Wednesday, November 25, 2009
North Dakota's tourism industry has grown nearly11% in the past
couple of years, compared with only 2% on average for the United
States as a whole in the same time period. This growth has been
fueled, officials say, by increased marketing to Canadian tourists
and by business travel.
Whatever the reason, it's good news for Fargo businesses. Your
restaurant, hotel, service station, or store can benefit from those
travelers.
And how will they decide where to go? The overwhelming majority
of travelers now use the internet as their primary source of
information -- 82% always look online when they need
travel information, studies say. Often, people coming to North
Dakota on vacation will seek for a shop or restaurant that they've
heard about from friends or read about. Others will have a vague
idea that Fargo is famous for its saloons and search around for
special regional watering holes.
You can tell whether tourists are researching your business from
your website's analytics. Ask your webmaster to check to see where
your online visitors come from. Then check to see what they're
searching for. Texans looking for "Fargo bakeries" are probably
looking for you, while Texans looking for "bakeries" may just be
lost. That visitor from Vermont searching for "Midwestern
attractions" or "skydiving fargo ND" is probably a tourist.
If you have tourists visiting your website, how can you make
them feel welcome?
- Invite them to join your mailing list. Whether you do email or
physical mailings, you can send out of town visitors some
information about your business and our town.
- Link to information about Fargo and North Dakota. Out of town
visitors will appreciate your help in finding the best Fargo sites,
and you may get some good link exchanges going, too.
- Make sure you have a map! Your local visitors may know right
where your place is, but tourists need more details.