Area business owners and interested residents gathered at the Fairfield Inn on Thursday night to hear the short and long term goals set forth by the VISIT the Yadkin Valley tourism development authority.

Chairperson Ann Ashman, spoke to the group about the objectives of the marketing plan.

"The objective of the marketing plan is to attract tourists and new residents to the area, create a positive economic impact on the area and provide employment for residents in the community," Ashman said. "VISIT the Yadkin Valley receives its funding from Downtown Elkin, Inc., the Elkin Tourism Authority, the Jonesville Tourism Authority and the Yadkin Valley Chamber of Commerce. I think it is very interesting to note that, according to the numbers just released by the NC Tourism Industry Association, tourism related spending saves every household in Yadkin County $138 per year and every household in Surry County $231, so if it wasn’t for the work of our various TDA each Yadkin County household would be paying $138 more in taxes and Surry County Households would be paying $231.

"The VISIT the Yadkin Valley’s marketing plan is designed to promote the Yadkin Valley area, a 15-mile radius of Elkin-Jonesville," she said. "We have a presence on the Visit NC website which is the main site for tourism promotion in North Carolina. We also offer a downloadable version of our Yadkin Valley Visitors’ Guide on the state’s tourism site and have committed to that for another year."

The annual budget for fiscal year 2010 - 2011 is $25,000 for the TDA.

Ashman told the group that the Visitors Guide is the main marketing publication for VISIT the Yadkin Valley and that it is updated at least twice a year. This to ensure that potential visitors as well as residents will have accurate and current information.

"The guides are distributed at the Jonesville Welcome Center, the Chamber’s Visitors’ Center, the North Carolina Welcome Centers on I-77 and I-85, and  Stone Mountain State Park," Ashman said. "The Visitors’ Guides are also placed in goody bags for various conferences, sports tournaments and special events held in the Yadkin Valley and mailed to potential visitors requesting tourist information about the area. More than 20,000 of the guides have been distributed.
"We have also partnered with the Elkin Tourism Development and the Jonesville Tourism Development Authority in their efforts to capitalize on the Blue Ridge Parkway’s 75th Anniversary," she said. "These are the advertisements that were placed in the Blue Ridge Parkway guide by the two tourism authorities, and both used VISIT the Yadkin Valley’s toll free number and website. Again, this is just another way we pool our collective resources to further tourism in our towns."

The Visit the Yadkin Valley campaign expects to increase its visibility in 2011 in the Official 2011 Travel Guide for North Carolina.

"The logo listing will not only generate more calls to our toll free number and drive more viewers to our website; it will also be a part of the state’s digital version of guide which will be available on the state tourism website," Ashman said.

"The Tote Bags have also become extremely popular," she said. "We sold out of everything we took to the Surry Old Time Fiddlers Convention and the Yadkin Valley Wine Festival this past year. And once again, the bags provided us with an opportunity to partner with one of our funding agencies. This advertisement which appears on the back page of the Official Interstate Guide was purchased by the Jonesville TDA. One million copies are distributed quarterly throughout North Carolina and Virginia. The ad encourages travelers to bring the ad to the Jonesville Welcome Center and they will receive the tote bag as a free gift. Visit the Yadkin Valley has a comprehensive website www.visittheyadkinvalley.com. This is a vital piece of the marketing plan and offers a clear and concise representation of the area to those that visit the website."

VISIT the Yadkin Valley has its own toll free number 1-877-SAVORYV (728-6798). This allows a potential visitor to talk with someone for answers to their questions about the area.

"We hear over and over again from those callers that they are impressed that a “live” person answers the telephone," Ashman said. "Thanks to our association with the Jonesville Welcome Center this line is answered seven days a week until 8 p.m. We are extremely pleased with the advancements VISIT they Yadkin Valley has made in promoting tourism in its four years of existence, and look forward to what we can accomplish in the future. Our Board members and staff are heavily involved with other tourism groups and agencies that are working hard to foster our emerging tourism industry. We're looking forward to the next five years. This has truly been a cooperative effort."

Yadkin Valley Chamber of Commerce CEO, Laurette Leagon, spoke to the group about the Jonesville Greenway Project.

"The Jonesville Tourism Development Authority’s Greenway project is getting very close to breaking ground," Leagon said. "All the necessary surveys are finished or in the final stages. We’re keeping our fingers crossed that the promise of the clean water management grant coming thru in August will be a reality. Once that grant comes thru construction on phase 1 which is from the Welcome Center to I-77 can begin. The Jonesville TDA is also exploring the possibility of installing a temporary trail, picnic tables and parking area near the Welcome Center. If this pans out we could have something in place in 12 to 18 months.

"As far as the other phases go the TDA will begin to seek out additional grants from other agencies such as the North Carolina Parks and Recreation Trust Fund and the North Carolina Dept of Transportation Enhancement Funds," she said. "This process could take six months to a year. The Jonesville TDA knows this project is a huge undertaking, but they truly believe it will not only make a huge difference in tourism development for the town of Jonesville, it will also offer a greenway system that the town residents can be proud of  and will be enjoyed by generations to come."

The greenway project will have an eight-foot-wide trail where residents and visitors can walk along and enjoy the Yadkin River. The greenway will run 2.6 miles from the Gwyn McNeil brigde to Interstate 77. The greenway will be a total of 32 miles from Jonesville to Rockford. The TDA is hoping to add a parking area and tributary at the Welcome Center in Jonesville for additional use by residents and visitors.

"The greenway will make a huge difference not onlly to Jonesville, but to tourism development in the area," Leagon said.

Brandon McCann from the Cascade Highland was in attendance at the meeting and spoke briefly to the group about the co-op marketing where areas can bundle their marketing as a destination and help to bring down the cost of individual TDA's expenses. McCann explained to the group that they (The Cascade Highlands), have discovered through their research that perception of a region is very important when marketing to the nation.

Elkin's tourism director, Leslie Schlendler, spoke to the group about the combined effort of all the area TDA's. Schlendler will take her position as chairperson for the Very Surry campaign in July.