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  • Extra agritourism revenue from camping, cabins and RVs with HipCamp
    economic development | entrepreneurship | rural | tourism

    Extra agritourism revenue from camping, cabins and RVs with HipCamp

    December 12, 2022March 12, 2025

    After we discussed Harvest Hosts and Boondockers Welcome, our friends at Marketing Delmarva pointed out HipCamp. One of our local blueberry farms does this with an app called HipCamp. Folks literally camp in the middle of a historic fruit farming operation. Well, not quite the same; they don’t trade blueberries for campsites, but you DO…

    Read More Extra agritourism revenue from camping, cabins and RVs with HipCampContinue

  • A van-sized RV parked in a green field under trees at a winery
    economic development | entrepreneurship | rural | tourism

    Harvest Hosts attract vanlifers and RV tourists, Boondockers Welcome

    December 2, 2022

    RV travelers, vanlifers and other self-contained nomads can stay at interesting destinations with Harvest Hosts. Stays feature wineries, farms, breweries, museums, and more.  There’s a membership fee for campers to join, but no camping fee when they stay. Guests are encouraged to buy at least one thing from their hosts during their stay. One guest…

    Read More Harvest Hosts attract vanlifers and RV tourists, Boondockers WelcomeContinue

  • Wide view of a prairie landscape with a walk-through gate in a fence
    Best of | economic development | rural | tourism

    Tourism: Make the most of scant remains and “not much to see” sites with a look-through sign

    October 11, 2022March 25, 2023

    Here’s a tourism tip from a roadside stop from my long drive to visit rural communities in Eastern Colorado. The Santa Fe Trail wagon ruts are still visible near Lakin in Western Kansas. You can walk across the little dam, past the tree and right out to the original trail, but there isn’t a lot…

    Read More Tourism: Make the most of scant remains and “not much to see” sites with a look-through signContinue

  • Archer City, Texas, Royal Theater, side view facade and roofless building behind
    community | rural | tourism

    What to do with a building that’s falling down: The roofless Royal Theater in Archer City, Texas

    January 23, 2022January 27, 2022

    A building that is falling down or where the roof has fallen in can still be useful. One example is the Royal Theater, in Archer City, Texas. The Royal Theater was featured in the movie “The Last Picture Show,” and production crews did the work to shore up the facade. The space behind has a…

    Read More What to do with a building that’s falling down: The roofless Royal Theater in Archer City, TexasContinue

  • Handmade afghan showing a dutch oven over a fire, with the words "7th Annual Dutch Oven Cook-Off and Fall Festival, Avard, Oklahoma"
    Best of | community | economic development | entrepreneurship | rural | tourism

    How a ghost town made something from nothing with a folk festival

    September 3, 2021March 25, 2023

    Craft entrepreneurship is a strategy for prosperity that works in every community, no matter how small, even if everything else is against you. Even if all you have is the dirt under your feet. This is the story of Avard, Oklahoma, a town that knows how to make something out of nothing. Often listed as…

    Read More How a ghost town made something from nothing with a folk festivalContinue

  • Near the iconic sandstone towers in Monument Valley, a concession trailer offers food, with a picnic table out front.
    economic development | entrepreneurship | marketing | rural | tourism

    Market your small town as a movie filming location, attract movie and game fan tourists

    June 28, 2021June 24, 2021

    Your fellow reader Miriam wrote in to ask about attracting filmmakers to her town. I am designing a website for a small town in Texas that apparently was used as a location for some small films years and years ago. They are designing a new website for the town and thought it might be fun…

    Read More Market your small town as a movie filming location, attract movie and game fan touristsContinue

  • For easier social media marketing, fill in the blank
    entrepreneurship | marketing | rural | social media | tourism

    For easier social media marketing, fill in the blank

    August 5, 2019August 4, 2019

    Sheila Scarborough and Leslie McLellan of Tourism Currents laid out a simple starting point for all your social media efforts. Good news: it’s as easy as filling in the blank. Fill in the Blank (Our company) is where (our customers) find (the thing we offer) with (this benefit) So all you have to do is…

    Read More For easier social media marketing, fill in the blankContinue

  • How to publicize your biking trails before they’re finished
    economic development | marketing | rural | tourism

    How to publicize your biking trails before they’re finished

    June 10, 2019June 9, 2019

      Have you got a “coming soon” biking trail? Or a biking trail that is not completely finished yet? Well, don’t keep it a secret! A couple of places I’ve visited lately, I’ve heard about trails that are in the partially-finished stage. Some segments of the trail have been improved, others are still rough. “Once…

    Read More How to publicize your biking trails before they’re finishedContinue

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