Visit Pensacola Event Marketing Grant Program Now Accepting Applications for Events Taking Place Oct. 1, 2024 – Sept. 30, 2025
Guidelines, Important Dates, and Application Information Available
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contacts:
Nicole Stacey, Visit Pensacola | nstacey@visitpensacola.com
Pensacola, Fla. – To further Visit Pensacola’s mission of developing tourism in Escambia County, Visit Pensacola is now accepting applications for its event marketing grant program occurring between Oct. 1, 2024 – Sept. 30, 2025. New this year, the program has been restructured to better support the attraction of overnight and out-of-town visitors to selected events and experiences.
Most notable changes to the program include the assistance of Visit Pensacola and its marketing agency of record for out-of-market marketing efforts. For awarded grants, 25% is available to use on operations and 75% of the funding will go to marketing outside of the destination.
Visit Pensacola will work closely with each event team to develop a custom marketing plan that extends the event’s local promotions effort. Creative messaging and audience targeting will be custom to the needs of each event. This allows events to leverage Visit Pensacola’s resources for efficient asset development and media buys, as well as the tools to measure and document success.
Other revisions to the program this year include the following:
Grants will now be awarded either a pass or fail, and the recipients will receive 100% of their seeking amount, with the recipient needing to get a score of 70 or higher to receive a pass.
The grant request amount was increased to $50,000.
The Visit Pensacola budget will be set at $300,000 total to be awarded (this depends on TDT funding each year).
A solidified post-report is required and must be turned in.
The grant deadline is June 6, at 12 p.m. and applications must be submitted electronically. Grant workshops will be hosted at the below dates and times in the Bowden Building located at 120 Church Street. All grant applicants are required to attend one of the workshops.
The Visit Pensacola Grant Committee will meet to review and score applications June 21 from 9-11 a.m. at the UWF Historic Trust Bowden Building, 1st Floor. Attendance is mandatory to attend to present to the committee. Following, the Visit Pensacola Board of Directors will vote to approve grants on June 26 at the monthly board meeting.
Workshop Dates
- April 15, 11 a.m. – 12 p.m.
- April 19, 8 – 9 a.m. and 12 – 1 p.m.
- April 26, 1 – 2 p.m.
- April 29, 11 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Grant Resources
Developed in 2015, the Visit Pensacola grant program was established to aid organizations that coordinate events or visitor experiences with a demonstrated history of visitor impact or significant potential to draw visitors to the area. The Visit Pensacola event grant program’s main purpose is to attract visitors overnight while engaging the local community with more experiences. To date, the program has awarded over $1.6 million to numerous events and organizations within Escambia County. For anyone seeking funds less than $5,000 mini grants are available year-round. For more information on grant guidelines, scoring and the application process, please contact Nicole Stacey at nstacey@visitpensacola.com. Visit Pensacola also provides free marketing support through the calendar of events on its website. Events in Escambia County are encouraged to upload information to visitpensacola.com/events/submit-your-event/. To learn more about marketing opportunities with Visit Pensacola, visit www.visitpensacola.org.
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About Visit Pensacola
Visit Pensacola is the destination organization for Escambia County which includes Pensacola, Pensacola Beach, and Perdido Key. With over 464 years of rich history and nearly 40 miles of sugar-white sand beaches bordered by the emerald-green waters of the Gulf of Mexico, visitors from all over the world are lured to our pristine shores every year. Visit Pensacola supports the community vision of tourism by serving as the central body responsible for building tourism as an economic engine for our community through leadership, connection, collaboration, and communication.