Utah Tourism Office spreads the ‘love’ to Southern Utah

ST. GEORGE — The Greater Zion Convention and Tourism Office Interim Director Brittany McMichael applauds the new state tourism campaign and reminds visitors to recreate responsibly.

Camping by the Virgin River, Virgin, Utah, unspecified date | Photo courtesy of Greater Zion Convention and Tourism Office, St. George News

“We want people to love our national and state parks, but with that love comes a measure of responsibility,” McMichael told St. George News. “And that means everything from being prepared when they head out into the parks and having the right equipment, gear and water to packing everything they take in.”

Southern Utah is part of the Utah Tourism Spring campaign from mid-Febuary to June 30. A new television commercial, “In Love. In Utah,” is one of the features of the marketing plan.

“It’s a great spot and a good message,” McMichael said. “We support it.” 

According to a 2019 news release issued by the Utah Office of Tourism, anthropologist and tourism expert, Sagar Singh wrote that “love is the single vein that links all tourism.” 

“This love is uniquely experienced in Utah amidst our diverse and breathtaking landscapes that naturally invite exploration,” the news release added. “This year’s new creative (campaign) highlights friends, families, and loved ones from all walks of life making memories by thoughtfully exploring Utah’s national parks, scenic monuments, recreational areas and public lands.”

Some tips McMichael has for visitors to Southern Utah include researching where one wants to go and being prepared. 

Angel’s Landing’s switchbacks, Zion National Park, Utah, unspecified date | Photo courtesy of Greater Zion Convention and Tourism Office, St. George News

“Take time to understand what you’re getting into, don’t rush and don’t don’t try to pack too much into one visit,” she said. “We understand when people are coming to visit that often; they don’t have a lot of time. Make sure you’re allowing for enough days while you’re in the area so that you don’t have to hurry through the experience.”

McMichael said her office supports the state’s strategy of inspiring travel by showcasing the beautiful scenery and powerful reputation of Utah’s national parks and leveraging the Mighty 5.

McMichael added that her office would do additional advertising in the spring.

Ben Cook, the Utah Department of Tourism director of marketing and communication, told St. George News the state wants both quality and a higher number of tourists.

“Instead of showing just the most famous places in Utah, we show other adjacent areas to inspire people to explore new areas,” Cook said. “We have different times of day — different seasons.”

For instance, the campaign may showcase snow at Canyonlands to draw people to visit in winter instead of summer. Cook said the campaign also highlights various activities tourists can participate in. 

The Utah Office of Tourism’s goals include the following:

  • Promote travel to Southern Utah,
  • Attract quality travelers who stay longer, experience more and travel thoughtfully,
  • Continue to build awareness of Utah’s unique product — the Mighty 5,
  • Encourage planning, preparation and thoughtful behavior,
  • Educate booked and likely-to-book travelers to plan and prepare for their trip.

The marketing message focuses on sustainable, thoughtful tourism and slow travel. By inspiring different ideas and itineraries, Cook said he hopes that tourists who visit well-known places like national parks will take an extra day to visit places off the beaten path. 

“They could visit a state park, spend money in a local community and visit some restaurants they might have just driven through on their way somewhere else,” Cook said. “And so, a variety of things we do across the marketing campaigns (is) to inspire and get them thinking about additional or other things they might do.”

McMichael said the message of stewardship is essential to teach the younger generation. 

“We are so fortunate to live in a beautiful area and have these amazing parks and trails that we’re able to experience on a daily basis, but we have to be mindful of how they’re treated,” she said. “We have to teach our kids how to treat our land as well.”

McMichael said it also helps to show children that when they are recreating, they need to be respectful of not only the land but also other people out exploring.

The state Board of Tourism Development approved a $4.4 million budget and marketing plan for the campaign. This year’s paid media plan includes connected TV, out-of-home, digital, and paid social media marketing. The program also promotes content through public relations, its website and email newsletter.

Additionally, the state board of tourism does a lot of behind-the-scenes work. Cook said the pandemic hurt international travel. His office’s international team focuses on global markets, like China, that are returning less than their pre-COVID numbers. 

“We’re not seeing international travel quite to where it was pre-pandemic, but our office is doing a lot to drive that awareness internationally,” Cook said. “Because those international tourists are (a) really valuable part of the visitor economy we have here in Utah.” 

His staff recently visited India for the first time and recently did a trade mission to Mexico City and Australia. 

“Those efforts are not broad advertising campaigns, but they’re targeted to important markets,” Cook said. “The other thing we do is bring international tour operators and some journalists to experience Utah.” 

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2023, all rights reserved.

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