The Fairfield Iowa Convention & Visitors Bureau was the recent recipient of an Iowa Tourism Office award, recognizing its efforts in social media. The award honored the Fairfield Iowa App the Bureau released in May.

The App has played an important role in getting local information out to both travelers and local residents alike. The App was also useful during RAGBRAI’s visit, helping riders find useful Fairfield information. Downloadable from both the iPhone and Android platforms, the App also includes an updated listing of local events with links for ticket purchases, making it one of the most versatile and well-rounded resources in the community.

The Iowa Tourism Office and the Travel Federation of Iowa presented 20 awards recognizing excellence in the tourism industry last week in Waterloo during the 2013 Iowa Tourism Conference.

“These awards offer a great way to publicly recognize the hard-working, dedicated and passionate individuals who help grow Iowa’s tourism economy,” said Iowa Tourism Office Manager Shawna Lode.

In addition to the social media award, The Bureau also received a grant from the Iowa Tourism Office to assist with the redesign and printing of the Fairfield Visitors Guide.

“Recognition from our industry peers for our social media efforts is truly a great honor,” said Rustin Lippincott, executive director of the Bureau. “We utilize many tools in our tourism marketing and this recognition validates the quality, usefulness and cutting edge technology we are employing to market and welcome visitors to Fairfield.”

The annual Iowa Tourism Conference brings together more than 250 industry representatives from across the state to network, attend educational sessions and discuss emerging industry trends.