At Visit Winona’s Connecting Winona meetings, Partnership Director Kate Carlson selects a topic in which to brief our partners and provide additional information. Check back to this page for updates, and reach out to Kate for more information or for past resources/handouts.

  • March 2020: Explore Minnesota’s annual “Tourism & Minnesota’s Economy” Fact Sheet
    • The impact that hospitality and tourism have on Winona County continues to rise–Our gross sales tax figures are up 8.26% in the last year! Learn more about the impact of hospitality on the EMT Industry Website.

 

  • February 2020: Visit Winona Experience Development Grant Program
    • Visit Winona is seeking partners to help us offer new and exciting experiential opportunities to our visitors and residents. If you are an attraction or business in the Winona region and want to develop or enhance a tourism-related experience, apply from February 1, 2020 to March 13, 2020 and you could be invited to present your idea live March 19, 2020 at No Name Bar in downtown Winona. Grant recipients will receive a minimum of $1,000, and a maximum of $5,000, toward a new interactive offering.

 

  • January 2020: How to Authentically Connect with All Generations
    • Knowing that emotion — not price — is behind travelers’ decision-making processes means travel marketers should showcase unique activities and experiences through dynamic campaigns. Here’s how to drill down to the kinds of activities each generation prefers and how to best reach those generations.

 

  • November 2019: Visit Winona Marketing Campaigns 2019
    • Through a new playful tone, the Visit Winona marketing team have been creating some fun and unique campaigns this year. Check out the sampling of advertisements included in the sheet above and reach out to Cynthya or Kate with questions.

 

  • September 2019: Visit Winona Market Research
    • Market research was conducted in Spring 2019 to determine how much customer-based brand equity Winona holds when a visitor is choosing a travel destination. The goal was to identify areas where changes to Visit Winona’s strategy can be most effective.

 

  • August 2019: VisitWinona.com–our viewer’s online journey
    • Google Analytics helps shed light on the data gathered through visitor traffic on our website. Review the summary above for statistics comparing year-to-year information.

 

  • July 2019: Winona Visitor Center
    • Visit Winona has updated its sign-in, visitor tracking sheet at the Winona Visitor Center, and after a year of data collecting have some unique finds to share. Click on the link above to learn about why guests are coming to town and how many folks are walking through our Visitor Center doors.

 

  • June 2019: Partner Activation #weirdwinonawednesday
    • We need YOU! For the past year, Visit Winona has been talking about how “Surprisingly Weird and Incredibly Entertaining” Winona is. Now it’s your turn to share. What do you think makes Winona weird AND wonderful? Include the hashtag above on Wednesdays in your social media posts and join the conversation.

 

  • February 2019: Explore Minnesota Tourism Conference
    • The Visit Winona team attended the annual Explore Minnesota Tourism Conference in early February, and came back with great insight and industry information, not to mention two new marketing awards–one for Cynthya Porter as tourism trailblazer, and another for excellence in marketing for Visit Winona’s Facebook Live campaign: https://visitwinona.com/news/visit-winona-marketing-efforts-win-at-tourism-conference/

 

  • January 2019: Travel Influencers and Marketing
    • Influencers have become an integral part of many brands’ marketing strategies as today’s consumers trust peer recommendations above all other forms of marketing, (92% of consumers trust influencers more than traditional celebrity endorsements or advertisements.) Instagram travel influencers have turned documenting their travels into a business and have gained cult followings. Leveraging partnerships with these influencers can help hospitality brands reach a wider audience and boost engagement and bookings all while showcasing the brand in an authentic and organic way.

 

  • December 2018: Using Photography to Increase Sales
    • Photos really are worth a thousand words: Without printing a word, photographs can inspire, educate and motivate people to action. Get some additional tips and tricks in the attached handout, as well as some important copyright and licensing reminders.

 

  • November 2018: Sharing Winona on Instagram
    • Follow Visit Winona here and check out the latest in promoting our area in this incredibly successful, visual platform.

 

  • September 2018: The State of the Visitor Guide
    • In today’s digital world, a print version of a travel guidebook may appear to be a dinosaur. Surprisingly though, a vast majority of travelers continue to find it cumbersome to navigate digital guidebooks, which is obviously not the straightforward page-turning experience associated with reading a traditional visitor guide.

 

  • August 2018: Using Facebook to Build Advocates
    • What one person says about your brand, whether through online reviews, social media or even while having coffee with a friend, has the ability to convert like nothing else. According to research by Nielsen, 92% of consumers trust brand advocates over other forms of advertising. Building brand advocates often starts with identifying your most passionate supporters and finding a way to appeal to their existing habits, interests, and motivations —

 

  • July 2018: Identifying your Target Market
    • When it comes to marketing, we have more options than ever before to reach our preferred customers! This may be daunting, but it’s also extremely exciting if you put some extra thought behind WHO these people are. Target marketing allows you to focus your marketing dollars and brand message on a specific market that is more likely to buy from you than other markets. This is a much more affordable, efficient, and effective way to reach potential clients and generate business.
    • View the Single Audience Profile Exercise here

 

  • May 2018: National Travel & Tourism Week 2018
    • What is National Travel and Tourism Week?
      • National Travel and Tourism Week (NTTW), now in its 35th year, is the annual salute to travel in America.
      • During the first full week in May, communities nationwide unite to showcase the impact of travel to policymakers, business leaders and media with rallies, events and other activities.
      • This NTTW, the industry is coming together to recognize the many contributions of travel and tourism over the last several decades.

 

  • April 2018: 2018 Visit Winona Marketing Grant Program
    • The Visit Winona Marketing Grant Program has been created solely to increase travel and tourism in our community by assisting partner attractions and events in marketing to their target markets that are more than 60 miles from Winona.

 

  • February 2018: 2018 Marketing Opportunities and Resources

 

  • January 2018: Partnership 2018 Guide
    • We are excited to welcome you as a 2018 Visit Winona partner, and want to provide you with the best experience this next year.

 

  • December 2017: Experience Marketing for All
    • Your audience cannot get excited about, or feel any emotion over: counties, convention centers, building facades, ‘welcome to’ city signs, attractions, hotels, etc. However, if they can make an emotional connection and imagine themselves in an experience in your destination—people will remember your name AND make plans to visit.

 

  • November 2017: Associations: Who and why?
    • Whether you are interested in strengthening your network, furthering your career or maybe just in need of a few more friends, professional networking organizations can be a great option for you. In addition to providing information about your chosen field, professional organizations can enhance your personal and professional development and provide endless networking opportunities.

 

  • October 2017: Winona Originals Campaign
    • Eight legendary festivals. One great city.

 

  • September 2017: Google My Business
    • Google. We all use it and love it. Have you Googled your business recently? Your listing appears right when people are searching for your business or businesses like yours on Google Search and Maps. Google My Business makes it easy to create and update your listing—so you can stand out, and bring customers in. *An unclaimed page can still rank well, but you want to be able to make changes easily, and you probably don’t want other people’s public edits to be approved easily.

 

  • May and June 2017: Group Tour 101 and Make the Most of Meeting in Winona
    • Bring your group together in a beautiful environment that enhances your group tour or meeting’s objectives. Visit Winona’s resources are readily available to facilitate the planning process and create a highly successful event.

 

  • April 2017: Winona Coloring Book Project
    • Visit Winona is excited to spearhead a customized “Winona Coloring Book,” and we are looking to area attractions and organizations to feature on its pages. Visit Winona has partnered with local artists Julie Johnston, Julia Crozier, and Toni Ambrosen to create customized pages for individual sponsor businesses. The artist will choose the specific subject matter for the sponsor’s page and work with the business on final approval of design. Contact Kate for more information.

 

  • March 2017: “Surprisingly Weird” Marketing Campaign
    • You have to see it for yourself~

 

  • February 2017: Selling Experience vs. Destination
    • Today’s traveler is healthier, wealthier, more educated and better traveled than previous generations. The consequences of these realities for tour and travel suppliers are enormous. No longer are people content to just get away or travel to a destination. The importance and type of experience they are looking for is a major part of their travel equation. In order for organizations to quickly design and create compelling experiences, they need to embrace innovation. This involves testing new products and services on a regular basis.

 

  • January 2017: Sharing Visit Winona
    • With the start of the new year, there are many ways your organization can assist in spreading good cheer about our area.

 

  • December 2016: Holiday Social Media Ideas for Every Business
    • Social media is a powerful marketing tool during the holidays. One survey showed 50 percent of customers use social media to find deals, and others use it to research gift ideas and learn about a specific company, according to Statista. To help businesses use social media to increase brand awareness and give sales a boost, here are four holiday ideas you can use on your social channels this season.

 

  • November 2016: The Importance of Printed Brochures and Rack Cards
    • You may be thinking: We live in an online world; printed brochures are becoming obsolete. As much as we’re tied to our smartphones and computers, there’s still no substitute for holding something tangible in your hands; especially while traveling. Seven out of ten visitors pick up at least one brochure while on a trip. Of those, nearly half (42%) plan on purchasing goods or services as a result of picking up their brochure.

 

  • October 2016: Google Trips: What you need to know
    • Google Trips is a new app promising to “plan and organize your trip in just minutes.” Without the use of wi-fi, users can access half day or full day customized itineraries on popular cities, suggestions on things to see and do, places to eat, transportation options, and more. Using algorithms and old-fashioned algebra, Google Trips is unique because it maps out and makes recommendations on the best use of your limited time for exploring any urban destination.