With big plans for the future in mind, the Texas State Railroad reached out to Encore Multimedia to develop a strategic marketing plan that would honor its heritage while driving its brand of family fun to new audiences as a tourism destination, with an overall goal to increase ridership. The strategic marketing plan is centered around a theme of “Put Family Fun Back on Track” to appeal to the primary target audience, families, as well as riders of all ages.
Our team had the challenge of providing background and market knowledge relevant to the Texas tourism industry due to The Texas State Railroad’s new and out-of-state management. Under this new management, it was also imperative for the public to get on board with all that TSRR had to offer through creating a campaign that would both inform and draw potential riders.
Encore’s production team spent several days on the tracks riding and chasing the train in order to capture captivating photography and video assets that would illustrate the TSRR passenger experience, from the first-class champagne toasts to the children’s smiling faces.
The Encore team researched and strategized to develop a multi-channel plan including radio spots airing throughout the state of Texas, television spots running throughout a large portion of the southern United States, local billboards, print collateral, and digital marketing (OTT, YouTube, and geo-fencing).
The success of the summer campaign was felt almost immediately with a noticeable spike in interest and ridership from the general public.
“Just two weeks after marketing campaign kicked off, the railroad went from averaging 75 people per ride to 250 people per ride.” - Teresa Propeck, Vice President of Passenger Services, Texas State Railroad
