How to Differentiate Your Destination by Creating an Easter Guide
Destination Marketers can leverage holidays to tell their brand story. Easter is a great opportunity to talk about why your destination is special. We are going to give you some useful examples of how to blend Easter with your brand differentiators to attract visitors and locals alike.
Easter is a great time to create marketing buzz for your destination because 81% of Americans plan to celebrate Easter, according to the National Retail Federation. Consumers are expected to spend $7.3 billion on food and $3.1 billion on candy! Easter also overlaps with spring break, allowing families time to travel. This means destinations can take this opportunity to attract locals and visitors alike.
Easter Is an Opportunity to Further Your Brand
One of the biggest mistakes Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs) make is creating storyless campaigns just for the sake of having fresh content on social media.
So don’t just make a post that says “Happy Easter,” make sure your easter content is tying back to your brand story and furthering the narrative of what makes your destination unique. One fun and engaging way to promote easter is to center your campaign around an Easter-themed destination guide based on what makes your location special. For instance, Napa, CA could create an Easter wine guide. Guides help locals and visitors explore your destination in a curated way, which can help to further DMO's brand and marketing goals.
What Is an Easter Guide?
First things first: Easter Guides are interactive listicles with maps of places or things to do at your destination. The best guides are influential marketing content created by DMOs that inspires visitors and helps them with their trip planning.
DMOs can use Explore by Seeker to create themed guides and check-in challenges for Easter.
Make Your Easter Guide Eggtra Special
It's easy to make a guide that includes things like brunch spots, Easter Bunny meet and greets, and Easter egg hunts, but it's more challenging and rewarding to create guides that focus on differentiation. Level up your recommendations by highlighting your destination’s special qualities, places, and activities.
Go beyond promoting typical Easter activities and focus on your target market. Based on your customers you can Include holiday options for adults who are DINKs (double income, no kids), senior citizens, and solo travelers. Use a social trip planning app like Seeker to quickly share the places you love in just a few clicks. Here are some fun examples that will get you hopping into action.
Create Your Own Easter Egg-travaganza
No Easter events at your destination? No problem. Create your own annual events like an Easter Bonnet competition, Hunky Jesus, or egg roll, get creative and incorporate local themes. Get the community involved with a parade or pageant and host flower shows and garden parties. This guide will be the center of your Easter campaign so make sure it is unique to your destination and helps tell your brand story.
Start Your Guide with a Church Visit
Easter is the perfect opportunity to promote your destination's prettiest churches, find Churches that offer Easter mass or tours. Many churches are famed for their architecture, art, and history, which appeals to many visitors, including those who aren’t religious or spiritual.
Add Adults-only Fun to Your Guide
From boozy brunches to pub crawls, every bunny can get into the Easter spirit even if you don’t still believe. Appeal to solo adventurers and adult-only travelers by promoting awesome activities for adults at your destination.
Adults-only activities could include:
Breakfast cooking classes
Candy-inspired cocktail classes
Candy and chocolate-making classes
Egg decorating paint and sip
Scavenger hunts or geocaching for Easter eggs
Promote Easter Family Dinners
Get locals and visitors alike to gather around the table for the best family-style dinners. Perhaps some restaurants do a legendary Sunday roast, serve up Sunday suppers, or curate special Easter prix fixe menus. You can include one of these dinners towards the end of your guide.
Level up this tasty initiative by promoting places by minority owners or restaurants located in lesser-known neighborhoods. Use this holiday as a chance to promote restaurants with communal tables to foster community this Easter. Restaurants with communal tables are perfect for solo travelers and first-time visitors who can meet and dine with locals. It will also get locals out of their homes for the holiday.
Create Your Own Easter Eggs
Take a page from video game makers by adding "Easter eggs" to your trails. Easter eggs are secret features hidden in video games. You can put this fun spin on your guide by creating a side game, for example, hide golden bunnies along the route and have participants take a photo with them and use a hashtag to enter a contest and win prizes.
Our Favorite Easter & Spring Break Guides on Seeker
For some added inspiration take a look at some of our favorite Easter and spring guides on Seeker: Easter Weekend Getaways. Check out these Spring Break Destinations without the Crowds and our favorite Places You Have to Visit in the Spring. Don't miss these Cherry Blossom Festivals in the US and Spring Blossoms Around The World.
Easter Marketing Campaigns for Destinations
Easter presents a chance for Destination Marketers to infuse their brand narratives into the holiday. With billions spent on Easter-related items and the holiday coinciding with spring break, destinations can leverage this occasion to attract both locals and tourists. By integrating Easter themes with brand differentiators, marketers can create engaging campaigns that resonate with their audience. By going beyond conventional celebrations and tapping into creativity, destinations can truly stand out. So, as you embark on your Easter marketing journey, remember to infuse authenticity, creativity, and a sprinkle of storytelling magic.
