Military reunion planners from across the country now have the opportunity to see for themselves why one of America’s most popular family vacation destinations is also becoming the number one destination for military reunions. Military reunion planners from all branches of the service are invited to participate in the 8th Annual Military Reunion Planners Conference April 25-28, 2005. This year’s conference is hosted by the Branson/Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce and the Branson Veterans Task Force along with many area businesses.

“We are thrilled to be inviting reunion planners to town again this year to experience our area’s hospitality and patriotism. Once they do, we’re sure they’ll want to bring their groups to Branson,” said Teina Hammons, chairperson for the Military Reunion Planners Conference.

Conference attendees will be treated to four days of planned activities, informative presentations, a trade show and more, all for the purpose of helping them plan and organize successful military reunions in Branson. From selecting the right lodging to previewing dozens of entertainment venues and attractions, to meeting professional reunion organizers, this conference is one of the best tools available for military reunion planners, according to Hammons.

Conference organizers are offering an all-inclusive package for attendees that includes lodging, all meals during the conference, a wide variety of shows and attractions, several educational seminars, a trade show, a marketplace, and all local conference transportation. For only $50 per person, reunion planners can experience the best Branson has to offer. Each reunion planner may bring one guest for an additional $50.

“This conference will be educational, informative, and a great opportunity to socialize with other planners from around the country,” said Liz Stanley, co-chair of the Military Reunion Planners Conference.

“Our community is often referred to as the year-round home for veterans and active duty military personnel — a distinction we’re very proud to have,” said Dan Lennon, vice-president of marketing and public relations for the Branson/Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce. “It is an honor to be hosting this prestigious event for the first time, and we look forward to many years of inviting veterans of all eras to discover Branson, America’s military reunion capital.”

Reunion planners must complete an application and profile sheet and meet basic requirements before their registration is confirmed. The requirements for the reunion planners are as follows: The planner may not have attended Branson’s Military Reunion Planners Conference in the past two years. The reunion group represented cannot already have a lodging contract for an upcoming reunion in Branson. The attendee must be the decision maker, a member of the decision committee, or authorized by the reunion organization to act as an information scout for the destination. 

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“AL ROKER’S COUNTRY FESTIVAL” Featuring BransonFest
Join nine-time Emmy Award winner and host of NBC’s Today Show, Al Roker for an hour special as he visits Branson, Missouri, the live entertainment capital of America during BransonFest 2004. Nestled between the White River and the Ozark Mountains you’ll find bright lights and scenic nature mixed with live music and the widest variety of entertainment imaginable. And there’s food too, lots and lots of food. For one week every year Branson kicks it up a notch with BransonFest; a non-stop celebration of the music, the food, and the surprising culture of the Ozarks. Al takes us on a tour of the sights, sounds and behind the scene happenings, introducing us to those who put Branson on the map like Andy Williams and Tony Orlando. Plus, you’ll meet some of the legends of popular music, Pam Tillis, Mickey Gilley and even an Oak Ridge boy or two, cooking up their favorites.

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“What an amazing treat to have Al Roker and company spend a week savoring the tastes, sights and sounds of BransonFest,” said John Richardson, director of Marketing for Dolly Parton’s Dixie Stampede Dinner and Show, and chairman of the Branson/Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce & CVB’s BransonFest committee.

BransonFest 2007 is set for April 10-14 on the festival grounds of the beautiful Welk Resort in Branson. The annual event showcases Branson’s very best food, fun and live entertainment.

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In their presentation to the Board of Aldermen Tuesday, October 26, 2004, the firm hired to conduct a branding study for the Branson/Tri-Lakes Area recommended the creation of a marketing campaign designed to change the perceptions of a targeted segment of non-visitors while reinforcing the attitudes of current visitors.

The Sterling Group, a successful national brand consulting firm, was selected to conduct the study by a branding task force established by the Marketing Advisory Council of the Branson/Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce & CVB. The goal of the study was to determine ways to attract more first time visitors and increase visitation by Baby Boomers and their families. Sterling Group’s client list includes companies such as Nike, Pepsi, Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, Levi Strauss, Yahoo, Sony, Johnson & Johnson, the NBA, and Time Warner.

Austin McGhie, the president of the Sterling Group’s San Francisco office and head of the company’s strategy groups in San Francisco, New York, and London, in his presentation to the Board, focused on three major aspects of the branding research that led to his firm’s recommendation to develop marketing tactics that address what he called the ‘perception gap’ between Loyal Branson visitors and non-visitors.

Identifying the ‘Resistors’
“Our research discovered that there is a Resistor group of people, who look like Branson’s current Loyal customers in ways such as lifestyle and demographics, but they are under the misguided perception that they know what Branson offers and that it’s just NOT for them. The reality is that when test groups of Resistors actually experienced Branson, not only were they pleasantly surprised by their experience, they become self-professed ambassadors who become enthusiastic advocates for Branson.”

Establishing the Branson Brand
The new marketing approach, according to McGhie, should shake the foundation of the Resistors’ perceptions with surprising and unexpected aspects of the Branson brand.

McGhie described the Branson brand position as the sum total of the qualities that differentiate Branson from its competitors.

Branson is up close and personal. Branson brings together a broad and unexpected mix of world-class entertainment and recreation to create an exhilarating family experience.

“In other words,” McGhie said, “… entertainment you can touch, entertainment that touches you. That is the essence of what Branson’s true brand position is in the vacation destination market today.”

McGhie said that in order to establish accurate perceptions about the Branson brand in the minds of Resistors, marketing must focus on the unexpected elements of Branson, and must be delivered in a way that will pleasantly surprise Resistors and Loyal customers alike.

The Brand Promise
The Branson Brand promise is the character, personality and values of the Branson community, key elements that satisfy and endear Loyal visitors, according to McGhie.

“If you can overcome Resistors’ perceptions with a marketing strategy that entices them with surprising facts and begin to reposition the brand in their minds, the Branson Brand promise will keep them coming back,” McGhie said.

He went on to describe the branding study process that formed the basis for his group’s recommendations. The 5-month study consisted of group and individual focus sessions with Branson area business and community leaders; interviews with tourism and media industry experts; interviews with visitors in Branson; focus group sessions with non-visitors in Dallas, Little Rock and St. Louis; a first-time visitor trip to Branson for residents (‘Resistors’) in key markets; and a review of existing statistical visitor information.

Branson Alderman Dick Gass participated in two local focus groups that provided Sterling with insight and feedback during the study.

“I think Sterling has defined the Branson brand and given us well thought-out recommendations for how to proceed from here. One of the keys will be for everyone in the community to get on board so we can put our full force behind making this branding campaign a success,” Gass said.

The next step in the process, according to BLACC brand consultant Linda Antus is to issue a request for proposals from creative agencies to develop a campaign expression of the brand strategy, including a slogan and other deliverables, as well as research to test our proposition and creative positioning.

Then, Camelot Communications, our strategic media company, will assess our market opportunity and recommend the targeting of our 2005 marketing strategies to maximize the contact with the Resistors, by Season, according to Antus.

Dan Lennon, vice-president of marketing and public relations for the Branson/Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce and CVB, said that once the Chamber has creative direction, it will be able to offer local businesses workshops on how to apply the marketing strategies to their individual businesses.

“The goal is to increase business for everyone associated with tourism in the Branson/Tri-Lakes Area,” Lennon said.

Branson Chamber president and CEO Ross Summers said he looks forward to implementing Sterling’s recommendations during the 2005 season and beyond.

“This is a long-term process for the Chamber and the community. We have a big job ahead of us, as does any destination or company that undergoes a branding campaign, but now we have the research-based evidence and soon we’ll have the creative direction we need to proceed with confidence and enthusiasm. The sky’s the limit for Branson,” he said.

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More than 5 million twinkling lights will illuminate the skies above the Tri-Lakes Area during the 2004 Branson Area Festival of Lights (BAFOL). A ceremonial ‘flipping of the switch’ will kick off the Ozark Mountain Christmas lighting spectacular at 5 p.m. Monday, November 1 at the Yakov Smirnoff Theater, located on Hwy. 248 near the intersection of Hwy. 65.

The public is invited to join city leaders at the free reception as they ‘flip’ a 10-foot light switch. Everyone that attends will receive a complimentary visit, provided by Ride The Ducks, to the Festival of Lights Parkway, the area’s centerpiece drive-through lighting display. The BAFOL Parkway extends for two miles along Branson Hills Parkway near Hwy. 65 and Bee Creek Rd. More than 500,000 lights adorn dozens of animated displays along the Parkway including the ever-popular “12 Days of Christmas,” Santa and his leaping reindeer, sailboat races, a nativity scene, a Victorian Christmas scene, and many others.

In addition to the Parkway, guests visiting the area during Ozark Mountain Christmas can see more than 280 lighted displays lining the famous stretch of Mo. Hwy. 76 from downtown Branson to the western edge of town.

The Branson Area Festival of Lights Parkway is open from 5 p.m. through midnight seven days a week November 1, 2004 – January 1, 2005. Admission is $7 per family vehicle and $50 for each commercial bus or motor coach. Unlimited admission passes are $15 per family vehicle and can be purchased at the Parkway or at the Branson/Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce Welcome Centers, which are located at the intersection of Hwy. 248 & Hwy. 65, and at the intersection of Hwy. 160 & Hwy. 65.

Last year, an estimated 30,000 family vehicles and 1,100 commercial vehicles toured the parkway generating approximately $250,000 in revenue. Income raised at the Parkway and contributions from area sponsors go to support the BAFOL displays, which take several months to set up and require ongoing maintenance. This year’s platinum level sponsors include Buckingham’s Restaurant at the Clarion Hotel, Fairfield Resorts, Golden Corral, Grand Country Square, Hollywood Wax Museum, IMAX Entertainment Complex, Legends in Concert, Myer Hotels, Ozark Mountain Bank, Presleys’ Country Jubilee, Skaggs Community Health Center, Stone Hill Winery and White River Valley Electric Cooperative among others. This year’s media sponsors include Hometown Radio, KHOZ and KTTS

Universal Concepts, the nationally known company that built many of the displays in the Parkway has also created lighting displays for Walt Disney World, the Centennial Olympic Park, Pigeon Forge, Gatlinburg, Myrtle Beach, Dollywood and Anheuser Busch.

“This community has put a lot of effort into enhancing the holiday experience for visitors. Branson offers spectacular Christmas shows, millions of lights, and countless shopping options, plus dozens of other ways to be entertained with friends and family,” said David Arney, president and CEO of Akers and Arney Insurance Associates and chairman of Branson Area Festival of Lights Committee.

The spectacular beauty of the Parkway and other area lighting displays has been captured in a professionally produced 30-minute video, available at the Welcome Centers for only $20 for DVD and $15 for VHS. Maps of the area’s lighting displays can also be picked up at the Welcome Centers.

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The Branson/Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce & CVB together with the Branson Veterans’ Task Force invites everyone to participate in welcoming all women veterans and active duty military women to Veterans Homecoming Nov. 5 -11, 2004 during a special day of camaraderie and fun on Nov. 8.

The purpose of the event is to honor women veterans and active duty military women, and to give them the opportunity to meet other women from around the country who share similar backgrounds and experiences, according to Mary Slivka, chair of the Women Veterans’ Welcoming Committee. The Nov. 8 event will include an 11a.m. luncheon at the Radisson Hotel with guest speaker Brigadier General LaRita Aragon, Air National Guard, who, as a school teacher and single mom, enlisted in the Air National Guard and worked her way up the ranks.

Following the luncheon, guest will have the opportunity to Ride the Ducks, visit Stone Hill Winery and tour the American Presidential Museum. Dinner will be held at the Lodge of the Ozarks at 4:45 p.m. with guest speaker from St. Louis Missouri Jill Thomas, from the Department of Veterans Affairs, also an Air Force veteran. Several local entertainers are expected to stop by the Lodge of the Ozarks to welcome the women to Branson.

Branson Veterans Task Force sponsors have donated gifts for the Nov. 8 event which will be given away at the luncheon and dinner. All of the day’s activities are open to anyone who would like to attend. The costs to participate are as follows:

Lunch only: $25.00 per person
Activities only: $20.00 per person
Dinner only: $35.00 per person
All day events: $70.00 per person

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