The Saskatchewanderer marketing pilot project wrapped up this week after a summer of showcasing Saskatchewan sights.
The project was to hire a summer student to blog about all the things that make Saskatchewan special. It kicked off in February with a contest. After a few rounds of public voting, Andrew Konoff was named the Saskatchewanderer and started travelling the province in May.
Since launching the contest, the project has resulted in more than 72,000 visits (and more than 173,000 pages viewed) to www.saskatchewanderer.ca - from all over the world, including as far away as Finland, Japan and the United Arab Emirates. The project also resulted in nearly 2,000 Facebook 'likes' and Twitter followers combined. Andrew's entry video alone has been viewed more than 16,000 times on YouTube. His very first video as the Saskatchewanderer has been viewed nearly 13,000 times.
"We are extremely pleased with the public's engagement in this project," Minister of Tourism, Parks, Culture and Sport Minister Bill Hutchinson said. "Thousands of people from all over the province and around the world checked out Andrew's adventures - and hopefully they are as impressed with Saskatchewan as those of us who live here."
"This was all about marketing our province and breaking Saskatchewan stereotypes," Saskatchewanderer Andrew Konoff said. "From visiting a winery, to surfing, ziplining, and flying over the Athabasca Sand Dunes, I had so many amazing adventures here in this province - adventures even I didn't know I could or would have here."
Two sponsors partnered with the Ministry of Tourism, Parks, Culture and Sport on this project - Bennett Dunlop Ford provided a vehicle for the Saskatchewanderer to travel around in all summer, while CAA Saskatchewan provided a membership and gas gift certificates.
"Our sponsors were great to work with," Hutchinson said. "They helped this project come alive, from providing the practical tools, to promoting it in their social media channels and even building relationships with the Saskatchewanderer himself."
Konoff is heading back to school this fall to complete his Bachelor of Arts Honours in Philosophy.
