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TDSM earns top Kentucky tourism awards

Campaigns created by Ottawa-based destination marketing agency TDSM brought home top honors for the Paducah Convention & Visitors Bureau at Kentucky’s 2005 Traverse Awards for Excellence in Tourism Marketing competition.

TDSM won “Best of Show” for its “Feel the Movement” and “Artistic Movement” marketing campaigns, which featured a cohesive mix of print, radio, and Internet advertising. TDSM also placed first in its division in four categories: Visitors Guide, Four-Color Print Advertisement, Direct Mail Piece and Marketing Campaign.

In addition, the agency’s “lure brochure” was awarded second place in the Rack Brochure category. The honors were given Oct. 25th at the Kentucky tourism industry’s annual conference in Lexington.

 Winner of The American Planning Association’s National Planning Award, Paducah’s Artist Relocation Program is now a national model for using the arts to foster economic development. Taking advantage of the program’s financial and cultural incentives, so far 65 artists from around the globe have relocated to Paducah.

With the fastest growing arts district in the nation, Paducah has been featured recently in newspapers across the country, including the Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times and Baltimore Sun. And the city’s Artist Relocation Program has been written up in numerous national magazines, such as American Artist, AmericanStyle, Niche, The Crafts Report, and Preservation.

The Traverse Awards competition is open to all Kentucky Tourism Council and Kentucky Hotel & Lodging Association members. This year, there were a record 181 entries. A panel of industry experts composed of marketing, public relations and tourism professionals from outside Kentucky judge all entries using a point system and predetermined criteria. All entries must have been published or distributed within the past year. Each is judged upon its ability to capture attention and how well it relates to the audience.

In accepting the awards, Paducah CVB Executive Director Mary Hammond acknowledged the outstanding efforts of TDSM along with those of her staff and board. Barbara Atwood of the Kentucky Tourism Council in Frankfort called TDSM’s advertising campaign the best she had seen in 25 years.

In 2003, TDSM received “Best of Show” for its “GalenaScapes” marketing campaign at the Illinois Governor’s Conference on Tourism. The following year, another campaign created by TDSM for the Galena/Jo Daviess County Convention and Visitors Bureau won best single media advertising and public relations campaign in Illinois. In total, TDSM’s marketing and advertising services have earned 18 awards for their outstanding contribution to the marketing of Illinois’ tourism destinations.

Based in Ottawa, Ill., TDSM is a full-service agency specializing in destination marketing and branding.

Robin Malpass

Lee Ann Havenga