Radio ad spots began running in June on KGO 810 AM in the San Francisco Bay Area and KSTE 650 AM in the Sacramento area and will continue into the month of August. The campaign promotes Lake County as an affordable, nearby vacation destination where visitors can experience the area’s charming towns, award-winning wines, and amazing outdoor recreation.
“Often, in tough economic times, many businesses and destinations hold back and don’t advertise,” said Debra Sommerfield, deputy administrative officer for Economic Development. “We decided to see this as an opportunity. With fewer advertisers out there, we have been able to negotiate ad rates and get more exposure for the money.”
While in previous years, Lake County was competing for travelers’ attention with higher-priced family vacations like air/cruise packages and theme parks, Sommerfield said that this year, travelers are looking to stick closer to home, and they are much more price-sensitive.
“We believe this puts Lake County in a good position to be considered as a viable vacation destination for value-seeking travelers from the Bay Area and the Sacramento Valley,” she said.
In April, the Lake County Marketing Program entered into an underwriting agreement to sponsor a new travel series on public television, “OpenRoad with Doug McConnell.”
The well-respected host of the former “Bay Area Backroads” show that aired for many years on KRON-SF, McConnell launched this new travel series this spring on public television.
The series is being broadcast on KQED on Monday evenings and randomly throughout the week and has been approved for syndication, which makes it available to any public television stations across the country which might choose to pick it up.
Lake County is featured with an on-air underwriting message at the beginning and end of each episode along with a presence on the show’s companion Web site, www.openroad.tv .
In addition, the Marketing Program is hosting a booth at the 12th annual Sunset Celebration Weekend, an event presented by Sunset Magazine, a monthly travel and lifestyle magazine focused on living in the West, which is held Saturday and Sunday, June 6-7, at the publication’s headquarters facility and test garden in Menlo Park.
This is the second year the county is participating in this event and once again is partnering with both the Lake County Winery Association, which is staffing the booth and pouring Lake County wines for event-goers to sample, and the Lake County Winegrape Commission, which is generously donating an impressive prize package.
The Lake County Marketing Program is a division of the County Administrative Office and promotes tourism to and commerce in Lake County. The Marketing Program’s promotional efforts range from advertising and print materials to travel shows and media relations.
Funding for the Lake County Marketing Program is derived from local transient occupancy taxes (hotel bed taxes) collected in the unincorporated areas of Lake County, as well as through participation agreements with other entities including the city of Clearlake, the city of Lakeport, Big Valley Rancheria, Robinson Rancheria and others.
For more information, contact the Lake County Marketing and Economic Development Program at 707-263-2580.
