The Opportunity:

The City of Oceanside needed public relations expertise in 2017, when citizens saw high-density development pushing into rural neighborhoods and threatening the City’s agricultural heritage.

In response, Visit Oceanside helped map out a plan to bring economic stability to its farms through agritourism. With feedback from a series of community workshops, Oceanside agritourism partners developed plans for unique, local and immersive farm experiences that attract travelers’ attention and dollars, beginning with O’side Feast, a showcase event at Jason Mraz’s Oceanside farm.

Visit Oceanside tasked our team with driving awareness of O’side Feast and growing community support for the agritourism vision.

The Solution:

We created an integrated marketing strategy, including a visual identity for O’side Feast and branded collateral to highlight agritourism’s potential.

Our team also developed messaging points and FAQs to ensure that all community partners sent consistent messages as they shared the agritourism vision at community workshops and city council meetings.

We drew community awareness to the cause through articles in influential business and lifestyle publications. To show agritourism’s appeal to travel audiences, we hosted a fam trip for food and wine writers, showcasing the synergy between Oceanside’s organic farming and vibrant dining scene.

The Results:

Our work on behalf of Oceanside’s agritourism Phase One achieved:

  • A potential audience of over 4 million
  • 100,000 social media impressions from news coverage alone

We also generated a series of key media placements, including:

  • San Diego Business Journal cover feature
  • San Diego Magazine three-page spread
  • Instagram takeover by SD Magazine food editor, Troy Johnson
  • Multiple features on CBS San Diego evening news
  • Five weekends of interviews on the SoCal Restaurant radio show

Listeners of the SoCal Restaurant radio show immediately traveled to the area to experience Oceanside’s Beach House Winery and other agritourism offerings.

Community support for Oceanside agritourism remains strong, and the City continues to plan for the next phase of the initiative.