Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont announced the state’s new summer marketing campaign entitled “Say Yes to Connecticut.” It is designed to promote safe travel and fuel the Connecticut tourism industry’s recovery following the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The campaign theme, “Say Yes to Connecticut,” was born out of the Office of Tourism’s proprietary research that shows a growing sense of optimism among Northeast consumers amid the COVID-19 vaccine rollout and pent-up demand for travel, especially regional travel.

“Connecticut has an incredible mix of tourism offerings—from arts and cultural venues and restaurants, to lodging properties and outdoor recreation areas—all of which help generate business sales, tax revenues, and statewide jobs benefitting our communities,” Lamont said. “The new campaign is a great reminder of that diversity and the growing optimism among travelers that we believe will put people back to work and translate into an industry-wide recovery for tourism beginning this summer.”

The campaign costs $1.2 million and will run from May 1 through September 6. It will feature hundreds of businesses and activities across the state. It will use a number of integrated marketing tactics, including:

• A new television campaign that will run in-state, as well as on streaming television in proximity states
• Robust social media campaigns across Facebook and Instagram;
• New content on CTvisit.com, the state’s official tourism website (~7M visitors in 2019);
• Paid search marketing; and
• Earned media, including public relations and email marketing.

For its part, Washington D.C. chose ad agency January Third for its $2.5 million Recovery Advertising Campaign. Visitor spending fell 68%, or $6.1 billion, between March 2020 and March 2021.

The campaign is targeting travelers in Maryland and Virginia as well as those within a four-hour drive of Washington D.C. It will also reach out to Americans nationwide, according to WTOP News.

The organization says that 72% of travelers who have taken a trip in the last two years are also planning on taking a vacation this summer but less than half have made reservations. This indicates they may not have decided where to go yet.

“We haven’t advertised our destination in more than a year, said Elliot Ferguson, president and CEO of Destination DC, according to WTOP News. “Marketing will play a major role in getting hospitality and tourism employees back to work, generating visitor revenue and local taxes and setting D.C. apart from the many other destinations consumers have to choose from.”