Virginia Tourism
Challenge
Gen Z trip planners don’t consider Virginia because they think it has nothing to offer.
Unlock
Planning a group trip isn’t work when the destination keeps giving you ideas.
Strategy
Virginia is so varied it satisfies the whole group.
Virginia is for Lovers is one of the most iconic slogans in advertising history, but it speaks almost exclusively to families and seniors.
Bringing Gen Z into Virginia started by looking outside it. I dove into the glorious chaos of Gen Z group travel and mapped the anxieties and dynamics that unfold inside the group chat long before anyone packs a bag.
Primary research revealed a hidden social tension: 2 out of 3 Gen Zers identify as the default trip planner, and carrying that title comes with immense social risk.
If the destination flops, it’s on them. Planners carry the anxiety of pleasing a group with mixed interests, making them actively hunt for destinations with enough variety to keep everyone happy
Gen Z is the most socially diverse generation in history where no single group chat shares the exact same taste.
Instead of trying to force a generic, one-size-fits-all tourism campaign, we turned Virginia’s variety into the planner's ultimate cheat code. We mapped out 18 distinct Gen Z personality archetypes and built targeted itineraries around them.
Special Thanks to the Virginia Tourism judging panel for selecting our strategy, my old babysitter for turning around team T-shirts on same-day notice, and the creative team behind the work:
Elliott Cochran (Copywriter) Rowan Simons, Robert Snead (Art Directors) Taira Cikotas (Producer)