Explore Sisters reports expanded marketing reach and dark‑sky accreditation; board seeks funding to hire staff

Scott Humbert, executive director of Explore Sisters, told council the DMO transitioned more paid advertising work in‑house and ran targeted spring/fall/winter pulses and always‑on search work. He reported roughly 71,000 website sessions, about 19,000 outbound referrals to local businesses and a paid advertising budget in the six‑figure range that produced millions of campaign impressions. "Our vision and mission come back to balancing economic impact of tourism with local livability," Humbert said, adding that Explore Sisters earned accreditation as an International Dark Sky Community, which he called an opportunity for marketing and livability.

Humbert outlined near‑term priorities: expand website content (including local history and arts), maintain partnerships with Visit Central Oregon and others, pilot a PR campaign to increase earned media, and explore a travel magazine product. He said Explore Sisters is operating on a small staff and would like to hire additional capacity if transient lodging tax revenues support it. Councilors praised the report and encouraged continued collaboration on crisis communications and visitor services.