I grew up in St. Johns, attended MSU and have become very passionate about the Greater Lansing area, so the opportunity to work at GLCVB is very exciting for me! My role includes assisting with content management for our multiple websites, coordinating e-newsletter correspondence, maintaining our community calendar and media lists, supporting media relations activities, and assisting with the design and production efforts for a variety of marketing pieces we develop to assist our sales and services departments. I’ve come on just in time for GLCVB’s biggest event of the year, Be A Tourist In Your Own Town. The community and visitors alike are invited to purchase a passport for $1, which opens the doors to over 60 area attractions, local businesses and special activities. CATA offers special routes during the event and you can ride a bus to most attractions for just 50 cents all day. I’ve participated in the past, but it’s been an amazing experience to help plan this year’s event. There has been a lot of work going on behind the scenes over the past few months to make this event a success. I’ve had the privilege of working with our sponsors to donate passports to non-profit organizations within the community that work with children and are involved in their neighborhoods. I encourage everyone to get involved with this amazing annual event!
A major focus for the GLCVB’s marketing department is to educate the community about the importance of local tourism and our role in marketing the Greater Lansing region as a destination for meetings, events and leisure travel. Shortly after I started my new position, I completed a certification program that was created to inspire front-line hospitality employees and volunteers to work together to turn every visitor encounter into a positive experience. The Greater Lansing Tourism Ambassadors Program is a relatively new program presented by the GLCVB where candidates receive the designation of Certified Tourism Ambassador™ upon successfully completing a four-hour training and pre-class reading materials. In order to maintain the designation, CTAs must renew their certification on an annual basis to maintain their knowledge and skill base. The GLCVB has partnered with Mickey Schaefer and Associates LLC to present this nationwide certification program that is rapidly being adopted by CVBs across the country.
In addition to my passion for Lansing and tourism, I am also very engaged with emerging technologies and social and digital media. My goals include assisting with the continued growth of GLCVB’s web presence while focusing on how our audiences are using our sites, creation of video content to promote our special events, members and services, as well as finding new ways to better reach our potential visitors and meeting planners. I bring tourism experience to my current position as a former marketing specialist with Travel Michigan and I also worked for eight years as a marketing manager in the commercial real estate industry. I am a member of the WKAR Radio & Television Community Advisory Board and, when I’m not working or online, I enjoy reading, photography, camping, biking and Michigan road trips!
Follow me on Twitter
@mwygnal
| Job Title: |
Marketing Communications Coordinator |
| Company: |
Greater Lansing Convention & Visitors Bureau |
| College: |
Michigan State University, College of Communication Arts & Sciences, BA in Advertising and a Specialization in Public Relations, East Lansing, MI
|
| High School: |
St. Johns High School, St. Johns, MI
|