Beyond the Verizon Horizon

Let me be clear: Keeping the only PGA Tour event in South Carolina here on Hilton Head Island is a very important matter. There are three main benefits to our community that come from hosting the event.

The first and possibly the most important is the exposure our brand gets all year, and especially during the event itself that helps us maintain a high profile as a desirable golf destination. The second is that the week of the event is always a big boost for tourist-related businesses. The third benefit is that the Heritage Foundation is able to award scholarships and provide considerable amounts of money every year to local nonprofit organizations.

There are many other benefits. Some are intangible, like the fun and excitement in our community throughout Heritage week. The tournament gives us something to rally around, which is clear just by the hundreds of people who volunteer to work the event.

There is one small step we as community could take to brand the tournament. I propose we adopt a logo that could be used in all promotional material that would give the event and the sponsor additional year-round exposure. Here’s an example of what it could look like to illustrate the idea:

With that said, I believe we should look beyond the Verizon horizon for opportunities to build Hilton Head Island’s image as a tourist destination that goes well beyond our obvious beach and golf images. The general idea is to develop a vision that could be converted into a long-range plan that would position Hilton Head Island as a highly sought-after resort destination year round. Here’s a list of ideas I picked up in talking to community leaders. They aren’t listed in order of importance and the list is not meant to be comprehensive. I invite you to submit additional ideas.

• HHI as an art destination
• HHI as a gourmet destination
• HHI as a green destination
• HHI as an intellectual destination
• HHI as a sports destination (beyond golf and tennis)
• HHI as a wellness destination
• HHI as a family gathering destination
• HHI as a kids destination
• HHI as a health destination

Behind each of these tags there are additional details that would exceed the space on this page, but I believe that this community would have the ability, given our current resources (nature, infrastructure, organizations and human intellect), to develop each of these ideas. It clearly would take a plan and a coordinated willingness to achieve this long-term goal.

Our destination needs to upgrade its image and refine its brand, which will only be successful if we have more to offer than what we presently have, which in turn means that we have to invest in existing infrastructure and build new facilities.

At one time it might made have sense to follow the “control development” mantra, but it is time for us to change it to a redevelopment and rejuvenation theme that would make Hilton Head Island a much more exciting place for all of us.

CEO Marc Frey, Frey Media
mfrey@freymedia.com