Visit Independence outlines new brand, marketing push and visitor engagement plans

Visit Independence, the city’s newly formed convention and visitors bureau, presented a six-month update Monday that highlighted a new brand, a marketing calendar tied to regional events and early staffing moves. Executive leadership said the organization launched its Visit Independence brand in 2025 and has begun digital marketing and partner outreach to increase overnight and day-trip visitation.

The presentation detailed what the bureau called foundational work: a brand developed with Reactor Design of Kansas City, a bespoke script for the word “Independence” and a three-word brand voice — “storied, steadfast, neighborly” — intended to shape marketing and collateral. The director said a new website is scheduled to go live by May 1 and the bureau contracted a specialist for a tourism sales database and website management.

Councilors were told Visit Independence has produced a 33,000‑copy visitor guide (20,000 will be distributed in Kansas City hotels and along I‑70; 5,000 will go to state welcome centers). The bureau reported hotel performance for January–November: an average daily rate around $95 and year‑to‑date occupancy of about 55.8%, and said occupancy had grown 6.8% compared with 2024 in its comp set.

Staffing and partnerships were also a focus. The director introduced a recently hired director of marketing and communications, May Mayla Yang, and said the bureau hosted 20 international travel suppliers on familiarization visits, visited trade conferences and secured a $10,000 grant from the Missouri State Tourism Office for the website.

The bureau outlined product and technology projects intended to increase visitor engagement. Historic trails — the Truman Trail, an African American walking trail, the Civil War Trail and the Mormon Trail — will be digitized on a platform referenced in the presentation as Banwango, with visitor check‑ins that earn points and rewards. The bureau said it will also launch a partner extranet so local businesses can add listings, upload photos and manage their presence.

Councilors asked detailed branding and technical questions about icons, color palette and font (the presenter described a hand‑drawn Independence script and explained primary and secondary color uses). A councilor asked for plain language about geofencing; the presenter described it as a digital perimeter that delivers ads to devices within a defined area and emphasized it requires user consent via apps or websites.

The presentation closed with staff offering to meet individually with council members and a note that the parks master plan item on the agenda was postponed to Feb. 9 because out‑of‑town presenters could not travel.