PORT ANGELES — Patricia McCauley of InsideOut Solutions in Sequim wants to help more people fly.
McCauley has officially taken her post as the new North Olympic Peninsula marketing and promotions consultant for Kenmore Air Express.
Part of her job is to encourage more locals to use the services, research why those who do not use it don’t and identify ways it could be more user-friendly.
She also will help design a number of packages for those coming into the North Olympic Peninsula.
The position is funded through a two-year $360,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Small Community Air Service Development Program.
Contact community
“My job is to make contact with the community and find out why they don’t use it, if they have ever tried and try to get them to,” she said.
“I have an extensive background in tourism marketing, and I’m already connected to the area through the Sequim, Port Angeles and Forks chambers of commerce.
“I can hit the ground running.”
Increase ridership
Kenmore has said it needs to increase ridership to more than 75 passengers a day if it is to stay on the Peninsula.
“We should be able to support Kenmore — it is a great airline, and I have a personal passion to make sure they succeed because I use them all the time,” McCauley said.
The airline recently completed an agreement with Alaska Airlines that allows people to book tickets on Kenmore through the Alaska Airlines site — which will make it easier to book trips to Kenmore and Alaska destinations.
Kenmore also is a partner in Alaska’s mileage program.
McCauley said she is developing a survey to determine new initiatives and packages as well as any changes that need to be made at the airline.
To participate, e-mail her at pat@insideout.com, and she will send the survey when it is developed.
Grant partnership
The grant application was a partnership among the Port of Port Angeles, Kenmore Air Express, the City of Port Angeles, City of Sequim, Clallam County Economic Development Council, Olympic Peninsula Visitors Bureau and the Port Angeles, Sequim and Forks chambers of commerce.
The partners also contributed an additional $100,000 to bring the total funds available for marketing air service to Port Angeles to $460,000.
The Port of Port Angeles will administer the grant.
InsideOut Solutions will receive $120,000 over two years for its work on this grant.
The rest of the money will be used on the marketing efforts.
Grant funds will be used to promote Kenmore passenger service through traditional media such as print, radio and television as well as social networking and other Internet avenues.
McCauley has spent 10 years as the city of Sequim marketing coordinator and was twice president of the North Olympic Peninsula Visitors Bureau.
She was also the founding director of the Sequim Lavender Festival.
In 2004, she received the Marlene Jones Lifetime Achievement Award from the Washington State Tourism Department.
