{"id":10230,"date":"2020-08-01T18:00:22","date_gmt":"2020-08-02T01:00:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/business.wsu.edu\/edividend\/?p=10230"},"modified":"2026-03-16T11:48:11","modified_gmt":"2026-03-16T18:48:11","slug":"students-craft-plans-draw-millennial-travelers","status":"private","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/business.wsu.edu\/edividend\/2020\/08\/01\/students-craft-plans-draw-millennial-travelers\/","title":{"rendered":"Private: Students Craft Plans to Draw Millennial Travelers to Tri-Cities"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"
Students in Joan Giese\u2019s Marketing Management 495 class visit Tri-Cities attractions earlier this year, before the \u201cStay Home, Stay Healthy\u201d order took effect. (photos courtesy WSU Tri-Cities)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Students Craft Plans to Increase the Tri-Cities\u2019 Draw for Millennial Travelers<\/h1>\n

By Becky Kramer<\/h2>\n

COVID-19 turned the team project in Joan Giese\u2019s<\/a> Marketing Management 495 class on its head.<\/p>\n

The assignment required students to develop strategies for bringing tourists in their 20s and 30s to the Tri-Cities in Central Washington. But as the project got underway, the state\u2019s \u201cStay Home, Stay Healthy\u201d orders took effect.<\/p>\n

\u201cLast semester, we had a very devastating external factor, and that was the COVID-19 pandemic,\u201d says Giese, clinical associate professor of marketing at WSU Tri-Cities. \u201cThe impact on the tourism industry has been astronomical.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"
Michael Novakovich of Visit Tri-Cities tells students about local attractions during a bus tour.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Responding to the crisis became a learning opportunity, Giese says. Her class rose to the challenge, crafting plans to draw millennials to the Richland-Kennewick-Pasco area as Washington\u2019s economy reopens.<\/p>\n

Visit Tri-Cities, the area\u2019s visitor and convention bureau, will use the students\u2019 ideas in its future planning, says Michael Novakovich<\/a>, the president and chief executive officer.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re all seasoned marketers here, and we think the students did some really outstanding work,\u201d says Novakovich (\u201910 Bus. Admin., \u201916 MBA). \u201cThey identified some things we are already working on, validating our efforts. And they had unique ideas as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tourism is a $500 million industry in the Tri-Cities, employing more than 6,300 people. The area is home to wineries, golf courses, live music venues, art galleries, and tours of the Manhattan Project B Reactor and the decommissioned USS Triton submarine.<\/p>\n

With 269,500 residents, the Tri-Cities has a competitive advantage for attracting tourists as Washington\u2019s phased reopening continues, according to Novakovich. \u201cWe offer urban experiences without the high-population densities people want to avoid at this time,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Drawing on the Tri-Cities attributes<\/h3>\n

Students suggested ways for Visit Tri-Cities to increase the area\u2019s allure for millennial travelers. Among their recommendations:<\/p>\n