BuckeyeLine

The Summer of Opportunity

As Memorial Day weekend unofficially kicked off the summer leisure travel season, you have all seen the reports speculating a downturn in leisure travel due to rising fuel costs. Anecdotal tales of lower traffic volumes and news of slowdowns in bookings at traditional long-haul destinations such as Las Vegas and Florida have naturally made the entire industry nervous. Scientific consumer surveys about travel intentions vary in range from slight to moderate changes in travel planning. So, what to do, what to do?

Ohio Tourism Event Hits Mark with New Ads, Travel Opportunities Close to Home

Thank you to everyone who turned out for the May 13 unveiling of our new advertising campaign and Ohio Tourism Celebration during Ohio Tourism Month (National Tourism Week) at the Statehouse. Your support and participation brought our industry some great media coverage and awareness and stimulated excitement and discussion about tourism in Ohio!

'Livin’ for the Weekend' Multicultural Campaign Launched, TV Premiere June 9

It has been a crazy few weeks, but the Division Marketing Office and Singleton & Partners, Ltd. have launched Ohio’s innovative new multicultural tourism campaign capitalizing on the star power of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame group, the O’Jays, and their popular song, “Livin’ for the Weekend.” Members of Ohio’s Tourism Industry are invited to join the Tourism Division June 9 for a 3:00 p.m. premier of the new television spot at the House of Blues. A second event will take place June 12 at 1:15 p.m. in Cincinnati to show the television spot and announce a partnership with Macy’s Music Festival.

Division PR Office Earns National Recognition – Again!

For the third year in a row, the Division Public Relations Office and Fahlgren Mortine Public Relations have been awarded a Bronze Anvil award, a national honor from the Public Relations Society of America. This year’s award recognizes the Ohio Tourism Division’s strategic media relations program as the finest in the country for a government entity for the second year in a row.

2009 Ohio Travel Planner Listing Deadline Wednesday, July 23

Be part of the 2009 Ohio Travel Planner! All Ohio travel and tourism entities are invited to submit/update their organizations’ information in the Buckeye database by 5 p.m. on Wed., July 23, to have your free listing considered for inclusion in the 2009 Ohio Travel Planner (400,000 printed plus online at www.DiscoverOhio.com).

Join the Division at a Remaining Town Hall Meeting!

The Division is hosting a few more town hall meetings to brief industry members on the new advertising campaign and Division partnership opportunities. Below are the dates for the Division’s remaining town hall meetings. Hope to see you at one of these events!

June 18, 1-3 p.m.
Akron - Knight Center
77 East Mill Street
Akron, OH 44308
Hosted by:  Akron Summit County Convention & Visitors Bureau
RSVP: shamo@visitakron-summit.org; or (330) 374-8900

June 25, 1-3 p.m.
Campus Martius Museum
601 Second Street
Marietta, OH 45750
Hosted by:  Marietta Washington County Convention & Visitors Bureau & Campus Martius Museum
RSVP: Kelly@mariettaohio.org

County Database Listing Reports Available to CVBs

Convention and Visitors Bureaus are eligible to request a free report to see which travel entities from their respective counties have listings in the database. CVB personnel can then contact travel entities in their areas that aren’t in the database to encourage them to sign up. Only entities with active database listings are eligible for publication in the Division’s publications. To request a report, please contact Eric Herzog, eherzog@odod.state.oh.us or (614) 466-0338.

2008 Marketing Assistance Program Now Accepting Applicants for Phase II

The 2008 Marketing Assistance Program is ramping up for another year of helping Ohio tourism entities leverage their marketing dollars to reach new audiences! The deadline to register for Phase II of MAP ( for marketing activities that take place between July 1 and Dec. 31, 2008) is July 1, 2008. Applications must be submitted in hard copy by 5 p.m., July 1, 2008, and must be accompanied by a licensing agreement and media plan. Late registration forms will not be considered. For those not familiar with MAP, it works essentially like a standard retail co-op. In exchange for businesses and attractions helping to extend the Ohio brand by using the Ohio… So much to Discover! logo, the Tourism Division reimburses participants a percentage of eligible marketing expenses. Though the Division is phasing out the So much to Discover logo, its use is approved for MAP in 2008.

Participate in the Division’s E-Newsletters for Free

After a very successful launch in 2007, the Division is ramping up its second year of enhanced consumer e-newsletters with its partner eBrains. For consideration in the e-newsletters, please contact Joe Vargo at jvargo@odod.state.oh.us by July 1.

Where did Group Tours Travel in April?

Special thanks to the Butler County, Dublin and Ross/Chillicothe CVBs for reporting their group tour traffic for April. In just these three communities alone, 143 visitors using 59 hotel rooms were reported. If you haven’t reported your April data yet, please submit it along with your May information. The tracking form is available in the group tour section of Travel Buzz at http://travelbuzz.discoverohio.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/822109641/m/317107451.