The city of Scottsdale, Arizona, launches a campaign to attract travelers for both business meetings and recreation

Tuesday, 8/9/2011  2:09:58 PM

In an attempt to pump a little vitality into the community's dwindling tourism industry, Scottsdale, Arizona has recently launched a campaign to attract travelers to the city. The campaign, officially titled "Come to Work, Come Back to Play," is managed by the Scottsdale Convention and Visitors Bureau. The purpose is to make business travelers fall in love with the city so that they'll bring their families back when it comes time for vacations.

"We often hear from meeting attendees that they fall in love with Scottsdale while in town for an event and would like to come back for a family vacation," said Brent DeRaad, executive vice president of the bureau. "This campaign is designed to influence meeting planners to consider Scottsdale for their next event, while a planner can use the program to attract more attendees, and our resorts and hotels have the opportunity to generate additional revenue from repeat guests."

To achieve this, the bureau is offering what it considers spectacular promotions, such as a complementary one-night stay in participating hotels and resorts. The bureau says that impressing first-time visitors is important because they want to make them return visitors. Return visitors spend up to 12 percent more than first-timers on their accommodations as well as other expenses, according to research conducted by the bureau.

Scottsdale isn't the only city to attempt to appeal to business travelers. A hotel in the center of Oklahoma City recently redid its entire design in an effort to appeal to business travelers. Among the redesign features are more comfortable rooms, better clothes-storage facilities and WIFI connections available in each room, along with a small executive computer room where those in need of a computer can connect to the internet.

With flight sales down, airlines are more likely to have discounted offerings for business travelers as well.

When planning business meetings that require travel, meeting planners should consider the special offers and accommodations that may be available to them. By doing a little research, you can often find great deals that will keep you well under travel budget and maybe even score a few perks for your traveling associates at the same time.

For more articles and tips on meeting and planning, please visit hyattmeetings.com.