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West Virginia Advertising

Posted: August 22, 2005

West Virginia Advertising

The word is out that West Virginia’s mountains are a hiking and camping paradise, and tourists have been making this state’s parks an ever more popular destination. With several large and powerful rivers white water rafting is an extremely popular tourist activity, as well as one that promotes business within the states hospitality and restaurant industries.

West Virginia’s Native American reservations operate casinos, and these along with fishing and hunting opportunities round out the bulk of the state’s tourist draw. The government has been locating more offices in the state, contributing to greater employment and stimulating the consumer economy.

The state’s high tech industry benefits from the West Virginias mineral riches. Much of the state’s industry also centers on mineral refinement and processing. This heavily forested state produces more lumber than agricultural products; its livestock trade dominates the state’s agricultural industry, although West Virginia does harvest a high volume of corn, tobacco, and fruits.

Top online verticals for West Virginia:

lawyer
whitewater rafting
lottery
real estate
newspaper
state parks
department of education
vacation
tourism
bed breakfast
casino
state fair
resort
travel
cabin
camping

Important West Virginia statistics:

Geographic Area: West Virginia
Population: 1,808,344
Sex: Male (48.6%)
Female (51.4%)
Median Age: 38.9
Race: White (95.0%), Black or African American (3.2%), American Indian and Alaska Native (0.2%), Asian (0.5%), Other (0.2%)
Languages Spoken: English (97.3%), Spanish (1.0%), Other Indo-European languages (1.1%), Asian and Pacific Island languages (0.4%)

Largest Cities:

Charleston
Huntington
Parkersburg
Wheeling
Morgantown

Largest Counties:

Kanawha County
Cabell County
Berkeley County

West Virginia Income Levels:

Median Income (individual): $29,696
Median Income (family): $36,484

Top Occupations:

Management, professional, and related occupations (27.9%)
Sales and office occupations (26.1%)
Service occupations (16.6%)
Production, transportation, and material moving occupations (16.4%)

Top Industries:

Educational, health and social services (23.0%)
Retail trade (13.1%)
Manufacturing (11.9%)
Arts, entertainment, recreation, accommodation and food services (8.0%)

Advertising in West Virginia

West Virginia does in fact contain lots of energy resources, minerals, and agricultural products, but not every career in this state requires hewing a living from the earth. Most West Virginians live outside of its cities, but service, tech, and government sectors are taking more prominent places in the state’s economy as it continues its shift towards more manufacturing production. Less fortunate than its Rust Belt neighbor Ohio, West Virginia has hard hit by the recession that struck the region in the 1980s.

These days, things are looking up for West Virginia. The high tech industry is helping boost the economy while the coal industry remains sluggish. The state’s rising popularity with tourists has also helped pull West Virginia back to its feet. The state is very active in its pursuit and support of new businesses, and West Virginia is rich enough in resources and infrastructure to support almost any type of venture.

Those interested in pursuing the new opportunities to be found in this recovering economy would do well to make a big splash with a creative, effective advertising campaign. The conventional methods such as bus stop benches, sandwich boards and public access TV may work, but the money and effort you invest in your business’ marketing could be better spent directed specifically towards the segment of the population your business caters to. Whether the business is a river rafting company, mountaineering outfit, or travel agency, some good advertising will ensure that it endures for years to come.

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