They tell the story of Columbus — the sites, sounds and eats — through magazines, newspaper and TV ads and good old-fashioned word of mouth.
The Columbus Convention and Visitors Bureau”s job is to bring visitors to the Friendly City, to spend money in restaurants, hotels, gas stations and shops.
“We are also here to let the people of Columbus know about the sites and places they have in their hometown, to make them more aware of what they have,” said CVB executive director and CEO James Tsismanakis, during a recent editorial board meeting with The Dispatch.
The city has played host to numerous events in recent months and weeks, from religious conferences at the Trotter Convention Center, to catfish tournaments along the Tenn-Tom Waterway and auto dirt racing at Columbus Motor Speedway in the coming months.
“Those type of events help bring in people and money to the area, as well as exposure to this city,” Tsismanakis said. “One of the big things is fishing tournaments, and we are taking part in the Cabela”s King Cat catfishing tournament that is scheduled for the fall.”
CVB Board President Dewitt Hicks, who was also at the meeting, said word of mouth has been an asset.
“When people from other towns, other parts of the state and country see what we have here in Columbus, they tell others,” he said.
As for the past Pilgrimage, Tsismanakis said it has been the best one in many years.
“We had over 2,400 people to come through the Tennessee Williams Welcome Center, and it does not count how many people purchased tickets for Pilgrimage,” he said. “Looking back over the past five years, this year was the best one.”
One of the new acquisitions for the CVB is a red double-decker bus; $15,000 was budgeted for maintenance and repairs of the tourism vehicle. The bus cost the CVB $29,000 — including the cost of the bus and shipping from England — and has been in use since December.
Both Tsismanakis and Hicks feel the bus is an asset for not only the CVB, but for the community as a whole.
“A lot of people rode the bus during the Pilgrimage. On three different occasions, the bus had to be used to pick up tourists whose tour buses broke down. Waters Trucking did a good job of getting them running again, and they have done a good job of maintaining ours. This bus is an asset for us,” Tsismanakis said.
“It is paying for itself each time we use it, and not just for Pilgrimage, but for the Tennessee Williams Tribute and tour of Victorian homes in the fall,” Hicks said.
To have events such as Pilgrimage, as well as the fishing tournaments, dirt track car races and other events, it takes money to promote them as well as promote the CVB.
According to budget figures released by CVB, they spend at least $200,000 a year in advertising. Tsismanakis said the advertising is done locally, regionally and nationally using as many mediums as possible.
“We do a lot of advertising in the area papers, as well as television and radio and magazines such as Mississippi, Delta, DeSoto, Memphis magazine and Mid-South. We do a lot in the Southern region, especially with Southern Living magazine,” he said.
Tsismanakis added the CVB has upgraded its website and has strengthened its marketing as well, and is continuing with plans to move into a new building behind the Tennessee Williams Welcome Center. The CVB has a contract with Castle Properties for work on the project.
Each year, the CVB gives at least $193,000 to the Columbus-Lowndes Development Link. According to Link CEO Joe Higgins, the money is for economic development.
“It is to aid in developing retail businesses and other industries in Columbus and Lowndes County,” he said.
Another project the CVB is working on is a proposed art park to be located near Rex”s Rentals, next to the Tennessee Williams Welcome Center.
“We are hoping to move the garage where (Disney conceptual artist) Josh Meador did some of his early painting. We want to have something to pay tribute to him and to many other famous people of Columbus and Lowndes County, including famed broadcaster Red Barber and Negro League baseball player Sam Hairston,” Tsismanakis said.
Allen Baswell was previously a reporter for The Dispatch.
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