An occasional e-newsletter from the Governor's Council on Tourism and the Wisconsin Department of Tourism
January 2, 2004
In this Issue:
- Travel Guide Going "E"
- Committee Seeking "I Got My Start In Tourism" Candidates
- Oh, The Humanities!
- Have You Heard?
The
Department's campaign to convert all newsletters and travel publications
to an e-format will continue this year as the 2004-'05 Official Wisconsin
Travel Guide goes electronic. Starting in March, if you click the Travel
Guide icon on the travelwisconsin.com home page, you'll see on the screen
exactly what you'd see if you held a hard copy in your hand.
Readers will be able to click to any of the Guide's 80 full color pages and the Guide will have a search feature so those who know exactly what they want can get there in a hurry.
Adding the Guide to our website costs about $22,000
but that entire amount will be offset by printing at least 50,000 fewer
hard copy Guides this year. As internet traffic has gone up, calls to
the Department's toll free line have declined so fewer printed copies
are required.
Committee Seeking "I Got My Start In
Tourism" Candidates
One main goal of the Professional Development Committee of the Governor's Council on Tourism is to inform those unfamiliar with our industry of the advantages of a strong travel/hospitality/recreation economy in our state. Many of the industry's benefits are economic (more state and local taxes generated, more jobs provided, more value created, more economic growth and stability occurring, etc.)…but many of tourism's benefits have nothing to do with economic impact.
One thing the industry does very well is groom, inspire and teach entrepreneurship. Entry level tourism workers often work alongside the owner or boss. They watch ideas as they occur and are implemented. They observe risks being taken. They witness mistakes, failure, recovery and learning. They see how problems are solved, customers are treated, markets are identified and how money is earned. These are lessons you can't always learn in school …and you generally won't find this kind of education occurring on a factory floor.
All of you know successful businesspeople who today own or manage large and profitable companies…but who may have learned a lot of what they know about business by internalizing it as they tended a candy store cash register or waited on tables at a supper club or cleaned rental boats or served as tour guides.
We'd like to identify a few of these folks and persuade them to tell their stories. Our preferred candidates will not be working in the tourism industry today, but will own or manage a business in some other sector of the economy. The committee is thinking of an abbreviated media campaign with a few brochures, print ads…maybe a radio or T.V. commercial.
Why? Well, one rap on the tourism industry is that the jobs it provides are all low wage and dead end. Committee members tell of parents reluctant to encourage their children to enter the industry and guidance counselors who steer students any which way but recreation and hospitality. The campaign we're thinking of will point out the opportunities, education, growth and advancement that can and usually does follow from employment in the travel sector.
So, please, ask around. Help us by identifying
a few captains of industry (men and women, of course) who got their start
in our industry and let us know who they might be. We'll take it from
there!
Over the past year the Department of Tourism has made a conscious effort to emphasize the quality and diversity of Wisconsin's cultural opportunities.
The
Department's culture maven, Deputy Secretary Genyne Edwards, has kept
us focused on identifying and promoting facilities, attractions and events
that might offer a new perspective of Wisconsin to prospective travelers.
The job is made easier by virtue of the tremendous investment made in recent years by communities and organizations which have built or renovated museums, galleries and performing arts centers.
Similarly, attractions and events featuring dance, visual arts, theater, heritage and the humanities have multiplied dramatically, making it very easy to find plenty to promote. Our own Joint Effort Marketing grant program reflects the trend, with JEM awards for cultural tourism projects up 17% in 2003.
We hope our choice of direction is one you endorse and while we'll not slight Wisconsin's reputation as a premier outdoor recreation destination, we do want travelers to know we do have an awfully lot more to offer.
Mary
Claire Olson is leaving the Hudson Chamber of Commerce to become Membership
Director at the Minneapolis Chamber. Russ Korpela has accepted
the position of Tourism Director with the Menomonie Chamber of Commerce.
Ramona Cook has left the Cable Chamber of Commerce and Pat Kytola
has left the St. Croix Falls Chamber. Dennis Fay retired from his
position as Attorney for the Department of Tourism.
(Have You Heard? Will be a regular feature of this newsletter, but to make it work we need news of staff changes and personnel developments in your area or organization. E-mail your news to jholperin@travelwisconsin.com. Thanks!)
