The Mississippi River is known for its twists and turns. The curve of the crescent in New Orleans begat one of our nicknames and the amusing fact that you drive due west across the Crescent City Connection bridge to reach the east bank of the river. So, it is perfectly fitting that NOLA’s all-female motorcycle club, the Caramel Curves, serve as the hosts of a new travel show on IGTV called “Unexpected Tour Guides.”
IGTV, for those who aren’t addicted to social media, is the online television platform by Instagram that launched in June 2018. It is a new way to share scripted video with influencers and audiences world-wide.
New Orleans Tourism Marketing Corporation (NOTMC), which worked to create the show, was strategic in choosing IGTV for its tourism series.
“Innovation is how this all started,” said Mark Romig, president and CEO of NOTMC. “We wanted to spread our message using a new channel found within the Instagram medium, and a lot of potential visitors are on social media. We knew we could reach out to ‘culture seekers’ who have the proclivity to travel using this specific channel.”
360i, the digital marketing agency that partnered with NOTMC to produce the show, is excited about the possibilities of using IGTV.
“We’re psyched about this platform,” said 360i Creative Director Andrew Hunter, who assisted in producing the series. “Any opportunity to put great, longer-form storytelling directly into the hands (and pockets) of fans is a good one. The possibilities are endless. The only thing stopping someone from winning an Emmy for an IGTV series is the Television Academy rulebook."
“Unexpected Tour Guides” is a really impressive series. It’s made of three episodes of less than five minutes each, and each episode features a different member of the Caramel Curves serving as a tour guide to a different social media influencer. The influencers hop on the back of the Caramel Curves’ motorcycles and are taken to NOLA locations beyond the French Quarter, providing the influencers and the show’s viewers a more authentic New Orleans than is often portrayed in the media.
“We have had a renewed desire to showcase and introduce to potential visitors as well as our own citizens those lesser known but critically important cultural entities of our city, especially those belonging to the diverse community,” Romig explained. “We have also recently highlighted the 200-year history of the Northside Skull and Bones Gang.”
The Caramel Curves are a powerful group of NOLA women and their personalities and pink smoke from their motorcycles are a wonderful fit for the series.
“Working with the ladies of the Caramel Curves has been an extreme pleasure and an inspiring process,” said Romig.
Budget depending, there are plans for a new series with new tour guides to premiere in Fall 2019, but don’t be surprised if the Caramel Curves come back.
“I don’t think this is the last you’ll hear from the Curves,” said Hunter. “Their star power is undeniable."
Watch the trailer for “Unexpected Tour Guides” below or on YouTube and stream the series on IGTV @VisitNewOrleans.
