Northwest Indiana is finding success in marketing its soccer fields and softball diamonds in addition to its shoreline and proximity to Chicago, tourism officials say.
South Shore Convention and Visitors Authority leaders said amateur sporting events this year - including three in Lake County this weekend - are expected to generate more than $5 million in economic impact, up from less than $1 million in 2005.
Convention authority spokeswoman Erika Scheeringa credits the increase in sporting events held in the region to the spring 2006 creation of South Shore sports promotions, a department inside the convention authority.
Jason Sands, director of sports development at South Shore sports promotions, said he's tried to capitalize on the success Indianapolis has had in attracting amateur sporting events by promoting these types of events in the region, where interest is high.
Sands said although there's a limited number of centrally located, full-service hotels in Northwest Indiana, people in these sports are used to traveling long distances, so it doesn't end up killing the marketing pitch.
"It's about finding out what your strengths are," Sands said of Northwest Indiana. "It's a hotbed for girls softball. We have a lot of complexes around here. ... The soccer complex that went up, they're hosting a lot of big events. We're able to use hotel rooms around Lake and Porter counties and even across the (Illinois) border.
"It's kind of a perfect fit."
Jim Boersma, vice president of Hallmark Properties, said things he touts about the region are that it's centrally located in the Midwest and there is access to hotel space spanning three states. Hallmark Properties owns and operates sporting facilities in Eagle Creek Township and Frankfort, Ill., the Chicago and Indiana Soccer Clubs, the Ultimate Volleyball Club and Indiana Ultimate Volleyball. Even with the soccer tournament, which will be held at Hallmark Convention and Sports Complex in Eagle Creek Township, Boersma said it's important for visitors to be captivated by other things to do while in the area.
"People come to an event like this, they're more focused on the event itself (but) in the same token, they bring siblings or other family members; at the end of the day, they want things to do," Boersma said. "On Route 30, there's every restaurant and shopping center available. There's people coming in who want to see Navy Pier in Chicago or the Dunes."
A $20,000 investment in technology has helped the convention authority get the sporting tournaments and other types of conventions, Scheeringa said. She said planners are directed to a reservation system that allows them to make reservations without having to contact each hotel individually. Through this system, event attendees can be sent e-mails of different attractions before they come and sent surveys of their experience in the area after they leave.
Using the reservation system, the convention authority can track the data to determine how much money is being spent at area venues and how much money is being pumped into the region. Outside of sporting events, more than 10,000 conventioneers are expected in the region this year to pump $1.38 million into the economy.
