The city of Galesburg, IL, offers a unique slice of Americana.
Deeply rooted in railroad history, Galesburg is a sampling of all of the best qualities of our great nation in one place located in the midst of a great agricultural plain. It’s an ideal stop for people of all ages looking for a unique, affordable getaway. The community’s greatest strength is its unexpected diversity of offerings. More than just a day trip, Galesburg offers engaging experiences for all members of the family.
To rebrand Galesburg as a destination alive with activity for leisure and small meetings markets.
A place removed from the hustle and bustle of city demands without losing any of those must-have modern amenities, Galesburg presents itself as a notable retreat for anyone interested in “go-at-your-own-pace” attractions.
The challenge? Reminding people of the hidden treasures located so close to home! We needed to reignite the fire of possibilities for travelers seeking a healthy balance of entertainment, relaxation and adventure. To accomplish this, the Galesburg CVB and McD team worked to create and deploy freshly branded content that motivates, inspires and educates visitors to plan their next girl’s getaway, family weekend trip or “let’s find something new” overnight trip to Galesburg, IL.
To highlight Galesburg’s core strengths through modernized branding, market research to establish brand guidelines, hands-on immersion visits to personally experience tourism strengths and a revised front-facing plan to encourage travel to Galesburg.
Using different mediums, the Galesburg CVB and McD team created a lively, bold and modern brand refresh depicted in the Galesburg Experience Guide, website redesign and any potential digital ad components to promote events in & around Knox County.
Through visitor intercept surveys and conducted interviews via immersion visits, the Galesburg CVB and McD team developed a new brand promise, logo and slogan. We even extended brand continuity to park and recreation areas, golf courses, and other entities.
McD scheduled multiple immersion visits to the various businesses and event venues with local restaurateurs, shop and business owners to learn firsthand the incredible opportunities located in the Galesburg area. The McD creative team gathered the information to curate a brand promise and brand voice to better highlight the appeal of Galesburg, IL. This brand refresh inspired the designs for the visitors guide and the website redesign.
Following a magazine-styled approach, the McD Creative Team started from scratch in reshooting images and interviewing local business owners for fresh content. The team also chose to eliminate ads altogether to make it flow with more authenticity.
We used a playful, colorful aesthetic to set Galesburg apart from the competition. The McD team looked to think outside the box of a typical visitors guides in terms of style and content. Straying far from convention, the Galesburg “Experience Guide” utilized candid photography, interactive segments to engage the reader, local recipes and storybook-styled writing to pull together the essence of Galesburg into one cohesive piece.
In the first week, the CVB had given out 75% of the guides to local businesses and the response was overwhelmingly positive. The second edition is currently in the works.
The website redesign followed the lead of the brand refresh and the Experience Guide in terms of flow, tone and an overall colorful, fun aesthetic. With added features for ADA compliance, user friendly and intuitive design with a timeless appeal, the new Galesburg CVB website puts the power of trip planning into the visitor’s hands.
An easy to use directory for food, events and entertainment allows the guest to quickly locate any information needed. Aligning with brand guidelines, the website is eye catching, yet simple to use and navigate. The website content follows the tone and voice of the Experience Guide to increase brand continuity across all mediums.
Galesburg CVB wanted their website to be fun and dynamic — something that really stood out from the status quo.
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Let us help you take your marketing strategy to the next level with McD Marketing. Contact Randy McDaniels at rmcdaniels@mcdmarketing.com or call (309) 346-7412 for more information. |
