Discovering the World’s Bluest Water: a Digital PR story that shook the travel press

Where in the world is the bluest water? This isn’t just a casual question you might ask while planning your summer vacation; it’s a strategic enquiry that drove one of our most successful digital marketing campaigns of this year to date. This campaign was uniquely designed to bridge the gap in links for our client’s country-specific luxury villas pages and propel them ahead of their competitors in the travel industry.

The travel media sector is notoriously saturated with stories, especially when it comes to catching the eyes of readers and journalists in the lead up to peak summer bookings. Common tactics like showcasing the “most Instagrammed” beaches or the latest viral TikTok location are all too familiar. In a sea of repetitive content, our challenge was to splash out on something different, something that would not only catch the eye but also sustain engagement and provoke a reaction.

Our creative twist- the quest for the truest blue

Our campaign’s anchor and key defining feature was the innovative idea of locating the bluest water in the world. This was measured against the shade YInMn Blue, the vibrant colour discovered in 2016, which is now known as the bluest of blues. This unique angle served not only to captivate our audience but also to distinguish our approach from typical travel content in a way that made journalists say, ‘I need to cover this!’.

The journey began with the creation of a comprehensive list of the world’s most renowned beaches, including beaches that were extremely close to our client’s villas. Using unedited Google Maps images of these locations to ensure we got as close to the truest shade of the sea (without having to physically dip our toes in waters across the world), we then conducted a thorough colour analysis. Each beach’s water was compared against YInMn Blue using a colour dropper tool to determine its exact RGB code and how close they were to the bluest blue. The result? A scientifically backed list of locations where you can find the most unfiltered blue waters, turning a simple holiday question into a visual spectacle.

Pitching the blue

Our pitches varied by region but maintained a core focus on the unique appeal of our findings and the methodology used to uncover them. For UK lifestyle press, we highlighted how affordably you can travel to these locations using headlines like “This Cheap Europe Destination Has The Bluest Sea In The World, According To Colour Theory.” Meanwhile, for regional publications in countries boasting the bluest waters, our pitches emphasised local pride, such as “Greece Has Bluest Beaches In The World, According To Colour Theory”, and noting how they beat the likes of Bora Bora and the Maldives- notorious social media hotspots for their water shades- in the rankings.

The response was overwhelming. From USA Today to The Express and Marie Claire Greece, the campaign garnered 171 pieces of coverage, including 54 links with 38 directly enhancing the visibility of our ‘Greece’ category page. Below are some highlights and praise from the industry.

Thrillist, a global travel publication, covered the worldwide ranking for its readers:

UK publication Lad Bible hit the budget-conscious traveller with their headline:

For those staying closer to home this summer, TimeOut pulled the bluest UK beaches from the list:

As you can see from the campaign’s Coveragebook report, the campaign has now gained millions of views and thousands of engagements across all platforms, raising the profile of our client all over the world:

By focusing on a unique and engaging angle, we delivered content that not only stood out to journalists, but set a new benchmark in creative concepts for our travel clients, achieving substantial link-building success that drove exceptional performance in terms of SEO. We’ve seen a great improvement in the daily visibility for the Greece landing page since ToY and we are at an all-time high for core high volume Greece keywords:

Who knew hex codes could come in so handy?

If you want our Digital PR team to work their creative magic on your next brand campaign, get in touch here.