Tuesday, Jun. 17, 2008

North Myrtle Beach to use bus as new ad tool

Tourism campaign to tour Carolinas

A sagging outlook for summer tourism has prompted the North Myrtle Beach Chamber of Commerce to try an extreme promotional tactic: driving a brightly colored bus around the Carolinas pitching beach vacations.

The four-day tour this month, dubbed "Twice the Fun, Half the Distance, Experience North Myrtle Beach," will stop at malls and shopping centers in nine Carolinas cities, including Charlotte, N.C., and Rock Hill. Tourism promoters, armed with brochures and visitors guides, aim to persuade Carolinas residents to vacation in North Myrtle Beach this summer instead of driving to destinations farther away, such as Florida.

With some hotels saying business is off by as much as 25 percent heading into the summer season, promoters wanted to try something different to draw attention. The lagging economy and high gas prices are making travelers cut back by spending less or staying fewer days - or not going on a trip at all.

"You've got to keep hitting at different angles," said Marc Jordan, president and CEO of the North Myrtle Beach chamber, which has about 1,300 members. "Now is the time to turn it up."

Tourism promoters will spend about two hours in each place and are hoping to have 1,000 people a day stop by the bus. They also are trying to arrange radio spots in some of the cities.

From June 16 through June 19, the bus will hit Raleigh, Durham, Greensboro/High Point, Cabarrus County, and Charlotte - all in North Carolina - and Rock Hill, Columbia, Camden and Florence.

Promoters will pitch the north end as a more affordable, close destination that won't be too hard on travelers' budgets, chamber spokeswoman Jennifer Prince said.

The bus will be wrapped in bright colors - blue, green and pink - and bear the North Myrtle Beach chamber's palm tree logo.

"You'll look twice at it," Prince said.

Nine businesses, mainly resorts and real estate companies, are picking up the tab for the trip, which is estimated at $11,000, Prince said.

Grace Realty, where business is off about 25 percent this summer, chipped in aiming to jump-start the season.

"It looks right sad," owner Grace Spainhour said of the summer reservations. "If you don't try something, you don't know if it will work or not."

With record-high gas prices nearing $4 a gallon, driving around on a bus might not seem like the most likely promotional tool, but officials say it will have an effect.

"We feel like it will pay in the long run to do this and keep them from going to Florida or places further away," Spainhour said. "It might just be better than a billboard."