Cape May Chamber Budgets $250,000 for Advertising/Marketing

CAPE MAY — The Chamber of Commerce of Greater Cape May is budgeting a quarter of a million dollars to promote tourism in the city.
At an open house at Cape May’s Welcome Center Jan. 12, Chamber President Bill Causey announced a major initiative to keep tourists coming to the nation’s oldest seaside resort. He said $110,000 will be spent on the Cape May Guidebook of which 125,000 copies are distributed.
The chamber prints and distributes 50,000 Cape May brochures annually at a cost of $4,000.
The chamber has $60,000 budgeted for marketing and co-op advertising, $20,000 for its Web site, $20,000 for marketing of events, $6,000 for participation in the July Fourth parade and fireworks and West Cape May Christmas Parade. In addition $15,000 is earmarked for operation of the Welcome Center and $15,000 for the Town Crier information kiosk on the Washington Street Mall.
Causey said he was seeking grants and corporate sponsorships to market events. He said the chamber’s Parking Angel’s program saved over 2,000 motorists from receiving parking tickets when chamber volunteers put money in their expired parking meters.
The chamber is advertising in New Jersey Bride’s Magazine.
“Cape May is the third most frequent destination for weddings in the entire country,” said Causey.
He said he surveyed chamber members as to what they would like to see the chamber undertake.
“By far the number one issue was marketing,” he said.
The second most popular item was holding “tourist-driven,” events, which would cause visitors to drive to Cape May from their hometowns.
Executive board member Mary Stewart said the chamber partners with the Cape May for the July Fourth parade, movies on the beach and staffs the Welcome Center. She said the chamber partnered with the city’s Tourism Commission and Mid Atlantic Center for the Arts to participate in 20 travel shows in markets from New England through western Pennsylvania to Washington D.C.
Stewart said chamber events include the tulip festival, a foot race, a golf tournament, Harborfest, Oktoberfest, kite festival, chili cook-off, restaurant week and a holiday decorating contest.
“We just want to be about promoting Cape May,” said board member John Cooke.