In a first-of-its-kind initiative for our organization, NYC Tourism curated a Halloween-themed email newsletter that we distributed to capitalize on seasonal interest. The objective was to engage audiences in a fun way and drive direct website visitation by promoting the City's spooky attractions, haunted locations and festive events across the five boroughs. The aim was to leverage some of our top-performing content to position New York City as the ultimate Halloween destination.
The newsletter curated immersive, themed experiences, including haunted location guides and ghostly attractions. It provided direct links to itineraries, encouraging readers to attend marquee events like the Village Halloween Parade. Additionally, it spotlighted local businesses, promoting themed treats and unique experiences to support tourism-driven foot traffic.
The Halloween-themed email newsletter was crafted to engage audiences and drive tourism by leveraging the City's rich history, cultural allure and seasonal festivities. The strategy focused on positioning NYC as the ultimate Halloween destination, blending storytelling, an interactive map and curated experiences to captivate readers and inspire them to explore the city.
Through targeted email marketing sent to local, domestic and international audiences, NYC Tourism capitalized on seasonal interest to boost visitor engagement and participation, keeping New York City top-of-mind for travelers.
Key strategic pillars included:
Curated Content & Thematic Storytelling – The newsletter showcased haunted landmarks, eerie attractions and themed events, integrating NYC’s ghostly past with modern-day celebrations. Locations like Washington Square Park and the Village Halloween Parade were highlighted, tying in historical hauntings with contemporary festivities.
Interactive & Actionable Elements – Readers were encouraged to immerse themselves in the experience, whether through costume inspiration, haunted walking tours or themed dining recommendations. Each section contained direct links to the Halloween hub with itineraries and local business events, ensuring a seamless transition from curiosity to action.
Engaging Visual & Email Design – A visually compelling layout featuring Halloween-themed graphics, spooky cinemagraphic imagery and dynamic call-to-action buttons created an immersive feel. The email was structured to maintain high readability and engagement, guiding the audience through various sections effortlessly.
Targeted Digital Distribution – Sent to a segmented audience interested in travel to NYC and seasonal events, the email leveraged data-driven personalization to maximize engagement.
We successfully met the objective of driving engagement and inspiring travel by positioning NYC as the ultimate Halloween destination.
With a 38.5% email open rate amongst local audience, this was higher than our standard email newsletters of 35%, which speaks to the newsletter’s strong appeal and effectiveness in driving engagement. Web traffic saw a spike to the Halloween hub in the wake of the newsletter send, with increased page views on features about haunted NYC attractions, the Village Halloween Parade, our Ghostbusters interactive map, spooky treats article and event listings. Engagement metrics were particularly positive, with average time spent on our Guide to the Village Halloween Parade article, for instance, at 3m48s, indicating our audience was deeply interested in the content.
