What CVBs can do for agritourism businesses

At the Tri-State Agritourism Conference, three local convention and visitor bureau (CVB) pros talked about what they can do with local agritourism businesses.

CVBs can help agritourism operators
put together group tours.

Karen Hood represented Pulaski County TBVC (Tourism Bureau and Visitors Center) from Missouri, Amanda Davis represented Miami CVB from Oklahoma and Craig Hull represented the Crawford County Kansas CVB.

“My visitors know no state lines, no county lines, no city limits.”
I don’t remember which one of the three said that, but I think it was Amanda Davis. In other words, feel free to reach out to a neighboring CVB, even if you aren’t within the city limits. They are all looking for great venues to share with their visitors.

It’s important to know your local CVB, because they know all about the different state programs that might help your business. Also, some states, like the Kansas Department of Tourism, prefer to get all local info through the CVB, not direct from the attraction or business.

All three of the CVBs offer free listings on their websites and in some publications, and paid listings with more info. All three work with local and regional press and publications in various ways to share stories of their local attractions. These three do packaging of group tours, publish event calendars, and help with lots of local events. All three have a girlfriends trips initiative.

Of the three, Amanda Davis is the most active online. She participates in Twitter and Facebook, promoting Miami, Oklahoma. This is key to reaching the demographic under age 50. It’s not just 20 year olds, she said. Amanda and I have been connected on Twitter for ages, it seems. She really gets the right approach for the online world: interact and be real.

Craig Hull talked about an idea he had seen in another area: a fall farm tour. They put together a driving tour of several agritourism operations, and it was a big hit with visitors. All three said they were considering such a tour. If your CVB isn’t considering one, get together with a couple of nearby agritourism venues, and reach out to your CVB. They can help you package that tour and make it happen.

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About Becky McCray

Becky started Small Biz Survival in 2006 to share rural business and community building stories and ideas with other small town business people. She and her husband have a small cattle ranch and are lifelong entrepreneurs. Becky is an international speaker on small business and rural topics.