The night I left, I phoned the owner to see if they could look for an important sheet of paper I had left behind. When I returned home, I found a letter from the owner with the missing paper. Since the room was cleaned in the morning, and I did not call till much later, they had to sift through the garbage to find this one sheet. I sent (I thought) a $20 bill with my thank you.

A few days later, the owner called me in Chicago to inform me that I had enclosed not a $20 bill, but $100. Now I ask you, how many people would just keep this money and not say anything? The majority, I think. These owners returned my money. I cannot commend them enough for their remarkable act of honesty.

Jerry
Chicago, IL

Kelli A. Trumble
Wisconsin Department of Tourism Secretary

CONTACT US

Please contact us at tbj@travelwisconsin.com with questions or suggestions regarding this newsletter.

Wisconsin Department of Tourism
201 W. Washington Ave.
Madison, WI 53703
Phone: 608/266-7621
http://agency.travelwisconsin.com

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WHAT’S NEW
Spring has sprung. That very statement conjures up images of warm-weather traditions. Time to do our part to add to those vacation rituals.

National Tourism Week Is Nearly Upon Us
May 10-18, to be exact. This year’s theme of “discovering great American traditions” had us developing our own list of quintessential Wisconsin traditions and the famous Wisconsinites behind them. Ole Evinrude’s contribution to boating and fishing with his invention of the outboard motor. William Harley and Arthur Davidson’s design of their “motor-bicycle.” H.H. Bennett, a pioneering photographer of the 19th century whose pictures made Wisconsin Dells famous. We could go on for pages. Think about the traditions in your corner of the state and celebrate them.

To help you along the way, we’ve prepared a National Tourism Week marketing tool kit, complete with press release template and key messages. Click here to access the toolkit and the 2007 economic impact research results. We’ll be doing our media outreach on Saturday, May 10th, and encourage you to work with your local media that same day, suggesting a story on the contribution of tourism to the economic health of your area. In addition, a complete booklet of the results will be mailed in quantity to CVBs and Chambers in the next few days.

A Little Pride is a Good Thing
The new state brand platform, built around the promise that in Wisconsin “originality rules,” made its first creative debut in our industry Pride Campaign, educating Wisconsinites on the role of tourism in their lives. The schedule of television and radio public service announcements, running in partnership with the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association, just wrapped up at the end of April. Listen and watch the PSAs here.

Be Eco-Conscientious
We are asking for your diligence again this summer in educating visitors on the invasive species that threaten our woods and waters; specifically the VHS fish virus and Emerald Ash Borer. Everyone in the tourism industry who has face-to-face contact with visitors has the power to make a difference. We’re working in collaboration with our partners at the DNR, who’ve set very specific guidelines as noted on their web site.

WHAT’S AHEAD
Filing Taxes Can Have Its Fun Side
How is this for an inviting and timely promotion: Travelers tell us what their favorite Wisconsin vacation would include based on a budget equal to their tax rebate ($600 for single; $1200 for married couples; additional $300 for each child) for the chance to win a Wisconsin vacation. That offer was sent to our database of nearly 300,000 loyal visitors, and winners will be selected at the end of this month.

We’re Coming to Your Town
The Governor’s Council on Tourism and the Department of Tourism believe in making themselves accessible. Case in point: The May 8th Council meeting will be held in Lancaster, in southwest Wisconsin. It’s not too late to join us, just RSVP to Molly Delaney at mdelaney@travelwisconsin.com. The June 26th meeting is in our state’s capital city. On September 18th, it’s on to Sauk County in central Wisconsin. You’re warmly invited to participate in these meetings, which also include dedicated time for listening sessions.

You’ll Be Hearing from Us
We’re working hard to move our Department’s Strategic Business Plan from the outline stage prepared by the Strategic Planning Committee to the tactical nitty-gritty. Now’s a good time to thank you in advance for your input, as we’ll be circulating a short survey asking for your thoughts on the services you’d like to see us provide. Believe us when we say, this process ensures it will not be business as usual at the Department. Case in point, the survey results from the poll in the March issue of this e-newsletter:

Poll question was: What media category would you most like to see included in the Department's co-op advertising program?

Online banner advertising	36.6%
Email marketing	19.5%
Television	19.5%
Magazine	12.2%
Newspaper	8.5%
Radio	3.7%

Our State Fair is a Great Fair
Would you like to be part of it? Help us out by staffing the Welcome Center located in the Wisconsin Products Pavilion at the Wisconsin State Fair, July 31-August 10. You’ll have the opportunity to promote your attraction, event or destination to lots of fair-goers in the booth and with a 30-minute time slot on the Wisconsin Products Pavilion Stage. Your contact for this is David Spiegelberg, our consumer show coordinator, and his e-mail is dspeigelberg@travelwisconsin.com. We encourage you to get in touch with him soon, as these openings fill up quickly.