NMB chamber has helped create jobs, improved community

One of the fundamental goals of the North Myrtle Beach Chamber of Commerce, Convention & Visitors Bureau (CVB), if not the most important, is to help develop a flourishing community that provides a place for our local citizens and businesses to thrive.
While we aim to keep our local leaders informed and active through a variety of events and activities throughout the region, we also invest a great deal of our time into projects and causes with economic development at the very heart of them. This economic development leads to the establishment of a healthy, stable and growing community that rests on a foundation that will support not only today's residents, but also the generations to come.

How do we do this?

1) Through the recruitment and development of new businesses in the area, expansion of existing businesses, investing in local leaders through numerous programs and events, and the promotion of North Myrtle Beach as a unique and premier travel destination, the Chamber/CVB's efforts have led to tremendous growth over the past several years.

With the expansion of Laudisi Enterprises, opening of Little Spider Creations, Shark Wake Park and the North Myrtle Beach Park & Sports Complex, the community has welcomed new industries and quality attractions that not only provide local jobs, but also bring in exceptional tourism numbers. These businesses create new opportunities for employment. And those in particular in the hospitality industry have sustainable employment thanks in part to the continuous flow of visitors year after year throughout the seasons.

2) Along with the recruitment of new businesses and the expansion of existing ones, exceptional care and detail goes into promoting North Myrtle Beach as a destination through the CVB, which offers a true economic impact to all North Myrtle Beach locals who call the area home year round. Gray Research findings revealed that in the spring and summer 2015 tourism season, tourism resulted in an impact of $956,134,761 in direct visitor expenditures inside North Myrtle Beach's city limits, and $1,411,063,680 with induced and indirect impacts. Tourism generated $96,619,959 in taxes that season, which is worth $12,504 per household government services.

In fact, without the tourism industry, North Myrtle Beach's general fund would be $96,619,959 lower and there would be nearly 14,000 fewer jobs available. This is exactly why we take the job of promoting North Myrtle Beach as a travel destination so seriously. The economic impact has a direct correlation on the quality of life of a destination's residents. We're here to make sure that our quality of life continues on that upward trajectory.

3) Our advertising efforts aide in the decision by visitors to North Myrtle Beach to eventually call it home year round. This not only further stimulates our local economy and jobs, but also generates that word-of-mouth 'buzz' about North Myrtle Beach that it's a great place to live – a great place to retire – a great place to start a business, which we view as a success and continue to see daily as our population grows.

A recent Longwoods International economic study revealed that tourism advertising goes far beyond a destination's image as a place to visit, but also impacts the overall image of the city or town when considered for other life decisions. Their study revealed that when visitors are exposed to the destination itself and its tourism advertising, they are more likely to believe that destination is a good place to start a career, attend college, retire and purchase a vacation home. Statistics in each category doubled when a visitor hadn't just vacationed in the destination but was also exposed to its advertising efforts.

We're thankful for the opportunity to invest in the community that we love to call home and are working diligently behind the scenes – and sometimes not so behind the scenes – to keep North Myrtle Beach improving economically and in regard to quality of life through our business and tourism efforts. If you ever have any questions or suggestions on what your Chamber/CVB is involved in, please don't hesitate to call us.

Jordan is president and CEO of the North Myrtle Beach Chamber of Commerce. McCumbee is board chair.