2020 Municipal Services Committee Presentation Kirsten Soder, Destination Campbell River / Destination Think! January 29, 2020
Strategic Direction Vision Statement: "The people of Campbell River will work in unison to sustainably develop and promote our destination. Together we will create a vibrant, year-round visitor economy that generates jobs, grows tourism businesses and associated revenues, and contributes to resident quality of life." Key vision elements include: ● Year-round visitor economy contributing to community & regions economic health and quality of life ● Tourism that is vibrant and sustainable - a vital element of the local economy that is respectful of environmental and social values. Tourism that is authentic to the values and personality of Campbell River & Region ● Stakeholders that are unified by a common purpose who work together collaboratively amongst themselves and with partners near and far to progress towards the tourism vision
Strategic Shifts ● Visioning and Strategic Planning workshops were held with over 60 operators the week of September 9-13, 2019 ● Additional interviews and surveys are being conducted concurrently to update and create focus on these vision elements. ● A rolling update to the 5 year strategy is currently in process based on stakeholder feedback and primary research that will help inform the 2020 annual plan tactics Early and high level shifts include a focus on environmentally sustainable tourism practices and stronger collaboration with First Nations
Situation Analysis Traveller trends ● Travel ‘to change’ (Live like a local, quest for authenticity and transformation) ● Travel ‘to show’ (‘Instagrammable’ moments, experiences and destinations) ● Pursuit of a healthy life (Walking, wellness and sports tourism) ● Rise of the ‘access’ (sharing) economy (AirBnB, Uber, etc.) ● Solo travel and multi-generational travel (A result of aging population and single households) ● Rising awareness of climate change (Zero plastic and climate action) These trends are important to consider in all stages of planning, communications, and service delivery.
Situation Analysis (cont.) ● Growth has leveled in 2019 consistent with regional and provincial indicators ● Anecdotally, outside of sport fishing and ancillary businesses, some operators had another banner summer, but there is a general sense that numbers are down slightly from last year, and Visitor Centre numbers indicate similar, with a decline of 26% visitor parties in the second quarter (summer) from 2018. ● Changing market conditions are undoubtedly having an impact: (wildfire activity, changes in fishing regulations, high costs of hotel rooms in gateway centres of Vancouver and Victoria) ● Great strides have been made in the last year aligning the tourism industry to work together ● 8 accommodations have now signed on to the Smith Travel Research accommodation occupancy primary research project ● A strong focus on Google My Business tools is helping more local operators manage and maintain one source of information; accurate Google listings are especially important in rural areas ● Surprise & delight (Toasty) activation has proven extremely successful, and allows our team to mobilize visitor services into high traffic areas
Goals and Objectives ● #1 Destination Marketing “We will conduct effective destination marketing in target markets with a focus on generating incremental overnight stays in paid accommodation.” ● #2 Visitor Servicing - “We will provide visitors with information where/when/how they need it to support longer lengths of stay and increased spending” and, - “We will educate and train stakeholders and community at - large to deliver remarkable experiences” ● #3 Destination Development “We will contribute tourism knowledge and expertise to ensure visitor perspective is considered in all significant local projects/ventures”
2020 Priorities Destination Think! is looking ahead to our fourth year leading destination marketing in Campbell River & Region. ● (2019) the priority has been promotional in nature, in order to start building the right perceptions amongst target audiences and grow off-season visitation. ● 2020 will continue to build on perceptions and awareness through off season campaigns, additional stakeholder communications, and strong asset development that supports partners.
Regional Highlights
#MeetOurNeighbours Community Posts Engagement Time on Site /2019/05/07/ Road-trip-to-tahsis 1,397(4.16%) 03:12 Tahsis /2019/05/23/ 1,157(3.45%) 03:33 Sayward Simply-sayward /2019/04/12/ 900(2.68%) 01:58 Zeballos Zeballos-the-golden-gate-to-the-west- coast /2019/05/01/ 815(2.43%) 02:54 Gold River Exploring-gold-river/ Content creators were sent to each location to explore, discover and write about the communities, these resulted in landing pages for each participating community, along with itineraries and written blogs about what each community offers to travellers. Image assets were also acquired on these trips so that we had strong imagery for the region.
#MeetOurNeighbours
#MeetOurNeighbours
#MeetOurNeighbours - Always On Monthly posts for each community on Instagram and Facebook including paid promotion for these posts to increase reach and impressions with target audiences. Alternating communities regularly ensured each community was represented and content stayed fresh. (The other 4 months of the year were captured in Spring Campaign efforts and reporting.) Community # Promoted Posts Engagement Impressions Reach 8 3,897 27,686 44,039 Tahsis Sayward 8 5,022 31,672 133,297 Zeballos 8 5,365 34,172 32,879 Gold River 9 5,573 37,659 34,861
Destination Marketing MEDIA RELATIONS: Earned Media - Hosting & Support WEBSITE: UX improvements, SEO SOCIAL MEDIA & MANAGEMENT: Includes Crowdriff software PRINT COLLATERAL: Guide, Itineraries, Map (Design,Print, Distribution) PARTNERSHIPS: GolfVI, MTNBk BC, FishingBC, BC Ale Trail ASSET & BRAND MANAGEMENT (purchased images, design support) NON-CAMPAIGN TRADITIONAL MEDIA (Print, Display, Broadcast) SEASONAL CAMPAIGNS (Spring/Fall) BUDGET: $432,000
Visitor Servicing TACTICS: ● Provide visitors with friendly, motivating, accurate and up-to-date travel information and services ● Staff product knowledge training; Participate in product familiarization exercises across the region ● Evaluate seasonal hours of operation ● Review current Visitor Services offerings; explore possible partnerships ● Educate other Vancouver Island visitor centres about Campbell River & Region ● Work with the city to ensure a safe and welcoming environment, {primarily washrooms} ● Enhance exposure for operators outside brick & mortar - social, website, itinerary development, map inclusion, digital screen project ● Animate special events with “Beachfire Sessions” BUDGET: $172,000
Destination Development (Destination and Product Experience Enhancement) TACTICS: ● Industry Alignment & Support around new Passionography approach for targeting our best visitors ● Conduct stakeholder meetings and events ● Host semi annual progress meetings ● Provide coaching opportunities and toolkits ● Create a monthly newsletter to stakeholders ● Festival & Event Support ● Market Research & Evaluation BUDGET: $67,500
Budget
2020 Budget Summary REVENUES Carryforward from 2019 MRDT (TBC March 2020) $20,000+ MRDT (level with 2019) $450,000 EXPENSES MRDT from STR platforms $25,000 Wages, Burden, Travel (2.5 FTE) $200,000 MRDT Subtotal $475,000 Promotions (Seasonal & Constant Campaigns) **$225,000 Local government contribution $250,000 Other Marketing $205,700 Stakeholder contributions (i.e. co-op ad sales, racking $18,500 Marketing Subtotal $632,000 fees, SRD partnerships) Destination Development $67,500 Co-op funds received (e.g. DBC Coop; DMO-led projects) **TBC ($75k ask)** Visitor Services: Wages/Burden, Overhead, Event $172,000 Support, Activations Grants (Federal, Provincial) $35,000 Administration $26,000 Retail Sales $25,000 Opportunity Marketing & Contingency $12,500 TOTAL REVENUE EST. $835,000+ TOTAL EXPENSES **$910,000 910,000 **DBC = * * Spring and Always On scaleable based on DBC CoOp Partnership Funding**
Next Steps
Next Steps ● November 30th - 2020/21 Co-Op Marketing Funding Application Submission Due to Destination BC ● November 30th - 2020 Annual Tactical Plan Due to Destination BC ● January 29 - S.R.D Municipal Services Committee consultation - seeking commitment to 2020/21 Regional Initiative investment ● Jan 31, 2020 - DBC Awards Co-Op Funding to sectors and consortiums ● Feb & March 2020 - Feedback and Consultation with TAC and Stakeholders on additional strategic priorities ● Feb 1 - Spring Campaign Scope established based on DBC funding ● Late March - Draft 5 Year Strategic Plan circulated for discussion ● April - Draft 2019 Report to TAC, City ● May 31, 2020 Final 2019 Report to DBC & Community Partners
Destination Campbell River Community Centre 401 11th Avenue Campbell River, BC V9W 4G2 Tel: 250.286.6901 Campbell River Visitor Centre Tyee Plaza, 1235 Shoppers Row Campbell River, BC V9W 2C7 Tel: 250.286.6901 Toll Free: 1.877.286.5705 Email: campbellriver@destinationthink.com
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