The Huckleberry Trail
Heritage Park & Trail System
2000 Users Survey: Sources of Information
Survey results indicate that the majority of trail users either heard about
the Huckleberry Trail by word of mouth, lived in close proximity to the trail,
or found it by accident. Very few of the users indicated hearing about it from
media sources (17 trail users, representing 14.2% of those who responded) or
from the internet (2 trail users, representing 1.5% of users). The percentages
held true even for those people visiting from other areas of Virginia or from
outside of Virginia. Of those who did learn about the Huckleberry Trail through
the media, most cited newspapers (most specifically the Current section of the
Roanoke Times and the Collegian Times from Virginia Tech) rather than radio
or television coverage. Four of the respondents reported hearing about the Huckleberry
Trail through promotional materials from organizations like the Chamber of Commerce,
but, again, they represent only 3% of those who answered the question. Given
the percentage of trail users (17.1%) from locations other than Montgomery County,
the results raise questions concerning the effectiveness of either media promotion
or print promotion of the trail.
Survey responses from those who reside outside of Montgomery County indicate
that they learned about the trail through a combination of media sources, such
as newspapers, the internet, or the Chamber of Commerce (25%), through friends
(37.5%), or by accident (12.5%). The remaining 25% either did not answer the
question, or, in a few cases, indicated that they were previous Montgomery County,
Blacksburg, or Christiansburg residents. Although lack of a predictable internet
presence may well play a part in the low percentage of student-aged users and
new users to the area, this survey does not indicate that the internet plays
a vital role in promoting the use of the Huckleberry Trail. One respondent,
from Middlesex, Vermont, noted on her survey, “I travel for my work and
before I go to a new location, I research as best I can. I saw it on the web.”
The near failure of the internet as a promotional influence may, in part, be
due to the location of the Huckleberry Trail information page in the Montgomery/Floyd
Regional Library site, which makes the information inaccessible to all but the
most intrepid researchers. Increasingly, both with the incoming student population
and new resident populations, the web may well determine whether people choose
to move here, either for school or for jobs, based on what they can learn about
the quality of life the county has to offer. With the construction of the new
county web site, promotional materials about the Huckleberry Trail (and other
county recreational opportunities) can be expanded, providing additional information
to new residents and to those visiting the area either for vacation or on business.
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