By guest columnist Andy McDonald
Local businesses received a $4 million boost from tourism in 2023, according to Director of Business and Tourism Development Donna Angel.
Angel revealed the latest numbers in a presentation to the Berea City Council at last Tuesday’s meeting, saying that by promoting conferences, festivals and events and aggressively bringing more bus traffic into the city, local businesses have reaped the financial benefits.
According to Angel, 12 conferences were held in the city last year with the cooperation of Berea Tourism, which generated $348,700 in visitor spending for restaurants, hotels, gas sales and retail. Two visits from the American Car Club alone brought in $140,000 for the Berea business. Meanwhile, festivals and events brought in $2.8 million, $2 million of which came from record attendance at the Berea Crafts Festival, which drew spending at local restaurants, hotels, campgrounds, air bnbs and other businesses. The LearnShops festival, meanwhile, brought in $250,000 in tourism spending in 2023 while supporting local artisans.
In a shift in strategy, Tourism has also been aggressively courting bus companies, attracting more overnight stays, restaurant visits and local retail spending, estimated at $886,000 last year. In total, approximately 4,905 visitors came to Berea by bus in 2023, of which 3,560 stayed overnight.
Angel said the numbers were determined through a combination of research by the city’s advertising consultant, Right Place Media, along with surveys of local business owners.
“I hope this shows that tourism is really pushing to build our city up to what we wanted it to be, whether it’s [promoting] activities, family gatherings and constantly adding new things to our city to build us up,” Angel told officials. “It’s amazing what we’ve done and I hope you’re happy with it.”
As Berea’s profile in the tourism industry has grown, so has the national recognition the city is gaining in the media. Berea was voted No. 1 as America’s Best Small Art Scenes in a recent Newsweek magazine poll, and the 6th Best Small Town Art Scene According to a USA Today Readers’ Poll. The city is ranked 4thth among America’s 50 Best Small Towns by Southern Living Magazine, and several publications touted Berea for its growing outdoor activities and charming holiday atmosphere at Christmas, which was enhanced by events such as the Mayor’s Merry Mingle in Old Town and the city’s spending on holiday decor.
Angel brought national attention to two things. After being hit by the COVID pandemic, the city was able to capitalize on its outdoor resources, such as parks, shared trails, and hiking areas, which grew in popularity during the pandemic. The same was true of the city’s LearnShop craft classes, which were redesigned to suit the new tastes of post-pandemic travelers, offering newer and more group-oriented experiences.
In addition, Tourism is committed to reaching a broader national audience by expanding its advertising to surrounding states, the East Coast and the Western states. Then-Tourism Media Manager Danny Gift successfully leveraged that advertising spend by significantly increasing Berea’s social media following. Before long, Berea was receiving an increasing number of comments in national magazines and websites.
Angel said tourism officials quickly learned there was an important correlation between the amount of paid advertising and social media growth. When Berea Tourism advertises, the number of followers on platforms such as Facebook and Instagram increases. Thus, paid advertising gives free advertising.
“The moment we run an ad in a national magazine, our total followers will jump from 20,000 to almost a million. That’s the biggest return on our dollars,” Angel said.
She added that tourism is using this increased exposure to boost local businesses on social media. As a result, a small, independent restaurant that may not have the funds to purchase advertising benefits because of Berea Tourism’s overall advertising investment.
“After the pandemic, we learned that we will all be one,” Angel said after the meeting. “Every business out there is affected in one way or another by what we do.”
Angel remembered when he first started working in the city, about five years ago, when the Berea Tourism Commission and the city administration changed their tourism strategy. They went from highlighting Berea’s identity as the Folk Arts and Crafts Capital of Kentucky to attracting a wider range of visitors, promoting outdoor activities, free outdoor music and using tourism funds to create resources that can to benefit both local residents and attract visitors, such as shared use trails, the Chestnut Street Pavilion and the Silver Creek Bike Park.
Is there a return on investment in tourism? Angel said absolutely, but added that it’s not always clear to the people who live here.
“Our city continues to be a strong, healthy community and people really want to be a part of our city,” Angel said. “I think sometimes it’s hard for people who live here to recognize what a remarkable and unique place this is.”
