This presentation focuses on tips for working with your CVB, getting the word out, and general marketing and communication best practices.

1. .

2. Get The Scoop
 Tips for working with your
CVB
 Getting the word out
 Marketing & Social Media

3. What Tourism Does
Frederick Visitor Center  Visitor Statistics  Groups  Sales Missions  Destination Marketing  Press
Visits & Media Requests  Heart of the Civil War Heritage Area Management Entity  Calendar of
Events & Visitor Guide  Historic Sites Consortium  Scenic Byways Manager  Product Development

4. Why do they visit?
 Shopping & Dining
 Civil War/Heritage
 Business/Ft. Detrick
 Arts & Entertainment
 Outdoor Recreation
 Agritourism/Wineries
 Genealogy
Visitor Snapshot
Jerry Holcomb and Sally Edwards, from San Diego, California,
stopped in the Frederick Visitor Center on Monday, December 3, 2012 to kickoff
their full week of Civil War exploration.

5. How Do They Find Out About US
 Advertising
 Website
 Articles in Magazines and
Newspapers
 Online Stories
 Social Media
 Word of Mouth
 Business Trips
 Sales Efforts
Website Facts
VisitFrederick.org has more than 200,000 unique visitors and over
one million page views.

6. Best Practices:
Connecting With Visitors & Partners
 Keep your content current & clear
 Make photos readily available
 Have a social plan
 Have a point of contact
 Tell your story (public relations)

7. Keep your content current & clear
 Keep Your Calendar Up to Date
 Submit Events to CVB

8. Make photos readily available
 Quality photos are enticing for visitors
 CVBs need your great imagery
 Stories are made with great photography
 Have photos that can be used without
asking permission

9. Have a Social Plan
 Connect with your partners
 Showcase your best features
 Treat it as part of your overall
marketing strategy
 Refer back to your “base” or website
where your main content lives
 Post. Monitor. Analyze. Repeat.
 Do only what you can manage.
 Don’t treat all channels the same.

10. Example: A Festival of Confusion
1
2
“Join us this weekend at the Zora Neal
Hurston Festival of the Arts and
Humanities in historic Eatonville,
Florida.”

11. A Festival of Confusion
3 4
“The Library of Florida
history will be closed….”
Except for: Saturday,
February 2 for the Zora Neale
Hurston Festival of the Arts
& Humanities – Eatonville.
5
56.5 mi, 1 hr 1
min driving

12. A Festival of Confusion
6
7
“Press” refers to
books for sale.

13. A Festival of Confusion
8

14. A Festival of Confusion
9

15. If something is important enough to…
 If something is…
• Important enough to post on
Facebook or Twitter (twice).
• Important enough to have on
the home page of your website.
• Important enough to staff and
attend for multiple days.
It’s important enough to
connect the dots in your
communication.

16. Ask yourself…
• Do I have an image of the person?
• Does the “rest of the story” already live
online?
• Do I need to create online content first?
• Do I need to “tag” people, and therefore
like their page or follow them?
• How is this post part of my overall
marketing strategy?
Tough Message Choices
Someone in your office just won
an award. Someone says, “Hey,
that would make a great Tweet or
Facebook post.”
Be able to control your own content.
Start with a foundation. Build.

18. Working With Partners Outside of Your
Organization

19. Tell Your Story: Information is Key
Phone Rings
Writer Says: I need
something in
Frederick County
for Black History
Month…
in 20 minutes.
Check Partner Site
Verify Information
Story Runs
Check Our Website
Compile & Email List

20. Visit Frederick’s Facebook
image was selected to
appear as the lead image
on CNN’s Travel section
on March 11, 2013.
You never know who’s looking (or lurking)
On average, 3 different
social media channels are
used to prepare each story.
Holmes Report, March 26,
2012

21. Did you know…
Travel writers,
especially freelancers,
frequently don’t pay
for their experiences?
CVBs look to their partners and members to help host
writers and provide unique experiences.
Tell Your Story
Get to know local media
Send press releases
Make yourself a resource
Make sure local partners
are aware of what you
can offer

22. International Travelers
We welcome around 25,000 visitors annually to the Visitor Center.
1,000 of them are international travelers
Our top international visitors that come to our visitor
center are from Canada, the UK, and Germany.

23. Berkhamsted, England
Marketing/Partners Organization
Tourism Council of
Frederick County
Host Writer or Group
Leaders
Article/Tour Inclusion
Lots of time goes by
Visitors Arrive!

24. “Thank you for the kind and warm welcome
which was extended to us. I had never visited Frederick before
but was delighted to find such a beautifully preserved
downtown.
It turned out to a real gem of a find, to which I was led
by an article I read in my daily newspaper’s travel section
on the city.
Keep up the good work. I very much hope that I will visit
Frederick again one day soon.”
Andrew Webb
Berkhamsted School, Herts., England
USA 2013 History Visit Organiser
Making the Connection

25. Tips
 Keep your content updated
and as complete as possible
 Get onto calendars
 Get great photography with
the intention to share it
 Keep focused with your
social media
 Attend partner events
 Invite partners to
experience your destination

26. Our job is to help them find you -
Our secret destinations and hidden gems.
“All journeys have secret destinations
of which the traveler is unaware.”
-Martin Buber

27. Michelle Kershner
Marketing & Communication Manager
Questions?
www.visitfrederick.org