VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) - The provincial government is about to spend more than $38 million on a North American wide tourism promotion. It doesn't want us to be forgotten once the Winter Olympics are over.
B.C. stars like Sarah McLachlan, Michael J. Fox, Steve Nash, Kim Cattrall, Eric McCormack and Ryan Reynolds are featured in a slick TV ad reminiscent of the California ads done by Arnold Schwarzenegger.
While billions will watch the Winter Olympics, Tourism Minister Kevin Krueger says he wants the glow created by the Games to last a long time. "The idea is to ensure that now that we have done all this preparation and achieved this wonderful event that we capitalize on the interest that has built."
Krueger says every other Olympics complained afterward they didn't get the maximum economic impact the Games could have generated and B.C. doesn't want to make the same mistake.
He says the tourism follow-up campaign was recommended by the Auditor General. Krueger says the TV ad will run on CTV and NBC. Newspaper ads and billboards are also part of the campaign.
To take a look at the ad click here.