Philadelphia and the Countryside - Press Room

Meryl Levitz

  • President & Chief Executive Officer, Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation

  • As president and CEO of the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC), Meryl Levitz is responsible for expanding Philadelphia’s regional tourism, worth $8.7 billion in economic impact and accounting for more than 85,000 regional jobs annually. The region welcomed 37.4 million domestic visitors in 2010, 33.1 million of whom were leisure visitors. That’s 10 million more leisure visitors than in 1997, when GPTMC first started marketing.

    For Levitz, the key to building the economic engine of tourism is partnership—increasing visitor spending by bringing together groups with similar interests to develop promotional programs that reach high-yield markets. Partnerships with the hospitality community, arts and cultural institutions, restaurants and county visitor bureaus have proven to be vital to the success of the regional tourism industry.

    GPTMC implements integrated marketing strategies to build image and visitation, using research, advertising, public relations and a strong online presence. Successful campaigns include: the fun and well-loved With Love, Philadelphia XOXO®; Philly’s More Fun When You Sleep Over®, the most successful post 9/11 hospitality recovery campaign in the country; the groundbreaking Philadelphia – Get Your History Straight And Your Nightlife Gay®; and Philly 360°® for younger, tech savvy African-American travelers.

    Levitz is active on the U.S. Travel Association’s Board of Directors, Policy Council and the newly formed Leisure Council. She also serves on the Philadelphia International Airport Advisory Board, on the Mayor’s Cultural Advisory Council and on the boards of the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, Independence Visitor Center, Historic Philadelphia, Inc. and Global Philadelphia.

    After receiving Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees from the University of Illinois, Levitz began her career as an educator but soon began promoting Philadelphia, first as co-founder of the Center City Proprietors Association in 1978 and later at the Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau, where she rose to vice president of tourism. There, she oversaw the opening of the Pennsylvania Convention Center and presided over the development of new celebrations—Jambalaya Jam, River Blues, Yo! Philadelphia and others—to draw crowds to the Great Plaza at Penn’s Landing.

Sharon Rossi

  • Vice President of Advertising, Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation

  • As vice president of advertising and strategic alliances at the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC), Sharon Rossi oversees regional and national advertising campaigns; joint marketing programs; the AAA market; and regional, state and national tourism relationships.

    GPTMC implements integrated marketing strategies to build image and visitation, using research, advertising, public relations, social media and a strong online presence. Successful campaigns include: the fun and loved With Love, Philadelphia XOXO®; Philly’s More Fun When You Sleep Over®, the most successful post 9/11 hospitality recovery campaign in the country; and the groundbreaking Philadelphia – Get Your History Straight And Your Nightlife Gay®.

    Rossi began her career in tourism at Peddler’s Village in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, where she worked as the vice president of marketing and sales. She was responsible for the marketing of 75 shops, restaurants, meeting facilities, catering and small meeting sales and events at Peddler’s, which draws more than 2.3 million visitors annually. Rossi held this position for 13 years prior to joining GPTMC.

    Before focusing on tourism, Rossi was a social caseworker in Rochester, New York and in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; a marketing sales consultant and brand manager for Mohawk Liquor Corporation; and executive vice president of the Private Industry Council of Philadelphia. She graduated from Ohio Wesleyan University with a liberal arts degree in social psychology and fine arts.

    Rossi serves on the U.S. Travel Association’s planning committee for the Educational Seminar for Tourism Organizations (ESTO). She is the immediate past chairperson of the board of directors for U.S. Travels’ National Council of Destination Organizations (now Destinations Council), a former board member and a former member of their executive committee. In addition, Rossi sits on the board of the Philadelphia Ad Club and the Pennsylvania Tourism and Lodging Association, where she serves as director.

Angela Val

  • Vice President of Special Projects, Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation

  • As vice president of special projects for the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC), Angela Val is charged with managing stakeholder relations, board affairs, legislative initiatives, promotional events and grant-related programming. She also oversees the highly successful hotel program, which since 2004 has booked more than 63,000 hotel reservations, accounting for $13 million in revenue for Philadelphia’s hotels.

    A native of Washington, DC, Angela joined the GPTMC staff in 1998 as executive assistant to Meryl Levitz, president and CEO. She has worked as hotel program director, creating the first hotel package program for the company, and she was part of the team that developed the Philly’s More Fun When You Sleep Over® campaign and Philly Overnight® Hotel Package. Launched after September 11, 2001, the program helped Philadelphia recover faster than any other city in the country, according to Smith Travel Research. Since its inception, the Philly Overnight® Hotel Package has been booked more than 110,000 times, accounting for more than 211,000 room nights and more than $22.5 million in hotel revenue.

    Angela serves as a board member for the 3rd Century Initiative (3CI), a council of the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce dedicated to strengthening the economic vitality of the region’s business community, and Philadelphia Hospitality, a group that provides distinctive tours of a rich collection of cultural and historic treasures throughout the region. Val is a past board member of the Philadelphia chapter of the Black Alliance for Educational Options, where she counseled African-American parents about the high-quality educational options available to their children, and the Professional Women’s Roundtable, a group that supports the advancement of female managers in the Philadelphia region.

    A graduate of Drexel University, Angela began her career in hospitality in 1994 as a sales manager for Philadelphia’s Embassy Suites.

Patricia Washington

  • Vice President of Cultural Tourism, Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation

  • Patricia Washington is vice president of cultural tourism for the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC), a nonprofit organization that makes Philadelphia and The Countryside® a premier destination through marketing and image building that increases business and promotes the region’s vitality. In her role as vice president, Washington serves as a leader in the development of the company’s arts and diversity initiatives. She has headed up new projects such as Philly 360°™, reaching out to young, tech-savvy African-American travelers; Boundless Philadelphia®, focusing on the region’s plentiful outdoor offerings; and the Neighborhood Tourism Network, helping community-based attractions benefit from the tourism industry. Washington also led Philadelphia’s Quest for Freedom program, a marketing collaborative promoting the region’s Underground Railroad history. Her initial work at GPTMC focused on the grant program, which over 10 years awarded $4.5 million in grants to regional cultural organizations to extend the reach of their marketing to out-of-region audiences.

    Before joining GPTMC, Washington was a program officer in the areas of Arts & Culture and Children, Youth and Families for the William Penn Foundation, where she worked on a variety of citywide arts and youth development initiatives. Prior to that, she served as program director for the Painted Bride Art Center. And as a lawyer, Washington worked as an assistant city solicitor in the City of Philadelphia’s Law Department, served as district office chief of staff for a state senator and practiced as an entertainment lawyer. She holds BFA and JD degrees from Howard University.

    Washington serves on the boards of the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance, Preservation Pennsylvania, the Multicultural Affairs Congress of the Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau and Interim House. She is also on the national steering committee and served as former chair of the Cultural & Heritage Tourism Alliance.

Ethan Conner-Ross

  • Vice President of Research and Planning, Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation

  • Ethan Conner-Ross is the research director at the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC). He joined GPTMC in 2006 and quickly rose from research coordinator to research analyst to his current position.

    Under his direction, the research program has taken an applied approach to information gathering, utilizing a mix of custom studies, focus groups, syndicated data and national indicators to form a more complete picture of Greater Philadelphia’s visitors and their impact. In the area of social media, Conner-Ross has worked closely with GPTMC’s internal team to create an innovative report that successfully measures the impact of the organization’s social media marketing, as well as Philadelphia’s presence on the Web. This report serves as the model for many other organizations that look to GPTMC for its expert advice in this field.

    The research department plays an important role in every GPTMC program, including the popular With Love, Philadelphia XOXO®. Research insights help to guide campaigns, understand distinct audiences, quantify results and evaluate the success of all initiatives. Through his involvement in GPTMC’s corporate communication, legislative and grant processes, Conner-Ross helps to ensure that the organization’s key audiences and funders know the significant and measurable economic impact of Greater Philadelphia’s tourism industry. Partners and stakeholders consider GPTMC a reliable source for Philadelphia tourism information.

    Conner-Ross is a member of the Travel and Tourism Research Association (TTRA) and has presented GPTMC’s research findings at the annual TTRA conference.

    A Philadelphia native, Conner-Ross is a graduate of Amherst College.

Cara Schneider

  • Director of Media Relations, Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation

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    Cara Schneider is the director of media relations for the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC), a position she assumed in 2006 after seven years with the company. In this role, she manages GPTMC’s media relations team as it promotes Philadelphia’s history, art, food, neighborhoods, family attractions and more, as well as GPTMC’s own campaigns and tactics—all of which build Philadelphia’s image as a premier leisure destination.

     

    Highly respected by journalists, Schneider regularly works with such outlets as The New York Times, The Washington Post, National Geographic Traveler, Travel + Leisure, PRWeek, Gadling and The Philadelphia Inquirer, and she is part of a team that counts 55+ industry awards from organizations like Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International, Public Relations Society of America and PR News. Schneider has guided the media relations strategy for many of GPTMC’s campaigns and projects, including the Benjamin Franklin 300 celebration; the inaugural Philly Beer Week; The Real-Life Wedding of Ben Franklin and Betsy Ross; Philly’s More Fun When You Sleep Over®; With Love, Philadelphia XOXO®; and With Art Philadelphia™.

    Continuing her commitment to Philadelphia outside of work, Schneider sits on the board of Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens, dedicated to inspiring creativity and community engagement by educating the public about folk, mosaic and visionary art. She is also an active member of the Francisville Neighborhood Development Corporation’s PR & Branding Committee and of the Congregation Rodeph Shalom Membership Committee. Schneider is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania.

Caroline Bean

  • National Media Relations/Social Media Director, Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation

  •  Caroline Bean is the director of social media at the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC). She joined GPTMC in 2003 and quickly rose from public relations coordinator to her current position, focusing on travel and lifestyle media relations and social media initiatives.

    Bean’s media relations’ efforts have resulted in local and national stories in USA Today, The Washington Post, GQ magazine online and PR Week. At the helm of GPTMC’s social media efforts, she has helped the organization grow its Web properties—including Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare and Foodspotting—and works to integrate a well-rounded social media strategy into every campaign. Bean is also part of a communications team that has won 45 industry awards from Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International, PR News and the Public Relations Society of America, including a PR News NonProfit PR award for the With Love, Philadelphia XOXO® social media campaign. Development Counsellors International even named the VisitPhilly Twitter account a “Tweet Elite.” Bean has taken the social media show on the road, presenting at events such as the U.S. Travel Association’s Educational Seminar for Tourism Organizations (ESTO) conference.

    In addition to her professional responsibilities, Bean is on the board committee for Professional Women’s Roundtable; serves on the marketing advisory committee for University City District; and volunteers for Mighty Writers. In 2008, she traveled to Tanzania, Africa to teach English to the Maasai people.

    Prior to GPTMC, Bean worked at an advertising agency in Baltimore. She is a graduate of the University of Delaware.