ASTA has launched a digital marketing campaign with the political news organization Politico to raise awareness of the travel agency industry's importance and the need for additional federal relief.
The Society said it chose Politico because its website averages 54 million unique visitors monthly and is popular with lawmakers and their staffers. The campaign will run through May 30, overlapping with its annual fly-in Legislative Day. This year, the event will be held as a hybrid, both in-person and virtual.
The crux of the campaign is an article that will appear on the Politico site, "Ten Reasons Why Travel Advisors Are Industry Essential."
The promotion plan will aim to drive traffic to the article and increase visibility for lawmakers. ASTA said it expects 3 million impressions for the campaign through Politico's homepage, social media channels and its Morning Transportation newsletters.
The Society urged travel advisors and the industry at large to share the campaign using the following messaging: "Why should Congress pass targeted relief for travel advisors? ASTA teamed up with @PoliticoFocus to explain: https://politi.co/3u2JpP0 @ASTAadvisors sponsored content on @POLITICO."
ASTA president and CEO Zane Kerby called support for the travel industry in relief bills to date "tragically inadequate."
"To date, Congress has prioritized higher-profile segments of the travel and hospitality industry at the expense of less-visible segments experiencing the same or more severe levels of revenue loss, like ours," he added. "We intend to use this Politico campaign to highlight this unfairness, further educate policymakers about our part of the industry and get our members the relief they deserve."