Suzhou Bureau of Culture, Radio, Television and Tourism Marks Accomplishments of Yearlong #SuzhouHeritage Campaign in North America and Europe

    NEW YORK, NY, November 02, 2022 /24-7PressRelease/ -- The Suzhou Bureau of Culture, Radio, Television and Tourism is pleased to share the success of its yearlong integrated marketing campaign promoting the destination's history, culture, and tourism attractions to English-speaking audiences in North America and Europe. The multifaceted #SuzhouHeritage campaign incorporated social media content development and channel management, large-scale events, online sweepstakes, digital advertising, website maintenance, and public relations outreach. The program, executed in partnership with PTG Consulting, Suzhou's North American marketing and representation partner since 2014, was designed to maintain widespread visibility for Suzhou while inbound travel restrictions remain in place and keep consumers engaged with the destination – both online and offline.

A series of three offline events put Suzhou front and center amongst consumers, media, key opinion leaders, and influencers in 2022. In March, Suzhou served as headline sponsor at the prestigious International Media Marketplace U.K. in London, where the destination hosted a luncheon for more than 450 attendees complete with a live Kunqu Opera performance and met with 55 travel writers, editors, influencers, and content creators. In August, Suzhou was on full display during the Mid-Autumn Moon Celebration at The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens in Los Angeles. One of the venue's most popular events of the year, the event attracted more than 3,000 weekend visitors for after-hours programming that included an informational booth where PTG Consulting representatives promoted the destination and shared details of its classical Chinese gardens and other cultural attractions.

In October, Suzhou style took center stage at the largest shopping center in the United States, when the destination presented the Mall of America's 6th annual "Curated Style" fall fashion show featuring famous designers from the hit TV show, Project Runway. Suzhou video content was prominently displayed leading up to the show, and a dance and the locally-based CAAM Chinese Dance Theater performed four traditional numbers including Heavenly Beauty of Suzhou and Hangzhou and Jiangnan in a Misty Dream to introduce attendees and mallgoers to Jiangnan culture.

Online, new content strategies focused on Instagram Reels video creation, image slideshows, Instagram Stories promotions, sweepstakes, and use of the #SuzhouHeritage hashtag resulted in considerable growth of the @VisitSuzhou channels on Facebook (48,000 new followers), Instagram (23,700 new followers, and Twitter (21,400 new followers). On YouTube, 12 new videos generated more than 50,000 views, collectively. This social media content, along with a digital advertising campaign, resulted in over 73,000 page views for TravelToSuzhou.com.
Ongoing public relations outreach spread the word about Suzhou's overseas marketing efforts, resulting in more than 200 positive articles and 102 million media impressions across North America and Europe.

For more than 2,500 years, Suzhou has been known as a center of arts and culture. Intellectuals, artists, and high profile public figures have long been drawn to the city's romantic canals and stunning classical gardens, nine of which have been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Performing arts including the Kunqu Opera and Pingtan storytelling originated in Suzhou, and the city is also important to the design and fashion worlds as a center for silk making and embroidery.

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