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Breckenridge: Taking stock

Caddie Nath
cnath@summitdaily.com
Special to the Daily/Breckenridge Resort Chamber

The BreckBecause campaign

Locals and visitors can participate in the BreckBecause campagin online at BreckBecause.com and using the hashtag #BreckBecause, as well as in person at a chalkboard set up in the Blue River Plaza

What do people love about Breckenridge?

That is the question at the heart of a new marketing campaign in the “Kingdom,” and it’s an event-evaluation strategy town officials are implementing.

The aim is to define, and ultimately promote, the aspects of the town that are most popular with visitors and locals alike.



The marketing campaign, #BreckBecause, an effort by the Breckenridge Resort Chamber, encourages everyone to name their favorite things about the town in person and online. With a website, hashtag and public chalkboard located in the Blue River Plaza, the campaign provides a forum for visitors to describe the Breckenridge experience.

So far, people have proclaimed that they love Breck because “it’s beautiful,” “my son lives here,” “I get to take off work on powder days” and “it is a piece of heaven right here.”



The initiative was born out of last year’s town-branding effort, which indicated most people — those who have been to Breckenridge and those who have not — see it as a real town.

“The No. 1 thing that came out of the brand research was that people come to Breckenridge because they can be themselves,” BRC marketing director Scott Fortner said in a release on the campaign. “Not because we’re the biggest, the most affordable or the best for any particular activity. Rather, people come to Breckenridge because they feel comfortable here, and because the town experience is authentic.”

The campaign, BRC officials said, is an effort to tap into that perception and to give it a platform.

Comments from the chalkboard and online postings will be shared on the GoBreck website, in the town’s welcome center and on social media with the intent of reaching other potential visitors.

In addition to the campaign, town leaders are also looking at new ways to evaluate Breckenridge’s numerous annual events, which are a key component of the town’s marketing strategy.

A report, prepared by a private consultant, Creative Strategies Group, indicated opportunities for the town to take a more proactive approach in establishing new events, more carefully analyze the return on investment from existing events and put additional resources behind event-based marketing.

The consultants offered a matrix and categorization process that can be used to review existing and new events, and they recommended expanding financial support for successful ventures. Breckenridge currently pours approximately $1.15 million annually into event support, compared with Vail’s $1.8 million, according to the report.

Officials said in addition to potentially putting additional resources toward the town’s annual offerings, they also hoped to take a more strategic approach to bringing in new events.

“We’ve been reactive instead of proactive,” Councilman Mark Burke said at a recent council meeting. “We’ve had people come to us, but haven’t made them have any performance standards.”

In addition to the new marketing campaign, a town marketing committee will also be surveying visitors during upcoming events to what brought them to Breckenridge.


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