Sunday, March 05, 2017

Studies of State-funded Tourism Promotion Withstand Criticism

Studies of State-funded Tourism Promotion Withstand Criticism  [Michigan Capitol Confidential]:
Publicly funded marketing for tourism is a waste of money
"...Mackinac Center for Public Policy’s recent study of state-level tourism promotion that analyzed data from 48 states over 39 years.
...The data showed publicly funded state tourism promotion is not an effective economic development tool. 
Image result for a waste of money.We found, for example, that an additional $1 million in state promotion lifted economic activity in the entire accommodations industry in the average state by just $20,000. 
That’s a negative 98 percent return on investment.
...Taken in proper context, our research still finds that taxpayer-funded tourism promotion is largely a waste of money. 
The funds would be better spent elsewhere, such as infrastructure, tax cuts or any number of other important priorities."

No comments: