Tourism Insider Meeting
Join industry partners from around the state at the next Tourism Insider Meeting, jointly hosted by McGregor and Marquette.
Schedule:
Tuesday, September 24: Marquette Community Center (102 North St, Marquette, IA)
- 9:30 a.m. – Doors open. Come in for coffee and conversation!
- 10 a.m. – Host welcome from Town Founders followed by introductions.
- 10:15 a.m. – Iowa Tourism Office update.
- 11am: Bus to Downtown McGregor for business visits
- McGregor's downtown businesses would love to share their stories, and the following businesses will be welcoming our attendees. NOTE: each attendee will choose two businesses to visit.
- Rivertown Fine Books -148 Main Street
- Left Bank Shop and Gallery - 158 Main Street
- Paper Moon - 206 A Street
- Navy Rose and Co - 236 Main Street
- McGregor Special Tea Shoppe - 240 Main Street
- Free Spirit Boutique - 244 Main Street
- By The Spoonful - 221 Main Street
- McGregor's downtown businesses would love to share their stories, and the following businesses will be welcoming our attendees. NOTE: each attendee will choose two businesses to visit.
- 12:15pm: Lunch (provided) by It's By the Spoonful at Big Buoy’s in McGregor
- Lunch speaker is Brian Gibbs, Education Technician at Effigy Mounds National Monument. Brian will share how they tell the story of the national monument, the region and how they inspire recreational tourism.
- 1:15 p.m. - Board bus back to Marquette.
- 1:30 p.m. – Panel on the Value of Packaging a Compelling Story. Panelists: Jen White and Candi Walker from Paper Moon, Adrian Lee from Unscripted Paranormal, Sara Petrie from American House B&B and Mary Anderson, McGregor-Marquette Chamber of Commerce
- Discuss best practices for planning and implementing value-added storytelling in your communities.
- Learn and share tips on using photos and videos to help tell a story.
- 2:30 p.m. – Open Forum or roundtable at tables.
- Discuss best practices for working with front line staff.
- 3:30 p.m. – Group photos and meeting wrap-up.
- 4 p.m. – Meet at the Effigy Mounds National Monument to experience a “Mindful Walk” (approximately one hour).
- 5:30 p.m. – Dinner at Eagles Landing Winery (at your expense).
- Rooms are available at the Cobblestone Marquette. The room rate for attendees is $95 + tax ($106.40). Please call the hotel to book (563.873.8900) and mention you are attending the Iowa Tourism Office meeting.
- 8:30 a.m. – Volunteer activity: our group will help our host partners expand their photo and video assets!
- Put Tuesday's storytelling discussions and photo/video tips to work!
- Attendees will be given a list of some photo and video asset gaps.
- Break into teams or go solo to help capture imagery and video clips.
- A file share link will be provided for easy submission.
- 10 a.m. – Meeting ends.
Stephanie Neppl
Email Stephanie.Neppl@IowaEDA.com