Galena Country Tourism reports 6.4 million earned-media views, previews lodging co-op and visitation tracking

Terry, representing Galena Country Tourism, told the Galena City Council on Jan. 13 that the agency’s midyear figures show a surge in exposure and steady lodging-tax growth.

“Those are the eyes on Galena and Galena country,” Terry said, summarizing the report’s headline figure of 6.4 million earned-media coverage views for the July–December fiscal period. The presentation also cited 561,000 website users and about 2.3 million page views for the same span, along with visitor-center activity (10,000 visitor guides mailed; 8,000 walk-ins).

The tourism office highlighted several initiatives aimed at converting interest into visits and spending. A lodging co-op pilot — described as voluntary and open to hotels, B&Bs and short-term rentals — would amplify reach through a 70/30 funding match with participating lodging properties. “Most of it is digital,” Terry said, describing the co-op’s use of platforms such as Meta and Google.

Terry said a new visitation-tracking program intended to capture who is visiting Galena, what they do while here and why they come should be available in early 2025. The office also noted a $100,000 small-business development loan resource managed by Northwest Illinois Economic Development that it hopes local businesses will tap to expand tourism-related offerings.

The presentation covered staffing and board changes: Fallon Oldenburg has rejoined the organization as vice president of marketing; Lori Kinnaman was elevated to vice president of finance; new board members and officers were listed, including Colin Sanderson as chair and Betsy Rose Davis as vice chair. The tourism office also announced that the film "Death of a Brewer" is scheduled to shoot in Galena this spring and said it will issue its first calendar-year annual report in the coming weeks.

The council asked clarifying questions about who could participate in the lodging co-op and the placement and accessibility of the tourism office’s QR-code weekly-events feed. Terry said the QR-code content is available on the Galena Country website and is emailed weekly to businesses; staff plan to make the feature more prominent in visitor materials going forward.

The report’s combination of large earned-media numbers and modest-but-measurable lodging-tax growth — Terry cited a "3% plus increase" in lodging-tax receipts through October — framed the tourism office’s case for continuing investment in digital marketing and local partnerships. The tourism office invited councilmembers and local stakeholders to contact the office for further details and said the full annual report will be released soon.

The presentation concluded with council thanks and an offer to follow up with staff for more detailed metrics.