I’ve lived around here for ages. The last time I climbed to the top of the Glass Mountains, I was probably 10 or 12 years old. I only went back this year because I had friends in from out of town. I wonder, how many people live here, but don’t even know you can hike to the top?
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| Climbing the Glass Mountains with Jon and Nancy Swanson. |
Which leads me to my next question:
What if you did a fam tour for your residents of your local attractions?
Put together a fam or press tour of your best local attractions and a few hidden gems. Plan it as though you were planning for the biggest, most important travel writers.
Invite your local bloggers, Twitter and Facebook users, and Flickr photographers. Include a few former locals who are also online writing, blogging, etc. Today, these people are your biggest, most important travel writers.
Comment on the resulting posts. Ask permission to reuse photos, videos and stories to promote your place. You’ll collect all sorts of new materials to use.
And if you’re lucky, you’ll also eliminate a few cases of “never been there” among your locals.
For more ideas on working with locals, check out the latest Tourism Currents newsletter on online champions and earned online media.
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Becky,
I love the idea. This is actually something that goes in line with a project I want to launch for local tourism on the Island.
This might even solve my problem of ” I have never been there”.
A place which does a great job with Tourism although I consider has very little to offer is Chattanooga, TN. With little they make a lot.
This post sparked some ideas on getting a project off the ground.
Thanks, Raul. Come back and let us know how the project goes.
I live in rural Victoria in Australia and a few years ago at the height of the drought there were a few smart farmers that did the same thing.
Many of them started running tours of their farms, their neighbours farms, had a bonfire and took tourists for a hike. They ended up surviving the drought and actually thriving.
Robin, I hear from my friend Des Walsh that Australians are notoriously resilient. :)