The Challenge
At the height of the global economic collapse, U.S. companies receiving emergency government funding came under heavy scrutiny in the media and halls of Congress because of perceived abuses of taxpayer dollars on corporate meetings and events. Companies who routinely invested in travel to achieve business goals found themselves in the middle of a public relations firestorm, prompting nearly every business in the United States to question their participation in such meetings – regardless of whether or not they received government money. Hundreds of meetings and events across the country were cancelled or postponed.
The U.S. Travel Association turned to APCO Worldwide to demonstrate to the media and Congress that irresponsibly vilifying meetings and events has a disastrous effect on the economy, communities and American workers.
The Solution
APCO created and implemented a multifaceted campaign that incorporated message development, media relations, third-party engagement and grassroots advocacy to complement a federal lobbying program.
The APCO team developed the “Meetings Mean Business” campaign to illustrate the value of legitimate business travel to companies and communities. They created a Web portal and online store, issue advertising, and other print and online materials. In addition, APCO Online, an in-house team of new media specialists, worked with the U.S. Travel Association to execute a national video contest to identify an industry spokesperson representative of the jobs and opportunities created by travel.
The Result
In six short weeks, APCO’s efforts effectively changed the nature of the debate, dramatically reducing anti-travel rhetoric and demonstrating to the media and policy-makers the value of meetings and events to our economy, communities and millions of American workers. President Obama met with and reassured industry leaders of his commitment to a strong travel and tourism industry. Hundreds of media clips, including major national print and television outlets, reiterated the travel industry’s messages, underscoring the importance of meetings and events. The campaign also laid the groundwork for new efforts to convince companies to once again feel secure with respect to business travel.