You have probably seen ads in local publications encouraging you to be an ambassador for your community. These ads are purchased by the Wind River Visitors Council to perpetuate the growth and positive impacts of the tourism industry.
Community members and businesses play integral roles in the success of Wind River Country as a destination. In turn, businesses of all sorts and residents of Wind River Country all enjoy the benefits of being a special destination.
For example, look at how the two seemingly disparate businesses of auto services and museums work together without even knowing it:
“In my line of work, we help people that break down. We have an opportunity to make a good impression. There’s nothing worse than being stranded in a strange town. The better we can treat those folks and get them back on the road doing the things they want to do, the better impression we’re going to leave of Riverton and they are more likely to come back and tell their friends,” explains Mike Bailey, owner of Bailey Tire and Auto Services.
When they return, or while they wait for their car to be fixed, visitors may just spend a few hours at a local museum.
“Our museum and the greater Lander museum complex offers cultural and educational programs of great interest to Wyoming travelers,” said Jim Corbett with the Museum of the American West in Lander. “We frequently see our visitors ‘stay over’ to enjoy Native American dances or concerts, or just to fully absorb the wonderful Lander museum experience. Museum visitors provide an economic boon to our community.”
Now that these guests have decided to spend an extra night in Wind River Country, they will have an even larger effect on local businesses and residents.
“The more we can get tourists to visit Riverton and surrounding area buying gas, getting their cars fixed, eating in restaurants, staying in hotels, the more we do to support our economy. It’s what we all survive on,” said Bailey.
So the cycle of support for local businesses grows to include more businesses, more salaries, more sales tax collections for our roads, simply because a few locals were great ambassadors for the good of their communities.
