As I was driving to Mother’s home last weekend, I was listening to Dolly Parton singing along with one of my favorite artists, Shania Twain in a song called, “Coat of Many Colors.” Reflecting on it, I started thinking how Visit Lake Norman has many similarities with this song. I sang along in the car (where nobody could hear me), “There were rags of many colors and every piece was small. I didn’t have a coat and it was way down in the fall . . . “The song spoke about how her Mama sewed the rags together, sewin’ every piece with love. “She made my coat of many colors that I was so proud of.” I realized then just how Visit Lake Norman is an organization of many colors.
Visit Lake Norman was created in 2001 and I was hired as the first executive director in 2002. My role as defined by the Board of Directors was to work with our hospitality partners and shape Lake Norman as a destination. The vision set – our team began the process of managing the five key elements of destination offering, visitor mix, marketing communities, advocacy, and partnership formations.
At the community level, the key elements of destination marketing are (1) marketing, promoting and selling – the communications to prioritize target markets, (2) community relations – a leader in the tourism industry advocating by raising the awareness and profile of tourism locally in support of external marketing efforts, (3) leadership, partnerships and team building – championing marketing and development while building strong alliances to achieve long-term goals.
Visit Lake Norman continues to build solid foundations. In fiscal year 2009, the total economic impact was $7,555,950. We increased our hotel room night stays by 44% as a result tourism tax dollars saved $461 per household in Mecklenburg County taxes. There was $14.92 generated for every $1 Visit LKN was funded by the towns. Our team walked away with a number of statewide awards from the Destination Marketing Association of NC in. Our Sports Marketing Manager, Travis Dancy surpassed the three-peat with securing FLW the fourth consecutive year to return to Lake Norman. Our Mayors will once again have the opportunity in welcoming the professional anglers back to the lake. The achievements of VLN are the results of the combined efforts of each individual. We will continue bringing in those tourism dollars which impact our region.
Country songs are written with imagery and emotion. Reflecting on Dolly’s 
song, I thought about the lake communities sewn together with a common thread of talent, commitment, and creativity. Like a quilt, there are many different fabrics representing our various attractions, hotels, restaurants, and businesses. Each a different texture and color, but stitched together create a blanket of opportunity. We wear our coat with pride, crafted from our best efforts. It is our coat of many colors.
