Reimagining Main Street through a Visitor Economy Lens

Every community is in the visitor economy business!

The challenge is how communities can ensure that the visitor economy can assist them to meet their economic, social and environmental goals. If sustainably managed the visitor economy can improve the bottom line of hospitality businesses, increase income to supporting business enterprises, produce more taxes and create new jobs.

There are numerous ways that the visitor economy can assist communities. One promising approach is to engage the visitor industry in the process of reimagining the main street of many communities. Important to consider that the main street or downtown is often the face and therefore the image of the larger community.

Revitalized and competitive main streets can have important benefits by:

• Increasing number of visitors coming to a community
• Lengthening the visitor stay
• Helping individual businesses to become more competitive
• Increasing amenities and opportunities for residents.

This seminar will examine possible strategies for positioning main streets as a major focus in helping to increase the competitiveness and nature of the visitor experience provided by many communities. Visitors are looking for unique experiences that many main streets can help provide.

The focus of the seminar will be on exploring easily implementable and tactical ways of better understanding the power of the visitor industry in the overall planning and development of many communities.

Topics that will be considered in the seminar include: understanding the visitor economy, mapping main street, leveraging visitor data, marketing, developing partnerships, creating experiences, main street storytelling, and planning for after hours

Using a case study participants will be able to develop new awareness and approaches to better understanding the visitor economy potential of a main street, looking at a range of possible strategies and providing an opportunity to work in helping to create an action plan that can be utilized in other communities.

We look forward to your participation in this important event.