TOURISM TODAY
September/October 1998
Tourism Marketing & Customer Service 101
The Wisconsin Department of Tourism is pleased to provide a series of tourism marketing and customer service educational courses designed to provide basic information on marketing and operational aspects of a tourism business. The following topics are highlighted in the series:
- Getting To Know Your Customers Better – A Guide To Market Research
- Developing Your Advertising Plan
- Creating And Buying Advertising – How To Put Your Advertising Plan Into Action
- A Guide To Public Relations
- Enhance Your Competitive Edge Through Customer Service
These courses are available free of charge to all Wisconsin businesses, chambers of commerce, CVBs, statewide tourism associations and educational institutions.
The courses are available in text and PowerPoint presentation format via e-mail or in publication format. Copies can be obtained and training is available through your consultant. Courses will also be available on the Department’s Web site and by contacting the Department at 608/266-6792.
The University of Wisconsin Center for Community Economic Development will also have the courses available. Contact Bill Ryan at the UW Extension Center at 608/263-4994.
The series is authored by the Wisconsin Department of Tourism and is designed for the exclusive use of Wisconsin’s business community. Sale or monetary charges for course instruction outside of contributions for educational facility cost reimbursement is strictly prohibited.
Winner right on track
The Department recently challenged the geography knowledge of Amtrak train passengers as well as Southeastern Wisconsin and Northern Illinois residents in the Wisconsin Getaway Express Contest. The contest was a component of the Department’s summer advertisement on Amtrak’s Hiawatha train that travels daily between Milwaukee and Chicago. Contest participants submitted their best guesses to identify the county pictured on the train cars.
The contest’s grand prize winner was Kathryn Barbasiewicz of Milwaukee who correctly guessed Bayfield County as the photo location depicting a panorama of trees reflected on glasslike water with the message "The Wisconsin Getaway Express. With Stops in Peace, Quiet and Euphoria." A third car carried an advertisement for the Milwaukee Brewers who partnered with the Department on the special train promotion.
The grand prize was a three-day trip for two to the Lower Eau Claire Lakes area in southeastern Bayfield County.
In addition to the contest, Wisconsin Travel Information Center managers periodically rode the train route to distribute Wisconsin travel literature and encourage riders to participate in the contest. Train conductors also read Wisconsin travel messages over the train’s sound system.
The decorated train cars made daily stops between Milwaukee and Chicago through August 31. It was the first time a train had been "wrapped" with a special design in the Midwest. For updates on fall and winter promotions, see page 4.
Briefly...
Farewell Donney Maroney, Special Projects Assistant to the Deputy Secretary, has resigned to become the Multicultural Student Advisor for Black and Hispanic students at UW-Platteville and pursue her Masters in Public Administration. Donney was a great asset to the Department in many areas including the Office of Customer Service and the Marketing Bureau.
New faces, different places
While you are out and about, take a moment to stop by the WTICs to welcome three new managers to the tourism team.
Tammy Rady was named manager of the Superior WTIC in March. Tammy and her family have relocated to Superior from Hurley where Tammy had been working in the Hurley WTIC since 1993.
Patrick Reinsma joined the Department in March as the manager of the Grant County WTIC in Keiler. Patrick has a B.A. in communications from UW-Milwuakee and has recently worked with the DNR as a fisheries and recycling specialist.
Cheryl Malone-Maloney was named the first manager of the new Marinette WITC in May. A Marinette resident most of her life, Cheryl has returned to the area after earning a B.A. in journalism at UW-Madison.
LOOMING deadlines
Don’t miss these deadlines coming soon to a mailbox near you. Survey forms for the new 1999 Spring /Summer Event & Recreation Guide as well as the new 1999-2000 Wisconsin Adventure Vacation Guide went out on August 15 with a return deadline of September 15. Forms were mailed to everyone who had an event or a facility listed in the previous edition of either of those publications. Forms were also sent to every chamber and CVB on our mailing list. Please don’t forget them, misplace them, feed them to the dog, or figure Bob’s going to do them for you. Do it on time – it’s a good thing.
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America’s B&B-land The Wisconsin Bed & Breakfast Association has recently surpassed California’s B&B association for number of registered members. Wisconsin’s membership list tops 300, compared to California’s registered list of 276 – making the WBBA the largest such statewide organization in the country.
If you have dreams of keeping an inn (Glamour magazine’s "cool job of the month" for September), you can register for "The Aspiring Innkeeper Seminar" October 25 in Lake Mills. Call the WBBA office in Merrill at 715/536-2507 for information. And for your free guidebook to all of Wisconsin’s B&Bs, call the Department of Tourism at 800/432-8747.
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Hues to you The Department of Tourism will once again offer fall color reports to the media and consumers starting September 10.
The report is available on the Department’s Web site (tourism.state.wi.us) in the "Seasonal Travel News" and "What’s New" sections. It is also available to consumers by calling the state’s toll-free number, 800/432-8747. It is also distributed to the media.
A special thanks to all fall color spotters out there who make this report a success. To submit local color updates for the reports, please contact Sharon Boeldt at Laughlin/Constable at 414/272-2400. And remember, the winter snow report is just around the corner.
Co-op advertising offers big discounts
The 1999 Co-op Advertising Opportunities Program brochure is now available.
As many of you know, the goal of this publication is to help coordinate the advertising messages of the Department with other tourism industry advertisers. By combining our advertising efforts, we all increase our purchasing power, resulting in increased exposure for our promotional messages as well as greater frequency and volume discounts.
The 1999 co-op advertising publication features advertising opportunities in several media outlets targeted at individual leisure travelers. You’ll find newspapers in Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin; national, regional and local magazines; local area traffic report radio and direct mail options.
The publication also spells out ongoing efforts to get our promotional messages in front of people who coordinate groups in the motorcoach and meetings/convention markets.
To get your copy of the Department’s 1999 Co-op Advertising Opportunities brochure contact your consultant or call Brian Gross at 608/266-6755. Diane Liebe with Laughlin/Constable is available to answer any questions about participating in the co-op program at 414/270-7109.
Making a national impression
The Department’s summer transit advertising and the state’s Sesquicentennial movie trailer took top honors in two categories at the National Council of State Tourism Directors’ 1998 Marketing, Promotion and Creativity Awards.
The Department’s summer transit advertising won the national competition’s Special Promotion-Outdoor/Poster award and the state’s Sesquicentennial trailer, which was produced in conjunction with the Wisconsin Sesquicentennial Commission, took the Special Promotion – Miscellaneous award. The awards were announced in July at the Educational Seminar for Tourism Organizations (ESTO) in Palm Springs, California.
The summer transit advertising, featured four ads that highlighted Wisconsin vacations on Chicago bus sides and train stations. The judges said the ads’ "humorous and catchy headlines and eye-catching photos were so compelling that they wanted to call Wisconsin right away."
The Special Promotion-Miscellaneous award was presented to the Department for the state’s Sesquicentennial trailer, a 60-second feature that ran at Marcus theaters in Wisconsin, Illinois and Upper Michigan to recognize Wisconsin’s Sesquicentennial. "Emotional and evocative, this absolutely stunning video made the hair on the back of one of our judge’s neck stand on end," the judges wrote. "It nailed all its objectives and even someone not living in this state would feel the pride and accomplishment created by it. A powerful message is made without a single word being spoken. This is a great video and a great tribute to a great state."
Marketing plan updated
The plan is nothing, planning is everything. - President Dwight D. Eisenhower
Like any good marketing organization, or President for that matter, we’ve recently refined and modified our three-year marketing plan. The Governor’s Council on Tourism and Department staff have been busy evaluating last year’s plan and making changes and enhancements for this fiscal year. Building on our brand image approach, we are continuing our advertising and public relations efforts to promote Wisconsin as a four-season tourism destination. This year, we will be putting more emphasis on winter and promoting spring as a separate season while continuing our strong summer and fall marketing campaigns. Additionally, we will be expanding our niche marketing efforts, particularly in the area of meetings and conventions. The updated marketing plan can be obtained from your consultant.
Travel Guide, Hispanic piece top trio of new travel publications
A trio of new travel guides now enhance the printed publications available to Wisconsin travelers.
The Wisconsin Travel Guide is a brand-new publication in the 1998-99 line-up. This 96-page, full-color piece promotes more than four hundred Wisconsin attractions. The guide arranges attraction information alphabetically by city within six regions: Great Lakes, Mississippi River, Northwoods, Hometown Central, Southern Wonders and City Life. Each region is mapped, and each attraction is indexed. The Wisconsin Travel Guide employs a bold, colorful design to command the traveler’s attention. A total of 250,000 copies have been printed.
Viva Wisconsin! is the Department’s second all-new publication for 1998-99. This colorful 24-page piece is part of a larger marketing effort aimed at the more than one million Hispanic residents of the greater Chicago area. Printed in Spanish and English, Viva Wisconsin! promotes the recreational attractions of nine of Wisconsin’s top destinations. The publication’s design couples large two-page photos with alluring editorial copy to appeal to this important market. 75,000 copies have been printed.
The 1998-99 Fall/Winter Event & Recreation Guide was also delivered in mid-August. In addition to a seasonal performing arts schedule, the guide includes more than 750 monthly events as well as information about 31 downhill skiing facilities, 261 cross-country skiing facilities, contacts for snowmobile trails and conditions in each of Wisconsin’s 72 counties; and 74 sleighride operators. 135,000 copies of this 96-page, full-color publication were printed.
Individual copies of each of these new publications are available by calling 800/432-8747.
On the Road Again
Gov. Thompson and Secretary Speros were on hand to kick off the Tourism Youth Apprenticeship Program at Athens High School during Moving State Government Aug. 23-26 in Marathon County.
Each year, Gov. Thompson leads a team of state government officials and agency heads to a different area of the state in an effort to learn more from that area and strengthen the successful partnerships between communities and the state.
During the move, Sec. Speros visited the Marathon Co. Agricultural Heritage Tour, the Andrew Warren Historic District, the Hsu Ginseng Farm and the Wausau Kayak Canoe Corporation. He also attended a listening session in Wausau and a breakfast with the Merrill Chamber of Commerce.
"Moving state government is a great chance for us to meet with the industry and thank them for their support," Sec. Speros said.
Winning ways to lure tourists
The Department of Tourism and many Wisconsin destinations are promoting Wisconsin’s fall and winter tourism seasons through unique giveaways and contests.
This August, the Department invited summer travelers to come back to the state to sample another season with its Winter Getaway Promotion. Visitors to the 12 Wisconsin Travel Information Centers were invited to enter a sweepstakes with a chance of winning a winter vacation package to one of 12 Wisconsin destinations. The Department will be sending an invitation, winter event/recreation guide and a lodging guide to all contest entrants.
Internet users and Minneapolis radio listeners are getting a chance to check out Wisconsin’s fall season through two contests sponsored by the Department. The Department’s Walk, Write, Win Fall Contest gives tourists a chance to win a fall trip by submitting a description of their favorite fall walk through the Department’s and the Chicago Tribune’s Web site.
Minneapolis radio listeners will also have a chance to win a Wisconsin fall getaway and shop for groceries while they enter. The Department, Chancellor Media (owner of three Minneapolis radio stations), Minneapolis Area Cub Foods and two Wisconsin destinations teamed up to offer two Wisconsin fall vacation packages. Participating Cub Food Stores will also have the Department’s Fall Samplers available to its customers.
