By DONALD WITTKOWSKI
After Hurricane Sandy lashed the Jersey Shore in 2012, Sea Isle City rented a billboard outside the Lincoln Tunnel with the message “We’re Ready” to let tourists in the New York City area know that the beach town had recovered from the storm and was open for business.
Now, the Sea Isle City Tourism Commission is planning a similar marketing campaign in coming weeks to help draw visitors to town during the summer vacation season once fears of the coronavirus pandemic calm down.
“We were very, very aggressive with the ‘We’re Ready’ campaign,” Tourism Commission Chairman James Bennett said Thursday during a board meeting.
He thinks Sea Isle should follow a similar strategy by launching a post-coronavirus marketing campaign that would assure visitors the shore is a safe place for them to spend their summer vacations.
“We are looking for leadership and direction on how to market Sea Isle City post-coronavirus,” he said.
Bennett called for a meeting between tourism representatives and Mayor Leonard Desiderio to begin planning a promotional campaign that would duplicate the success of Sea Isle’s marketing efforts after Hurricane Sandy hit.
“So that’s where we want to go again,” he said.
Sea Isle rented the ‘We’re Ready” billboard outside the Lincoln Tunnel connecting New Jersey and Manhattan to dispel the perception that every Jersey Shore town was devastated by the hurricane.
The “We’re Ready” campaign was credited with helping Sea Isle to quickly rejuvenate its economy after Sandy by attracting visitors from the tourist-rich areas of New York City and North Jersey.
Bennett praised Desiderio for his efforts, following the hurricane, to organize the mayors of other shore towns to let the public and news media know that the Cape May County beach resorts had recovered from Sandy and we’re ready to welcome tourists for the summer.
(Sea Isle City 30-second tourism commercial)
Now, as the coronavirus pandemic unfolds, Sea Isle tourism officials want to promote the beach town as a safe and “therapeutic” place for tourists to spend their summer vacations.
With coronavirus-related travel restrictions to Europe announced by President Donald Trump, Sea Isle officials are hoping that more visitors will drive to the Jersey Shore for their vacations if they can’t fly abroad.
“We’re going to see how people travel as this thing evolves,” said Katherine Custer, Sea Isle’s public information officer.
Bennett speculated that Sea Isle’s second homeowners will choose to spend more time at the shore this summer to escape any coronavirus restrictions or fears.
“Everybody’s going to be using their second homes,” he told the Tourism Commission members. “I think we’re really going to have a big season.”
In the meantime, Sea Isle is also in the process of rolling out parts of its traditional $100,000 summer marketing campaign, including billboards in the Philadelphia area, social media, web commercials and other forms of advertising.
Web commercials consisting of 15-second and 30-second spots focus on the ocean, beaches and Sea Isle’s family-friendly surroundings.
For the second year in a row, the marketing campaign features the slogan “Reconnect in Sea Isle!” The web commercials beckon visitors with the words, “Reconnect, Refresh, Relax: Reconnect in Sea Isle City, New Jersey.”
Sea Isle is also printing 40,000 copies of its annual visitors guide, a compendium of local attractions, special events and other information helpful to vacationers. Of those, 6,500 copies will be mailed directly to local property owners.
