Hisaoka repositions Fairfax as independent destination

» Job: Create a public relations campaign for Fairfax County’s new summer travel promotion that secures local and national media coverage for the county. Visit Fairfax, the county’s official convention and tourism marketing organization, hired a PR firm to help reposition Fairfax as an independent East Coast tourist destination, not just a side trip to a D.C. visit.

» Agency: Hisaoka Public Relations in Washington.

» Theme: Treasure Hunting Fairfax Style

» The Concept: Visit Fairfax’s summer-long promotion is an online (www.fxva.com) “treasure hunt” that takes would-be visitors on a tour of the sites in Fairfax, such as the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum Stephen F. Udvar-Hazy Center and Mount Vernon Estate & Gardens. The promotion culminates on Labor Day with an actual treasure hunt where 10 winners will search for a buried Infiniti FX35.

» The Plan: Hisaoka Public Relations staged a visually appealing press conference in May to announce the summer campaign that had Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chairman Gerald Connolly releasing the first shovel of dirt for the car’s burial from a construction backhoe. Visit Fairfax staff, including both the chairman and president, dressed in pirate costumes for the event. Hisaoka’s team also did a mailing to local and national media that included a “treasure map” to announce the summer promotion. The firm will liaise with the media and community groups throughout the promotion to set up interviews and speaking engagements for Visit Fairfax President and CEO Arnie Quirion, as well as coordinate several promotional tie-ins. In the public relations world, the success of a campaign is measured in “ad value,” meaning the amount it would have cost a client to place an ad in the same space an article ran. Hisaoka’s last campaign for Visit Fairfax — the launch of its new logo — garnered about $300,000 in ad value.

» Creative Team: Joan Hisaoka (president), Danielle Tergis (promotions and marketing manager), Heather Russell (account executive)

» Ages: Mid-20s to 40s

» Background: Joan Hisaoka founded her PR firm in 1988 after working in public relations for the restaurant industry. Today, Hisaoka’s clients include some of the top restaurants in the region, including The Oceanaire Seafood Room, Ristorante Tosca, Charlie Palmer Steak and the Kimpton Hotel and Restaurant Group.

» Working on Next: Campaigns for the summer opening of Hotel Palomar, a Kimpton hotel in Dupont Circle, and its adjacent restaurant, Urbana; the annual “RAMMY” Awards, which honor the Washington region’s top chefs and restaurants, sponsored by the Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington; and the Bobby Mitchell/Toyota Hall of Fame Golf Classic for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. – Katie Wilmeth