40 Under Forty

January 31. 2012 3:17PM

Challenges become new opportunities for state tourism chief Lori Harnois

By JIM FENNELL
New Hampshire Union Leader

LORI HARNOIS

Lori Harnois, 34

Home: Epsom
Birthplace: Springfield, Mass.
Family members: Husband, Joseph Harnois and two beautiful labrador retrievers, Cookie and Moxie
High School: Manchester High School West
College/post grad degrees: University of New Hampshire
Current job: Director, New Hampshire Division of Travel and Tourism Development
Key past positions held: Plymouth State University adjunct professor; N.H. Technical Institute adjunct professor; international and domestic marketing manager for the New Hampshire Division of Travel and Tourism Development
Volunteer Activities: Granite State Ambassador
Most admired person (outside your family): A good friend of mine who at the age of 28 survived breast cancer.
Key current professional challenge: Working on developing the next tourism campaign for the state.
Last major achievement: Creating the new Bureau of Visitor Services for the State Welcome and Information Centers.
Biggest problem facing New Hampshire: Encouraging growth while balancing and maintaining the natural and cultural resources which make New Hampshire such a beautiful place.
Favorite place in New Hampshire: Tough question… there are so many! Anywhere there is water and some hungry fish!
What book are you reading now? “The Lake of Dreams” by Kim Edwards
How do you relax? Taking my dogs for a walk, fishing, and visiting with friends and family.
What websites do you visit most often? visitnh.gov, msn.com and bbc.com
Favorite TV show, radio station or musical artist: “Jeopardy,” N.H. Public Radio, and The Dave Matthews Band

CONCORD - The decision this summer to switch 13 welcome centers from the control of the state's Department of Transportation to the Department of Resources and Economic Development means a new challenge for Lori Harnois.

Harnois looks at it as new opportunity to promote the state.

The state's director of travel and tourism is helping plot out a strategy that will transform the welcome centers into not just rest stops, but hubs that offer information to tourists and help local businesses promote the industry.

“We're slowly trying to blend in the tourism component,” Harnois said.

Harnois, 34, has been in her current position for just over a year, but she has been a part of the department since her days as a college intern. She was hired shortly after graduating from the University of New Hampshire in 1988 with a degree in tourism planning and development.

Her ties to promoting the state go back even further, when she was an attendant at Bear Brook State Park during her undergraduate days at UNH. Her responsibilities have changed considerably since then.

Harnois, a graduate of Manchester West High, has been at the forefront of promoting tourism through the ever-expanding social media outlets.

The division's Facebook page (www.facebook.com/visitnh) has over 50,000 likes in about three years, adding 17,000 likes in 2011. @VisitNH had doubled its followers on Twitter in 2011 and now has more than 4,000 followers. Followers through Twitter and Facebook can earn prizes, such as tickets to see the Manchester Monarchs play, through the VisitNH Fan Benefit.

“The Fan Benefit was the first of its kind in New England and is one way that we are staying on the cutting edge with our social media efforts in New Hampshire,” Harnois said.

Now, Harnois and her department are in the process of trying to update the technology at the welcome centers for a better tourist experience. They are planning to install electronic kiosks to help give tourists information, equip staffers with computers and offer wireless Internet to travelers. Attendants will be going through the Granite State Ambassadors program.

Harnois, who lives in Epsom, is also an adjunct professor at Plymouth State University. The course she teaches? Intro to Tourism.