Haywood County, N.C., entices visitors to ‘make memories’

It’s always fun to flip through the pages of the monthly Our State magazine and “mentally visit” the various communities across North Carolina. For the full effect, though, you need to read the advertisements, too.

One from the March 2024 edition particularly caught my eye – a tourism ad for Haywood County. The headline reads: “Haywood you like to make some mountain memories?” Now, that’s clever.

The text is rather brief: “Make your way to the Smoky Mountains of Haywood County, where you’ll find a harmonious blend of recreation in our five mountain towns, all set against a backdrop of breathtaking beauty. Make time for moments you’ll never forget.”

The dominant photograph shows a happy, young family in a small lush-green clearing gazing off in awe at the wavy mountaintops in the distance. Mom, dad and the kids are dressed is casual, summer attire. It’s obviously warm on this day. 

Here comes the family up the trail to get into position for the photograph used in the Haywood ad.

The ad includes an arrow that underlines the words “Hay Now” and points to: “Plan your Getaway at VisitNCSmokies.com.”

 

I clicked there…and learned the five towns are Waynesville, Maggie Valley, Canton, Clyde and Lake Junaluska. Haywood County is “right in the middle of the North Carolina Smoky Mountains” and near the southern terminus of the Blue Ridge Parkway…just one county west of Buncombe.

The catchy “Hay Now” campaign was created by Crawford Strategy, an agency headquartered in Greenville, S.C.

 

Pigeon River go-with-the-flow floaters near Canton in Haywood County

One of the agency executives said: “In 2017, the Haywood County Tourism Development Authority (TDA) ‘Hay Now’ campaign made its way into the vocabulary of the marketplace and the local community.”

After a two-year break, because of the COVID pandemic, the TDA expressed strong consensus that “Hay Now” should resume. “The challenge was to take the new campaign to an even higher level – with a fresh take on the destination’s easygoing, whimsical and fun personality,” the advertising spokesperson said.

The Crawford agency responded with its “quirky ‘Haywood you…?’ theme” that was launched in spring 2022 and is still going strong.

“‘Haywood you…?’ creates a memorable invitation to join in on a variety of travel experiences” in all four seasons, prompted by a talking elk.

Here’s a collection of some of the messages, gleaned from a Crawford PowerPoint presentation. (You just keep repeating “Haywood you.”)

“Haywood you like to peep these leaves?” / “…like to be one of the cool kids?” (and go snow skiing) / “…like to flow with the snow?” (and go snow tubing) / “…like to winter wonderfully?” / “… like to get hoppy?” / …like to hit the trail? / …like some fiddles with your vittles? / …like to horse around? / “…like to see what’s in store?” / “… like to make a splash?” / “…like to get really high…at 6,000 feet?”

 

Best of all, the new campaign is working, based on an article written by Cory Vaillancourt that appeared in the March 27 issue of the Smoky Mountain News, a weekly newspaper based in Waynesville.

 Vaillancourt said the “regional approach” to tourism promotion is “designed to keep the money flowing into western North Carolina’s tourism-based economy.”

 Based on the research, Haywood County’s TDA Executive Director Corrina Ruffieux said visitors are “playing in Canton, staying in Maggie (Valley) and shopping and dining in Waynesville.”

 Canton Mayor Zeb Smathers said it’s wise to look at the larger picture, “as a rising tide lifts all ships.”

The goal, Smathers said, is to provide an experience where people can come to Haywood County not as a side trip or just to be passing through or because they got lost, but because “this is where they’re going.”