Pilch & Barnet — Leaders in Destination Marketing

Birdwatchers Bring Bucks

Monday, April 9th, 2012 — Matt

Each year, more than 70 million Americans spend $45 billion dollars in the process of observing, feeding and watching wildlife. There are at least 30 million birdwatchers in the U.S., and some estimates have put the number as high as 80 million people.

The expansion of birdwatching and wildlife viewing stems from the growing urbanization of America. More people than ever before are living in non-rural settings. The desire to reconnect with nature leads many of these people to seek out places where they can see birds and animals in their natural habitat.

Why should tourism-related businesses pay attention to the growing number of birdwatchers and wildlife enthusiasts? Because they travel and they spend money.

• A 2001 survey by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service showed that nationwide, 18 million people had taken one or more away-from-home birdwatching trips.
• A 1999 survey along the Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail found that only 4.6% of the people using the trail were Texas residents. The survey also found that the average trip was more than eight days in length.
• A survey of the participants in the “2004 Potholes and Prairies Birding Festival” in Jamestown, North Dakota, found that 83% of the out-of-town participants had household incomes over $50,000.

The economic potential of birdwatching and wildlife viewing is significant. While it might not be feasible to launch an entire promotional campaign targeting birdwatchers and wildlife enthusiasts, it is easy to include birds and wildlife in your traveler information materials. Your promotional materials about local parks and natural areas should include descriptions of the ecology and any interesting or unusual bird, animal or plant species found there.

It is very helpful if tourism information resources—tourism office, retailers, hotel desk staff, etc—know of the best birdwatching spots in area. A basic knowledge of the location of the best birding areas is all that’s needed—nobody needs to become an ornithologist.

Another great way to target birdwatchers and wildlife enthusiasts is by offering special “Birdwatcher” themed overnight packages. Offering a “Two-night Birdwatchers Special” might be just the ticket for attracting a few extra visitors during the spring and fall.
Start becoming aware of the growing number of birdwatchers and wildlife viewers who like to travel. You’re going to find that they’re a very common species.

Link Friday: The Opening Day Edition

Friday, April 6th, 2012 — Alan

Spring is in the air in Madison these days (actually, it has been since about mid-February), which makes everybody start thinking about their spring and summer vacations. Which means we’re super-busy here at P&B these days (in a good way).

But too busy to bring you Link Friday? Never!

And away with the links:

• I thought this sounded a little odd when I posted it last week. Turns out that Facebook Timeline doesn’t affect the level of interactions on fan pages (because most interactions with pages take place in the News Feed anyway).
• More on Facebook Timeline: Want to know what features fans are looking for on your brand page? The eyes have it.
• Pinterest is now the third most popular social network. (Take that, Google+!)
• For all our classic lit fans out there, there’s now a Mediterranean cruise that follows the path of Homer’s Odyssey.
• And since baseball season officially starts today (Brewers opener!), here’s a fantastic new ad from New Era, who brought us the great Alec Baldwin/Jon Krasinski ad campaign last year.

That’s all from P&BHQ. Have a great weekend!

Link Friday: The Fool-Me-Twice Edition

Friday, March 30th, 2012 — Alan

You didn’t think I was going to forget about Link Friday again, did you?

You did? Well, that’s understandable, based on recent history.

But I’m here, back and better than ever, with two weeks’ worth of links to meet your Friday afternoon clicking needs. And away we go…

• Facebook Timeline went live for brand pages today (I think they’ll be a boon for businesses, since it’s easier for fans to use, and the pages encourage a strong visual focus), and AllFacebook takes a look at the top celebrity Timeline pages.
• What was that I said about Timeline increasing engagement? A new study (granted, based on limited data) says brand page engagement increased 46% for some companies after they switched to the new look.
• Who’s hungry? The Daily Meal looks at the 101 best restaurants in America. It’s outrageous that there’s not a single Culver’s on there.
• A partnership that makes a lot of sense in my eyes: Pure Michigan has teamed up with the Detroit Tigers to promote tourism in the state.
• And the Detroit Free Press has a good article on the changing face of tourism for our neighbors to the north and east: For the first time, out-of-state tourists spent more than in-state tourists in Michigan.
• Has a potential employer ever asked you for your Facebook password so they can snoop on you? Seems pretty shady: I don’t want my bosses knowing how much I like Pat Benetar.
• How long does the average online empire last? Just over a decade, says PR Daily in this informative infographic.
• You can now turn your tweets into toilet paper. And no, this is not an April Fool’s Day joke.
• Screenshots of Despair. The name says it all.
• Kindra found this super-cool map that highlights 41 reasons to visit Brooklyn.
• In case you missed it last week, it turns out we’re a pretty (pretty, pretty, pretty) great place to work. (You’ll get the joke when you read the link.)

That’s all for us this week. Have a great weekend, everybody!

Well, that’s awesome.

Thursday, March 22nd, 2012 — Alan

You like us, you really like us!

We are thrilled to announce we have been named one of Madison Magazine’s Best Places to Work 2012! (You’ll find us as No. 3 under the “Organizations with Under 100 Employees” category.)

They must have heard about all the awesome things we have here: birthday lunches, flexible schedules, a casual-clothes-friendly dress code (says the guy wearing a Badgers track jacket and jeans right now) and much more.

Thanks to Madison Magazine, our awesome employees, our awesome bosses (I know you’re reading this, Lyn and Susanne) and everybody who made this possible. And congratulations to all the other Madison businesses that made the list!

So, how do we feel right now? Well…

Link Friday: The Why-Aren’t-You-Watching-College-Basketball? edition

Friday, March 16th, 2012 — Alan

Well, you’re probably not watching college basketball because it’s like 75 degrees in March in Madison, which is just downright freaky.

So, I’ll keep Link Friday short and sweet today so you can get outside and enjoy the weather. Since this is Wisconsin, it just might snow next week.

On with the links…

• Want some cool ideas for your new Facebook Timeline page for your business? Check out these inspiring examples from Hubspot.
• And a little more on Facebook Timeline for businesses: 21 things you need to know before your pages convert March 30. (We’re working on Timeline pages for all our clients right now and they’re super-cool.)
• The “homeless hotspot” marketing effort at SXSW drew a lot of criticism this week. Was it justified?
• PR Daily asks what’s more valuable: Facebook fans or Twitter followers?
• And we’ll end on a delicious note: Cadbury made a replica of its Google+ page out of chocolate. Yup.

That’s all for us. Stop reading! Get outside and enjoy the weather!