Visit Philadelphia
[1] In 1998, House Bill 2858, Act 174 designated VISIT PHILADELPHIA, then GPTMC, to serve as the official Regional Attractions Marketing Agency.
[3] In 1996, then-Philadelphia mayor Edward G. Rendell created the GPTMC in 1996 to attract tourists; the corporation operated separately from the Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau.
[12] The firm Longwoods International estimated that the “Place That Loves You Back” campaign was responsible for attracting more than 1 million new visitors on overnight and day trips to the region.
In 2005, State Rep. Daryl D. Metcalfe (R., Butler) sent letters to fellow House members complaining that tax dollars were being used to "promote immoral behaviors."
As a way to combat this resistance to travel and curb losses to its $1 billion hospitality industry, Visit Philadelphia (then GPTMC) launched a consumer campaign and hotel package.
[16] “Philly’s More Fun When You Sleep Over,” the resulting campaign, kept things light and depicted tourists dancing around in their pajamas checking out classic spots such as the Museum of Art and Independence Mall.
The overnight hotel package focused on potential visitors living within easy driving distance, specifically those along the East Coast in cities such as Baltimore, Harrisburg, and the surrounding Philadelphia counties.
[19] Launched in response to the ongoing recession, the “With Love, Philadelphia XOXO” campaign helped recapture a segment of the population that was quickly dwindling, tourists.
As many destination marketing organizations struggled to find ways to stimulate demand in the travel industry, Visit Philadelphia re-engaged consumers using this campaign’s strategy, which paired “love letters” from the city with good deals aimed at tourists.
By concentrating on music, nightlife, fashion, the arts, and other similar topics, the Philly 360 campaign hoped to widen its reach to a younger demographic.
[21] The campaign, launched in 2009, spoke to an urban Millennial audience looking to explore the country’s metropolitan hubs and driven by a need for diverse creative influence.
The campaign helped to extend the Visit Philadelphia brand, while also rallying the African-American creative community through partnerships with artists such as DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Roots.
The campaign was launched with ads on major TV networks like Telemundo and social media posts by Latinx influencers like Sebastián Gómez and Esperanza Hernández of @twotrends.
[23] The campaign was developed with the help of the Latino Advisory Marketing Committee, and also included a five-part video series featuring Latinx influencers visiting classic Philadelphia spots.
The Annual Reminders, organized by a local gay rights group in 1965, featured yearly pickets outside of the Liberty Bell, which were the first of their kind in the U.S. After the Stonewall riots, protesters moved to the site of the Inn for future demonstrations and the fight continued on.
[34] The nickname change was a joint effort between City Council and Visit Philadelphia as part of its year long initiative to celebrate sisterhood.
[35] To advertise the nickname change, Visit Philly put up a billboard in New York’s Times Square welcoming people to the City of Sisterly Love.
In May 2016, in a plea agreement with prosecutors, Levitt pleaded guilty to theft, receiving stolen property, and fraud, and was sentenced to three years' probation and community service; she also forfeited her accounting license.
