Corona, Quinn, Garza Saenz, Jimenez 1

Ana Corona, Jonathan Quinn, Monica Garza Saenz, Samantha Jimenez

Professor Haworth
MKT 3320.001
8 October 2015
Social Media Campaign Management and Creating a Social Media Strategy
I spy letters of the alphabet B & G to be specific. Have you roamed around
Dallas with friends or loved ones to notice these big, blue letters? In addition to city spectators, a
large multitude of social media users have also heard the buzz about these letters through the
various platforms. Just as many people know that Everything is bigger in Texas, the Dallas
Convention & Visitors Bureau (Dallas CVB) has utilized this popular saying in their favor to
help promote their BIG Campaign to emphasize that Big Things Happen Here.
If social media was taken out of the equation for this particular campaign, it would be
virtually impossible to imagine that the success levels and rates would have mirrored the same
results. Because of this, successful methods of managing a social media campaign are key. This
trendy form of advertising is much more effective when compared to traditional methods that
were popular in the past, especially with the way social media has made it easier for
organizations to track their return on investment. Also, these platforms allow for a two-way
communication channels between companies and their customers. Both parties benefit from this
connection in that the consumer can voice their opinions and receive responses, and companies
have the opportunity to assess their general performance in customer care; ultimately this results
as a win-win situation.
The Dallas BIG Things Happen Here Campaign made by the Dallas CVB has been
successful since April 16, 2013. The 6 ft tall bright blue B&G displays have been set all around

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Dallas in hopes to engage the community and develop a brand representative of the pride Dallas
residents have for their city. In one year (2013-2014) residents and visitors took over 10,000
photos capturing themselves as the I in BIG at more than 100 locations around the city. The
B&G letters have been displayed around Dallas in places such as Klyde Warren Park, American
Airlines Center, Dallas Arts District, and The Rustic. Social Media has played a major role in the
success of the BIG campaign, as it allows the Dallas community to be a part of the brand and
showcase what BIG THINGS HAPPEN HERE, means to them. Using #DallasBIG through
Twitter, Instagram, Flickr, Tumblr, and other social media platforms, fans can physically and
virtually be part of this social media campaign as well as get a chance to be featured on the BIG
Photo Gallery on the VisitDallas.com website.
Visit Dallas has benefited tremendously from the Dallas BIG campaign even just within
its first year. Their site visits increased by 60% from the previous year with more than 2.2 million
unique visitors. Facebook fans increased 139% to more than 72,900 and Twitter followers
increased by 113% to 13,850.
The campaign currently runs today and has become even more fun and personalized.
Event planners and business owners are now able to request their own customized B&G letters to
Make Every Moment BIG. In order for events and businesses to qualify for the letters, they
must meet certain criteria. Applicants must be unique to Dallas, be a high-traffic area, be photoworthy, and offer a memorable experience. Texas Scottish Rite Hospital For Children has
customized their B&G letters with a big box of crayons to mimic its logo. Mutts Restaurant has
also customized their letters to create Puppy B&G letters, where furry friends can also take a
part of the BIG campaign.

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B&G letters come in a variety of sets, Big Blue, Custom Pre-Made, Custom Paint, The
Big Give, and Light Up. The Big Blue set is the traditional set that is available year-round.
Custom sets are pre-made customized letters that have been used for past events, such as the
Dallas Mavericks letters. Custom Paint offers a co-branding opportunity with a custom paint job
and letter design.
Taking it another step forward, B&G letters have become interactive offering the
opportunity to chose between The Big Give and The Light Up. The Big Give B&G letters
launched in September 26, 2014, functions as a piggy bank. These letters will help organizations
raise money for their charity through donations from the community. Each letter has drop slots
on the sides with clear PlexiGlass on the front where the donations are visible. Letters can be
filled with money, tokens, balls, or other small objects. The Light Up is the most unique of all
sets. These letters have the ability to change colors based on social media interaction. The B&G
letters are programmed to react with up to 4 hashtags on Twitter and Instagram. Each hashtag is
represented by a different color. The color of the B&G set is determined by the highest trending
hashtag. This set allows fans to directly interact with the BIG campaign.
The Dallas BIG Things Happen Here Campaign was created in order to drive tourists to
Dallas and get local residents pumped about uplifting the citys allure to visitors. This campaign
shows people that Dallas is a vibrant city with a lot of potential and many exciting places to visit.
The social media campaign has been successful because has encouraged engagement from local
residents, created Dallas brand ambassadors and fans, and has driven traffic to the Visit Dallas
website.
This campaign encouraged engagement by creating the hashtag #DallasBig which now
has over 35 thousands posts on Instagram, as well as many other posts on Facebook and Twitter.

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The hashtag was simple but memorable while being unique and related to the brand as every
hashtag should be. This made users more likely to include it in their posts. The campaign also
encouraged people by making the posts with the customized B & G letters support causes such as
Breast Cancer awareness, the Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children, Suicide awareness and
many more. Providing people with purpose behind their actions gives them a strong initiative
and will to participate.
Another way they encouraged participation was by sharing photos of 12 pictures of
Dallas big influencers who have done a lot for the betterment of the community such as Mark
Cuban, the owner of the Dallas Mavericks, Catherine Cuellar, the executive director of the Dallas
Arts District, and Cece Cox who is the Chief Executive officer of the Resource Center of Dallas.
Influences help showcase the brand to people who may not have been exposed before. They also
help increase fans, followers and connections while they align with the Dallas brand image and
promote it through their network.
This campaign created advocates and fans by giving them an incentive to share pictures
of themselves on social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr or Pinterest
while standing in the middle of the B and G to form the I in order to get special deals,
discounts, and offers from many Dallas retailers. This gifts include Mavericks and Stars playoff
tickets, concert tickets, and merchandise and gift packages. This campaign has turned Dallas
residents into ambassadors for the city. It has been successful because people, whether or not
they are aware of the purpose behind the campaign, find the 6 feet tall B & G fiberglass letters to
make a beautiful picture. Brand ambassadors humanize the Dallas brand, it makes the people in
these pictures the faces of Dallas without having to pay each individual while also helping
increase the social reach. These letters are also strategically positioned in key locations all

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tourists must visit when they come to Dallas such as the AT&T Performing Arts Center, the Main
Street Garden, or the Pegasus Plaza. Also, because of this strategic placement, residents who are
visiting these areas for entertainment are more likely to want to take a picture and showcase our
city. The plan of creating ambassadors out of people has been victorious because in one year
residents and visitors have taken over 10,000 photos of themselves in between the B & G letters.
These brand ambassadors have provided a positive word-of-mouth that is more credible than any
traditional Dallas city advertisement.
This social media campaign has had amazing results. The brand ambassadors have helped
increase traffic to the Visit Dallas by 60% compared to 2014 with more than 2.2 million unique
visitors. Facebook fans increased 139% to more than 72,900 and Twitter followers increased by
113% to 13,850. Just based on how much traffic was driven to their website, this campaign has
been a triumph. On the other hand, as much as the increase in social media followers and website
traffic matters, a social media campaign is not effective unless there is a return on the
investment. The main goal behind the The Dallas BIG Things Happen Here Campaign was to
make the city look more appealing to tourists and to encourage them to purchase a ticket and
visit Dallas. Fortunately, the campaign has resulted in a total economic impact of $1.6 billion.
There were 1.5 million total of room nights booked and there was a 25% increase in international
visitors. The city also exceeded 2 million visitors to four major city attractions which are the
Perot Museum of Nature and Science, Klyde Warren Park, the Bush Presidential Center and Rory
Meyers Childrens Adventure Garden. These are all numbers from 2013 because the 2014
numbers have not been released yet, but through these numbers we can see the huge impact this
campaign has had on the city.

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By any measure, the Dallas CVBs BIG Things Happen Here Campaign has been a
BIG success. In one year the initiative was able vigorously promote the city of Dallas as a
social epicenter. By utilizing a no holds barred approach to social media marketing the
organization expanded their brand in ways that would have been unheard of twenty years ago.
Therefore, our teams first recommendation is that the Dallas Convention & Visitors Bureau
continue to make all their content easily sharable from any device, and readily available across
all major social media platforms. Additionally, we would like to highlight the lengths to which
the Dallas CVB has gone to grow the unique idea behind the letters themselves. The letters were
able to generate significant buzz on their own, but by enhancing the B&G letters with the ability
to interact in real time with individuals on social media the CVBs campaign has gone above and
beyond. With this in mind, our second recommendation is that the campaign continue to be
innovative and unique with regard to their physical marketing techniques. Lastly, we understand
that creating value for engaged individuals is the easiest way to enhance their experience, and
that in turn helps create value for the city. Our final recommendation is that the BIG Things
Happen Here Campaign continue focusing on adding value to the individuals experience. By
fueling this win-win relationship with the citizens of Dallas its difficult to picture this social
endeavor going any direction but straight up.

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Works Cited
"Dallas Big Influence." The Influencers. Web. 2 Oct. 2015.
<http://www.visitdallas.com/about/dallas-big-influence/influencers-calendar/>.
Harvard Business School Faculty. "The Secret To A Successful Social Media
Strategy." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 2 June 2014. Web. 01 Oct. 2015.
<http://www.forbes.com/sites/hbsworkingknowledge/2014/06/02/the-secret-to-a-successfulsocial-media-strategy/>.
Haselmayr, Melanie. "Tips And Tricks To Manage Your Social Media Campaigns Like A
Pro." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 16 May 2014. Web. 01 Oct. 2015.
<http://www.forbes.com/sites/allbusiness/2014/05/16/tips-and-tricks-to-manage-your-socialmedia-campaigns-like-a-pro/>.
"Meet B&G Dallas Convention & Visitors Bureau Attractions." Meet B&G Dallas
Convention & Visitors Bureau Attractions. Web. 2 Oct. 2015.
<http://www.visitdallas.com/bg/#Sets>.
Moorman, Christime. "12 Tips For Integrating Social Media Into Your Marketing
Strategy." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 16 Dec. 2014. Web. 01 Oct. 2015.
<http://www.forbes.com/sites/christinemoorman/2014/12/16/12-tips-for-integrating-socialmedia-into-your-marketing-strategy/>.
The Dallas Convention & Visitors Bureau. Dallas BIG Brand Campaign Celebrates a
Year of Success. Frank Librio, Lauren Farruya, 16 Apr. 2014. Print.