"Love now, explore later"
That is the powerful new message in a new tourism marketing video encouraging people to be patient when planning to visit Montana.
It's not the kind of message you expect to see. But the marketers at Glacier Country Tourism and President and CEO Racene Friede says it's the most appropriate given these challenging times.
"We had just started our warm season campaign two weeks before this hit. And what we did is hit pause immediately on all our paid marketing. It just, for one, it's just not appropriate. But two, we also want to make sure that the time is right," said Friede.
Friede says the marketers know it's a difficult position to take, especially with the tourism sector getting hit so hard with closures. In fact, she tells me putting the video together was very emotional for everyone involved.
"We have to one, talk about us. We have to talk about our communities and what we're doing for them. And that we have to concentrate on our own health and safety. It's hard for us to say "don't come". It's a really hard message for us. But is absolutely the right message right now,” said Friede.
A message being shared through all the marketing channels, including social media and even being pushed out to national media outlets.
The glimmer of hope is that Glacier Country is still seeing a strong pace of inquiries from people who want to come here when things open up, an encouraging sign even as actual bookings have plummeted for now.
"We know that people love Montana. And this is just kind of a love video to them," said Friede.
To watch the whole video and to learn more you can visit Glacier Country Tourism’s website here.
