Franklin County Economic Development earned a “Best Social Media Campaign” award for their ongoing series, Franklin County Shines at the Celebrate Tourism Summit on Aug. 1.
Tourism professionals representing communities across Southwest Virginia gathered for the fourth annual event at the Wytheville Meeting Center. During the event, Friends of Southwest Virginia hosted the Southwest Virginia Tourism Awards Ceremony to celebrate the outstanding work within the tourism industry in Southwest Virginia.
Southwest Virginia tourism professionals submitted more than 90 nominations. Winners were chosen after a panel of tourism industry professionals from across the Southeastern United States. Franklin County Economic Development competed against 19 counties and 4 independent cities of the Southwest Virginia Region and was recognized for their outstanding work!
Franklin County Shines is a series about the people and places that make Franklin County one of the best places to live, work, and play. The campaign consists of interviews with people who span the diverse and creative industries in Franklin County, VA. Each interview is a window into a new vibrant slice of life in Franklin County and highlights what people treasure about their corner of the world.
“Our community is as beautiful as our landscape,” said Franklin County Economic Development Director Beth Simms. “As one of our recent participants pointed out, ‘good people attract good people.’ We found this campaign was a great way to highlight our biggest asset — our people.”
“We are proud to celebrate the accomplishments of each of our tourism and hospitality partners who have made this possible through their promotion and development throughout the region,” said Kim Davis, Executive Director of Friends of Southwest Virginia.
To date, Franklin County Shines boasts over 15 interviews with farmers, craft brewers, community advocates and jewelers, just to name a few. Their stories are not to be missed! Visit Franklin County Economic Development on Facebook and Instagram to explore the campaign and learn exactly why Franklin County Shines.
There are plenty more interviews planned for the future. If you or someone you know would make a great candidate for a feature, contact beth.simms@franklincountyva.gov.