MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO, NYC & COMPANY AND AMERICAN EXPRESS ANNOUNCE NEW YORK CITYS LARGEST DINING PROGRAM
MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO, NYC & COMPANY AND
AMERICAN EXPRESS ANNOUNCE NEW YORK CITY'S LARGEST DINING PROGRAM
—New Yorkers Called Upon to Help Promote the Diversity of Restaurants in the Five Boroughs to Visitors Worldwide—
New York City (September 1, 2015) — NYC & Company, New York City’s official marketing, tourism and partnership organization, together with Mayor Bill de Blasio and American Express, today launched See Your City: Eats Edition, the largest five-borough dining program in New York City. In addition to motivating New Yorkers to explore the neighborhoods and boroughs of their own city, the popular campaign also encourages New Yorkers to help create buzz around their favorite restaurants by uploading photos to social media using the hashtag #seeyourcity. For more information on the campaign and dining tips, visit nycgo.com/seeyourcity.
“New York City is home to inspired chefs and cuisine from every corner of the world. It’s not every city that you can cool down with Italian gelato after a spicy Sichuan dinner within a city block,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio. “I encourage all New Yorkers to take advantage of living in one of the most diverse cities in the world, with restaurants to match, by supporting local business and seeing their city.”
“From Mediterranean to Mexican to Moroccan, New Yorkers can travel the world within the five boroughs to try one of the countless cuisines right in their own backyard, and we want New Yorkers to think of the five boroughs as the next destination to be explored during a day off,” said Fred Dixon, president and CEO of NYC & Company. “Dining is one of the most visceral and exciting ways to experience someplace new and with more than 24,000 restaurants throughout the five boroughs, there’s always a new restaurant to explore.”
To further encourage locals to explore new and authentic restaurants, presenting sponsor American Express is offering a Card Member promotion at thousands of restaurants in the five boroughs. Eligible American Express Card Members can use their Card to spend $50 or more at any participating restaurant and get a one-time $10 statement credit. To learn more and enroll in this offer with an eligible American Express Card, visit americanexpress.com/seeyourcityeats. Terms apply.
To motivate New Yorkers to explore the five boroughs through food, the campaign highlights diverse eats through editorial content on nycgo.com/seeyourcity from NYCGo, See Your City social media ambassadors and content partner Food Republic, in addition to a curated user generated–photo feed featuring dishes, restaurants and happy eaters tagged with #seeyourcity on Instagram.
NYC & Company and American Express are also teaming up to provide a resource toolkit that offers restaurant operators tips on how they can leverage social media and other channels to attract new customers during the See Your City program. The toolkit is available at https://knowledgecenter.americanexpress.com/see-your-city-eats-edition/.
To encourage information sharing on social media, social media ambassadors—ranging from restaurants throughout the five boroughs to local neighborhood influencers to NYC Instagrammers—will help promote the program by sharing images on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook with the official hashtag #seeyourcity. To showcase a taste of the five boroughs, NYC & Company is hosting “InstaMeets” with the social media ambassadors. During the InstaMeets, the ambassadors will upload images to Instagram, publicizing NYC’s unique dining experiences. Additionally, NYC & Company invites everyone to share their must-try food pics in New York City’s five boroughs on social media with the campaign hashtag #seeyourcity.
As with the previous two phases, the creative elements reference vintage travel posters and food-themed suitcase stickers to reframe the familiar as foreign and idealized. The campaign will be promoted through increased digital media in addition to approximately 200 bus shelters and 100 street pole banners across the five boroughs; New York City dining content seeded through social platforms and highlighted on NYC & Company’s Facebook (facebook.com/nycgo), Instagram (instagram.com/nycgo) and Twitter (twitter.com/nycgo and twitter.com/nycgo_press) accounts; print media in local outlets and food publications; commercials running in NYC taxicabs; and through American Express digital channels.
Launched in October 2014, the campaign strategy is inspired by the U.S. Travel Association’s Project: Time Off, an initiative aimed to change mind-sets, shift American culture and motivate Americans to use more of their paid time off (projecttimeoff.com). The first phase of the See Your City campaign featured 10 neighborhoods in the five boroughs including: Arthur Avenue (the Bronx), Carroll Gardens (Brooklyn), DUMBO (Brooklyn), the Staten Island Greenbelt, Harlem (Manhattan), Hell’s Kitchen (Manhattan), Jackson Heights (Queens), Long Island City (Queens), St. George (Staten Island) and Van Cortlandt Park (the Bronx). On May 18, 2015, NYC & Company announced the campaign’s second phase, which featured 10 additional neighborhoods in the five boroughs including: Atlantic Avenue (Brooklyn), Bay Ridge (Brooklyn), Corona (Queens), Lower Manhattan (Manhattan), Randall Manor (Staten Island), Richmond Town (Staten Island), Riverdale (the Bronx), Rockaway Beach (Queens), South Bronx (the Bronx) and Washington Heights (Manhattan). To download the campaign creative, visit nycgo.com/pressphotos.
About NYC & Company:
NYC & Company is the official marketing, tourism and partnership organization for the City of New York, dedicated to maximizing travel and tourism opportunities throughout the five boroughs, building economic prosperity and spreading the positive image of New York City worldwide. For more information, visit nycgo.com.
About American Express
American Express is a global services company, providing customers with access to products, insights and experiences that enrich lives and build business success. Learn more at americanexpress.com and connect with us on facebook.com/americanexpress, foursquare.com/americanexpress, linkedin.com/company/american-express, twitter.com/americanexpress, and youtube.com/americanexpress.
Key links to products and services: charge and credit cards, business credit cards, Plenti rewards program, travel services, gift cards, prepaid cards, merchant services, corporate card and business travel.
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Contact: NYC & Company / Chris Heywood 212-484-1270
NYC & Company / Caroline Peck 212-484-1270