Tourism Revelstoke says keeping community spirits up, engaging locals, and event planning will be key to recovering Revelstoke’s economic and tourism industry once COVID-19 travel bans are lifted.
“It’s going to be increasingly competitive against other destinations within B.C., so anything we can do to make ourselves stand out is going to be really crucial in making Revelstoke an appealing destination,” Tourism Revelstoke media and events coordinator Robyn Goldsmith said during an online tourism industry round table held on Friday, April 3.
Tourism Revelstoke is hosting weekly online tourism sector calls for local businesses. Friday’s meeting focused on providing information on what Tourism Revelstoke is working on, as well as providing information on how businesses can stay relevant in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis. Marketing Director Meghan Tabor said $1.5 billion has been earmarked for economic recovery as part of the provincial government’s COVID-19 action plan, and Destination BC is actively working to develop recommendations for this tourism funding.
“Recovery will definitely happen suddenly and without notice. Destination BC anticipates the first recovery markets to be domestic with bans on international travel being lifted one country at a time,” said Tabor.
From a regional perspective, Tabor said Kootenay Rockies Tourism has been working on a survey program, conducting a phone tree with 69 businesses around the region, with 20 new ones being added each week. Tabor said businesses in the region are seeing an average loss of more than $20,000 to date due to COVID-19. She said generally businesses are recognizing the situation is fluid and evolving and there is a desire for online forums to enable communication, brainstorming and best practice sharing.
“Our current reality is one of uncertainty. We’re working with messaging to help curve the health crisis, to stay at home and explore later. Canadian borders are currently closed to all foreign nationals until June 30. B.C. has extended the state of emergency declaration and as of March the province will allow hotels to defer their MRDT remitting until Sept. 2020, which means our usual marketing budget will be significantly cut,” said Tabor.
To aid in recovery once the travel ban is lifted, Tourism Revelstoke is working on a three-phase plan: “Response, Reignite, Recover.” Tabor said the organization is in the early stages of the response plan; key concepts include being present, transparent, and informative while keeping Revelstoke in mind as a destination for travelers, while being sensitive to audience realities. The reignite phase will focus on support for industry stakeholders and the community. Key concepts include keeping community spirits up and inspiring civic pride. The recovery phase will include launching a significant domestic campaign, with a geographical focus on the closest markets first, then fanning out from there to B.C. and Alberta.
Tourism Revelstoke encourages businesses to bolster online presence
Tourism Revelstoke Marketing Coordinator Eva Akopian said now is not the time for businesses to press pause on communications if they don’t have to.
“It’s more important than ever to use your social media and online presence to communicate with customers. We could be in this for the long haul and now is the time to invest in adapting to the crisis,” said Akopian. “Create an online store and create a message to customers that you remain open for business with adaptations and measures in place.”
Currently, Tourism Revelstoke is focusing on maintaining its online presence. Akopian said people can still be inspired and plan their next trip from home. A Re-live Revelstoke campaign has been launched to keep the conversation about Revelstoke going. Akopian said Tourism Revelstoke has teamed with Revelstoke Mountain Resort for the campaign, which is seeing great results so far. The campaign asks people to post their favourite photo from their last trip to Revelstoke using the hastag #reliverevy.
“I think the more we can collaborate with [local businesses] and share the same message, the more powerful it will be,” said Akopian.
The Revelstoke Visitors Centre has also established the Revy Info Page on Facebook and is trying to get information out about which Revelstoke businesses remain open. Modified visitor servicing is being provided by the Revelstoke Chamber, and Tabor said they are still receiving calls for accommodation, dining options as well as future planning.
Tourism Revelstoke is developing plans for in preparation for when the travel ban might be lifted. They are working on three possible “Day Zero” scenarios: June 20, August 15 or Fall 2020. Tabor said the dates will continue to shift as better predictions come through in the coming weeks.
“We’ll work back from Day Zero with our annual strategy planning for one clear message we’ll want people to share,” said Tabor.
Tourism Revelstoke is also working on a number of event initiatives for when the travel ban is lifted. Goldsmith said the events include a Revelstoke Community Crawl, intended to reanimate the community getting people and local businesses on board to highlight the enthusiasm and energy of Revelstoke; holding a Wild Flower Festival, and; working with the Revelstoke Arts Council on the Revelstoke Summer Sessions (formerly Revelstoke Street Fest).
“We’re really hoping to be able to proceed [with the Revelstoke Summer Sessions] as normal, but we’ll see how it goes,” said Goldsmith, who said Tourism Revelstoke and the Revelstoke Arts Council is working with a 30-day window to decide if the popular summer event will be cancelled.
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