The organization responsible for attracting visitors to Orlando, Florida is undergoing big changes, including a new campaign and a makeover of its own.

In December, the Orlando/Orange County Convention & Visitors Bureau – commonly referred to as the Orlando CVB – officially changed its name to Visit Orlando.  According to Visit Orlando president and CEO Gary Sain, the new name better reflects the organizations “commitment to bringing visitors from around the world to Orlando andOrange County. It is simple, concise, user friendly and more hospitable.”

Surprisingly, one of the strongest tourist markets in the country is a little behind the  name-change trend among destination marketing organizations.

Visit Baltimore adopted its short and to the point name in the summer of 2009, following in the foot steps of Visit Charlotte, Visit Tampa Bay, Visit Pittsburgh and Visit Milwaukee.  Other tourism organizations have taken on simple yet snappy titles such as Positively Cleveland, Choose Chicago, Meet Minneapolis, Go to Louisville, and Destination D.C.

Visit Orlando chairman George Aguel explains the shift, saying, “the bottom line is that ‘CVB’ doesn’t have the same meaning as it once did in today’s lexicon.”

One of the first major campaigns for the newly branded Visit Orlando is a “Vacation Makeover” contest.  Tourists are invited to share their vacation horror stories for the chance to win “personalized” vacation do-over in Orlando.  The campaign launched January 3rd and appears to be supported with heavy marketing (if the local advertising is any indication).  Winners of the contest will be expected to share their experiences through social media, including blogs, Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.  The organization attached similar stipulations to last year’s very successful “67 Days of Smiles” campaign/contest.