Post your local hashtag where visitors will see it

This one is a simple idea that came up when I was visiting Cathlamet, Washington, population 553: Post your local hashtag where visitors will see it. 

The Cathlamet Chamber of Commerce does an awesome local photo contest. Most of the photos come from locals. They use these on their annual events calendar and other publications. 

Cathlamet also has visitors, people who boat along the river from the big city and stay at the local marina. Some are taking photos and posting online, surely. But it’s not always easy to find those photos or posts. So let’s make it easier. 

Decide on a local hashtag. 
Work with a local artist to put the hashtag on a sign that suits your local style. 
Post it where visitors are. 

Cathlamet is a town of 553 people, and I don’t think there is any other place named Cathlamet anywhere. So they can just use #cathlamet as a tag. 

They have a casual rustic mountain town charm. They also have a vibrant artist community. A handpainted wooden sign suits them perfectly.

Visitors tend to come in through the marina. Let’s go post that sign right at the marina. 

Then it will be just that much easier to find photos and posts from visitors. The chamber can reach out to these folks when its photo contest time and even throughout the year. 

Simple. 

Keep shaping the future of your town, 
Becky

PS – If you want to get a feel for what a visit from me is like, check out this article: Downtown expert sees potential in Cowlitz County. Cheers to Rose Lundy and the team at The Daily News who covered every stop on my tour, braving some not-so-great weather!