Council Unanimously Supports Fishing Marketing Effort

Council Unanimously Supports Fishing Marketing Effort
Council

OCEAN CITY – The Fish in OC marketing concept received the green light this week to represent the resort and advertising all of the area’s fishing opportunities at several upcoming outdoor trade shows.

On Monday evening, Scott Lenox of Fish in OC, LLC., came before the Mayor and City Council to pitch a trade show effort marketing Ocean City as fishing destination in hopes of gaining sponsorship dollars.

The concept was proposed to the Tourism Commission last week, which unanimously supported the idea and voted to forward Fish in OC to the full Mayor and City Council for approval of funding the initiative with the $10,000 that is already allocated in the current year’s budget for trade shows.

“I can remember when first moving here in the ‘80s our city manager at that time started to present that we advertise more for packages for golf,” Tourism Chair and Council Secretary Mary Knight said this week. “It seems like it is about time for fishing being the ‘White Marlin Capital of the World.’”

Lenox presented Fish in OC, a co-op marketing initiative for fishing in Ocean City. Lenox has created a Fish in OC trade show booth and has already booked six outdoor trade shows scattered through New Jersey, Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania where he will market Ocean City as a fishing destination.

Lenox and D3Corp has also created a website, www.fishinoc.com, and a trip planner that will offer the different boats in Ocean City, accommodations, things to do and more.

Fish in OC is also giving away fishing trips in Ocean City as a mechanism to build an email database. The same idea has been done by the town with the OC Experience, which is a trade show booth concept brought forward by event promoter Brad Hoffman a few years ago.

Last week, Lenox proposed to the Tourism Commission a $15,000 advertising package that includes the display of Ocean City tourism videos while Fish in OC attends the six outdoor travel shows where a potential of 300,000 people attend, according to Lexo.

Also, the Ocean City logo will be displayed on the front page of the “Fishing Planner” publication with a full page advertisement on the back as done with the OC Golf Getaway magazine.

There will be a link to the town’s website, www.OCocean.com, on the front page of www.fishinoc.com, along with Ocean City features such as the Boardwalk will be listed under Fish in OC website’s Things to Do tab. Ocean City’s Vacation Guide will be distributed at the trade shows to at least 300,000 people. Lenox does the writing for the fishing section of that guide.

At last week’s Tourism Commission meeting, Ocean City Tourism and Marketing Director Donna Abbott pointed out the current budget includes $10,000 to fund travel show expenses.

At the conclusion of the commission’s discussion, Mayor Rick Meehan recommended the town support Fish in OC with the $10,000 advertising budgeted for trade shows as well as throw in OC Experience’s equipment as an in-kind service to make up for the $5,000 difference.

During the council’s deliberation this week, Councilman Matthew James questioned the other sponsors who have come on board as well as if Lenox plans to expand his advertising to all fishing opportunities throughout town and beyond ocean charters.

“I think it will also be beneficial if you could try to add some marketing for fishing all around town. I saw on your website that you have a lot of sport fishing boats that go out into the ocean but maybe talk to surf fishing organizations,” James said.

Lenox responded he has gathered an extensive list of sponsors that includes Sunset Marina, the Ocean City Fishing Center and Bahia Marina and their respective tournaments, the Dunes Manor Hotel, the Ocean City Boardwalk Hotel Group and Jolly Roger.

“I am pretty excited,” he said. “A new website will include not only my sponsors but also the free things to do. If they come to Ocean City to check out the fishing scene, not everybody can afford a $4,500 charter boat, so if you have a fishing rod with you they can go to the 94th Street pier, the bulkhead behind 3rd Street, and those sorts of things, so there will be free options also.”

James made a motion for the Town of Ocean City to sponsor Fish in OC with $10,000 as well as the OC Experience equipment. The Mayor and City Council voted unanimously to approve.