Memories of Vicksburg
Posted: Wed Apr 10, 2013 4:57 pm
Anyone familiar with marketing knows that there are several different ways to sell a product. In fact, you don’t have to be a marketing expert to know that; all you have to do is to pay attention to the advertising around you. These days, there is a wider array of communications vehicles than ever before. A few decades ago, the options were mailing brochures and advertising on radio, television and in newspapers and magazines. All those are still viable options today, but thanks to emails and social media, the landscape has changed.
However, the basic conversation hasn’t changed much. Advertising is used to evoke a positive perception of a product or company, as well as to convey a specific offer. In the case of the American Queen Steamboat Company, you might have noticed recently that we are making people aware of the opportunity to save up to $750 per stateroom by booking select voyages on the luxurious American Queen before this special offer expires on May 31, 2013.
This offer applies to a number of sailings, but right now we’re focusing on advertising our June departures as there are only a limited number of suites and staterooms still available. The journeys that are proving so popular include:
9-day President’s Cruise between Memphis, TN and New Orleans, LA June 1-9, 2013 with fares from $2,495 per guest
Gardens of the River trip from New Orleans, LA to Memphis, TN June 8-16, 2013 with fares starting at $2,495 per guest
9-day Dixie Fest from Memphis, TN to New Orleans, LA June 15-23, 2013 also beginning at $2,495 per guest
8-day Great Steamboat Era voyage from New Orleans, LA back to Memphis, TN June 22-29, 2013 from $2,145 per guest
8-day Good Old Summertime sailing from Memphis, TN to St. Louis, MO June 28-July 5, 2013 which also starts at just $2,145 per guest.
This offer is strategic advertising, yet we are careful to remind you of the broader American Queen Steamboat Company brand experience and value when we mention that every departure includes free shore excursions, a free luxury hotel night before your journey, free wine and beer with dinner and even free cappuccino, espresso, specialty coffees, bottled water and soft drinks the entire time you are traveling on the American Queen.
So far, the focus has been on the brand in general. To really bring the brand to life, we must tell a story about what you will experience. On almost every voyage mentioned above, we offer a call on Vicksburg, MS.
We can mention this feature in an email or include a line in an advertisement or a brochure, but that is never quite enough space or time to convey what it really means to visit a place like Vicksburg. How do you convey the experience of visiting a place with so much history in a way that will get noticed and be enjoyed?
Vicksburg changed forever during the Civil War. After a siege lasting 47 days, Union General Ulysses S. Grant finally forced the surrender of Confederate General John C. Pemberton on July 4, 1863 with more than 37,000 soldiers either killed or wounded. The day before, General Robert E. Lee lost the battle of Gettysburg in a dark time for the Confederate States of America that became recognized as the turning point of the Civil War. While July 4 is known as Independence Day across America, the citizens of Vicksburg at that time viewed the date as a day of defeat, and they did not formally celebrate the 4th of July again until 1945.
Those are the facts. But walking through Vicksburg National Military Park is so much more than mere numbers in history books. Seeing the fields where men died fighting for a cause they believed in is inspiring yet also terribly sad when you realize that it sometimes pitted brother against brother. The monuments on the site are a reminder of the somber heritage of the beautiful setting. And nothing brings home the human toll more than seeing row upon row of tidy white headstones marking the graves of the fallen. In Vicksburg National Military Cemetery, more than 17,000 soldiers are interred.
No advertising can truly do justice to an experience like this. A place like Vicksburg is what gives the American Queen experience context. The flashy offer may get your interest, but the Vicksburg story is what holds it. We invite you to join us on any of the voyages we mentioned above to truly understand and appreciate what it is like to travel on an elegant riverboat with every possible amenity that will leave you reflecting on the history of America and how the country has been shaped by what has gone before.
However, the basic conversation hasn’t changed much. Advertising is used to evoke a positive perception of a product or company, as well as to convey a specific offer. In the case of the American Queen Steamboat Company, you might have noticed recently that we are making people aware of the opportunity to save up to $750 per stateroom by booking select voyages on the luxurious American Queen before this special offer expires on May 31, 2013.
This offer applies to a number of sailings, but right now we’re focusing on advertising our June departures as there are only a limited number of suites and staterooms still available. The journeys that are proving so popular include:
9-day President’s Cruise between Memphis, TN and New Orleans, LA June 1-9, 2013 with fares from $2,495 per guest
Gardens of the River trip from New Orleans, LA to Memphis, TN June 8-16, 2013 with fares starting at $2,495 per guest
9-day Dixie Fest from Memphis, TN to New Orleans, LA June 15-23, 2013 also beginning at $2,495 per guest
8-day Great Steamboat Era voyage from New Orleans, LA back to Memphis, TN June 22-29, 2013 from $2,145 per guest
8-day Good Old Summertime sailing from Memphis, TN to St. Louis, MO June 28-July 5, 2013 which also starts at just $2,145 per guest.
This offer is strategic advertising, yet we are careful to remind you of the broader American Queen Steamboat Company brand experience and value when we mention that every departure includes free shore excursions, a free luxury hotel night before your journey, free wine and beer with dinner and even free cappuccino, espresso, specialty coffees, bottled water and soft drinks the entire time you are traveling on the American Queen.
So far, the focus has been on the brand in general. To really bring the brand to life, we must tell a story about what you will experience. On almost every voyage mentioned above, we offer a call on Vicksburg, MS.
We can mention this feature in an email or include a line in an advertisement or a brochure, but that is never quite enough space or time to convey what it really means to visit a place like Vicksburg. How do you convey the experience of visiting a place with so much history in a way that will get noticed and be enjoyed?
Vicksburg changed forever during the Civil War. After a siege lasting 47 days, Union General Ulysses S. Grant finally forced the surrender of Confederate General John C. Pemberton on July 4, 1863 with more than 37,000 soldiers either killed or wounded. The day before, General Robert E. Lee lost the battle of Gettysburg in a dark time for the Confederate States of America that became recognized as the turning point of the Civil War. While July 4 is known as Independence Day across America, the citizens of Vicksburg at that time viewed the date as a day of defeat, and they did not formally celebrate the 4th of July again until 1945.
Those are the facts. But walking through Vicksburg National Military Park is so much more than mere numbers in history books. Seeing the fields where men died fighting for a cause they believed in is inspiring yet also terribly sad when you realize that it sometimes pitted brother against brother. The monuments on the site are a reminder of the somber heritage of the beautiful setting. And nothing brings home the human toll more than seeing row upon row of tidy white headstones marking the graves of the fallen. In Vicksburg National Military Cemetery, more than 17,000 soldiers are interred.
No advertising can truly do justice to an experience like this. A place like Vicksburg is what gives the American Queen experience context. The flashy offer may get your interest, but the Vicksburg story is what holds it. We invite you to join us on any of the voyages we mentioned above to truly understand and appreciate what it is like to travel on an elegant riverboat with every possible amenity that will leave you reflecting on the history of America and how the country has been shaped by what has gone before.