D.C.’s on a power trip. Or at least, it would like its visitors to be on one.

The city unleashed its latest marketing campaign Wednesday, a $2 million branding effort with the theme, “Create Your Own Power Trip.”

“The competition for tourism dollars is just relentless right now,” said Dan Mesches, chairman of Destination DC, formerly the D.C. Convention & Tourism Corporation. D.C. has been outspent by major cities such as New York and Orlando, Fla., in tourism dollars, particularly in anticipation of a slowing economy, Mesches said at a media event at the Shakespeare Theater Wednesday.

The new campaign is the result of more than a year’s worth of research that showed people most associated D.C. with the word “power.” They also thought of it as inspiring, beautiful, a place for learning, and a place to make and experience history.

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The campaign will include print, online and television media spots with slogans such as “Power Play” and “Flower Power,” referencing popular draws such as a Capitals game or the Cherry Blossom Festival. Mayor Adrian Fenty is featured in one ad running in Rock Creek Park.

Tourism is a $5.24 billion industry for D.C.

At the media event, Fenty said the city hopes to capture not just family visitors, but other groups such as urban explorers on

weekend getaways.

The newly designed Washington.org also has a spot where locals can share insider tips on where to go in the city.

For a city-marketing campaign to be successful, it should be evocative of a place’s distinguishing characteristic and not try to erase the past, said Mickey Rowley, Pennsylvania’s deputy secretary for tourism. A city also shouldn’t rebrand itself too frequently. Pennsylvania actually at one point tried to pass a law that state slogans not change with each political administration, he said.

It also helps when a slogan is flexible and can be adapted to many types of interests, according to Peggy Bendel, senior vice president of Development Counsellors International, who helped develop the “I Love New York” campaign. Bendel said that approach has served neighboring Virginia well, as its “Virginia Is For Lovers” slogan can be appropriated to mean lovers of everything from the history to the outdoors.

melissa.frederick@dcexaminer.com