Visit Beloit Celebrates National Travel & Tourism Week
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SETTING THE STAGE IN BELOIT After 30 years, Visit Beloit is setting the stage for what is to come. It was in 1987 that the Beloit Convention and Visitors By Celestino Ruffini, Bureau, Inc. was Executive Director formed by city and local leaders. Its original mission? Be an amazing event management organization. Our community was ripe for a change; yet it needed a little leadership and a dose of fun to lead the way. Our organization was called on to manage an event that you might remember. Recall Beloit Riverfest? That was us, along with so many others.
things from a visitor’s point of view. When it comes to improving the quality of life attributes of our community, our organization is asked how the tourism industry can play a vital role in making the necessary improvements happen. We are much more than that event management organization from 1987.
Oh, how times do change. The Beloit Convention and Visitors Bureau, Inc. slowly began morphing into the business that you now know us as, Visit Beloit. Our organization though is now much more than just events. Visit Beloit is the destination management organization for the greater Beloit area. Our work in multiple communities, including Beloit, South Beloit, and Rockton, is actually symbolic of how a visitor sees this area. They see it without the geographic boundaries.
I’m always asked these three questions. Why Beloit? Beloit actually has a tourism industry? Why does the tourism industry really matter here? Because. Yes. For all of us. Beloit pulled on my family’s heart three years ago. We moved here to become residents of a city that cares. A city that has people that want to work hard. It is a place ripe for innovators and forward thinkers. There’s no doubt that we have a strong tourism industry here because of a vibrant business climate. Business travelers are our bread and butter. Encouragement comes from the fact that Beloit’s story has not yet been fully told. That story is exactly what attracts the leisure traveler. In our 2016 visitor profile study, we expected travelers to have mixed opinions of our city. We discovered that most travelers have not been to Beloit simply because they were unaware of or had never seen advertising about our area. And, that, is why the tourism industry matters.
In the realm of community development, our knowledgeable team is called on to be experts on how to view
The tourism industry is the leader in getting people to discover destinations. Once people visit, they begin to
consider taking a job there. That spurs home buying and local spending. New residents then become cheerleaders of their city which generates wordof-mouth advertising. The cycle then repeats. Visit Beloit’s responsibility in curating and telling the story of Beloit in order for people to discover us is why the tourism industry truly matters. Our team is proud to represent Beloit. This year for National Travel and Tourism Week, which is May 6-12, we decided to do something a little different. We deliver Beloit’s story to people in the Midwest and beyond, so we wanted to give you Visit Beloit’s story. Ultimately, we hope that the tourism industry continues to improve this great city and that it encourages others from near and far to think about Beloit as a place where they can write their own story.
The mission of Visit Beloit is to attract visitors to the Greater Beloit area to experience our attractive, vibrant community, and to ensure our guests enjoy our friendly and warm hospitality. Visit Beloit is well respected as the lead organization to bring local, regional, and international visitors to the area for a rich and satisfying leisure travel experience.