PHG Consulting, a global leader in crafting creative marketing solutions for the travel and hospitality industries, is pleased to announce the retention of its longest-term client for a seventh consecutive one-year contract. Following a competitive review, the company was selected to continue managing international marketing efforts for the Suzhou Municipal Bureau of Culture, Radio, Television and Tourism in North America while expanding its scope to include English-speaking Europe. The account will be serviced by a transatlantic team in New York City, London, and Newport Beach, California with support from an on-the-ground team in China. Since 2014, PHG Consulting has helped this captivating destination grow inbound tourism from the United States and Canada thanks to its creative integrated marketing strategies, Chinese market knowledge, and strong connections to travel industry decision makers and influencers.
To mark the new contract, PHG Consulting will launch “Suzhou, The City of Culture & Arts,” a fresh, integrated marketing campaign designed to bring the destination’s fascinating cultural heritage to life. While international travel restrictions remain in place, Suzhou-based expats will help tell the destination’s story through social media, sharing their travel tips on Suzhou’s Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube channels using the hashtag #SecretsOfSuzhou. These local recommendations and corresponding itineraries will also appear on the destination’s English-language website TravelToSuzhou.com, and related materials will be provided to English-speaking guests of Suzhou’s top hotels. Four online eventswill take place in the coming months, giving consumers the opportunity to virtually engage with some of Suzhou’s signature cultural activities including the annual New Year’s Eve bell ringing celebration at Hanshan Temple, spring cultivation of Biluochun tea, and the Kunqu Opera. This immersive, Suzhou-style opera, one of the oldest forms of Chinese drama, will also be the centerpiece of an exclusive event for media, influencers, and key opinion leaders set to take place in June 2021.
“We are thrilled to continue our fruitful relationship with the Suzhou Municipal Bureau of Culture, Radio, Television and Tourism for the coming year,” said Ken Mastrandrea, Chief Operating Officer of PHG Consulting and Preferred Hospitality Group. “Suzhou offers some of the richest cultural experiences in China, and our team is looking forward to sharing these experiences with new audiences through creative digital programs to foster a connection with the destination and establish a desire to visit when then time is right.”
