We are very pleased, therefore, to join our regional colleagues,
collectively known as British Columbia's Tourism Regions, in sponsoring
the Rural Tourism Conference at the Hills Health Ranch in 108 Mile
House from April 19 - 21. On your way to and from this conference,
take in the awe of the Fraser Canyon, with a renewed vision of
this spectacular part of
our region.
Many of you will remember her and for those that don’t,
we are happy to welcome a new face to the Vancouver, Coast & Mountains
team! Frances Ratcliffe returned to Vancouver, Coast & Mountains
this past January after completing her Bachelors of Arts Degree
in English
from Simon
Fraser University. You may remember Frances from her time with
VCM during 2008 when she worked as Media Relations
Assistant
(Extraordinaire) alongside Jennifer Rhyne and Laura
Roberts. Frances is excited to be back with VCM in her new role
as Project
Coordinator. “What
is a project coordinator?” you may ask. Well, Frances is
here to help in any way she can, whether that be on marketing projects
and opportunities alongside Kayla Seib, on media requests and
media tracking with Lisa Clement, or on travel trade projects
with Jason Knibbs.
Marketing Opportunities |
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March 16, 2011 Ministry of Jobs, Tourism
& Innovation |
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Ministry of Jobs, Tourism and Innovation On March 14, Premier Christy Clark announced the new cabinet for the government of British Columbia. Of significant note to the tourism industry is the creation of the new Ministry of Jobs, Tourism and Innovation. Tourism is at the centre of job creation and innovation in BC - how true! We're looking forward to a bright future in this Ministry, with a renewed vision for increasing visitation throughout the Province. Vancouver, Coast & Mountains Tourism Region is ready to get started! Congratulations to our new leadership team of the Honorable Pat Bell and Deputy Minister Dana Hayden. And, with tourism so closely connected to economic development, it's great to see Donna Barnett as Parliamentary Secretary for Regional Economic Development in this Ministry. The Board and staff of Vancouver, Coast & Mountains Tourism Region are ready, willing and able to build stronger bridges between our business and community partners with this Ministry. Again, congratulations! Innovation & Vancouver, Coast & Mountains Innovation may well be the key word in guiding the future of Vancouver, Coast & Mountains Tourism Region! You may have noticed that we have offered many new programs and services over the past few months that might be described as innovative. Our partners told us that they wanted more social media possibilities, so we have recently launched 604Pulse, a blog dedicated to spreading the word about what's going on in the region. Still in its infancy, we're hearing rave reviews. Thanks to Think! Social Media for developing and managing this project for our region. To learn more about 604Pulse, please contact Mary Ann Bell, maryann@vcmbc.com. Local media have been quick to recognize the unique attributes of our Chinese Resident marketing project that encourages local residents to experience our region, and then invite their family & friends to visit. Our thanks to Alisa Choi Darcy of Quote EndQuote Cross-Cultural Strategy for working with our region. Alisa visits with our partners and reports to them on how they can add greater value for Chinese visitors with signage, story-telling, gift shop and food & beverage. If you're interested in future projects, please contact Jennifer Rhyne, jennifer@vcmbc.com. Thanks to our involvement with the Olympics and a long relationship with Jim Smith, publisher of Canadascope print and online media for tour operators, Vancouver, Coast & Mountains Tourism Region is a partner in a television series on NBC in San Francisco, a key market. The primary focus of the first show was to generate ski traffic, but messaging also featured reasons to visit in the summer. The next show, airing in May, will celebrate Vancouver's 125th birthday. Featuring the Vancouver Attractions Group and members of Vancouver Destination Hotel Association, the May show was coordinated with Tourism Vancouver and we have committed to air the promotional spots in the Seattle market as well. For more information on this project, contact Kevan Ridgway, kevan@vcmbc.com Still to come is another innovative project to encourage U.S. private pilots to visit the communities of Kamloops (where they will clear customs), Lillooet, Pemberton and Pitt Meadows. Our thanks to Sandy Blue, Manager of Strategic Economic Initiatives in Maple Ridge for championing this project. For more information on this project, contact Kayla Seib, kayla@vcmbc.com. Our world has changed significantly and measureably over the past six months, and in ways that match our new Ministry of Jobs, Tourism and Innovation! Olympic "BC Street" Event wins Prestigious Association Cornerstone of Excellence (ACE) Award Vancouver, Coast & Mountains Tourism Region was honoured on March 15 as the organization accepted the prestigious Association Cornerstone of Excellence (ACE) award for their creation and implementation of the Vancouver, Coast & Mountains presence on “BC Street”, a pavilion showcasing tourism and culture in the region, which was located at Richmond’s O Zone during the 2010 Olympic Games. The ACE Award was established in 2003 and recognizes Canadian Society of Association Executives (CSAE) British Columbia members for their outstanding accomplishments. “Hosting the Olympics provided incredible opportunities for many sectors of the economy, and tourism was no exception.” Remarks Kevan J. Ridgway, President and CEO of Vancouver, Coast & Mountains Tourism Region. “The concept of “BC Street” was long in the making, with several venues considered. It’s appropriate that this award is being presented in the City of Richmond, and we thank Mayor Brodie and his municipal staff for welcoming BC Street to Richmond’s O Zone. The organization of BC Street required the cooperation of communities from many parts of British Columbia, and we were pleased to coordinate those in Vancouver, Coast & Mountains Tourism Region.” “BC Street” was a unique project for Vancouver, Coast & Mountains Tourism Region. Visitors to the pavilion were able to immerse themselves into the complete community experience including diving on the Sunshine Coast, gold panning in Gold Country, wine tasting in Langley, golfing in Surrey, mountain biking in Abbotsford, sturgeon fishing in Harrison Hot Springs, and building sandcastles in White Rock. These experiences were anchored by a map of the world, on which thousands of visitors pinned their country of origin. This map is now on display at Metropolis at Metrotown. Mr. Ridgway adds, “Undoubtedly, this was a once in a lifetime project that was so much fun, but also incredibly hard work. I thank all our staff for the help, who were led by our Community Relations Director, Shawna Leung. I also thank the CSAE-BC Chapter for their recognition of this event and for this ACE Award.” Ms. Leung accepted the ACE Award at a ceremony at the Vancouver Airport Marriot today on behalf of Vancouver, Coast & Mountains Tourism Region. 2011 Marketing Plan Presentations Mark your calendars for the week of April 4th to 8th as Vancouver, Coast & Mountains' staff get ready to present the 2012 Marketing Plan. To hear more about our planned tactics for next year (April 1, 2011 - March 31, 2012) please RSVP by March 28 and let us know which presentation you will be attending. Here are the dates for the upcoming presentations:
Specific details and times will be released soon! Highlights of the FY12 Marketing Plan include 604Pulse.com, the new VCM micro-site, as well as targeted campaigns for geographical markets (including BC Residents), and niche markets such as Motorcycling and Outdoor Adventure. VCM will continue to build integrated campaigns which use a variety of mediums (print, online, radio & television) to reach audiences. We look forward to sharing our plans with you, and listening to your comments. To RSVP please contact Frances Ratcliffe at frances@vcmbc.com 2011 Regional Tourism Leaders Forum and Annual General Meeting The 2011 Regional Tourism Leaders Forum and 39th Annual General Meeting will be held May 31 - June 2 in Squamish and spectacular Sea to Sky Country. A combination of high calibre keynote speakers, educational sessions and networking opporunities, the 2011 RTLF will be exciting and interactive. More details will be released as they are confirmed, but mark your calendars and plan to join us at the Executive Suites Garibaldi Springs Hotel in Squamish. Watch www.vcmbc.com/tourismforum for more information. Having the word "Vancouver" in our name can lead to misconceptions about our region that has many rural areas in need of increased tourism. It has taken years to seed the development of Sunshine Coast Tourism for example, and they still need certainty in sustainable funding to enable multi-year planning and implementation of their programs and services. There has been less success in seeding development in Hope & the Fraser Canyon, but there is light at the end of their tunnel (many tunnels, actually!). So, from Lund to Lillooet, our region stands strong in support of its rural communities.
For more information about the Rural Tourism Conference, please visit www.ruraltourismconference.com.
When Frances isn’t busy coordinating projects in the office, she is very busy coordinating a personal project – her wedding! This July, Frances is getting married in Gastown and is currently organizing all the details for her big day. If she can coordinate a wedding, she can certainly coordinate anything! Frances can be reached at frances@vcmbc.com. Welcome back Frances! Groupon Webinar with Paul Cubbon - Think! Social Media On Wednesday, March 9, 75 tourism industry professionals logged into a free webinar hosted by Vancouver, Coast & Mountains Tourism Region featuring Paul Cubbon of Think! Social Media. Paul spent 30 minutes explaining how the Groupon model of marketing works, discussing what tourism businesses should consider before participating and answering questions. Feedback about the webinar was very good and if you weren't able to attend but are interested in viewing the presentation please visit VCMTourism.com. Stay tuned for more Vancouver, Coast & Mountains webinars. BC Tourism Leaders' Summit 2011 Registration is now open for the 2011 BC Tourism Leaders' Summit. Presented by COTA, the 2nd annual BC T ourism Leaders' Summit & AGM is being held April 11 - 13, 2011 in Nanaimo. This Summit will be a road map showing how the industry, through a revitalized provincial tourism advocacy association, can navigate the new provincial landscape under the leadership of Premier Christy Clark. To register and for more information please visit www.bctourismleaderssummit.ca Job Posting - Tourism Harrison Toruism Harrison is looking for an Executive Director who can creatively and effectively market their community and surrounding area as a travel destination. Details from the job posting are below:
Experience If you are qualified for this position – please send an email with your resume by April 8 to: Ian Maw, Chair – Tourism Harrison - imaw@harrisonresort.com We will contact only those who we feel are qualified for the position. |
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Your feedback is most welcome on any subject – please e-mail kevan@vcmbc.com. |
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