Marketing Alliance: Online promotion is cheap and nimble
During a quarterly presentation to the Ketchum City Council on Tuesday, Sun Valley Marketing Alliance President Arlene Schieven touted the effectiveness of promoting Sun Valley to potential visitors via the Internet.
Schieven said advertising on websites such as facebook.com, Pandora Mobile and weather.com and posting information on the Marketing Alliance’s own website and blog are great ways to inform visitors quickly, and at a relatively low cost, of deals that may arise on flights to Sun Valley or of new packages offered by the resort. Schieven said the Marketing Alliance’s blog reaches a community of about 22,000 and has become particularly popular in Seattle this year. She also said the organization has about 43,000 Facebook fans.
According to Schieven, the organization’s online ads generate an overall click-through rate that is three times the industry average. Click-through rate is the percentage of people who click on an online ad when it is rendered on a website they visit.
Greg Randolph, the Marketing Alliance’s director of public relations and social media, said those avenues and others, such as the Teton Gravity Research blog, give the Marketing Alliance the ability to get the word out almost instantaneously when skiing conditions are extra favorable in Sun Valley. He said the Marketing Alliance’s blog received significantly increased traffic when snowstorms earlier this season dumped loads of fresh powder on Sun Valley.
Ketchum passes anti-discrimination law
The Ketchum City Council on Tuesday voted 3-0 to adopt an ordinance that would prohibit discrimination on the basis of “sexual orientation” or “gender identity/expression.” Councilman Baird Gourlay was absent.
Federal and Idaho laws prohibit discrimination in the areas of employment, public accommodation and housing on the bases of race, color, age, sex, national origin and/or disability, but not on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. According to a Dec. 5 City Council meeting packet, more than 125 cities and counties and 21 states have adopted that additional legislation. The packet states that Ketchum’s ordinance is meant to “bolster” federal and state law, not “supplant” it.
Boise passed a similar ordinance in December. However, Ketchum City Attorney Paul Fitzer said at a City Council meeting Tuesday that Boise’s ordinance focuses more on “prosecution” of violators whereas Ketchum’s is tailored more toward “education” and “mediation.” He said that made sense given the size of each city.
However, those who break Ketchum’s new law could be charged by the Blaine County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office with a misdemeanor.
Library appoints new board member
Jenny Emery Davidson has joined the Community Library’s board of trustees. Davidson directs the College of Southern Idaho Blaine County Center and holds a Ph.D. from the University of Utah. She received a Fulbright Fellowship in 2010. She lives in Hailey with her husband, Mark Davidson, who works for The Nature Conservancy. and enjoys hiking, cross-country skiing, baking bread, and, of course, reading.
The 2013 officer slate for the library is composed of Chair Lyman Drake, Vice Chair Ann Taylor, Treasurer Gene Cheston, Development Co-Chairs Jon Maksik and Leslie Silva, Gold Mine Chair Kate Rosso, governance official Jack Lane, building committee official Morley Golden and Recording Secretary Bill Lowe.
Senior Connection to hold grand reopening
The Senior Connection in Hailey will celebrate its recent remodel with a grand reopening celebration on Friday, Feb. 8, from 5-8 p.m.
The facility recently completed a remodel of its kitchen and offices through grant and private funding.
The party will feature free appetizers, a no-host wine and beer bar, raffle prizes and ice cream from the Scoops ice cream parlor. For more information, call 788-3468.
Advocates holding video contest
The Advocates in Hailey is seeking local video submissions in conjunction with the One Billion Rising movement, which addresses an estimate that one in three women on the planet will be raped or beaten in her lifetime.
Videos will be shared via the Advocates on Facebook and YouTube and a $100 prize for the best video will be determined by the video with the most “likes.” A collection of representative videos will be presented at V-Day, the Advocates’ benefit event on Feb. 22-23 at 7 p.m. at the nexStage Theatre in Ketchum.
Videos of up to 2.5 minutes in length should share their creators’ thoughts, feelings and stories on intimidation, bullying, sexual assault or partner violence. Participants may remain anonymous, and may block their faces, distort their voice or simply provide a written story in words on screen. All videos should include the messages of “speak out” and “rise up,” as expressed on www.onebillionrising.org.
Submissions will be accepted through Feb. 14. Completed submissions should be posted to YouTube and the link emailed to Travis Jones at travis@theadvocatesorg.org.
For those who do not have the necessary technology, the Advocates will host open studios today, Jan. 23, from 10 a.m. to noon at the YMCA in Ketchum and on Monday, Jan. 28, from 5-7 p.m., in Room 301 of the Community Campus in Hailey.
Tickets for V-Day are $15 students, $30 regular seating, $50 reserved seating and $75 reserved front row seats. The event will include a performance of Eve Ensler’s “A Memory, a Monologue, a Rant and a Prayer” coupled with a “One Billion Rising” dance performance by the Dirty Feet Dance Company.
For more information, contact Lisa Huttinger at lisa@theadvocatesorg.org, call 788-4191 or visit www.theadvocatesorg.org.