By Andrea Harwood Palmer
\nWashington County is the focus of a new collaborative tourism initiative in the region.
\nJesse Tyree from black dog Designs in Glens Falls, Andrew Meader from 8 of Eight Strategies in Glens Falls and Jessica Ziehm from Cornell Cooperative Extension gathered at RS Taylor & Sons Brewery in Salem recently to announce a long-term strategic initiative.
\nMannix Marketing in Glens Falls and Lakes to Locks in Crown Point are also a part of the effort.
\nA key part of the effort is the website www.washingtoncounty.fun. A calendar of events allows Washington County businesses to promote themselves and draw visitors to their location. An editorial calendar goes in-depth regarding things happening in the area.
\nAs the grassroots movement takes shape, meetings will be held on a quarterly basis.
\n\u201cThe meetings are about sharing ideas not only with us, but with each other, on how we can promote Washington County as a tourism destination,\u201d said Meader.
\nData has been collected over the years on tourism in Washington County.
\n\u201cWe feel strongly that we\u2019ll reach most potential visitors primarily through social media. Obviously, that\u2019s not the only way, but it\u2019s the most cost effective and most successful way. That\u2019s where the eyeballs are,\u201d said Meader.
\nMost visitors coming to Washington County come from downstate, officials said. Those from neighboring counties are also part of the tourist data.
\nMannix Marketing assists in distributing the articles, with hundreds of thousands of impressions, according to their data.
\nIn 2019, Washington County AirBnB hosts brought in just under $2 million in revenue, officials said. HomeAway and VRBO, vacation rental marketers, brought in an additional $2 million.
\n\u201cIt really shows that people are coming here and staying here, even with the lack of hotels and motels in our area,\u201d said Meader.
\nOccupancy tax on $4 million would have been $160,000. Though sales tax is currently not collected on this revenue, the earnings do count as earned income.
\nAttendees were presented with two items for discussion. What marketing efforts do businesses participate in and what seems to work best? And, what help, tools, skillsets or resources do area businesses need to reach a larger audience?
\n\u201cHow can we work together better? We all have strong businesses and our own niche. We\u2019re stronger together. We want you to tell us\u2014how can we coordinate a larger plan for all of us here in Washington County?\u201d said Ziehm.
\nThe next collaborative meeting will be in April and will likely be at Slickfin Brewing Co. in Fort Edward. Washington County businesses and those interested in the initiative are encouraged to attend, to give input on how the collaboration will take place.
\nThe Washington County Tourism Business Group page on Facebook is a place to stay informed of future meetings and developments.
\nAny Washington County business that wants to be involved in the initiative can contact Meader, Tyree and Ziem. Meader can be reached at andrew@meader.com, Tyree at creative@blackdogllc.co and Ziehm at jaz67@cornell.edu.
\nThe website for the effort is www.washingtoncounty.fun.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By Andrea Harwood Palmer Washington County is the focus of a new collaborative tourism initiative in the region. Jesse Tyree from black dog Designs in Glens Falls, Andrew Meader from 8 of Eight Strategies in Glens Falls and Jessica Ziehm from Cornell Cooperative Extension gathered at RS Taylor & Sons Brewery in Salem recently to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":196,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\r\n