Roanoke Outside Foundation Receives Virginia Tourism Corporation Grant for Marketing

The Roanoke Outside Foundation recently received $25,000 from the Virginia Tourism Corporation Marketing Leverage Program grant fund to further develop the global image of the region as a premiere outdoor recreation community.

Brand building events such as the Blue Ridge Marathon and GO Outside Festival are part of the region’s integrated economic development strategy to leverage natural assets to attract talent and investment. Roanoke Outside Foundation received the grant for a Digital Marketing & Influencers in the Outdoors project.

In the era of 24 hour news it is imperative that your story stand out if you want it to break through the noise and be seen. And in order for that to happen the story has to be real, it has to be genuine. Our region has a great story to tell, we don’t need to fake it.

“We are an authentic community and the experiences a person gets here speak for themselves. This grant allows our brand building events to partner with key social media influencers from throughout the Unites States,” said Julia Boas, Roanoke Outside event manager. “The idea is to bring these influencers to our events, let them experience it firsthand, and then tell their social followers all about it, raw and unscripted.”