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ASHLAND Transforming Ashland wasn’t just about altering the city’s logo to include a rush of bright colors and a paintbrush in the letter “h” and treble clef serving as the letter “d.”
Brandy Clark, Executive Director of Visit Ashland, said it’s about “a reflection of who we are and what we aspire to be.”
Branding, marketing and creativity were the three focal points during one of the afternoon breakout sessions during Tuesday’s Appalachian Regional Commission conference. Courtney Hensley, Assistant Director of Visit Ashland, and Carly Thomas, Visit Ashland’s event coordinator, joined Clark to form the panel for the “Create with Ashland” session in the Twin Bridges A conference room at The Delta Hotel.
When she was named to her position in 2020, Clark admitted she had little clue what she was doing. But the metaphorical ball was already rolling.
Revitalization expert Roger Brooks had already ignited a fire under the movers and shakers of the city to rebrand and renew.
“Create With Us” became the motto, and plans to rejuvenate the city were in motion. Visit Ashland’s inception occurred in 2020.
During the onset of COVID-19 pandemic, Clark learned about the inner-workings of website creation and maintenance, and boosting social media presence.
With “creativity” as the “fuel we were using to drive change,” a revamped website (visitaky.com) became more attractive — it now averages 10,000-12,000 hits a month compared to 27,000 hits from 2007-19.
“We are a creative community, and that’s the message we wanted to send,” Hensley said.
Visit Ashland has acquired 21,000 on its Facebook page over three years. Its TikTok and Instagram presence has permeated as well.
With donated sculptures on the riverfront, a massive mural movement, art alley downtown and an emerging music scene, Clark, Hensley and Thomas had plenty to smile about during their presentation.
Thomas was a “citizen creator” before being named to her position. She helped start the AKY Makers Market, which takes place regularly on Broadway Square.
Back in 2019, Brooks said Ashland’s goal should be 250-275 events in a year.
According to Clark’s calculations, 300 events/activities took place in 2021.
Then came 2022, when Clark said “we felt like we peaked in June” when a beer festival — Firkin Fest — had people filling the streets during the day and then a Zach Bryan had thousands filing down to the riverfront that evening.
“But now I feel like this is the peak,” she said, referring to Ashland having the opportunity to host the esteemed ARC annual conference. ARC includes parts of 12 states and all of West Virginia.
Clark said Ashland is thriving and certainly has a bright future to go along with its proud past.
“It’s been pretty amazing to watching this unfold,” she said.
(606) 326-2664 |
asnyder@dailyindependent.com
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