More than 70 local tourism industry representatives braved the winter storm on January 30 to attend the first Let’s Talk Tourism seminar of 2019, hosted by Grey County tourism staff. The first quarterly event brought together tourism professionals to learn about the county’s tourism initiatives, to discuss challenges and opportunities facing the industry and to hear from keynote speaker Erin Bury, managing director of the Toronto-based marketing agency Eighty-Eight.

The seminar opened with an update from Grey County tourism staff who provided a 2018 wrap up. Grey County actively works to increase sustainable tourism revenues by supporting local tourism businesses and marketing the area as a four-season tourism destination. These activities are guided by the Grey County Destination Development Action Plan. Attendees learned about the progress made in 2018 on the plan’s four key pillars: stakeholder engagement, destination management, market research and tracking, and resource allocation. Staff also provided an outlook for 2019 which will see the development of a new marketing strategy, seasonal campaigns, a website overhaul and more.

The day’s keynote presentation was given by Erin Bury, and experienced marketer who was named one of Marketing Magazine’s Top 30 under 30. Bury spoke to attendees about simple and cost-effective strategies businesses can adopt to attract more millennial travelers and offered valuable tips about how to attract and retain millennial talent for their business in the rapidly changing digital landscape. Bury’s expertise was timely and well-received as employee attraction and retention continues to be a challenge facing our regional workforce.

Let’s Talk Tourism events are hosted by Grey County quarterly. Events are open to all tourism businesses and partners, but advance registration is required. Anyone interested in attending future Let’s Talk Tourism events can sign up for the Grey County Tourism industry newsletter through www.VisitGrey.ca, or they can contact Alison Theodore at [email protected].

source: media release, Grey County