Strategic Partnerships And Smart Messaging Equals Big Wins for Travel Iowa

The Goal

The original goal for the partnership with Bandwango was to educate potential visitors on all of the great things Iowa has to offer. Jessica O’Riley, Travel Iowa’s Communications Manager, shared, “We did some research a long time ago that showed people don't have a negative impression of Iowa, but they just often don't have one at all.” She added, “We weren’t even on their radar.  We've been working to raise our awareness level so people can at least look and see what we have, and consider Iowa as a vacation destination.” Lora Friest, Travel Iowa’s Tourism Liaison, also shared a secondary goal: “We wanted to get people to travel throughout the state.”

The Solution 

In 2020, Travel Iowa created its first pass, the Iowa State Park Passport, in partnership with the Department of Natural Resources. This check-in challenge was a huge success and helped promote Iowa’s outdoor activities during the pandemic. Because they have access to real-time reporting data, the team quickly saw how popular the pass had become. O’Riley said, “I think we were all stunned by how much it got used.”

After seeing how much traffic that drove to their state parks, Travel Iowa decided to create additional passes over the years, including the Iowa Wine, Beer, and Distillery Passports, the Iowa Scenic Byway Passport, and the Choose Iowa Passport that promotes agricultural businesses throughout the state. 

Like the state park passport that was created in collaboration with the Department of Natural Resources, their other passes have strategically aligned partners. This helps them create strong programs and engage additional partners in promoting them. They’ve even built a dedicated landing page where all of their passes can be found. 

Managed Text Messaging Increased Pass Usage and Sign-Ups

Travel Iowa had built great passes, but in May 2025 they began using Bandwango’s managed text messaging to grow usage even further. Amber Rottinghaus, Travel Iowa’s Content Coordinator, said this has had a positive effect on their campaigns, sharing “The impact has been really amazing.”

She collaborates with the Bandwango team to determine which passes to promote more heavily at certain times of the year, and Bandwango writes and sets up the messages accordingly. “It's been a really easy process,” she said. 

Some messages focus on increasing sign-ups for certain passes, while others aim to get passholders to use their passes more. “We've been really excited by the results that we've seen so far,” said Rottinghaus. “Every time a text message is sent out, we get immediate sign-ups if that is the goal of that text message, or we get immediate check-ins.”

Examples of Engagement Resulting from Text Messaging

• 16.55%-22.07% increase in check-ins for the Iowa Parks Pass immediately after text messages were sent. 
• 556 new sign-ups for the Choose Iowa Passport within two days of sending a text announcing the new program.

Tourism Growth

The Travel Iowa team feels they’re achieving their goal of helping visitors discover all the great things their state has to offer – and the numbers show that people are visiting and spending money in the state. Tourism continues to be a key economic driver for Iowa, and the state has seen consistent growth since their passport program began in 2020.The most recent year-over-year numbers show:

• 5.1% YOY growth in visitor spending
• 4.6% YOY growth in bed tax 
  

They Also Give Out Tourism Marketing Grants to Help Build Their Own Passes 

Travel Iowa has seen tremendous success with their own statewide campaigns, but the team also wants to help local destinations and tourism-related businesses throughout Iowa. While their efforts are focused on initiatives that disperse visitors across the state, they recognize the importance of regional and local tourism efforts as well. That’s where Travel Iowa’s tourism marketing grant comes in. (Some other states also offer versions of this.) 

Friest shared, “It's open to private and public businesses – nonprofits, tourism partners, Chambers, Main Streets – anyone can apply for it. It is for out-of-state marketing, so if someone proposes to develop a Bandwango passport, they need to be marketing it out of state.” If you need help with that part, Bandwango Marketing Services can assist you with putting together an out-of-state marketing plan for your pass. 

Five Tips for Success from Travel Iowa 

‍

Stay Engaged With Your Passholders Through Text Messaging

Rottinghaus shared why this is critical to their success. “I think it's really important, because it is easy to save a pass on your phone, but it's also very easy to just forget about it after the fact. With text messages, it's so easy to remind people about their pass. 

She also added a tip on when to send texts. “Friday afternoons are really effective – before people are making their weekend plans.”

‍

Look For Strong Partnerships With Aligned Goals

With a small staff tasked with promoting the entire state, partnerships with groups such as Iowa Byways, Choose Iowa, Department of Natural Resources, and the Iowa Wine, Beer, and Spirits Promotion Board have been an important part of the success Travel Iowa has seen. 

‍

Tap Into Trends

Take a look at things that are trending in your area. For example, an abundance of agri-tourism related businesses in the state made the Choose Iowa partnership and passport a perfect addition to their portfolio of experiences. 

‍

Adjust Points to Help Drive Traffic to Lesser-Known Places

There are several ways to customize a pass, and on check-in challenges, you can assign different point values for each location. Travel Iowa has used this strategy on their Iowa State Parks Passport, and it’s helped encourage people to visit all of the parks – not just the flagship ones that most people are aware of. 

‍

Be Open to Change 

Friest shared. “It’s important to recognize what works and what doesn’t work, and then be able to pivot.” She also added, “Don’t be afraid to try new things.” Sometimes those new things come in the form of new partnerships, but that could also include new reengagement efforts such as text messaging. 

‍