Think

Reno Tahoe is a destination on the rise. Spurred by unprecedented investment and a dynamically growing business community buzz was on the rise. However, marketing assets and brand perception lagged far behind the actual destination product.

VisitRenoTahoe.com, the digital arm of the Reno Sparks Convention and Visitors Authority, sought to rebrand itself to better attract young Millennials who see the area as a place for outdoor adventure, dining and a gateway to the slopes of Lake Tahoe.

Previous VisitRenoTahoe.com design.

Make

Noble Studios was selected to lead the digital branding and website rebuild as part of an integrated team composed of several firms. The new website needed to capture the great contrast of the region. It’s evident in the name itself. This is where the country’s largest alpine lake meets the Biggest Little City in the World.

The website included vibrant imagery and storytelling that showcases that duality. The website evokes a more editorial style immersive storytelling approach. The sprawling layouts focusing on the unique aspects of the region and allows potential visitors to visualize themselves living the brand; seizing life, acting on instinct, and exploring infinite possibility.

Market

The digital plan also acts as a hub to all marketing efforts. We adopted a personalization strategy with the destination targeting multiple destinations at once (San Francisco, Southern California and Seattle). Utilizing geographic information and tags embedded in advertising messages a personalized experience is offered on key landing pages. These unique and highly relevant CTAs have driven higher conversion rates and increased engagement metrics across the board.

Built for performance we helped whittle VisitRenoTahoe.com down from 14,000 pages to 3,200. We took a mobile-first approach, highlighting influencer work through imagery, including photos and videos.

Millennials are the primary new audience segment targeted by Reno Tahoe. With this in mind User generated content (UGC) is featured extensively on the site including the use of influencer authored stories and images embedded at key conversion points. The RSCVA then tapped a handful of influencers to add into its storytelling mix. These influencers would be featured in billboards and ads, both print and online. The influencers would then share photos of the billboards and other campaign materials with their vast following to create a buzz around the Reno-Tahoe brand.

Measure

Since the site’s launch in July 2017, there has been a 194 percent increase in referrals to partner websites, 61 percent of which are mobile. Millennials are now the largest traffic source on the site, spending 13 percent more time on the site during their visits. The conversion rate for social media is up 138 percent over the previous year. And, most importantly, we validated the idea that editorial content has the potential to outperforms traditional when done properly.

Awards