Agencies find Web useful in marketing city, its attractions

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Bass Pro Shops, Firefall, Fantastic Caverns, the Springfield Conservation Nature Center and Dickerson Park Zoo are just a few of the attractions that bring visitors to Springfield every year. |ret||ret||tab|

How these and other area attractions are marketed can go a long way in bringing people back to the region.|ret||ret||tab|

The Springfield Convention and Visitors Bureau saw a decrease in the number of people stopping by its tourist center at 3315 E. Battlefield last year, according to CVB Public Relations Manager Susan Wade. Visitors to its Web site, however, increased. |ret||ret||tab|

Wade said the site, |bold_on|www.springfieldmo.org, had 14,632 hits in January 2000 and 20,671 in January 2001.|ret||ret||tab|

Visitors to the Web site can request that an information packet be mailed to them. "We respond very quickly to a request for information," Wade said. "We're also being aggressive about contacting travel writers and sending out press releases to magazines and newspapers. We want to keep word of Springfield and its attractions alive and out there."|ret||ret||tab|

According to Wade, citywide room demand increased slightly in the year 2000 over the previous year, reaching 1,071,145 compared with 1,062,215 in 1999. Citywide room revenue also increased, with January-December 2000 accounting for $55,060,933 compared with $51,953,725 for the same period in 1999.|ret||ret||tab|

Wade said that while those figures were up slightly, she believes that people weren't traveling as much because the weather was so hot and dry, and gas prices were up during the tourist season. |ret||ret||tab|

Tammy Leigh, director of communications for the CVB, said about $900,000 is spent annually on promoting the Springfield area as an attraction. About $260,000 of that money comes from the CVB while the agency partners with other companies for the remaining expenditures.|ret||ret||tab|

"We do regional and national marketing," Leigh said. "Some of the money is spent on national cable ads and some is spent on spot buys in surrounding states. We do a pretty large print campaign, as well. We're going to try and key in on publications that are geared toward baby boomers and niches we haven't done before, including women's magazines, because women make most of the travel decisions; magazines for the outdoorsman; and history magazines because there's a lot of history in the area." |ret||ret||tab|

Leigh said the CVB has targeted adults 54 and older in the past, but now it will be spending more of its advertising dollars on adults ages 35-54. She added that the agency will continue its focus on appealing to families.|ret||ret||tab|

Ann Elwell, communications manager of the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce, said the chamber had 17,616 visitors to its Web site last month. "People are attracted to the quality of life here, the beauty of the area and the big-town amenities with a small-town feel," she said. "They come here on vacation and end up wanting to stay."[[In-content Ad]]