OCEAN CITY – The Town of Ocean City will support the Fish in OC endeavor for another year with officials believing it has gained momentum in attracting visitors.
Last week Scott Lenox of Fish in OC presented an update to the Tourism Commission of the marketing initiative’s success in the past year.
“I would like to thank all of you last year for the favorable recommendation to the council. It was approved, and we got things rolling … it has taken off better than ever expected,” Lenox said.
In November 2014, the Mayor and Council voted unanimously to approve the Tourism Commission’s favorable recommendation to support Fish in OC with $10,000 as well as with the town’s trade show equipment.
Lenox presented Fish in OC as a co-op marketing initiative for fishing in Ocean City. Lenox had created a Fish In OC trade show booth and booked six outdoor trade shows scattered through New Jersey, Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania where he marketed Ocean City as a fishing destination.
Lenox and D3Corp created a website, www.fishinoc.com and a trip planner that offers different boats in Ocean City, accommodations, things to do and more.
As part of the town’s agreement with Lenox, Ocean City’s Vacation Guide was distributed at the trade shows along with the Fish in OC magazine, as well as the display of Ocean City tourism videos at the trade shows, the Ocean City logo displayed on the front page of the Fish in OC magazine with a full page advertisement on the back.
Lenox attended six trade shows earlier this year and distributed over 2,000 Ocean City Vacation Guides as well as has produced 20,000-plus Fish in OC magazines with 4,000 distributed at the trade shows, reaching an audience of over 300,000 people.
The other 16,000-plus magazines have been distributed locally all year long in high traffic areas, such as Walmart, Wawa, Visitors Centers, local hotels and restaurants. The Fish in OC website, which is linked to the town’s website www.ococean.com, is updated daily as well as weekly email blasts are sent to thousands in the Fish in OC’s database designed to attract interest to OC and profile their website advertisers.
This year Lenox will attend six trade shows starting with the Garden State Outdoor Sports Show in January, Baltimore Boat Show in January, Great American Outdoor Show in February, Greater Philadelphia Outdoor Sport Show in February, World Fishing & Outdoor Exhibition in March and Saltwater Fishing Expo in March.
“It is really working … there is no stopping it now. I think it is going to be a fixture in the fishing community,” Lenox said.
Tourism Director Donna Abbott asked the commission if the town would be interested in supporting Fish in OC in its second year with a $10,000 sponsorship and the trade show equipment. The commission voted unanimously to forward a favorable recommendation to the full Mayor and City Council to approve.
On Monday evening, Commission Chair and Councilwoman Mary Knight reported the update to the Mayor and City Council. Councilman Matt James made a motion to use $10,000 out of the advertising budget to support Fish in OC in its second year, and the council voted unanimously to approve.