Chamber Publishes County's First Full Feature Magazine

Cover of 2024 Edmonson County "From Back Roads to Main Street," courtesy of the Edmonson County Chamber of Commerce.

Madison Doyle, story:
Edmonson County will see the first copies of the community's first full feature magazine this weekend at the Big Brownsville Bash, presented by the Edmonson County Chamber of Commerce.

The magazine, which will be available in a short run this weekend, highlights Edmonson County Chamber members, including businesses and organizations, along with attractions and feature articles about happenings of the county.

"We were approached by Edmonson County Tourism Commission Director Vanessa Ulm, who discovered these types of publications were very popular in some of our surrounding counties, and she recommended we take a look at doing something like this for our community," said Darren Doyle, President of the Edmonson County Chamber.

Doyle said after some brainstorming sessions with the Chamber Board of Directors, it didn't take long for the board to start putting together ideas and content for the magazine.

The publication will feature articles that highlight Edmonson County High Schools fast-growing trade programs, local popular tourist attractions, helpful local government and utility information, and more. The magazine also features the full directory of Chamber members with contact information.

Doyle said several Chamber members financially supported the project by placing ads that showcase their business and organization offerings. He also said the Chamber was more than happy to cover the majority of the cost of the publication.

"We have really strengthened our annual budget over the last three years and our priority is highlighting our members. We feel the best way to do that is concentrate on marketing those members where and how we can, and providing more value to them. It's a small way we can help reward those members that also strengthens our business community," Doyle said.

Doyle added that even more opportunities are on the horizon for Chamber members since the local Chamber joined forces with the Bowling Green Chamber of Commerce and the Kentucky Small Business Development Center - South Central.

"We are excited about recently beginning work with the BG Chamber and their SBDC. This is a free service to all our Chamber members that provide guidance and resources that could help secure financing, help with marketing and promotion, and it provides a business coach you can meet or speak with to discuss your current business needs."

He said that someone is Brittanie Dawson, a seasoned veteran from the Bowling Green area that serves as the main business coach for the BG Area Chamber of Commerce.

The Chamber will decide how often new editions will be printed in the months to come, depending on the reaction of response of the community. Doyle said despite the declining demand of printed media, the magazine is a change of pace for the county that will have interests to many.

"Come on out to the Bash this weekend. Enjoy the events and take a look at the magazine," Doyle said. "We really feel like our community will enjoy it and look for ways to be part of future editions."