NEWPORT NEWS—After nearly 10 years as a travel counselor, Dia Foden has been promoted to a full-time Tourism Specialist, replacing Andrea Moran who retired in early 2020. Foden will be responsible for promoting Newport News to local, regional, and state tourism businesses, including Virginia Welcome Centers and Visitor Information Centers, and Virginia AAA offices. She will represent the city at tradeshows, sales missions, career days, orientations, festivals, and other events.
Foden will also coordinate, staff, and conduct demonstrations at designated Virginia Welcome Centers several times a year, as well as set up month-long promotions there. She will assist with the services needed for conferences booked in a Newport News hotel by delivering welcome bags and/or setting up and coordinating staff coverage of hospitality tables.
Other duties include assisting with booth coordination for festivals and events; keeping the area tourism industry up-to-date with information, promotions, and brochures; conducting orientations for new members of the military at Joint Base Langley-Eustis; enlisting participation for a variety of tourism-related promotions; gathering prizes for various contests; providing statistical information for month-end reports; and coordinating quarterly email blasts to Virginia Welcome Centers, Visitor Information Center, and Virginia AAA offices.
“This position has a huge impact on the image of Newport News,” said Janie Tross, Consumer Marketing and Visitor Center Manager. “Face-to-face communication and relationship-building are required for this position on a local, regional, and state level. This relationship-building will create credibility, generate referrals, and increase business, which will generate more tax revenue for the city.”