Venice Beach. Image courtesy of Visit Sarasota County.

During the 2026 Florida Governor’s Conference on Tourism in West Palm Beach, Visit Sarasota County earned statewide acclaim from its industry peers for its broadcast advertising, specifically in new airline service marketing. The tourism bureau brought home a Bronze Flagler Award for its campaign to invite travelers living in regions with recently added or expanded nonstop flights, such as Portland, ME, Raleigh, NC, and Richmond, VA, to Sarasota County.A 30-second video commercial promoting our coastline and culture paired with a custom flight overlay feature into the advertising, pulling in real-time flight scheduling, localized airline partners, and direct route details tailored to the viewers’ geographic home. The campaign amassed 6.2 million impressions, reached over 1 million unique households and 1.3 million devices, and led to a 156% lift in travelers considering Sarasota County for an upcoming beach vacation and a staggering 1,062% surge in consideration to fly specifically to SRQ.  

Venice Beach. Image courtesy of Visit Sarasota County.

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