MONROE - Visitors to Wisconsin spent $40.7 million in Green County during 2010, nearly $340,000 more than they did the previous year, according to figures released Monday by the Wisconsin Department of Tourism.
Forty-eight of Wisconsin's 72 counties saw an increase in tourism spending last year. State and local tourism officials, hoping the increases indicate a return of visitors to Wisconsin, are emphasizing marketing the state.
As part of that effort, Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch presented a $39,550 Destination Marketing grant to Green County and its communities on behalf of the Wisconsin Department of Tourism Monday at the Green County Welcome Center in Monroe.
Kleefisch and Stephanie Klett, Wisconsin Secretary of Tourism, stopped at the center as part of Governor Scott Walker's kick-off to the National Travel and Tourism Week, May 7-15.
The Joint Effort Marketing grant funds provides an opportunity for Green County tourism partners to work together as a region to develop a research-based brand identity, "so Green County can make sure the dollars spent are going to be spent well and get a great return," Kleefisch said.
"Wisconsin is done being a hidden gem," Kleefisch said, indicating the need for marketing dollars.
"Research-based marketing has increased in importance," she added. "If you want to put your money behind something, you want to know it's going to make an impact."
Tourism created more than 1,200 jobs in Green County in 2010, resulting in about $16.8 million in income to residents and generating about $3.6 million in state revenue. Tourism-related occupations include restaurants, hotels and motels.
One out of nine jobs in the state are related to the travel and leisure industry, and while Wisconsin budgeted $9.9 million for tourism last year, Gov. Walker is asking for an extra $1.191 million for the Tourism Department's marketing efforts for fiscal 2012 this year and an additional $2.344 million in fiscal 2013, according to Klett.
"We have an administration that 'gets' the power of tourism," Klett said.
"We know from new research that for every dollar spent on our summer and fall 2010 advertising campaign, Wisconsin received $7 in state and local taxes from incremental traveler spending. This return on investment makes a strong case for the role of effective marketing to grow the state's tourism economy and create jobs for our residents," she added.
Green County Tourism will begin working on a brand identity in June with North Star Destination Strategies, a community and city branding specialist firm from Nashville, Tenn.
The county-wide branding project is intended to bring together local communities under one unifying brand that will differentiate them from all other destinations.
Noreen Rueckert, director of Green County Tourism, anticipates each community will bring its own strengths into the development of the brand.
Green County tourism officials expect the project to provide a benchmark to measure the county's success and future returns on investments in the regional tourism market.
The state tourism department is working on increasing customer service and on developing more public/private sector relationships that will supplement tourism marketing funds.
"More public-private sector relationships means more savings to the tax payer," Klett added.
An extensive marketing campaign will revolve around the theme of "fun" with TV, radio, print, billboard and social media efforts focused throughout Wisconsin, Illinois, Minnesota, Iowa and Michigan.
The advertisements for Wisconsin tourism being released to the public this Friday will not be loaded with slogans, according to Klett.
"As a state, we've had more slogans than any state should have," she said.
According to the state-wide report on the economic impact of Wisconsin travelers released by the Department of Tourism, signs of recovery in Wisconsin's tourism industry took hold in spring 2010. As the year went on, consumer confidence gained traction and traveler spending showed greater increases each season. This trend is anticipated to continue throughout 2011 with traveler spending closing in on the pre-recession levels of 2008.
"The tourism department will support this recovery by remaining focused on our primary mission to promote the state through effective marketing and supporting the work of our statewide tourism partners," Klett said.
The study showed tourism returned $1.37 billion to the state in tax revenues as well as $621 million to local governments. Tourism supported 291,964 full-time equivalent jobs in 2010, gaining 5,500 jobs over 2009.
The majority of tourism jobs are directly tied to small businesses.
According to data from the Department of Workforce Development, 15,000 businesses with less than 50 employees each are currently employing nearly 220,000 of the 292,000 Wisconsin residents who rely on jobs in the tourism industry.
A summary of the study and a breakdown on traveler spending and economic impact for all 72 counties is available online at www.travelwisconsin.com.
Forty-eight of Wisconsin's 72 counties saw an increase in tourism spending last year. State and local tourism officials, hoping the increases indicate a return of visitors to Wisconsin, are emphasizing marketing the state.
As part of that effort, Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch presented a $39,550 Destination Marketing grant to Green County and its communities on behalf of the Wisconsin Department of Tourism Monday at the Green County Welcome Center in Monroe.
Kleefisch and Stephanie Klett, Wisconsin Secretary of Tourism, stopped at the center as part of Governor Scott Walker's kick-off to the National Travel and Tourism Week, May 7-15.
The Joint Effort Marketing grant funds provides an opportunity for Green County tourism partners to work together as a region to develop a research-based brand identity, "so Green County can make sure the dollars spent are going to be spent well and get a great return," Kleefisch said.
"Wisconsin is done being a hidden gem," Kleefisch said, indicating the need for marketing dollars.
"Research-based marketing has increased in importance," she added. "If you want to put your money behind something, you want to know it's going to make an impact."
Tourism created more than 1,200 jobs in Green County in 2010, resulting in about $16.8 million in income to residents and generating about $3.6 million in state revenue. Tourism-related occupations include restaurants, hotels and motels.
One out of nine jobs in the state are related to the travel and leisure industry, and while Wisconsin budgeted $9.9 million for tourism last year, Gov. Walker is asking for an extra $1.191 million for the Tourism Department's marketing efforts for fiscal 2012 this year and an additional $2.344 million in fiscal 2013, according to Klett.
"We have an administration that 'gets' the power of tourism," Klett said.
"We know from new research that for every dollar spent on our summer and fall 2010 advertising campaign, Wisconsin received $7 in state and local taxes from incremental traveler spending. This return on investment makes a strong case for the role of effective marketing to grow the state's tourism economy and create jobs for our residents," she added.
Green County Tourism will begin working on a brand identity in June with North Star Destination Strategies, a community and city branding specialist firm from Nashville, Tenn.
The county-wide branding project is intended to bring together local communities under one unifying brand that will differentiate them from all other destinations.
Noreen Rueckert, director of Green County Tourism, anticipates each community will bring its own strengths into the development of the brand.
Green County tourism officials expect the project to provide a benchmark to measure the county's success and future returns on investments in the regional tourism market.
The state tourism department is working on increasing customer service and on developing more public/private sector relationships that will supplement tourism marketing funds.
"More public-private sector relationships means more savings to the tax payer," Klett added.
An extensive marketing campaign will revolve around the theme of "fun" with TV, radio, print, billboard and social media efforts focused throughout Wisconsin, Illinois, Minnesota, Iowa and Michigan.
The advertisements for Wisconsin tourism being released to the public this Friday will not be loaded with slogans, according to Klett.
"As a state, we've had more slogans than any state should have," she said.
According to the state-wide report on the economic impact of Wisconsin travelers released by the Department of Tourism, signs of recovery in Wisconsin's tourism industry took hold in spring 2010. As the year went on, consumer confidence gained traction and traveler spending showed greater increases each season. This trend is anticipated to continue throughout 2011 with traveler spending closing in on the pre-recession levels of 2008.
"The tourism department will support this recovery by remaining focused on our primary mission to promote the state through effective marketing and supporting the work of our statewide tourism partners," Klett said.
The study showed tourism returned $1.37 billion to the state in tax revenues as well as $621 million to local governments. Tourism supported 291,964 full-time equivalent jobs in 2010, gaining 5,500 jobs over 2009.
The majority of tourism jobs are directly tied to small businesses.
According to data from the Department of Workforce Development, 15,000 businesses with less than 50 employees each are currently employing nearly 220,000 of the 292,000 Wisconsin residents who rely on jobs in the tourism industry.
A summary of the study and a breakdown on traveler spending and economic impact for all 72 counties is available online at www.travelwisconsin.com.