WHAT’S NEW
To begin, this correspondence is new. You’ll be seeing this business journal pop up in your in-box about six times a year, with a smattering of e-announcements in between, as necessary, to address breaking news. We’ll provide concise coverage of tourism initiatives you should know about, we’ll conduct quick surveys to get the industry pulse on particular topics, and we’ll always finish with a look ahead at gatherings, deadlines and legislation that matter to the tourism industry. Many thanks for blocking out your next few minutes to read the latest business news from the Wisconsin Department of Tourism.
‘08 Budget Cut of $500,000 A challenging budget cycle meant cuts for everyone. While Tourism came away with the lowest cut of all the state agencies, it didn’t make our decisions any easier. In the end, one of the most visible to the industry was the strategic move to not re-open the seasonal Welcome Centers in Prairie du Chien and Genoa City. Other Welcome Centers bookend those areas, providing reassurance visitors will not be left out.
Integration is the New Mantra We’ve made a conscious push to bring best business practices to government, like integration of marketing programs. To that end, the once-separate Marketing and Communications bureaus have been combined into one, with Sarah Klavas leading the charge. Both advertising and PR functions now report to her. The Communications director position was eliminated, and the Tourism Development Specialists now work directly with Deputy Secretary Mark Richardson. The fruits of the decision are already showing up in the winter marketing campaign.
The Wisconsin Tourism Brand This is a hot topic, already generating plenty of press coverage. The Department’s mandate is to market, and a Branding Committee made up of brand experts, was convened to conduct fresh research, study other states that are doing it well, and point us in the direction of an ownable brand platform for Wisconsin Tourism. That brand positioning will be unveiled at the Governor’s Conference on Tourism in March. There has been great support and interest from other state agencies as Tourism takes the lead in defining, once and for all, the state’s image.
WHAT’S AHEAD
Governor’s Conference on Tourism Leadership: Inspiring Greatness is the theme for this year’s conference, to be held March 2-4 in Lake Geneva. Registration is available on at www.wigcot.org.
Travel Green Wisconsin A redesigned Travel Green Wisconsin website is expected to launch in March to support this niche market. The new site will provide a place for consumers to locate certified businesses with maps and detailed listings and offer business owners a chance to provide their green message to consumers.
Grant Deadlines The next deadline for submission of Joint Effort Marketing grant applications is February 1. If you’re submitting for the first time, or even if you’ve had successful grant applications in the past, a JEM Grant toolkit is now available online. The next quarterly deadline for submission of Ready, Set, Go! sports marketing grant applications is April 1.
