The Augusta Metro Chamber of Commerce hosted its first Women in Business luncheon of 2021 with guest speaker Lindsay Fruchtl, vice president of marketing for Augusta Convention and Visitors Bureau.
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After a round of charades as an ice breaker, Fruchtl talked about a new marketing campaign called “Come See Augusta” that focuses on boldness, diversity and youthfulness.
“We actually started working on this campaign back in the fall of 2019,” said Fruchtl. “Community pride is a big, big part of this campaign.”
The development of the COVID-19 vaccine and the distribution of the coronavirus vaccine are helping people to feel a little more optimistic, according to Fruchtl.
“Roughly 61 percent are feeling optimistic about that (normalcy), and a little over 56 percent are optimistic about being able to travel safely within the next six months,” said Fruchtl of statistics pulled from recent research.
The “Come See Augusta” campaign has five main goals: bold, diverse and young; Augusta’s stories; promotion of local experiences for leisure travelers; enhancement of community pride; and increase market shares.
Ease and accessibility are what place Augusta apart from other locations like Columbus, S. C., according to Fruchtl.
“It’s easy to get here, and once you are here, it’s not stressful. You can get anywhere in Augusta in 15 or 20 minutes maximum. This makes it a very easy destination to explore,” said Fruchtl. “When you come here people are going to be very nice to you and you are going to feel welcomed.”
Augusta has just enough attractions for a two- to three-day vacation, according to Fruchtl. This is what Fruchtl and her team are focusing on by illustrating Augusta’s hotels, convention center and walkability of downtown.
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The campaign embodies authentic experiences and having visitors become a part of the community.
“We did conduct a contest early on to identify a key group of locals to participate in the campaign,” said Fruchtlf.
Positive results have been found since the paid portion launch in August with about 18.8 million people having seen the ads and more than100,000 clicking on the ads to visit the website for more information, according to Fruchtl.
She added, “As far as industry average for travel and tourism, this campaign is performing well above that.”
There are several future projects that Fruchtl and her team are planning like the redesign of their website and an international soul music and food festival to honor the late James Brown.
Haley Knight is a contributor for The Augusta Press. Reach him at haley.knight@TheAugustaPRESS.com
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