KATIE GODFREY: Top 5 ways the Chamber brings visitors to Owatonna
At the Owatonna Area Chamber of Commerce and Tourism, a major part of our mission is to bring visitors to Owatonna. Visitors support our local businesses by spending money on food, retail, lodging, recreation and fuel. According to Explore Minnesota Tourism, the average per person per day spending for day travelers is $52, or $89 for overnight travelers.
1. Marketing
Marketing Owatonna to visitors is at the core of what we do in our tourism efforts. We utilize the local lodging tax to purchase advertising that appears on digital platforms like Facebook and common websites, and publications like the Minnesota State Travel Guide and AAA magazines. We promote our unique attractions like the Orphanage Museum and the Louis Sullivan-designed bank, and we typically target audiences from the major cities in the Midwest. We also develop visitor guides, maps, and our tourism website, www.visitowatonna.org, which is our most important tool for visitors to use while planning a trip to Owatonna. In nearly all of our marketing, our goal is to drive visitors to our website where they can learn about things to do, attractions to visit, and places to shop, eat and stay.
2. Regional partnership
In early 2016 a new tourism partnership was formed between the Owatonna, Faribault and Northfield Chambers called the Minne-Roadtrip. The Minne-Roadtrip is an umbrella brand to promote the three communities together. Many potential visitors find the idea of a multi-community road trip more appealing than visiting a single community. We purchase advertising together and we also attend tradeshows, furthering our marketing dollars and strengthening our brand. The Minne-Roadtrip recently won a 2016 Explore Minnesota Tourism award of excellence for our marketing efforts.
3. Direct sales
We also do direct sales to bring group tours, conventions and leisure travel to Owatonna. So far this year we have attended home shows in Des Moines and Rochester (as the Minne-Roadtrip), and a group tour tradeshow in Green Bay. We will be attending a tradeshow in May that is focused on convention sales.
4. Product development
We market Owatonna as a destination, and it is important that it continues to grow with amenities that will appeal to visitors and locals alike. Through local partnerships and a close relationship with our MainStreet program, we support efforts like the restaurant and retail challenges that will help grow tourism opportunities in Owatonna.
5. Customer service
Now that we have convinced people to visit Owatonna, what happens when they arrive? We want to be sure the customer experience is top notch so that visitors spread the word about our community in a positive way. At the Chamber we answer calls daily and assist walk-in visitors with questions about Owatonna. We also have a 24-hour information center in our vestibule that has a robust supply of brochures and maps, and we distribute our guides and maps around town to make sure information is available wherever people go. Our tourism partners (local lodging, attractions, Parks and Recreation, retail and restaurants) provide positive experiences for visitors on a daily basis as well.
How do we know if our efforts are working? We can tell if our advertising is working by looking at our website analytics. In 2016 we had a 35% increase in sessions to our website from the previous year. Our lodging tax increased 7.5% (slightly higher than the state average), and the occupancy at our local lodging properties increased by 4%. Overall, 2016 was a healthy travel year and 2017 is looking to be good as well.
We will be celebrating outstanding individuals from our local tourism industry at the Tourism Awards Luncheon on May 11 at the Steele County History Center. For details contact Katie Godfrey at kgodfrey@owatonna.org or 507-451-7970.
Reported by: southernminn.com
1. Marketing
Marketing Owatonna to visitors is at the core of what we do in our tourism efforts. We utilize the local lodging tax to purchase advertising that appears on digital platforms like Facebook and common websites, and publications like the Minnesota State Travel Guide and AAA magazines. We promote our unique attractions like the Orphanage Museum and the Louis Sullivan-designed bank, and we typically target audiences from the major cities in the Midwest. We also develop visitor guides, maps, and our tourism website, www.visitowatonna.org, which is our most important tool for visitors to use while planning a trip to Owatonna. In nearly all of our marketing, our goal is to drive visitors to our website where they can learn about things to do, attractions to visit, and places to shop, eat and stay.
2. Regional partnership
In early 2016 a new tourism partnership was formed between the Owatonna, Faribault and Northfield Chambers called the Minne-Roadtrip. The Minne-Roadtrip is an umbrella brand to promote the three communities together. Many potential visitors find the idea of a multi-community road trip more appealing than visiting a single community. We purchase advertising together and we also attend tradeshows, furthering our marketing dollars and strengthening our brand. The Minne-Roadtrip recently won a 2016 Explore Minnesota Tourism award of excellence for our marketing efforts.
3. Direct sales
We also do direct sales to bring group tours, conventions and leisure travel to Owatonna. So far this year we have attended home shows in Des Moines and Rochester (as the Minne-Roadtrip), and a group tour tradeshow in Green Bay. We will be attending a tradeshow in May that is focused on convention sales.
4. Product development
We market Owatonna as a destination, and it is important that it continues to grow with amenities that will appeal to visitors and locals alike. Through local partnerships and a close relationship with our MainStreet program, we support efforts like the restaurant and retail challenges that will help grow tourism opportunities in Owatonna.
5. Customer service
Now that we have convinced people to visit Owatonna, what happens when they arrive? We want to be sure the customer experience is top notch so that visitors spread the word about our community in a positive way. At the Chamber we answer calls daily and assist walk-in visitors with questions about Owatonna. We also have a 24-hour information center in our vestibule that has a robust supply of brochures and maps, and we distribute our guides and maps around town to make sure information is available wherever people go. Our tourism partners (local lodging, attractions, Parks and Recreation, retail and restaurants) provide positive experiences for visitors on a daily basis as well.
How do we know if our efforts are working? We can tell if our advertising is working by looking at our website analytics. In 2016 we had a 35% increase in sessions to our website from the previous year. Our lodging tax increased 7.5% (slightly higher than the state average), and the occupancy at our local lodging properties increased by 4%. Overall, 2016 was a healthy travel year and 2017 is looking to be good as well.
We will be celebrating outstanding individuals from our local tourism industry at the Tourism Awards Luncheon on May 11 at the Steele County History Center. For details contact Katie Godfrey at kgodfrey@owatonna.org or 507-451-7970.
Reported by: southernminn.com
