By DONALD WITTKOWSKI
Be on the lookout for some Sea Isle City swag circulating around the country – and even north of the border – pretty soon.
Sea Isle will be getting some national – and even some international – exposure when the Cape May County Tourism Department kicks off its 2020 marketing plan during a series of travel shows throughout the Mid-Atlantic Region and in Canada.
The marketing plan will include some Sea Isle-themed tourism literature and keepsakes, including keychains, cup holders, beach balls and yellow bags emblazoned with the town’s logo.
“It’s a good way to market the city,” Sea Isle spokeswoman Katherine Custer said.
The travel shows will run through early May, giving Cape May County nearly 50 days and 500 hours to promote itself in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Washington, D.C., and Montreal, Canada.
“The response at the travel shows gives us an indication of what to expect for the upcoming summer season,” Diane Wieland, the county’s tourism director, said in a press release. “The enthusiasm of those who visit our booth and the stories of their vacation memories make the long hours at the booth enjoyable and rewarding.”
Sea Isle is one of the municipalities and organizations that partner with the county in the Cape May County Travel Show Cooperative. The city pays the county $10,000 annually to help promote Sea Isle.
“It’s money well spent in the aspect that it puts the name of Sea Isle City out there further and broader in the tourism industry,” Custer said.
Other marketing partners in the Cape May County Travel Show Cooperative include Cumberland County, the Cape May County Chamber of Commerce, Avalon, Stone Harbor, the Greater Wildwoods Tourism Improvement and Development Authority and the Cape May City Chamber of Commerce.
Sea Isle’s partnership in the marketing plan ensures that it gets a prominent place at the county’s exhibit booth during the travel shows, giving it a big opportunity to distribute its promotional literature, keychains and other keepsakes.
“By being a partner with the county, we have more presence,” Custer explained.
Separately, Sea Isle also has the Sea Isle City Tourism Commission, an agency that focuses on drawing visitors from the tri-state area. The Cape May County Travel Show Cooperative, though, helps Sea Isle and the other partners extend their reach into the national and international tourism markets.
Last year, Cape May County distributed more than 300,000 pieces of promotional literature at travel shows. It included guide books, brochures, a calendar of events and promotional items from throughout the county, providing visitors information on attractions, lodging, dining and events, according to the press release.
In Cape May County, tourism is a $6.6 billion industry and attracts 10 million annual visitors. The county will use the travel shows to draw even more visitors in 2020.
“The travel shows run during the winter months when families are making their summer vacation plans,” said Cape May County Freeholder Director Gerald M. Thornton, liaison to the Tourism Department. “The Tourism Department has participated in travel shows for more than 45 years. This is a part of the Tourism Department’s comprehensive marketing campaign that draws 10 million visitors to Cape May County.”
Thornton noted that the travel shows are an effective way to talk one-on-one with potential and return visitors to Cape May County and to help them plan their vacations.
The Cape May County Travel Show Cooperative was organized 10 years ago to share the growing costs of exhibiting at the various shows. Often, the Tourism Department would be at a show and find other towns and resort properties in the county exhibiting at the same show, the press release said.
The Travel Show Cooperative brought the partners together to promote the county as one destination with a diverse appeal to vacationers. This resulted in reduced costs to the partners and an opportunity to expand the county’s reach and participate in more shows.
Following is the 2020 Travel Show Schedule:
Pittsburgh, Pa. – AAA Travel Showcase, Jan. 23-25
Hartford, Conn. – Northeast Outdoor Show, Jan. 24-25
Harrisburg, Pa. – Great American Outdoor Show, Jan. 31-Feb. 9
Springfield, Mass. – Travel and Outdoor Show, Feb. 14-17
Montreal, Canada – Travel and Outdoor Show, Feb. 20-23
Oaks, Pa. – Philadelphia Travel and Fishing Show, Feb. 20-23
Bethlehem, Pa. – Lehigh Valley Vacation Expo, Feb. 22-23
Suffern, N.Y. – World Fishing & Outdoor Expo, Feb. 27-March 1
Philadelphia Flower Show – Feb. 29-March 8
Washington, D.C. – Travel & Adventure Show, March 7-8
Philadelphia, Pa. – Travel & Adventure Show, March 14-16
Springfield, Mass. – Dream Destinations Travel Show, May 2-4
