Allegany County committee approves unified 2025 tourism and economic development marketing plan

The Allegany County Planning and Economic Development Committee on an unspecified date approved a resolution authorizing a unified 2025 tourism and economic development marketing plan and granted the county administrator authority to execute contracts necessary to implement the plan so long as expenditures remain within the approved budget.

The plan, presented by Ashley Smith, director of economic development, lays out a two-year strategy to combine tourism promotion and economic development outreach into a single branding and marketing effort intended to increase visitor traffic and spending while supporting business attraction and retention. "Our goal is to connect with target audiences while delivering strong messaging that's going to increase visitor traffic and spend," Smith told the committee during her presentation.

Smith said the plan will pair a tourism track and an economic development track under a single brand with an updated logo and refreshed print and digital materials. The campaign concept — described in the presentation as "Authentic Allegany" — will aim to tell county history, promote rural travel and encourage longer stays. Smith said the county will keep existing taglines, including the previously used "Live Deliberately," while adding messaging to support economic development goals.

The strategy will include a website redesign, increased social media and digital marketing, expanded digital content, and continued radio and print efforts. Smith described measurable tracking as a core part of the plan: "We'll be implementing tracking efforts to monitor first time and returning visitors in key categories," she said, adding that the county will report measurable deliverables and refine tactics based on results.

To help maintain listings and event information, Smith said the county purchased a customer relationship management tool in 2024 and will create a business portal allowing local businesses to log in and update their own information; third-party vendors will continue to assist with digital marketing. "Previous in 2024, you all were gracious enough to allow me to purchase a piece of technology that is a CRM system. That is how all of that will stay up to date," she said.

Committee members asked about ongoing maintenance of online listings and the control of campaign hashtags. Smith said hashtags are public and cannot be fully controlled, but the county will use selected official tags and monitor public mentions. Committee discussion also included budget placement: Smith said the campaign falls "within the budget that has been allocated." The resolution passed on a voice vote with committee members answering "Aye." The motion and second were not named on the record.

The resolution gives the county administrator authority to sign contracts needed to execute the plan provided they remain within the approved budget; any expenditures outside the approved budget will be returned to committee for approval.

What happened next: committee members signaled general support for the unified approach and noted interest in campaign details as work proceeds. Smith and staff will move forward on contract execution and implementation work under the budget constraints specified in the resolution.