Salt Lake City, UT – The Utah Office of Tourism, an agency of the state Governor’s Office of Economic Development, launched its winter “Life Elevated” advertising campaign during a Capitol news conference on Wednesday to promote Utah’s skiing and “The Greatest Snow on Earth.” The $1.1 million campaign includes three new 30-second commercial spots that will rotate on 13 national cable networks beginning in January.n“The ski industry is major part of our vibrant tourism industry,” said Utah Lieutenant Governor Greg Bell, who joined industry officials to announce at the press conference. “Not only is skiing important for our state’s overall economic health, but I know my family and I enjoy skiing because it’s a wonderful way to get out and get active.”
For the third year in a row, the popular television spots will feature the humorous “snowflakes” created for the Utah Office of Tourism by Salt Lake City-based advertising agency, Struck/Axiom. Print and online ads for the winter campaign began running this month in a coordinated effort with Ski Utah, which markets the state’s 14 ski resorts.
“Our coordinated marketing efforts with Ski Utah and other partners have allowed us to leverage our marketing dollars,” said Leigh von der Esch, managing director of the Utah Office of Tourism (UOT). “The new television commercials emphasize Utah’s accessibility and the close proximity of our resorts to Salt Lake City International Airport.”
“Utah’s ski and snowboard resorts are leading the country in resort improvements and additions for the 2010-11 winter season,” remarked Ski Utah President Nathan Rafferty. “These upgrades, combined with early season snow, make Ski Utah very excited for the coming season.”
At the unveiling of the TV spots at the State Capitol, UOT also announced a public month-long participation element to the ad campaign utilizing social media. In cooperation with Ski Utah, the office is asking for the public to go online and vote for their favorite ad. The ads are posted on both the Office of Tourism Web site (www.utah.travel) and Ski Utah’s site (www.skiutah.com), where the public can not only vote on their favorite spot, but also enter win free ski gear from Ski Utah. Winners will be announced Dec. 17.
Two of the ads will air on national cable television channels from Jan. 2-23, 2011. The networks include: A&E, Bravo, ESPN/ESPN2, Food Network, Fox News, History, MSNBC, National Geographic, Nat Geo Wild, Planet Green, Investigation Discovery, and Discovery Science.