in Louisiana.
She said that website advertising may be the most cost-effective way to reach a national audience and a component of the campaign will feature ad buys on key Internet sites.
"As the spill continues, we will continue to gauge what is happening along the coast and continue our research on how to address the campaign over the next couple of months, " Breaux said.
The survey, and follow-up studies on the impact the oil spill has on the attitudes of possible visitors, will cost about $15,000 and also is being financed by the BP $15 million, she said.
Ed Anderson can be reached at eanderson@timespicayune.com or 225.342.5810.