Marketing PHL, Discovering PHL

Before I started my senior year here at Temple, I came to the sad realization that I didn’t know nearly enough about the city I’ve been living in for three years. What is NoLibs? Where is NoLibs? Can I even name half of the other neighborhoods? I needed to branch out from campus and my urban exploration was well overdue. That was what most compelled me to take a Marketing/Communications internship at the Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau (PCVB), because they are the official tourism promotion agency for the city of Philadelphia. At the PCVB, I have been learning so much more about this city than I could have on my own, because my tasks and assignments revolve around Philly (of course only the good things).

The most exciting aspect of the job has been my chance to assist with the company’s re-branding efforts. This is where my interest in advertising and the internship have most aligned. The company is relaunching its website and other marketing collateral (such as visitors guides) with a fresh new take on Philadelphia’s image. Everything from the graphics to the content is being revived, and while some of these updates are more tedious tasks than others, it is a fulfilling project to be involved with.

Although it has not debuted officially yet, PHL will be the new simplified, sharp, and contemporary logo for Philadelphia on their website. The team who generated it was inspired by international airport abbreviations. PHL will be applied to the affiliates of the Convention Center and Visitors Bureau, and it will be a new way to identify and tag Philadelphia.  Their main site, Philadelphiausa.travel will make the transition to DiscoverPHL.com in a few weeks time. The PCVB’s facelift is requiring a lot of long, busy hours from many of its employees, but it also has been a fun learning process, at least for me.

For example, during my most recent day as an intern, I was part of a street team and had some very active, hands-on work to do spreading word about Philly Photo Day and Startup PHL. The street team started at the Independence Visitors Center, at a press conference where Mayor Michael Nutter spoke. From there, we split up to distribute flyers throughout Old City and it felt like a scavenger hunt instead of work.

Between the inspiring people I have gotten to work alongside, and the diverse responsibilities I have been given, I’m beginning to get a clearer idea of where I can see myself working when I leave Temple. When a city itself is like the “client”, you can really take a lot back from your work. I enjoy discovering PHL as I help to market Discover PHL.