This press release was written by Explore Cochise
The southeast corner of Arizona, sprinkled with the small towns of Willcox, Bisbee, Tombstone, Douglas, Sierra Vista, and Benson has been featured in publications from Los Angeles to Europe and Asia. These communities promote their unique tourism experiences through a Cochise County sponsored affiliation called the Cochise County Tourism Council. Cochise County Economic Development and Tourism Coordinator Gussie Motter says “Tourism is a key component of our county’s economy. Tourism generated over $421,000,000 in revenue to Cochise County businesses in 2014, with over 4,000 employees, and $34,000,000 in taxes collected. The Tourism Council was formalized with an intergovernmental agreement among the partners in 1998 to build partnerships throughout the county among communities, private sector businesses, and with key organizations like the Arizona Office of Tourism.”
The Tourism Council participates in consumer travel shows, publishes and distributes a regional brochure (Land of Legends), maintains a website www.ExploreCochise.com, promotes through social media, and in a media relations program. The group monitors effectiveness of their marketing activities including media exposure. Nearly one million dollars in editorial content has been generated in just the past 9 months (as measured in equivalent advertising space for articles published).
Bob Nilson, Tourism Director for the City of Benson, says his community was thrilled with a recent two page feature in the Los Angeles Times Travel Section. “Neither the town or the local businesses featured in the Times article could ever afford to buy that kind of advertising.”
Tourism Council Chairman and Willcox Chamber of Commerce & Agriculture Director Alan Baker confirms “We have seen our tourism activities featured in international publications and websites in China, the UK, Canada, as well as significant US publications including USA Today, Sunset Magazine, and the Arizona Republic. The Arizona Office of Tourism frequently partners with us paying for writers to travel to Cochise County and promote our destination.” The Office of Tourism brought journalists from Canada to Cochise County the last week of August on a tour that featured culinary and wine experiences. Jen Luria, Bisbee Tourism & Marketing Manager, says “The writers were impressed by the home grown character of Bisbee and the variety of experiences we offer. They each stayed in separate B&B style properties and of course had great food & wine that will wind up in articles in Canada which is a key market for Cochise County”.
Information on Cochise County, the Land of Legends, can be found at www.ExploreCochise.com
