Media Releases
Friday, May 10, 2013
#WhistlerUnfiltered winter contest winner announced; Tourism Whistler carries succesful campaign through summer
Tourism Whistler media release
For immediate release - May 10, 2013
#WhistlerUnfiltered winter contest winner announced; Tourism Whistler carries successful campaign through summer
Suggested tweet: Tag your photos #WhistlerUnfiltered and help tell the Whistler summer story – one image at a time http://bit.ly/YqFngw
Whistler, B.C. – Summer in Whistler means a never-ending lineup of activities, events and entertainment all taking place within some of the most breathtakingly scenic landscapes the country has to offer.
Tourism Whistler is encouraging those who have experienced a summer in Whistler to share their images through the summer marketing campaign, which is an enhanced extension of the previous winter campaign.
The #WhistlerUnfiltered campaign utilizes word-of-mouth marketing, building ambassadors who help raise Whistler’s profile by sharing their own Whistler stories, through Instagram images hashtagged #WhistlerUnfiltered.
“We saw great success with our #WhistlerUnfiltered winter campaign,” said Louise Walker, Tourism Whistler’s Vice President of Marketing Strategy. “The use of consumer-generated images allows visitors to picture themselves in the moment. It made sense to continue to leverage the power of the people with our summer campaign,” she said.
“Participation in the winter campaign in terms of the amount of user-generated content has completely exceeded our expectations. We had more than 196,000 visits to the campaign microsite, exceeding our goal of 160,000; we had almost 25,000 unique contest entries, and were aiming for 19,800; more than 17,750 Instagram images were hashtagged, which far surpassed our goal of 10,000. In addition, more than 1,750 social shares of the campaign content generated almost 20,000 visits to the microsite … all of this clearly demonstrates the power of social media.”
The photo collection themes have evolved for summer, capturing – and sharing – all that Whistler has to offer in the themes of: mountains, the Village, lakes, valley, adventure, relaxation and events and the campaign has been enhanced with professional photography and video. As in the winter campaign, the consumer-driven content is used on the campaign microsite and in additional marketing materials. The top three images will be featured prominently on the microsite each week.
In support of the winter campaign, Tourism Whistler launched the ultimate winter contest. The winner of the grand prize, including flights and ground transfers, seven nights’ accommodation, new gear, a number of winter activities, lift tickets and gift cards is Brian Richards, of Massachusetts, who plans to visit Whistler in January 2014 with three family members to enjoy the prize package, valued at more than $19,000 CAD.
In support of the summer campaign, the ultimate summer contest launches today, featuring three grand prizes:
• Explore Whistler prize, featuring air transportation, ground transfers, five nights’ accommodation, a bear viewing tour, PEAK2PEAK adventure sightseeing tickets, an alpine lake flightseeing tour and Valley Trail bike rentals for one day
• Experience Whistler prize, featuring air transportation, ground transfer, five nights’ accommodation, a salmon bake ATV tour, Eagle Tour, Elaho Exhilarator rafting tour and one-day Whistler Bike Park tickets
• Enjoy Whistler prize, featuring air transportation, ground transfers, five nights’ accommodation, restaurant gift certificates, a gallery print, serenity package for two, lunch tour, passes for the Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre and a round of golf courtesy of each of the four Whistler golf courses
While the contest is aligned with the campaign, entrants do not have to submit an Instagram photo to enter. The contest details, rules and regulations, are featured on http://unfiltered.whistler.com/contest
Book early and save for summer. Book your summer vacation at www.whistler.com by June 30 and receive a third night free on arrivals until November 20. Whistler-based travel consultants at whistler.com can customize vacation packages, taking care of flights, ground transportation, accommodation and activities. Whistler.com
offers the largest selection with no booking fee for accommodation and activities. Call 1.800.WHISTLER (1.800.944.7853) to request a no-obligation quote or visit whistler.com for more details and offers.
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Whistler is Canada's premier year-round leisure and meeting destination located in the Coast Mountains 120 kilometres (75 miles) north of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Consistently rated the top ski resort in North America, Whistler was the Host Mountain Resort of the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. The resort offers an extensive range of accommodations totaling 10,000 bedrooms among 24 hotels as well as townhomes, condos, B&Bs and chalets. Whistler also boasts more than 100 restaurants and bars, 200 retail shops, 25 spas and countless activity options from world-renowned skiing and snowboarding, mountain biking and golf, to hiking, rock climbing, and watersports. The Resort Municipality of Whistler is home to a diverse community of more than 10,000 permanent residents.
Tourism Whistler is the member-based marketing and sales organization representing Whistler, operating the Whistler Conference Centre, Whistler Golf Club, Whistler Visitor Centre, as well as 1.800.WHISTLER and whistler.com - Whistler's official source for visitor bookings and information. As the convention and visitors bureau for the Resort Municipality of Whistler, Tourism Whistler represents more than 7,000 members who own, manage and operate properties or businesses on resort lands including hotels, restaurants, activity operators and retail shops.
Broadcasters: Whistler now has the capability to take you live with our enhanced fibre network. The significantly expanded network of more than 200 kilometres of fibre optic cabling throughout the resort allows instant transmission of HD signals to any location at any time. Details on how to access, and book the fibre are available on our media site. http://media.whistler.com/contact-us/filming-in-whistler/
Media can visit whistler.com/media for Whistler facts, media releases, story starters, local personality profiles and access to images and B-roll.
Media Contact
Patricia Westerholm
Manager, Corporate Communications
T: 604.938.2748
E: pwesterholm@tourismwhistler.com
W: www.whistler.com/media
T: www.twitter.com/mediaTWhistler
F: www.facebook.com/GoWhistler