Philadelphia and the Countryside - Press Room

People are falling more in love with the With Love, Philadelphia XOXO™ tourism marketing campaign, and this summer promises to be filled with affection in the City of Brotherly Love as year two of the popular campaign gets underway. Victory Brewing Company, Capogiro Gelato Artisans, Where® Philadelphia magazine, the Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau, the Philadelphia Phillies and the Independence Visitor Center are joining forces with the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC) to make With Love an experience that people can not only see, but also touch and taste.

Thanks to the improving economy, Philadelphia’s strength in the leisure

As part of the “Phanatic Around Town” tourism and fan initiative, the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC), sponsor of the With Love, Philadelphia XOXO® Phanatic—one of 20 hand-painted statues around town—today announced “Phanatic Tuesdays.” This social media promotion encourages visitors to snap photos with the Phanatic statue of the week and upload them to the visitphilly fan page on Facebook or share them via Twitter (using a #Phanatic hashtag to help Twitter users track all Phanatic-related tweets).

On each Tuesday from now through September, GPTMC will reveal the statue of the week at twitter.com/visitphilly and facebook.com/visitphilly. Today’s “Phanatic

Does Chef Jose Garces indulge in scrapple? Has DJ/producer Diplo run the Rocky steps? Readers of uwishunu.com will find out the answers to these and many other questions when they read the “With Love Letters” series on uwishunu.com. In the posts, the “personality” of the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation’s With Love, Philadelphia XOXO™ campaign interviews noteworthy Philadelphians in order to learn more about their relationship with the city and why they love it here.

First up is chef and restaurateur Jose Garces, who dishes on dollar dog days at Citizens Bank Park, shopping at Reading Terminal Market and

Who says you can’t buy love? The Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing (GPTMC) today announced the launch of gophila.com/shop, where people can purchase T-shirts, banners, notepads, sneakers, tote bags and more, all branded with the popular With Love, Philadelphia XOXO™ logo. Since the launch of the tourism marketing campaign in May 2009, consumers, organizations, shops, restaurants and hotels have been asking GPTMC where they can obtain their own With Love, Philadelphia XOXO™ items to support the new tourism initiative and, by extension, their city. GPTMC answers the demand—and extends the campaign—with gophila.com/shop.

“Philadelphians are proud of their home and

Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC) recently launched the newest component of its With Love, Philadelphia XOXO™ campaign, and it’s got heart: an online postcard generator enabling Philly locals, visitors and fans to send one of eight postcards to friends and family with a personalized message. Those who send a postcard from gophila.com/withlove are automatically entered to win a $100 Stephen Starr or Jose Garces restaurant giftcard. In the first weekend alone, more than 1,000 people penned a message—sending out postcards featuring the Philly Phanatic, Philadelphia skyline, Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell and more.

Not only can visitors to gophila.com/withlove

CAMPAIGN NAME: With Love, Philadelphia XOXO™

CAMPAIGN OVERVIEW: Launching May 2009, With Love, Philadelphia XOXO™ is part of GPTMC’s 2009 recessionary strategy to boost leisure visitation and overnight hotel stays in Philadelphia. It appeals to many different audiences through various letters addressed to travelers. Penned by the city itself, the letters let a bit of Philly “atty-tude” through while extending the invitation to visit.

FUNDING: In fall 2008, the mayor of Philadelphia and City Council approved a 1.2% increase in hotel tax on Philadelphia County hotel rooms to be shared among GPTMC, the Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau and the

As the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC) takes its popular With Love, Philadelphia XOXO® initiative from campaign to consumer experience, the destination marketing organization is proud to announce a wider release of Victory Brewing Company’s Summer Love Ale on July 6. Brewed locally in Chester County, Pennsylvania with pale malts, German hops and water from the Brandywine River, the golden brew began flowing freely at bars and restaurants throughout the Philadelphia region during the annual Philly Beer Week. After its sell-out debut, Victory is brewing a double batch of Summer Love Ale to keep up with demand.

In the