Marana to launch new marketing campaign in January
In February, the town began the process of designing its Tourism Master Plan, a ten-year roadmap to make tourism a sustainable part of the town’s economy while also preserving its small-town feel.
Marana officials are looking to launch an age-inclusive, western and outdoor themed marketing campaign in January, as part of the town’s Tourism Master Plan.
Officials highlighted their recent and upcoming efforts to advance the master plan during a recent town council study session, with officials estimating the Town of Marana brings in approximately $200 million a year in economic impact from tourism.
In February, the town began the process of designing its Tourism Master Plan, a ten-year roadmap to make tourism a sustainable part of the town’s economy while also preserving its small-town feel.
The goal is to focus on nature-based and cultural tourism and make Marana a must-visit spot for Southern Arizona tourists.
The plan has 10 key objectives that organizers to hope achieve, including:
- Welcoming multigenerational families
- Growing small businesses and locally owned restaurants
- Expanding Marana's hotel and conference offerings
- Expanding Marana's festivals and events
- Identifying funding sources and investing strategically in the town’s visitor economy
- Using data to amplify the town’s story and measure and demonstrate success
- Celebrating and preserving Marana's unique Arts & Heritage
- Generating a sense of place, excitement and pride in the identity of Marana
- Evolving Marana's world class outdoor recreation and parks
- Attracting and developing new amenities to elevate the town as a destination
To meet these goals, the town plans to launch a destination marketing campaign and advertise Marana as a family-friendly site for outdoor adventures.
The marketing plan, which the town hopes to kick off in January, includes highlighting age-inclusive, western and outdoor activities with a special emphasis on anything involving agriculture, drawing attention to Marana’s agricultural roots.
The campaign will include highlights of unique attractions like the Tucson Premium Outlets, Marana Pumpkin Patch, Ritz Carlton at Dove Mountain and Top Golf, Boe said.
Stefanie Boe, Marana’s tourism and marketing manager, highlighted a pair of new billboards on Interstate-10 West, coming into town from Phoenix, calling them a big milestone in the process.
The billboards”help people really see that they're in Marana and hopefully will give them a chance to plan their next vacation to Marana as they're coming through town on the I-10, which is such a great opportunity for us.”
She also pointed to their “Best Regional Partnership” award from the Arizona Office of Tourism over the summer for their work with Oro Valley on the Tucson Bicycle Classic, the Marana Time Trial and Project Echelon’s Fondo Ride.
And Oro Valley isn’t the only neighboring government that Marana’s Tourism Department is collaborating with to advance the plan.
“We’ve been working hand in hand with Pima County while we're doing this so that we’re not working in a vacuum,” Boe said. “We're getting their input, as well.”
The town is also working with tourist consultants from Gilbert who have been assisting in outlining the key points of what Marana has to offer. Whereabout Destination Strategies specializes in communities similar in size to Marana and focuses on helping develop a robust and lasting visitor economy over time.
As part of the research, one of the consultants posed as a tourist or shopper at various locations,
Another part of the research involved having an in-market assessment that involved one of the consultants posing as a tourist or shopper at various locations in Marana
They spoke about attractions, like Saguaro National Park, skydiving, hot air balloons, bicycle loops, golf and horseback riding, but also what makes Marana truly special as a vacation location.
“Some of these things are not unique to Marana, lots of towns and cities can claim these things,” said consultant Matthew Landkamer. “What’s unique is the bundle of them, to have all these things together, that’s Marana. Marana is the destination to be close to everything, but far from ordinary.”
Samantha Callicutt is a Tucson Spotlight reporter and graduate student at the University of Arizona. Contact her at Scallicutt@arizona.edu.
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