MANSFIELD — More than 150 members of the Richland County tourism industry filed into Kingwood Center Gardens Wednesday through a tunnel of dramatic new images of the area’s many assets.
Attendees were there for the 2023 Destination Mansfield-Richland County Annual Meeting and were treated to an immersive show of the diversity of the visitors bureau’s accomplishments over the past year.
Three screens splashed a never-before-seen gallery of photos and video that bring the region’s new tourism brand to life.
“No one has captured our region in the way that we have in the past year,” Destination Mansfield President Lee Tasseff told the crowd. “Our goal was to frame our story in ways no one’s ever thought of with images and messaging that inspire the imagination of potential visitors and can stand up to any destination.”
In the wake of the pandemic, Destination Mansfield-Richland County spent 2022 building up its arsenal of effective new marketing tools that tell branded stories of Richland County’s many engaging communities and tourism experiences.
Those efforts included capturing a wealth of rich community assets in engaging video and stunning photography. They’ll be used in in traditional and social media, content development, paid marketing campaigns, DestinationMansfield.com and future visitor guides.
In addition, a new aviation tourism marketing campaign is helping tap a new high-end market – aviation travelers – for the region.
“By rebuilding key assets that will last, we now have dynamic new ways to introduce our area to visitors as well as potential residents,” Tasseff said. “By shining a light on the many unforgettable experiences that await visitors to Mansfield, the entire region benefits from increased visitor spending and economic development.”
Thanks in part to these new tools, 2022 marketing successes included generating significant national and regional publicity to drive tourism in the county. Public relations efforts resulted in 397 articles about the area, generating 22.2 billion impressions that told Mansfield & Richland County’s story to travelers across the state, the U.S. and beyond by reaching media outlets across the U.S., as well as global audiences.
The meeting capped off with Destination Mansfield’s annual Tourism Awards of Excellence, which recognize 15 industry members who developed, improved or materially transformed their attraction or business since the start of the pandemic.
“These individuals and businesses not only transformed themselves, but their efforts have transformed our community, when looked at together,” Tasseff said. “We wanted to recognize the vision and perseverance during the pandemic that made us better as a community as well as a tourism destination.”
This year’s Tourism Award of Excellence winners include:
BibleWalk – Museum of Woodcarving
Buckeye Imagination Museum- New Facility
Ohio Bird Sanctuary – Treehouse Classroom
Mansfield Art Center – Foundation Art Education Center
Kingwood Center Gardens – Garden Gateway
Hudson and Essex – Prohibition at the Caverns
The Blueberry Patch & 1285 Winery – New Facility
Richland B&O Trail – Trailhead Signage
Pleasant Hill Lake Park Deluxe Log Cabins – Built first ever log homes for rent
North Central Ohio Industrial Museum – Brand new exhibit
The Mansfield Playhouse – Totally renovated the interior
Mansfield Lahm Regional Airport – Terminal Renovations
Snow Trails – Valley Lodge
The Mansfield Memorial Museum – Frank P. Lahm Aviation Museum
Historic Ohio State Reformatory – Shawshank Museum
The industry also received accolades from outside the county this year, with Destination Mansfield-Richland County being recognized for its Visitor Guide with a STAR Award from the Ohio Association of Convention & Visitor Bureaus (OACVB).
In addition, the Ohio Travel Association recognized Buckeye Imagination Museum with not one but two of its prestigious Ruby Awards for best radio advertisement and best newsletter.
The region’s newest tourism attraction also received OACVB Citations of Excellence for its social media and marketing campaigns.
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Destination Mansfield – Richland County brings dollars into local economy
An “award-winning” Economic Development Corporation, Destination Mansfield-Richland County generates money for our local economy (through tourism) and raises the profile of Mansfield/Richland County around Ohio, across the nation and parts of the world.
A local employer with four full-time staff, Destination Mansfield-Richland County uses the talents of volunteers and interns to accomplish its mission. Its website can be found at DestinationMansfield.com.
Richland County’s tourism industry is a major part of our local economy, serving as the sixth largest employer in Richland County and providing 5,094 jobs with a payroll of $115.8 million. Driven by direct visitor spending of $243.3 million per year, the industry generates $11.6 million in local tax revenue to relieve tax burden on residents, while helping fund valuable city and county services and resources.
