Brand USA is introducing a new website address to encourage consumers to translate interest in the US into bookings.
Although DiscoverAmerica.com will continue to exist, the URL used for brand and co-op marketing in the UK will now be VisitTheUSA.co.uk.
The new URL has been introduced as it has a stronger call to action, and also ties in to a commitment to work more closely with travel industry Visit USA committees in source markets including the UK.
Speaking at WTM, Brand USA chief marketing officer David Whitaker said the activity was reflective of an ongoing commitment to the UK trade and a desire to avoid duplication of efforts with the Visit USA Association.
Brand USA has announced that it will run its fourth annual MegaFam for UK agents in 2016, taking in Alaska and Hawaii for the first time. It has also enhanced its online training programme.
The release of a large-screen feature film celebrating the National Parks Service, which had initially been scheduled for this autumn, will now happen with ‘a premiere event or events in London’ in the spring following a launch screening in Washington, DC, Whitaker confirmed.
Although the film is sponsored by Expedia, it will also be accompanied by a range of sales and marketing collateral for the wider trade, he added.
Visitor numbers from the UK to the US for the year-to-date have yet to be released, but Whitaker said he was hopeful for further growth after a 4% increase in leisure travel in 2014.