Pure Michigan Rolls Out $1.2 Million Winter Tourism Campaign

More than a year after the Pure Michigan ad campaign was scratched from the state budget, the travel brand is coming back to encourage Michiganders to play in the state’s winter wonderland.

Pure Michigan got a $15 million budget for the 2020-21 fiscal year – about $1.2 million of that will go toward an in-state and regional campaign showcasing Michigan’s winter playground. It’s the first Pure Michigan ad campaign since fall 2019.

The campaign features two new video spots, Still Pure Michigan and Loud. Still Pure Michigan is the theme with images of winter sports proclaiming “Still Flying,” “Still Cozy,” “Still Thrilling” and “Still Climbing.”

The campaign aims to remind Michiganders and the Midwest that the state still has all the winter offerings that it did before the COVID-19 pandemic – and many of them are ideal for social distancing, Lorenz said.

Ads will roll out today, Dec. 21 – the first day of winter. The campaign includes social media, digital, print, billboards and TV spots. Target markets include Detroit, Fort Wayne, Flint, Grand Rapids, Traverse City, Toledo, Ohio, Green Bay, Wis. and Minneapolis, Minn.

Chicago is usually a top market for Pure Michigan ads, but with local authorities discouraging travel outside Illinois, Travel Michigan will not place ads there, Lorenz said.

Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and northern Lower Peninsula have plenty of snow and downhill ski resorts are open. Trails are ready for cross country skiing, snowmobiling, snowshoeing and fat tire biking. Luge, sledding and downhill tubing are in full swing. 

Michigan is home to more than 6,500 miles of snowmobile trails, 3,000 miles of cross-country skiing and snowshoeing trails and is second in the nation for ski areas boasting everything from family-friendly bunny hills to the tallest vertical drop in the Midwest at Mt. Bohemia.

Michigan’s travel industry has been pummeled amid the economic downtown brought on by policies related to the pandemic. Many businesses were temporarily closed to slow the spread and people across the country were encouraged to stay home or travel within their state during 2020. 

Source: Michigan Live