McCann Detroit today announced that it has once again been awarded the Tourism and Business Marketing accounts for the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC), following a competitive review. The announcement extends the agency's successful 10-year partnership with the MEDC for tourism marketing, and five-year partnership with the MEDC for business marketing. All work will continue to be developed out of McCann's Detroit offices.
"We are excited to continue working with the team that created the award-winning and industry-leading Pure Michigan brand 10 years ago," said Emily Gerkin Guerrant, Vice President of Marketing, Communications and Public Relations, MEDC. "The teams at both Weber Shandwick Detroit and McCann Detroit have been excellent partners in our efforts to promote and market Michigan and bring their own passion for this state to the job every day. With more than 1,000 total employees in the state, both firms are strong in-state partners that have years of experience working in Michigan."
"I am thrilled that we are able to continue our long, rewarding relationship with the MEDC," said Mel Smart, Executive Vice President and General Manager of McCann Detroit. "We have been proud to be a part of the evolution of the Pure Michigan brand over the past decade. It's especially gratifying for our Detroit teams to be able to work on a brand that is so close to our hearts and homes."
The highly effective Pure Michigan brand is designed to promote tourism and business initiatives on behalf of the Great Lakes State. The tourism campaign has been credited with helping generate more than 4.6 million trips to Michigan in 2015 alone, with out-of-state visitors spending nearly $1.4 billion in Michigan communities. In 2016, McCann Detroit's Pure Michigan work earned the agency a second Effie Award for Sustained Success, a recognition given to brands that have delivered proven effectiveness for more than five years.
UM Detroit, a division of IPG Mediabrands, will continue to serve as media agency.