11 of my favourite projects leading a content, social, and digital department

At the end of 2015, I was welcomed with open arms into a high growth industry within tourism. Content was king and, almost 4 years later, remains in the throne of the marketing dynasty. Every marketer is interested in content, and consumers are becoming more and more amenable to content marketing because of smart decisions by professionals who know how to wear their crowns.

Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs) are some of the most supercharged content marketers in any industry, and my team has been no exception.

At Tourism Calgary, I have been so fortunate to work with a very, very smart group of people over the last few years. We love sharing our learnings, and one of the nice surprises about working for a DMO is how much discussion we have with tourism-related businesses in the city to swap tips on how to reach visitors. The transaction of knowledge between myself and my colleagues both inside and outside Tourism Calgary has been a gift I’ve treasured since setting foot into the doors of the office.

My time in content marketing ends on May 28 as I take on my next career challenge, and I couldn’t let my time pass without sharing some of my favourite projects and what they taught me.

In true content marketing fashion, here’s a listicle, in an odd number that you probably noticed while scrolling through other content in you feed, that you can easily digest on your phone. 

1. Big Brand Content - Far & Wide/Infiniment Canada

The Project in a nutshell: Working as a trio, Tourism Calgary worked with two of our counterparts in other destinations to create a combined narrative of why the three locations worked well as a roadtrip for millennials through Alberta. This project was administered by Destination Canada and a branded content project with MUCH and Voyage Voyage. We used the hero-hub-help model created two webisodes with high profile influencers, along with a slew of supporting content articles to tell destination-specific stories.

Why it’s my favourite: Admittedly, I have nostalgia for this project because it was my first video shoot at Tourism Calgary, but I really loved how disciplined our brand partners were with the stories we were telling. Everyone was laser focused on ensuring the content would be of interest to the millennial audience we were trying to reach.

What it taught me: Trust your research and your gut at the same time. One of the main partners we worked with was the HiFi Club because of their illustrious history of hosting DJs like Diplo in an intimate, accessible space. This was a mix of our research noting nightlife was a motivator, while our guts also said that the HiFi was an important experience to promote as EDM was hot, hot, hot. This article was so successful, it’s still pinned on the HiFi’s Twitter page 2+ years later.

See it for yourself: Far & Wide (EN) and Infiniment Canada (FR)

2. Persona storytelling - Basecamp to Adventure

The Project in a nutshell: This content marketing and social media program focused on four personas and six experiences, and everything else had to fit in between. This was telling a specific story to a specific audience, and never veered from that.  

Why it’s my favourite: Using personas as the heart of a content and social campaign allowed us to again be extremely disciplined in what experiences we promoted and what narrative we were telling. Immediately, I could ask myself if I’d recommend a particular restaurant to a specific person. One of the personas, Justin, was my favourite in this campaign (a late 20s guy who liked going to CrossIron Mills in the day to shop for an outfit to wear to National on 8th and then Cowboys Nightclub at night). The personas allowed us to immediately ask ‘is this the type of experience Justin would enjoy?’ and if we questioned how Justin would like the experience, we'd eliminate it from the narrative.

What it taught me: The more human a persona can be, the better. If you can tangibly picture a persona, your content efforts easily fall into place. You know their preferred media, what tone they appreciate, and what problems they need solved. 

See it for yourself: Seattle Dredge of Seattle’s Travels joined us as an influencer producing an article in this campaign - the 'Greg' persona holiday (a history buff who would love day trips to UNESCO sites). 

3. Classic social techniques work extremely well - National marketing program 2017

The Project in a nutshell: In 2017, we (along with our agency – Destination Think!) took our long-haul Canada marketing efforts towards niche marketing as we learned about what makes Calgary a photographer’s paradise. This was a huge project with many different elements to celebrate Calgary’s photographers and photography subjects through classic social media activities like Instameets, Facebook Galleries, Surprise & Delight, and Social Listening. 

Why it’s my favourite: This program took a chance on a new way to market while utilizing (at the time) non-traditional techniques, despite being some of the most foundational aspects of social media. Going back to basics of social media was an extremely smart strategy because of gains reached on quantifiable data like engagement and hashtag use, while also furthering our non-quantifiable means, like an increased focus on relationships with our city’s Instagram community.

What it taught me: Social should be social. People like to celebrate with others on social media, and the classic features that launched in 2004 when we all first opened our Facebook accounts are still the most impactful forms of content marketing you can create on social media.

See it for yourself: This comments on this Facebook Gallery show off why this one of my favourite elements of this campaign. 

4. Just a great social post - RibFest Facebook post

The Project in a nutshell: Ever since I joined Tourism Calgary, RibFest consistently over-indexes as one of the top interests from our audience. Unfortunately, it was cancelled in 2017, so we were eagerly creating any promotions we could to support this BBQ-lovers’ dream in 2018, which includes the social post above.

Why it’s my favourite: The post text here is totally designed for the audience and platform. Read that post, look at that photo, and tell me you’re not dreaming of eating all the ribs you can. This isn’t built like an ad, it’s built like a friend telling you why RibFest is worth your time. 

What it taught me: Social media isn’t stiff. Even the most corporate of brands need to adapt to the medium, and if they can’t, then the platform probably isn’t for them. We’re a casual brand, and even moving into this level of conversational tone was a learning process to master. 

See it for yourself: Here’s the post, which also links to its accompanying article. Grab some paper towels, because you'll to gorge on barbecue once you read it.

5. A unified back-end makes a great front-end - Online concierge

The Project in a nutshell: To meet the needs of visitors, my unit and our counterparts in visitor services piloted online traveller counselling via Facebook Messenger and a chat widget on visitcalgary.com in 2018 and permanently launched the program as of April 1, 2019 because of its success.

Why it’s my favourite: As a pilot program, we were encouraged to experiment, re-tool, and review how everything went. When faced with a challenge, the culture of the pilot meant that it was just an opportunity for innovation instead of a hurdle to overcome.

What it taught me: This has been a career highlight because of the complexity involved in what is a remarkably simple service for the visitor to utilize. The systems behind the chat widget and the Facebook Message that’s responded to within moments is a massive group effort involving almost 30 people working every day. Bringing a team together is pivotal for any project, and when a group is aligned and eager to succeed as one, you get a really slick product for the customer to use. 

See it for yourself: Message us on Facebook Messenger or open a chat on visitcalgary.com. Ask a tough question, they’re ready for you! 

6. Facebook Live strategy - 'Tell Me What To Eat at the Calgary Stampede'

The Project in a nutshell: The Calgary Stampede is one of the largest tourism drivers in Canada, and we’re fortunate to have our office located across the street from the grounds. Every day during the Stampede, we’ll go and complete an in-depth social media activation. Last year, we engaged a local improv artist for a Facebook Live where the audience told her what to eat in real-time.  

Why it’s my favourite: Going back to my undergraduate media theory class and Marshall McLuhan’s gospel of the medium is the message, this message was designed solely for the medium. To get someone interested in a Facebook Live, you need a hook and you need to consider how they watch. They’re on a phone, they get easily distracted, and they likely do not see the value in watching something for more than 5 seconds. Timing this at the moment people are about to be off work on a Thursday afternoon meant they were ready to be distracted, while an engaging personality like Alexa MacKell as the host and giving the audience the ability to tell her what to eat among the outrageous food options at the Stampede is the perfect way to hook someone long enough that going to the event is all they can think about for hours afterwards.

What it taught me: Content needs to put the medium above all. You need to design for both the medium itself and the environment in which someone is consuming content. It’s not just a matter of thinking about how your post looks on a mobile device, but what is the surrounding environment like? If someone is watching on a bus on their way home from work, they’re using a wildly different medium than someone watching the same thing on their phone sitting on the couch as the TV is on in the background.

See it for yourself: Watch the full broadcast.

Photo: Jody Robbins

7. Give the people what they want – A Self-Guided Heartland Tour

The Project in a nutshell: Seeing huge volumes of search traffic to the Town of High River - one of Tourism Calgary’s partners - our team did some investigation to find visitors were looking for where they could see Heartland in person. High River is the Home of Heartland and a short day trip from the city, so we hired content producer Jody Robbins (whose daughter is a Heartland super fan) to develop a piece tailored specifically for what our audience was seeking.

Why it’s my favourite: As a television production hub, we’ll talk about famous filming locations frequently as a collection, but up to that point, had not focused on one as a travel motivator. Acting on a hunch that was researched into a hypothesis helped us understand that people would want to know how to tour the real Hudson. We knew Heartland was a big deal, but by being open to opportunities based on educated hunches, we were able to develop one of the most visited, shared, engaged with, and consumed piece of content I’ve ever seen in 12 years of media production. 

What it taught me: Be open to what the market is telling you. We arrived at this hypothesis thanks to the Google search console, and we hadn’t planned on creating a huge Heartland activation like this, but we rolled with it. You should too if you're presented with a similar opportunity. The audience is telling you exactly what they want based on search terms and other data you can easily obtain on user behaviour patterns, and you should respond as soon as you can.

See it for yourself: See the full article.

Photo: Linda Hoang

8. Develop long lasting relationships with influencers – Tourism Calgary & Linda Hoang

The Project in a nutshell: Based in Edmonton - one of Tourism Calgary’s key markets - Linda Hoang (@lindork) first travelled to Calgary on a couples’ weekend in 2016. Linda has consistently represented our destination as an ambassador for Edmontonians interested in food, fun, and Instagrammable walls. 

Why it’s my favourite: We reached out to Linda for a specific arrangement in 2016, and because of a conscious effort from both ends, this has evolved over four years into an extremely valuable partnership. Setting a precedent of extreme professionalism on both sides of our relationship has built a partnership between two strong Alberta brands that focus on telling people how to enjoy life. There is a great synergy between the audiences Linda and Tourism Calgary each reach, but there is also some segregation. With both an organization that is eager to reach an influencer’s audience through stories that are a fit for their channel, and an influencer who is a master at telling stories, the projects I’ve been fortunate to work with Linda on have exemplified why influencer marketing works.

What it taught me: I initially reached out to Linda to gauge her interest in coming to Calgary in April of 2016 and, in our first phone call, found out she had just been to our city and was already writing an article about that trip on her own accord.

When I first found her blog, I thought she was the top shelf influencer in Edmonton and we needed to welcome her to Calgary, and I was so disappointed that she probably wouldn’t want to come back because she had just been here on her own. However, she said ‘no that’s fine, my audience would love both articles!’  Influencers are professionals who know their audience better than anyone else. The knowledge they have of their audience needs to be given the utmost respect, because that’s why you want to reach their audience. They know how to fit your message into their medium. They can also be some of your best allies and champions to evangelize your brand. Linda knew her audience better than I could even guess, and they have loved every piece of Calgary content she's produced.

See it for yourself: See Linda’s Best Weekend Ever, Travel Weekend Eats, Guide to Instagrammable Walls, and Amazing Downtown Hotel + Shopping Deal articles.

9. The marriage of content and social media - Concert itineraries

 The Project in a nutshell: Capitalizing on concerts as major travel motivators, these articles provide recommendations for what to do to supplement a day that is anchored by a major concert or ticketed event, usually directly related to the concert itself (such as going to the Kananaskis Nordic Spa to take an ice bath, just like Dierks Bentley would, before going to see him in concert that night).  

Why it’s my favourite: These pieces are the ultimate link between content marketing and social media. Focusing on the nostalgia for why you love a specific performing act, the social post reminds you that you love them, and then the linked itinerary on our website immerses you in a day of nostalgia related to the same act.

What it taught me: Social and content work best together instead of in silos. Build a consistent strategy for every moment of the audience journey. 

See it for yourself: The link from the Facebook post won’t work (we unpublish these once the concert is over), but this post from the Dixie Chicks concert in 2016 showed some great fan interaction.

10. Entertaining or informative, and nothing else - SING TALK PLAY

The Project in a nutshell: Tourism Calgary sponsored two seasons of Nur Films’ web series SING TALK PLAY, taking the concept of the program (a performance from an emerging Calgary artist) to a tourism hotspot in the city.  

Why it’s my favourite: This was an opportunity to showcase a content narrative without being in your face with marketing. These 12 music videos initially appeal to viewers because of the world-famous Calgary-based artists like Kathleen Morrison and Drezus, while highlighting tourism drivers like major attractions and public landmarks. These showcase Calgary as a creative hub, while also promoting it as a setting to enjoy wonderful environments. 

What it taught me: Content marketing is not about selling something, it’s about being either entertaining or informing the audience. People are eager to consume content, even if they know it is sponsored, but only as long as it brings value to their lives by providing information or something they can immerse themselves in and escape into.

See it for yourself: See all 12 videos in this playlist.

11. You can't do it alone - VisitCalgary.com launch

The Project in a nutshell: At the end of 2017, we launched visitcalgary.com in its current iteration, which is an extremely content rich website. If you take a look at any partner page (such as this one for Oxbow at Hotel Arts Kensington written by yours truly), you’ll see there is original content on each listing to entice a potential visitor, touching on why you should go, what’s great, a local tip, an Instagram gallery, and some helpful information.  

Why it’s my favourite: Tourism Calgary has 700+ partners, and a new page had to be created for each of these partners within a 10-week timeframe over the Christmas holidays and immediately preceding a Winter Olympics. This was a massive undertaking from several staff and contractors that we got to know well, very quickly.

What it taught me: No one can do it alone. To create these pages, we worked with everyone from previous interns to speech writers to high profile authors to high school students who were looking for data entry work. The best thing any content department can do is outsource when needed. Creating a cohesive plan and set of instructions is far more valuable than writing every word, editing every image, and entering every piece of help data yourself. People can be trusted to do great work if you do great planning.

See it for yourself: Check out the Things To Do Map on visitcalgary.com.

Wrapping it all up

I’ve been so grateful to work with so many wonderful individuals over the years on these projects and I can’t wait to see what the future holds for content marketing.

If I can leave any words of wisdom for any fellow content marketers as I move into a new role outside of this realm, I’d say remember to always be nimble when opportunities present themselves, embrace your medium from every possible perspective, and keep your content entertaining or informative.