Hall might be missing the marketing mark

Listen to this article

For photos for today’s print edition story on the NASCAR Hall of Fame’s effect on the leisure traveler business, one idea we had was shots of hall of fame posters on display in Charlotte hotels or at other local businesses.

As it turns out, getting such a photo is easier said than done.

We were told that there were no posters for the hall at any local businesses.

It was a revelation that left me stunned.

After all, the hall, which opened in May, is struggling to meet attendance projections for its first year. In fact, unless some Christmas miracle occurs, the hall won’t meet its original 2010 attendance goal of 800,000. Hall of fame officials will be lucky if it hits even half that number.

Clearly, something needs to happen to make attendance figures step on the gas pedal.

That’s why it is strange that hotels and other businesses apparently don’t have signage promoting the taxpayer-funded venue. Hotels, especially, are a logical place to advertise the hall.

Charlotte’s hotels have been let down somewhat by the hall. While some say they are seeing a boost in businesses thanks to the hall, they also expected a lot more leisure travelers coming to Charlotte just to see the museum.

Such has been the case with management the Hilton Garden Inn, which is across the street from the venue, and the Westin Charlotte, anyway.

So where are the ads?

Part of the problem, it seems, stems from the hall’s marketing budget, which apparently is not big enough.

The Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority, which operates the facility, said it has not had enough marketing dollars to reach racing fans across the country.

While that might be true, some have questioned whether the museum is being wisely managed with the money that it has. For example, hall officials were asked why the attraction was shut down for Thanksgiving instead of being opened to, perhaps, start a new family tradition of visiting the hall on the same day as the annual Thanksgiving parade. There’s merit to that question; Black Friday turned out to be one of the top 10 days for attendance at the hall, suggesting that people will visit it when they have time off.

In today’s tough economy, locals might be the best type of visitor for the museum to steer its limited advertising dollars to; while many people across the U.S. are still cutting back on spending and, therefore, might be reluctant to travel to other cities for a vacation, Charlotteans are already here.

Even Tim Newman, head of the CRVA, said the amount of locals visiting the hall with guests has not been as high as it could. In the future, he said, the CRVA plans to do more advertising to locals, and he expects holiday events, such as the hall’s UnDeck the Hall, to help lure more locals.

Maybe national crowds are the wrong group to be marketing to, at least for now.

Maybe it’s a better idea to advertise here in Charlotte, to put up posters in businesses and hotels (assuming they’ll grant permission) and try and lure as many locals and convention travelers who are already in town to the hall as possible.

Then, those visitors might write reviews online, which people in other cities could read.

Check it out: free marketing.

Editor Deon Roberts can be reached at [email protected].