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 VTC Aims for 1 Million Online Visitors in May!This May, we aim to have 1,000,000 visitors planning trips to Virginia on Virginia.org. The Share the LOVE: Be One in a Million Vacation Sweepstakes began on May 1, and we will give away 55 prizes including a once-in-a-lifetime family vacation when the site hits the 1,000,000 visitor mark. Go to www.Virginia.org/OneinAMillion and please enter and share!  Immediate Needs for Virginia.org4th of July events and packages, gas deals, fall early bird deals, and end of summer savings. Submit these through the Virginia.org Administration Tool. Questions? Contact Casey Higgins. Event Submission Deadline for 2013 Travel GuideWant a chance to be included in the 2013 Virginia Travel Guide? Log in to the Virginia.org Administration Tool to create or update your 2013 events by July 30. The Virginia Travel Guide pulls from Virginia.org to create its yearly events list.  Customer Service Workshop in Roanoke and DalevilleCustomer Service is not a department. It is not delegated only to those on the front line. Customer Service is EVERYBODY's business. Come to a FREE customer service workshop - May 15, 2012. Morning session will be held in Roanoke and the afternoon session in Daleville. Download the flyer for more information.  Advertising OpportunitiesSpace is available to participate in the late summer/fall issues of Backpacker Magazine and Uptown Magazine! Space is due by 6/4 for the September issue of Backpacker Magazine. The space deadline for the August/September issue of Uptown Magazine is 6/15. For more details on these opportunities and rep contact information, please visit the 18 month media plan.  Applications for the Spring 2012 VTC Marketing Leverage Program are now open!Application Deadline is June 26, 2012. The VTC Marketing Leverage Program is designed to leverage limited marketing dollars, to stimulate new marketing programs through the creation of tourism partnerships, to develop a research-based marketing program with strong measures of success, and to extend the “Virginia is for Lovers” campaign. Visit http://www.vatc.org/PAM/leverageprog.asp for more information on the program. Questions about the program can be directed to Angela Wiggins at 804-545-5553 or awiggins@virginia.org  Tell us What's New in 2013!Each year, the Marketing and Public Relations departments solicit What's New, a compilation of new, renovated or expanded attractions, accommodations, meetings spaces, sports venues and travel services opening in Virginia. Please update What's New in 2013 so we can get the word out. Please fill out the details – we’ve pushed up the date to May 25th!  Schedule Your Tourism Blitz Today! Calendars are filling up fast for the summer months, so don’t miss your opportunity! Customize your blitz options through displays, event days, banners, service counter advertising or even logo-wear advertising. To learn more contact Marie Henderson mhenderson@virginia.org. 3rd & 4th Quarter Digital Spotlights Available Now! Affordable “Spotlights” strengthen your brand and exposure with a two-minute promotional slideshow or video at a Virginia Welcome Center. Lots of bang for your buck with service-counter exposure - 5 showings per hour (80 minutes of viewing time) during each business day! For more details visit http://www.himediallc.com/Channels/Digital%20Spotlights/DigitalSpotlights.htm Help us celebrate Tourism Week (May 10-18)! Schedule a free demo at a VA Welcome Center between May 10-18 and add to the festivities and fun! For more information, please contact Marie Henderson at mhenderson@virginia.org.  Now Available! – Notes from the 2012 Visitor Centers Seminar Thanks to everyone’s support, this year’s seminar achieved record breaking attendance. The group discussion session brought great ideas to the forefront and offered attendees the opportunity to both network and brainstorm. As requested, the notes and ideas from those breakouts are now available at: http://www.vatc.org/csir/index.asp Please contact Val Guffy at vguffy@virginia.org if you need any assistance.  Order the New 2012 Virginia Golf Guide!Warm weather has golfers hitting the links early this spring. Encourage golfers to return to your area by stocking the 2012 Virginia Golf Guide at your visitor center, hotels, restaurants and B&Bs. Golfers on overnight vacation will support local lodging and restaurants and will usually want to play several course in one trip. Bulk quantities can be ordered at: http://www.vatc.org/admin/mailform/mailformPublications.htm. The box contains 161 guides and weighs 29 pounds.  Lake Effects Airing May 6Don’t miss the world premiere of Lake Effects, a film shot entirely on location at Smith Mountain Lake. It will air on the Hallmark Movie Channel Sunday May 6 at 8:00 PM, and throughout the following weeks. The film stars Scottie Thompson, Jane Seymour, and Madeline Zima but the biggest star of the film is the lake itself which plays a central role in this heartwarming story of love, family and home. For more information visit www.LakeEffectsTheMovie.com or http://www.hallmarkmoviechannel.com/hmc/lakeeffects  Virginia Green at core of new Alexandria Green Business Recognition Program! The program was developed by the Alexandria Convention & Visitors Association, a registered Virginia Green supporting organization. Virginia Green participants automatically qualify for recognition in Alexandria’s program -- a great example of a partner embracing Virginia Green and making it their own!  Add your Deal for Free to CRUSA WebsitePost a FREE Travel Deal on the CapitalRegionUSA.org website and reach a growing international audience. This free offer is open to any hotel, attraction, destination or tourism supplier in Virginia with an interest in reaching the international market. All you need to do is to complete the online form on the CRUSA website and Miles Media will create and post your Deal for you at no charge. Copy will be edited by Miles Media as necessary. You can see the Deals page on CapitalRegionUSA.org here.  Connecting for Prosperity - Charting the Future TogetherThursday, May 24, 2012 from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM; James Madison University; Harrisonburg, VA. Join representatives from Shenandoah National Park and its neighboring communities to chart a future together. This one day workshop will include presentations by guest panelists, case studies, and facilitated discussions. For more information, visit http://connectingforprosperity.eventbrite.com/ . 
Southwest Virginia Business of Tourism WorkshopJune 13, 2012 - 08:30 AM to 12:00 PM; Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center Auditorium One Partnership Circle Abingdon, Virginia 24210 The Abingdon Convention & Visitors Bureau has partnered with the Virginia Tourism Corporation and Virginia Department of Business Assistance to host a Business of Tourism Workshop for anyone interested in starting or growing tourism related business. For more information visit http://www.vastartup.org/register/events/703. 
Matching grants for electronic marketing initiatives availableVECTEC is offering matching grant programs in select localities for the development of websites and electronic commerce projects. Click here for more information http://www.vectec.org/matching-grant-programs. Entrepreneur Express and Social Media WorkshopsEntrepreneur Express and Social Media events are scheduled around the state in the coming weeks. For a complete schedule of dates and locations, click here: http://www.vastartup.org/  Virginia's Business One Stop systemThe Business One Stop system will help you determine business formation requirements based on your specific type of business and business activities. Visit http://bos.virginia.gov/  Virginia Sesquicentennial of the Civil War CommissionKeep up to date on Virginia's commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the Civil War and Emancipation (2011-2015) by visiting the web site of the Virginia Sesquicentennial of the Civil War Commission: www.virginiacivilwar.org. You'll find listings of upcoming events, a Civil War timeline in Virginia, programs, resources and news. Don't forget to post your upcoming Civil War events to www.Virginia.org as well.  Shenandoah National Park License Plates Now Available for MotorcyclesMotorcycle enthusiasts in Virginia now have the opportunity to show their love of Shenandoah National Park whenever they ride. Similar to the motor vehicle plate, every purchase of a Shenandoah motorcycle plate sends $15 to Shenandoah National Park Trust, the official non-profit "friends" group of the national park. Order your Shenandoah plates at any Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles office or online at www.snptrust.org/donate/license-plate.  Follow us on Twitter Join the Conversation! 
Join the Virginia Tourism LinkedIn GroupJoin the Virginia Tourism LinkedIn Group at www.LinkedIn.com and keep up with tourism related discussions and the latest news and opportunities in our industry.     |
Website Visitation  Virginia in the NewsVirginia tourism giving prizes to visitors in May Fox News You might be able to win front-of-the-line passes to Busch Gardens in Virginia's May tourism sweepstakes.AP If you are thinking about taking a trip to Virginia this Spring, this might be your incentive to start booking now. Virginia tourism officials ... New museum at Appomattox looks at Civil War, reunification The Seattle Times The sword Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee had at his side when ... of a new museum examining the post-Civil War struggle to heal the nation. Explore America: Virginia Is For Wine Lovers Huffington Post (blog) While "Virginia is For Lovers" has been the widely recognized ad slogan for 43 years, Virginia is also now fast becoming the destination for wine lovers. After the top American wine producing regions of California, Washington, Oregon and New York, ... See all stories on this topic » New brand name for Roanoke region: Virginia's Blue Ridge WFIR News Talk Radio The Roanoke region is now “Virginia's Blue Ridge” — at least for tourism purposes. As WFIR's Evan Jones reports, the idea is to make people think of Roanoke ... The Governor and The Donald Team Up for Wine Wine Spectator The pair were in New York at Trump Tower this week with the "Virginia Is for Lovers" campaign to get the word out. After talking up Virginia's growing wine ... US museum to welcome space shuttle Discovery Space Daily The Williamsburg Pottery: From roadside stand to retail phenomenon Daily Press As the story is often told, Jimmy Maloney began what was once Virginia's biggest tourism draw by … New and Updated Virginia.org Features New and updated features added to Virginia.org in the last few weeks are: Admin Tool Tip Images “A picture is worth a thousand words.” – Napoleon Bonaparte Don’t forget to add one (or nine) to your listings. Log in to the Administration Tool. Virginia is for Lovers Product of the Month!
 This classically styled crewneck tee is sure to become one of your favorites. Features a retro Virginia is for Lovers logo printed on the front. Available in black, white, grey and sand colors. Go to the Virginia is for Lovers Wholesale Store to order!   Not on the
email list?Sign up for the Dashboard. If you have comments or suggestions for future issues of The Dashboard please contact Mary Bishop at mbishop@virginia.org or 804-545-5556. Sign up for the Virginia Monthly eNewsletter. See how your destination, event or attraction is marketed to over 400,000 consumers. Who are these faces? Meet the staff here. |
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Tourism Works for Virginia ~ Celebrate National Tourism Week 