Rooster Rush 2010
The Office of Tourism is again celebrating the tradition of pheasant hunting this fall with the Rooster Rush campaign. To help communities with their own Rooster Rush promotions, we're offering promotional materials, ad templates, and an official toolkit, as well as funding assistance. For more information or to request a Rooster Rush toolkit, contact Nicole Soukup at nicole.soukup@state.sd.us or 605-773-3301.

Great Service Star Submissions Due in September
Information about the 2011 Great Service Star designation will be mailed in mid-August. The deadline for applications to reach the South Dakota Office of Tourism is September 17. Submitting an application automatically qualifies the business/organization for consideration for the George S. Mickelson Great Service Award.

Visitor and Industry Relations
For more information, contact
Eileen Bertsch
at
Eileen.Bertsch@state.sd.us
or
605-773-3301

Increase your Business
Steve Nelson, Trade Sales and Marketing team intern, has been
e-mailing business opportunity leads from 2010 trade shows to South Dakota suppliers. These leads include tour operators and travel agents interested in sending individual and/or group tours to South Dakota. If you haven’t received the lead reports, please provide an
e-mail address and your contact information.

Trade Sales and Marketing
For more information, contact
Steve Nelson
at
Stephen.Nelson@state.sd.us
or
605-773-3301

AAA Home & Away in South Dakota
Marge Peterson with AAA Home & Away magazine recently traveled through South Dakota, from Brookings to Hill City, to research three articles for upcoming issues. Her subjects included wineries and agritourism, as well as a feature on Pierre. Thank you to the industry members who helped us bring Marge here.

Media and Public Relations
For more information, contact
Wanda Goodman
at
Wanda.Goodman@state.sd.us
or
605-773-3301

June 2010 Travel Indicators
Recent travel indicators for South Dakota have been updated for June 2010. Mount Rushmore National Memorial saw a slight decrease in visitation numbers in June, while Gaming Tax revenue increased slightly. For further information, please visit the Travel Indicators page.

Research and E-Commerce
For more information, contact
Ashley Worth
at
Ashley.Worth@state.sd.us
or
605-773-3301

Banquet in honor of Bill Honerkamp
A banquet honoring Bill Honerkamp for all his years of dedicated service to the South Dakota tourism industry will be held following BHB&L’s Annual Meeting on Thursday, October 28, at the Best Western Ramkota in Rapid City. A social hour will start at 5 p.m. with dinner and a program at 6 p.m. Cost is $30 per person. This is a save-the-date reminder. Formal invitations will be sent out as the date approaches. If you have questions or would like to be placed on the invite list, contact Ara Baumkratz.

Black Hills, Badlands &
Lakes Association
For more information, contact
Ara Baumkratz
at
ara@blackhillsbadlands.com
or
605-355-3600

2011 Governor's Conference on Tourism
Next year's Tourism Conference will be January 19-20, 2011...mark your calendars now! It's not too early to make hotel reservations.

In addition, sponsorship mailers will be hitting mailboxes soon. In order to offer as much quality content and as many training opportunities as possible, financial assistance from the visitor industry is essential. Please consider supporting this valuable learning and networking opportunity by becoming a conference sponsor.

Important Reminders
2011 Calendar of Events
We’re now accepting submissions for the 2011 events calendar, and we continue to accept 2010 events. Find guidelines and an online submission form on www.SDVisit.com. For more information, contact Brad Lemmel at bradley.lemmel@state.sd.us. Deadline is October 1.

2010 Vacation Packages - FREE LISTING
Remember that vacation package listings on www.TravelSD.com are free, so send us your packages as soon as they’re developed. For more information, contact Brad Lemmel at bradley.lemmel@state.sd.us.

Black Hills Photo Shootout
The 2010 Black Hills Photo Shootout is being held September 17-19. Learn more at www.BlackHillsPhotoShootout.com or contact Chad Coppess or Scott Howard for more information at chad.coppess@state.sd.us or scott.howard@state.sd.us.

Tourism Awards Nominations
If you know of a business or individual worthy of consideration for the Ben Black Elk Award or the A.H. Pankow Award, please submit a nomination. For more information, contact Arline Hammer at arline.hammer@state.sd.us. Deadline is September 2.

What Our Visitors Are Saying...
An email sent to the Office of Tourism:

"I should have asked for more identifying information when I noticed what wonderful tourism service we were getting. We stopped at one of the roadside tourism stations on Route 90, I think it was near exit 220, on June 20. The women’s name was Diane and she was one of the most people-friendly customer service representatives I have ever met. She provided good directions and let us know about the CD tour we could purchase for a very reasonable cost. Everything about our trip through SD was good and this one happy, upbeat, knowledgeable person made the experience exceptional. I don’t know if all of your service people are as good as Diane, but she is certainly a wonderful representative of a welcoming attitude."

- Shirley, Sandwich, Illinois