A rural tourism symposium called “Beyond the Fires: Wildfire Recovery and Industry Development” will be taking place in Williams Lake over the weekend of April 13 to 15, and is intended for those in business—including the tourism, service, and hospitality industries—to move past last year’s wildfires.
“It’s to give people positive tools, support recovery, and help businesses be positioned so that they have positive results in the coming year,” says Amy Thacker, CEO of the Cariboo Chilcotin Coast Tourism Association, one of the symposium’s sponsors. Other sponsors are the Gold Rush Trail, the City of Williams Lake, and TRU Tourism Management.
Among the topics covered will be helping businesses transition to a new landscape; post-disaster marketing, the keys to messaging, and the need for proactive storytelling; how businesses can be better prepared for emergencies; an update on key post-fire issues; and what marketing has been done to support the area affected by wildfire and what future marketing will look like.
A town hall session will enable participants to identify gaps for businesses, and where the focus needs to be over the next few months. “A big part of what my Board is looking at with the town hall is about hearing about available tools, and what the key learnings have been,” says Thacker. “But we also want to find out what’s been missed, and really be listening, so that we can find out where we can add value.
“And the presenters can provide tangible benefits that business owners can take away with them; very specific things, such as ‘What can this mean to my business? How will this benefit me?'”
Thacker adds that there will also be an area set aside for various aid groups—such as the Community Futures business ambassadors, Emergency Management BC, and others—to have tables. “Businesses can book an appointment with whoever they want to see and get help on the spot.”
The symposium starts with a reception on the evening of Friday, April 13, and begins in earnest at 7 a.m. on April 14. Learning opportunities continue throughout the day on both April 14 and April 15, and participants can take part in a dinner theatre event on Saturday evening.
Registrations can be taken right up to April 13, at a cost of $52.50 (until April 4) and $105 thereafter per person. For more information, call 1-800-663-5885, or email info@landwithoutlimits.com.
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