Myrtle Beach. It’s the land of fried seafood and mirror mazes. Noisy arcades and shops filled with seashell-covered tchotchkes. Sunburned tourists and cool, sticky, sugary cocktails. Best observed from 187 feet above in the Myrtle Beach Sky Wheel.

Luckily when my family and I visited a little over a week ago, we found a gem of a spot just 30 minutes south of the Myrtle Beach madness – Brookgreen Gardens. And it was absolutely lovely. Acres and acres of scenic gardens. Beautiful sculptures and featured art collections. Stunning archways and vine-covered pergolas. Quiet ponds, trickling fountains, a children’s garden, and a zoo. The exact opposite of the Boardwalk (a different kind of zoo).

But there was one problem. I only found it by accident.

There were no brochures in the hotel lobby. No rack cards in the car rental office. No ads anywhere on the way up from the Charleston Airport. I wasn’t served any ads during the research I did leading up to the trip. It wasn’t until I Googled “Myrtle Beach off the beaten path” that I found a travel blog with a list that had Brookgreen Gardens buried as its fifth item. The same thing happens when you type in “non-touristy Myrtle Beach.” Sure, they come first in organic search for “Myrtle Beach gardens” or “Myrtle Beach sculptures.” But I didn’t even know I wanted gardens and sculptures. I only knew I wanted something more than a picture of my daughter in a “giant chair” on the pier.

What’s more, after we visited Brookgreen Gardens, we were so blown away we talked about it to everyone we could afterward. Almost no one had heard of it.  I couldn’t help but think that there are other cultural attractions that happen to be in very touristy destinations that might benefit from the advice I’m going to give Brookgreen. Because even if their attendance is wonderful right now, I think there is more opportunity to reach two audiences – the more sophisticated audience that’s just an hour and a half away in Charleston and the folks like me who planned a trip to Myrtle Beach and realized that something substantive was missing from the trip.

Tips for Cultural Attractions in a Land with No Culture

Here are four quick tips (without knowing their full media plan) for Brookgreen:

1. Re-evaluate your Google keywords. Both organically and via Paid Search. Make sure you show up for phrases that will grab people who are looking not specifically for “myrtle beach gardens” but more for “myrtle beach cultural attractions” and similar phrases.
2. Consider moving part of your media budget to Charleston. People staying in Charleston are more likely to be looking for a little history and culture than those staying in Myrtle Beach. I was surprised that your brochure didn’t appear in the lobby of our hotel (in both Charleston and Myrtle Beach). If you are scared to explore new markets, don’t be. There are ways to make the process much easier.
3. Get your brochures into appropriate Myrtle Beach hotels. Some hotels are quieter than others. The farther from the Boardwalk, the better.
4. Own your story with a blog. You have a great story to tell. Don’t let bloggers get it wrong. Start your own blog, with regular posts (optimized for SEO), that will drive people like me right to your website.

Just these few tips could help get Brookgreen Gardens on the right path. It is really a wonderful place that everyone visiting the area deserves to know about. If you target right, you’ll skip over the sunburned masses and get right to those who need a little art and culture to make their vacations complete.