The Department of Tourism will also continue its presence on the Internet, with winter banner ads running on chicagotribune.com, jsonline.com, startribune.com and travelinformation.com. The Department will also continue its highly successful e-mail newsletter program, and will run an online promotion with startribune.com, as well as promotions in other key markets. The Department’s Web site will update its design and content to promote winter and will feature a snow conditions report.

Public relations activities will include distribution of seasonal media kits, media familiarization tours and story pitches, Web site updates, snow conditions media reports and interviews on radio and television. The Department will also have a display booth at major sport and travel shows throughout the Midwest.

The Department already invited 56,000 customers to Wisconsin for the upcoming winter via direct mail. The Department sent customers who had requested the Winter Event and Recreation Guide during the past two years a personalized letter of invitation from Governor McCallum, the 2001/2002 Winter Event and Recreation Guide and the 2001 Fall Sampler. The mailing included a reply postcard that offered customers the opportunity to "subscribe" to future mailings of these guides as well. In addition, customers were invited to submit their e-mail address for future Department e-newsletters. When a similar program was implemented last winter, 98% of the recipients preferred receiving the guide without having to order it. This direct marketing initiative has proven to be a successful strategy to provide travelers with up-to-date information quickly and conveniently.

The Department’s popular fall color report is now being updated online by fall color reporters. The information is available on travelwisconsin.com and to call center operators almost immediately upon being submitted.

As in the past, the Department has enlisted the help of fall color reporters across the state to compile the fall color report, but instead of them calling, e-mailing or faxing their information once a week, they are now updating their fall color information online via the Department’s Extranet at anytime.

The information is posted on travelwisconsin.com and on the call center application, as soon as it is approved by Department staff. No longer does the information have to be collected and put into a document before it is available to the customers visiting travelwisconsin.com and calling 1-800-432-TRIP. The department is also e-mailing weekly fall color updates to customers subscribing to this service as well as to media.

Department of Tourism Secretary Moose Speros, Governor’s Council on Tourism Chair Bill Otto and leaders of many convention and visitors bureaus gathered recently in Door County to discuss how the tourism industry is being impacted by current events and economic conditions.

"Certainly Wisconsin’s tourism businesses, along with many others, are facing challenges. However, we have a strong product and loyal customers that will help us survive the setbacks," Otto said.

Secretary Speros says the Department of Tourism is not altering its marketing plans at this time. The fall campaign is currently running in Wisconsin, Northern Illinois and the Minneapolis area.

"Our fall promotional message encourages people to get away and enjoy our beautiful fall color," Speros said. "Perhaps there is no better time for families and friends to do that."

Travelers spent nearly $10 billion in Wisconsin in 2000. Most visitors come from Northern Illinois, Minneapolis/St. Paul, and within Wisconsin. Approximately $7 billion is spent on leisure travel and $3 billion on business and meetings and convention travel.

The 2001-2003 state budget bill was signed by Governor Scott McCallum on August 30, 2001. The bill is a great victory for the tourism industry and families alike as it contains a provision mandating that school districts begin classes after September 1 beginning with the 2002-03 school year. Districts will be able to begin prior to September 1 only if they make a request to the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) to do so based upon extraordinary circumstances. DPI is drafting Administrative Rules to define extraordinary circumstances and the Department of Tourism hopes to participate in the rule-making process.

In accordance with all state agencies, the Department of Tourism will experience a 5% budget reduction. The Department’s total promotional budget for 2001-03 is $11,062,600.

Our consumer show program has kicked off fiscal year 2001-02 with tourism booths at the Wisconsin State Fair, EAA AirVenture Fly-In, and Ducks Unlimited. Future shows include Chicago, St. Louis, Indianapolis, Milwaukee and Minneapolis sport shows and Tinley Park Octoberfest in Chicago. New this year is a partnership with the Golf Course Owners of Wisconsin to provide state publications at the Milwaukee Golf Show, the Chicago Golf Show and the Minneapolis Golf Show.

The Department has just released the Wave Four study on Advertising Awareness and Competitive Analysis. It is the fourth in a research series that focuses on tracking travel advertising awareness and vacation activities among people in the Twin Cities and Chicago areas.

The focus groups were conducted in the state’s target market areas of Chicago, Minneapolis and Wisconsin. For a copy of any of these reports or for other research questions, contact David Scheler at dscheler@tourism.state.wi.us or 608/261-8187.

The Wisconsin Department of Tourism’s "Stay Just a Little Bit Longer" advertising campaign recently received national recognition at the 23rd Annual Telly Awards. The Department’s TV ad campaign won for outstanding creative achievement in the tourism and resort cable commercial category. The Telly Awards are a respected national competition recognizing a high standard of excellence in both broadcast and non-broadcast categories of TV production. Previous years’ winners in the TV commercial competition included 7-UP, Adidas, Chevrolet, and Miller Brewing Company.

This year’s State Fair tourism booth was a tremendous success. Over 35,000 state publications and many local publications were handed out in the Products Pavilion to State Fair visitors. Many tourism organizations helped the Department staff the booth including convention and visitor bureaus from Greater Milwaukee, Kenosha, Racine, Green Bay, Fox Cities, Wausau and Oshkosh; Brookfield/Algoma/Fremont, Waupaca, Ashland/Bayfield, and Waupaca Chambers of Commerce; the East Troy Electric Railroad; Sheboygan, Minocqua/Oneida, Vilas, Columbia, and Jefferson counties, and the 21 Corridor Group. A great big thank you to all of the participants for their key role in making this event such a success. The Department plans participation in this event annually.

The Department of Tourism and its Extranet partners have been online a lot recently, busily inputting spring and summer events and activities into the Department’s database in time for the printing of the next Spring/Summer Event & Recreation Guide. This is the second publication to have all its data pulled from the Department’s new database.

The updated information also appears on the Department’s Web site and the call center application so it is available to customers using travelwisconsin.com and calling 800/432-TRIP.

Thanks to all the Extranet partners that worked on getting their destination’s information into our database.

The Department of Tourism extends thanks to Jim VanMatre as he steps down from the Governor’s Council on Tourism after 15 years of service. Jim, one of two original Council members, also chaired the Joint Effort Marketing Committee. His insight into tourism development and marketing will be missed as we wish him all the best for a prosperous future.

Dates for the 2002 Wisconsin Governor’s Conference on Tourism are March 10-12 at the La Crosse Center in La Crosse. If you would like to get a jump on making accommodation reservations for next year’s conference, room blocks are available at the following hotels:

    $99.00/$109.00 double

    (800)333-3333 Radisson Worldwide Reservations

    (608)784-6680 Radisson La Crosse Reservations

    $79.00 Dbl/Dbl

    $109.00 King Suites

    (608)782-1000

    $52.00 Flat Rate

    (608)783-1000

    $99 single/$109 double

    (608)784-4444

    $77.00 Flat Rate

    (608)781-7000

Please note that a few of the hotels may have already filled their room blocks. For a listing of other accommodations available in the La Crosse area, please call the La Crosse Area CVB at 800/658-9424.

The Department’s new Ag-Tourism brochure is being coupled with an all-new edition of Wisconsin’s Rustic Roads to cross-sell rural Wisconsin.

The new Ag-Tourism brochure, Backroad’s Bounty, is a colorful compendium of Wisconsin agricultural products and resources. The 5-1/2" x 8-1/2" brochure folds-out in eight stunning panels to 22" x 17". The Department has printed 50,000 copies.

The brochure takes a general approach and includes information on brewery & winery tours, cheese factories, farm vacations and farm zoos, horseback riding, fish ponds, rustic roads, Wisconsin fruits, exotic agriculture, state and county fairs, farmer’s markets, roadside stands and Christmas tree farms. Each general topic is referenced to a publication or Web site for specific information, businesses and vendors.

The second edition of Wisconsin’s Rustic Roads rolled off the presses in June. The updated version includes seven new roads and 15 new images. Each of Wisconsin’s 91 rustic roads is described and mapped in the new edition. The Departments of Tourism and Transportation partnered to print 150,000 copies of this popular rural travel guide.

Both Rustic Roads and Backroad’s Bounty will be auto-coded so that when a customer orders one, they’ll automatically receive the other. Both publications are also available in all Wisconsin Travel Information Centers (WTICs).

Deb Archer’s early experiences traveling the country with her family planted the seed for her love of travel. By the time she was ready to leave her home in northern Illinois for Michigan State University, her desire to pursue a career in tourism had been cemented. After receiving a degree in hotel, restaurant and institutional management, Deb has worked in hotel sales and led Convention and Visitors Bureaus in Park City, Utah, Greater Kansas City and now, Madison.

As president of the Greater Madison CVB, Deb works diligently to raise awareness that tourism is vital to the regional economy.

As a member of the Governor’s Council, she is keenly aware of the need to also regularly remind Wisconsin’s elected officials of the value of tourism.

"Tourism needs to be at the top of the list for the state’s economic development plan," she said.

Deb also sees building a statewide brand for Wisconsin as key to the future of tourism.

"If we do a good job, we’ll come up with a message that distinguishes us in the consumer’s mind and completely differentiates us from other states," she said.

Other efforts she would like to concentrate on as a Council member include promoting urban destinations for their cultural arts and sporting events, particularly in the off season; continuing to increase Wisconsin’s share of the convention market; and reaching out to individual tourism business owners to incorporate their concerns and ideas in the Council’s work.

Deb has been on the Governor’s Council on Tourism since June, 2000. She is also the current chair of the Council’s Meetings and Conventions Committee.

The Wisconsin Travel Information Center (WTIC) in Superior has temporarily relocated to The Superior & Douglas County Visitor’s Center, adjacent to the Fairlawn Mansion to accommodate construction on Hwy 53. The Superior WTIC will return to its permanent location at State Rest Area 23 on Hwy 53 and 2 when highway access is re-opened in November. Phone calls to the travel information center will automatically be forwarded to the temporary location.

Lisa Marshall joined the Department of Tourism on August 1 as the Public Relations Manager. Her primary projects are managing the Department’s public relations program, coordinating the public relations agency of record, and working directly with the media. Prior to her position with the Department, Lisa was Community Relations & Event Coordinator for Borders Books & Music at both Chicago and Madison locations.

John Kuehl joins the Department of Tourism on September 24 as the Public Relations Assistant. His assignments include the Department’s Weekly Radio Network broadcast, maintaining the Department’s media analysis files, providing updates to the Department’s Web site and providing public relations support. John is a recent graduate of the University of Wisconsin and has recently completed an internship with the Alliant Energy Expo Center.

Kung Chao joined the Department earlier this summer as Database Administrator. Kung is responsible for maintaining, supporting and developing the Department’s databases and processes. Kung has spent much of his career out West, but recently returned to the city of his alma mater, UW-Madison.

Our two Wisconsin Film Office staff – Mary Idso and Scott Thom – are officially part of the Department of Tourism’s Marketing Bureau. "We are delighted to integrate the Film Office programs under the marketing bureau and hope we can continue to bring film and commercial productions into the state," Marketing Director Sarah Klavas said.