Increasing Visitors to Portland Through Multicultural Travel Research

Representation Meets Destination: Elevating BIPOC Voices with Travel Portland

Client Background

For over five years, Travel Portland (Oregon) has conducted a quarterly national survey of travelers to understand their thoughts and feelings about Portland as a destination. In 2024 insights revealed an opportunity to convert Black and Hispanic travelers from key markets that were suspected to reflect positive sentiments about Portland as a leisure travel destination but had not yet activated this interest into actual visits.

Client's Needs

Travel Portland sought to validate the BIPOC audience(s) that over-indexed for positive sentiment about Portland as a destination, by further exploring the motivations, barriers, and cultural considerations related to Portland. Seeking expert guidance on qualitative research among BIPOC communities, Travel Portland engaged The Culturist Group to undertake four in-person qualitative focus groups in the markets of Los Angeles, CA and Phoenix, AZ to help collect insights.

Objectives and Goals

The Culturist Group team worked with Travel Portland’s research and marketing leadership to outline qualitative subjects and topics that would help clarify and distill the messaging and positioning efforts needed to move BIPOC travelers from solely having a positive sentiment of the destination to increasing the incidence of air travel and arrivals to Portland from among the various segments represented among focus group participants.

Work Process & Result

The Culturist Group team implemented an expert program of qualitative research centered around the recruitment and engagement of consumers reflecting Black and Hispanic communities in two DMAs, Los Angeles, California and Phoenix, Arizona. We organized focus group conversations to reveal insights aligned with our framework, the four categories: representation, relevance, resonance, and reach. 

Following the execution of the focus groups, a strategic report and presentation were delivered to Travel Portland to inform advertising and creative briefs in preparation for the 2025 campaign year and paid, earned, and owned BIPOC efforts for the destination to increase visitation from these diverse segments.

Travel Portland's Spring/Summer 2025 campaign developed by Industry, Travel Portland's creative agency of record, will reflect the recommendations made by The Culturist Group with additional considerations extended through Travel Portland's integrated channel marketing.

For more information on our 'Culture Counsel' research services and offerings, contact us.