Explore St. Louis Chief Marketing Officer Receives National Award

ST. LOUIS – It was announced this week that Brian Hall, chief marketing officer for Explore St. Louis, was awarded the J. Desmond Slattery Professional Marketing Award by the Travel and Tourism Research Association (TTRA) and Marketing Outlook Forum (MOF) for his exceptional contribution to travel and tourism marketing.

Hall’s successful St. Louis Celebrity campaign caught the attention of the award committee. The campaign, which includes a series of TV spots, features St. Louis celebrities such as Sterling K. Brown, John Goodman, Jenna Fischer, Ozzie Smith, Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Andy Cohen, Nikki Glaser and Jenifer Lewis talking conversationally about what makes St. Louis a great destination. 

According to Strategic Marketing & Research Insights (SMARI)’s recent ad impact study, the St. Louis Celebrity campaign was positioned among the top 10 percent in the nation. Explore St. Louis’ media investment during the spring/summer campaign period was $1.1 million, yielding an estimated reach of 7.8 million ad-aware households. The campaign was highly efficient, costing just 14 cents per ad-aware household. SMARI found the campaign generated awareness with 62 percent of respondents across Midwest feeder markets. Of those aware of the advertising, 59 percent took action to gather information about visiting St. Louis.

The campaign has won several awards including HSMAI Best of Show and Platinum Adrian Awards, two Mid-America Emmys and two Campaign of the Year awards from the Missouri Division of Tourism Marketing.

Hall commented, “I am extremely honored to be chosen as the winner of this prestigious award and look forward to continuing to amplify St. Louis as a premier destination.”

The Travel and Tourism Research Association is the go-to resource for evidence-based data for professionals across the industry and is the host of the Marketing Outlook Forum, occurring until February 8, 2023, in Houston, Texas.