Visit Champaign County Unveils Destination 2023
After nearly nine months of surveys and stakeholder meetings, Visit Champaign County unveiled Destination 2023. The new strategic plan introduces a vision for the greater Champaign County area as a destination, alongside new mission and vision statements that will serve as a guide for the Visit Champaign County Board of Directors and staff.
Led by Bill Geist, Chief Instigator of DMOproz, and 30 year veteran in destination marketing, the strategic planning process brought together stakeholders from across the region. In May 2019, Visit Champaign County launched community and stakeholder surveys, and in-person focus groups with various stakeholder groups to assess community needs. With those results, Visit Champaign County’s Board of Directors and staff created Destination 2023 to chart the course of the organization for the next three years.
Unveiled at Lodgic Everyday Community on February 12 in front of nearly 100 community stakeholders, Destination 2023 addresses the vision, mission and values of the organizations and outlines three goals to guide Visit Champaign County as they continue to promote the greater Champaign County area as an Outside of Ordinary destination to live, work, and visit.
Highlights include:
- Destination Vision— The greater Champaign County area will provide energetic and innovative experiences, attracting visitors and potential residents from around the world.
- Organizational Vision— The greater Champaign County area will provide energetic and innovative experiences, attracting visitors and potential residents from around the world.
- Organizational Mission— We promote a welcoming destination experience for visitors to strengthen economic opportunity and enhance the lives of residents.
The goals to move the destination further into 2023 include: 1) Enhance the community as a destination; 2) Strengthen visitor and resident experiences; 3) Elevate Visit Champaign County to be embraced as a community-shared value.
Destination 2023 seeks to be a collaborative partner in the community, to extend outreach in telling the story of the greater Champaign County area, in addition to advocating for destination-defining development and transportation, and supporting area festivals, events, and sports and recreation activities.
To view the complete plan, click here. For more information, contact Jayne DeLuce at 217-351-4133 or jayned@visitchampaigncounty.org.