Lauren Bennett McGinty, Executive Director, Explore Minnesota
Minnesota is perhaps the best-kept secret as a tourism destination, according to Lauren Bennett McGinty, executive director of Explore Minnesota. “We’re trying to change that. We’re one of the more affordable states to vacation. Still, I think that affordability also translates to living here and having a business here,” she told Invest:.
What were the main highlights for Explore Minnesota in the last 12 months?
We recently added many different initiatives to our work umbrella. After the 2023 legislative session, we were able to add Explore Minnesota for Business, which helped support marketing the state to attract a new workforce, new businesses, and retain our current employee base. We were able to launch our new marketing campaign in March 2024 called Star of the North. This was aimed at attracting talent from all over the country. We also added the Outdoor Recreation Industry Partnership, collaborating with three other state agencies to promote the outdoor recreation economy in Minnesota.
In July 2024, we added Explore Minnesota Film, which is the state’s new official film office. We launched a new marketing campaign for the film office this last fall, and we’re continuing to build that program.
What makes Minnesota an ideal place to live and do business in?
We are one of those lesser-known places, and we’re trying to change that. But I think it also works in our favor.
Among the big things that attract people are certainly the outdoors. We have fantastic outdoor recreation options in all four seasons, but we also have a lot of great, beautiful scenic byways that people can experience. Of course, we have all kinds of different indoor activities as well. The obvious one is Mall of America, but we also have one of the best theater scenes in the country and fantastic museums throughout the state, alongside one of the most innovative dining scenes in the nation.
We just have so much to offer, and most people don’t realize that. We’re trying to change that. This is also reflected in the quality of life that we have here. We’re one of the more affordable states to vacation in, and that affordability also translates to living here and owning a business here.
We are the No. 1 state for business survival, and we are the least stressed state in the country, and the No. 4 four state in the country overall, based on numerous rankings for quality of life, business climate and otherwise.
How does Explore Minnesota attract tourism and visitors year-round?
For us, the tourism piece is the core of our message. There is a phenomenon called the halo effect. The halo effect means that once a person visits a destination, if they have a good experience, they’re more likely to want to live there, work there, go to college there, or retire there after they have that visit. Our goal is to attract people with campaign messages about the different activities we have going on throughout the year, and all the different food and drink experiences we offer and more. We also have fantastic outdoor recreation in all four seasons. That’s a huge draw for people, especially since the pandemic. More and more people are starting to discover nature and the outdoors.
How does Explore Minnesota cooperate or work with the local hospitality and lodging industry?
We have been fortunate to be able to support a grant program for several years for the local tourism industry. It allows them to expand their marketing efforts or invest in necessary marketing resources, like website updates and visitor guides. It gives them an opportunity to partner with us to create more sustaining tourism resources for themselves.
Another way we support the industry is through our co-op program, where Explore Minnesota works with different vendors to buy down the cost of advertising so that different tourism businesses can work together to purchase discounted advertising and expand their messaging.
We also have an extensive newsletter and website program. Our newsletters hit thousands of subscribers, and our website is seen by millions of people. The goal is to highlight all these unique places in the state.
We regularly reach out to local tourism organizations and collect content, photos, and more. We also have a team of people who are in those communities and meet regularly with all the different destination marketing organization leaders to learn more about their latest offerings and events.
What are the main priorities or goals for Explore Minnesota over the next two to three years?
One of our goals is to continue to see the growth of all of our always-on campaigns. Regarding our workforce attraction and business attraction campaign, I’m looking forward to seeing the results of having those in the market for more than a year. It’s going to be great for Minnesota to be seen by more and more people as we go. For our travel campaigns it’s about continuing to see that growth. We had a record year in 2023, which means that we moved out of the pandemic and into a more growth phase. I’m excited to see that continue, to be increasingly competitive with our neighbors, and maybe even beat them in a few different metrics as we get more visitors here than we have ever had before.
I’m also looking forward to seeing international travel return to normal. We’ve added some new international flights – Copenhagen and Rome. We’re excited to see what that might bring for us. We’re also looking at places like India, Japan, and South Korea. The goal is to grow that international market to where we were before the pandemic.
