There’s plenty to do in Cumberland Valley, an area defined by Cumberland County and in close proximity to Central PA’s larger cities and tourist/business destinations. But that area’s to-do list, from outdoor activities to historic and educational sites and arts performances, is part of a problem of sorts for the Cumberland Valley Visitors Bureau.
“The county has never been branded,” says Valerie Copenhaver, director of marketing for the visitors bureau. “There’s so many different things, so many assets the county has that it’s really necessary to take all of them and figure them out and differentiate them.”
The area’s attractions include downtown Carlisle and Mechanicsburg, the Army Heritage Trail, the H. Ric Luhrs Performing Arts Center in Shippensburg, Carlisle Events’ Car Shows, and
the Allenberry Resort and Playhouse. There’s also three state parks, a stretch of the Appalachian Trail, and world-renowned fly-fishing destinations.
Tourists who come to the region for Cumberland Valley’s vast natural beauty and business people who travel there for the area’s manufacturing and military sectors have a significant impact. Direct travel-generated tax relief amounts to nearly $1,000 per household and travel-generated employment is at 12,555 jobs, according to a 2006 study.
A marketing study last year resulted in several recommendations for the visitors bureau, like reformatting its visitors guide to a 4×9 pocket-sized book and its website to be less directory-oriented and more experiential. The biggest task, though, is defining what Cumberland Valley means to its residents and visitors alike, and the Copenhaver has enlisted North Star Destination Strategies to help brand it.
“We need to try and fulfill the consumers’ aspirations, to help them experience the feelings they want to feel,” says Copenhaver, who noted Cumberland Valley’s typical leisure visitor is a baby boomer within a five-hour drive.
Source: Valerie Copenhaver, Cumberland Valley Visitors Bureau
Writer: Joe Petrucci