Anyone who has followed the path of Todd Lucier and how to optimize the Internet knows getting great content up on your website is essential — and it must be continual. For many small businesses this is difficult for all sorts of reasons.
This week in BC a new program to help communities is being launched and Vancouver Island has been a benefactor. This new initiative will help drive content and quality to our main DMO site. Read! If you know of other provinces or communities where this is happening, share the news!
February 27, 2009
Nanaimo, BC
Qualicum Beach first of many Vancouver Island communities
to gain valuable exposure on HelloBC.com
For immediate release: The Community Content Project is a collaborative effort between Tourism BC and Tourism Vancouver Island to increase regional and community content on HelloBC®.com that currently did not exist. With the support of Oceanside Tourism, Qualicum Beach is the first community within the Vancouver Island region to join this community content project.
“It’s not every day that all levels of BC’s tourism marketing framework come together on a project.” Said Blain Sepos, Executive Director of Oceanside Tourism Association. “The Community Content program did just that and we are excited and honoured that Qualicum Beach was chosen as the island pilot project.”
Rather than hire external writers to research the communities from afar, Vancouver Island writer, Jeff Bateman, was assigned to visit Qualicum Beach to spend time in the community. Bateman toured the area and met with various key tourism partners, gathering their input regarding what they felt made the community unique. The purpose of the visit was to explore what unique experiences Qualicum Beach has to offer, and share this information with visitors to BC. The Qualicum Beach content on HelloBC.com has increased from 2 to 15 pages of travel information on topics including Culture & History, Accommodation, Dining, Things to Do, Geography and Weather, Transportation and pages about various key activities in the area. To view the updated content, visit www.HelloBC.com and www.HelloBC.com/en-CA/RegionsCities/QualicumBeach.htm
“Making information gathering easy for the travelling consumer is extremely important in our role of promoting the Vancouver Island region as a premier destination.” says Dave Petryk, President & CEO of Tourism Vancouver Island. “By adding well-written community content to the HelloBC website we are making the site a tourist’s one-stop-shop.”
Several Vancouver Island region communities are currently engaged in this project including Nanaimo, Salt Spring Island, and Chemainus, with an additional 25 communities scheduled to follow.
Vancouver Island continues to be recognized as a premier vacation destination. Since 2000, Vancouver Island has been rated as the Best Island in North America by the readers of Condé Nast Traveler. This prestigious travel magazine with a per issue readership of over 2 million has been conducting a Readers’ Choice award program since 1988.
Tourism Vancouver Island is one of six regional destination marketing organizations in British Columbia that administers co-operative marketing and advertising projects for its stakeholders throughout the region on behalf of Tourism British Columbia. To access information about Tourism Vancouver Island and marketing initiatives, please visit www.tourismvi.ca. For general travel information on Vancouver Island, Victoria and the Gulf Islands, please visit www.vancouverisland.travel.
Media Contacts:
Dave Petryk
President & CEO
Tourism Vancouver Island
Direct: 250-740-1211
Cell: 250-739-9088
Email: dave@tourismvi.ca
