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Home My WebLink About09-08-2021 TBID Agenda PacketCity of San Luis Obispo, Agenda, Planning Commission Agenda TOURISM BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT BOARD Wednesday, September 8, 2021 10:00 AM REGULAR MEETING TELECONFERENCE Due to the increasing number of COVID-19 cases in San Luis Obispo County, City Administration has made the difficult decision to return to a virtual meeting format. There will be no physical location for the Public to view the meeting. Below are instructions on how to view the meeting remotely and how to leave public comment. Additionally, members of the Tourism Business Improvement District (TBID) Board are allowed to attend the meeting via teleconference and to participate in the meeting to the same extent as if they were present. Using the most rapid means of communication available at this time, members of the public are encouraged to participate in TBID meetings in the following ways: 1. Remote Viewing - Members of the public who wish to watch the meeting can view: ➢ View the Webinar (recommended for the best viewing quality): ➢ URL: https://slocity-org.zoom.us/j/82175131861?pwd=SWp6cEZBNU9ORVo1S0RpOXVJYW5SUT09 ➢ Telephone Attendee: +1 (669) 900-6833 ➢ Webinar ID: 821 7513 1861; Passcode: 845204 Note: The City is switching to Zoom Webinar for City Council Meetings. All attendees will enter the meeting muted. An Attendee tutorial is available on YouTube; please test your audio settings. 2. Public Comment - The TBID will still be accepting public comment for only items on the agenda. Public comment can be submitted in the following ways: • Mail or Email Public Comment o Received by 8:00 AM on the day of meeting - Can be submitted via email to: advisorybodies@slocity.org or U.S. Mail to City Clerk at 990 Palm St., San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 o Emails sent after 8:00 AM – Can be submitted via email to advisorybodies@slocity.org and will be archived/distributed to members of the Advisory Body after the meeting. Emails will not be read aloud during the meeting. • Verbal Public Comment o Received by 8:00 AM on the day of the meeting - Call (805) 781-7164; state and spell your name, mention the agenda item number you are calling about and leave your comment (limited to 3 minutes). All voicemails will be forwarded to the TBID members and saved as Agenda Correspondence. Voicemails will not be played during the meeting. o During the meeting – Members of the public who wish to provide public comment can join the webinar (instructions above). Once Public Comment is opened for the item you would like to speak on please raise your virtual hand. Your name will be called and your mic will be unmuted. You will have 3 minutes to speak. All comments submitted will be placed into the administrative record of the meeting. Tourism Business Improvement District Board Agenda for September 8, 2021 Page 2 CALL TO ORDER Vice Chair LeBren Harris ROLL CALL : Vice Chair LeBren Harris and Members Pragna Patel-Mueller, Natalie Ward, David Smith, Stephanie Bolles and Matt Wilkins PUBLIC COMMENT: At this time, people may address the Committee about items not on the agenda. Persons wishing to speak should come forward and state their name and address. Comments are limited to three minutes per person. Items raised at this time are generally referred to staff and, if action by the Committee is necessary, may be scheduled for a future meeting. CONSENT ITEMS C.1 Minutes of Meeting on Wednesday, August 11, 2021 C.2 Smith Travel Report C.3 Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) Report C.4 Chamber Public Relations Monthly Report C.5 Chamber Guest Services Monthly Report C.6 Noble Studios & DCI Marketing Monthly Report BUSINESS ITEMS 1. ECOSLO PARTNERSHIP: URBAN TREE PLANTING 30 mins Representatives from ECOSLO will present the Urban Tree Program including the work effort based on the TBID’s revenue contribution to the sustainability and climate action initiative. 2. 2020-21 TBID ANNUAL REPORT 20 mins The Board will review the draft FY 2020-21 TBID annual report for recommendation to City Council on September 21, 2021. Pending the City Council’s approval of the report, the annual public hearing for the TBID will be scheduled for the November 2, 2021 City Council meeting. TBID LIAISON REPORTS AND COMMUNICATION 1. HOTELIER UPDATE – Liaison Reports 2. MARKETING COMMITTEE UPDATE – Meeting Minutes: September 1, 2021 3. MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE UPDATE – Meeting Minutes: September 2, 2021 4. PCC UPDATE – Meeting Minutes: No August Meeting 5. VISIT SLO CAL UPDATE – Liaison Report 6. TOURISM PROGRAM UPDATE – Staff Report Tourism Business Improvement District Board Agenda for September 8, 2021 Page 3 ADJOURNMENT The next Regular Meeting of the Tourism Business Improvement District Board is scheduled for Wednesday , October 13 , 2021 at 10:00 a.m. held remotely and via teleconference. The City of San Luis Obispo wishes to make all of its public meetings accessible to the public. Upon request, this agenda will be made available in appropriate alternative formats to persons with disabilities. Any person with a disability who requires a modification or accommodation in order to participate in a meeting should direct such request to the City Clerk’s Office at (805) 781-7100 at least 48 hours before the meeting, if possible. Telecommunications Device for the Deaf (805) 781-7410. Meeting audio recordings can be found at the following web address: http://opengov.slocity.org/WebLink/1/fol/61016/Row1.aspx DRAFT Minutes – Tourism Business Improvement District Board Meeting of 8/11/2021 Pg. 1 Minutes - DRAFT TOURISM BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT BOARD Wednesday, August 11, 2021 Regular Meeting of the Tourism Business Improvement District Board CALL TO ORDER The regular meeting of the San Luis Obispo Tourism Business Improvement District Board was called to order on July 14, 2021 at 10:02 a.m. by Chair John Conner. ROLL CALL Present: Chair John Conner, Vice Chair LeBren Harris and members David Smith, Natalie Ward, and Matt Wilkins (arrived 10:03 a.m.) Absent: Members Stephanie Bolles and Pragna Patel-Mueller Staff: Tourism Manager Molly Cano and Executive Assistant Chantal Stewart PUBLIC COMMENT ON ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA Nicole Troy from the San Luis Obispo Chamber of Commerce introduced herself to the Board. --End of Public Comment-- CONSENT ITEMS ACTION: MOTION BY BOARD MEMBER SMITH SECONDED BY MEMBER WARD, CARRIED 5-0-2 TO APPROVE THE CONSENT AGENDA ITEMS 1 THRU 7. C.1 Minutes of Meeting on Wednesday, July 14, 2021 C.2 Smith Travel Report C.3 Transient Occupancy Tax (TOT) Report C.4 Chamber Public Relations Monthly Report C.5 Chamber Guest Services Monthly Report C.6 Noble Studios & DCI Marketing Monthly Report C.7 Marketing Committee: FY 21-22 Paid Media Plan Approval PRESENTATION ITEMS 1. NOBLE STUDIOS UPDATE Representatives from Noble Studios presented the recent award recognition for the #SLOready campaign as well other key program highlights. Additionally, Noble Studios informed the Board that Shyla Lindner the TBID’s account manager will be leaving her position with Noble Studios. DRAFT Minutes – Tourism Business Improvement District Board Meeting of 8/11/2021 Pg. 2 BUSINESS ITEMS 1. CONTENT MARKETING SERVICES PRESENTATIONS The Board received proposal pitch presentations from the two finalist agencies, Badger Branding and the Lovely Day Company, who were selected by the RFP taskforce. Board members were able to ask questions of each finalist and discussed the selection. All present board members were in agreeance to offer the contract to Badger Branding. Public Comment None. --End of Public Comment-- ACTION: MOTION BY BOARD MEMBER SMITH SECONDED BY BOARD MEMBER WARD CARRIED 5-0-2 to move forward with selecting Badger Branding as the City of San Luis Obispo TBID’s Content Marketing Services contractor. TBID LIAISON REPORTS AND COMMUNICATION 1. HOTELIER UPDATE – Member Harris noted that the Hometown and Suites is tentatively projected to be open October 6, 2021. 2. MARKETING COMMITTEE UPDATE – Tourism Manager Cano reviewed the upcoming photo shoot plan. Members discussed how the proposed week is very impacted and will be difficult to host. 3. MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE UPDATE – None. 4. PCC UPDATE – Chair Conner reported on activities such as support local efforts which invested $278,000 in economic impact from the Buy Local Bonus program. The regular August meeting was cancelled. 5. VISIT SLO CAL UPDATE – The VSC Marketing Committee Meeting was cancelled. 6. TOURISM PROGRAM UPDATE – Tourism Manager Cano highlighted that advisory body meetings will be moving to a virtual format again until further notice, the Annual Report that will be presented at the September meeting, the annual public hearing will happen the first week of November, the Eco SLO team will present at the regular September meting to review the TBID’s $15K sustainable tree planting program., the last Plaza Pop-Up is currently up in Mission Plaza and Dusty Colyer-Worth participated in SLO Days. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 11:53 a.m.. The next Tourism Business Improvement District Board meeting will be a special meetin and is scheduled for Wednesday, September 8, 2021 at 10:00 a.m. held remotely and via teleconference. APPROVED BY THE TOURISM BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT BOARD: XX/XX/XXXX August 2021 WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total City of Paso Robles 77.5 92.9 81.9 154.66 266.44 190.88 119.93 247.61 156.41 33.9 16.9 27.9 33.9 52.3 39.8 79.3 78.0 78.7 City of Pismo Beach 83.0 89.3 84.8 275.88 407.44 315.48 228.92 364.00 267.52 7.2 -0.1 4.9 27.5 34.6 29.5 36.7 34.4 35.8 City of San Luis Obispo 80.7 92.5 84.1 194.48 283.64 222.50 156.95 262.34 187.06 35.2 12.4 27.1 36.1 42.7 36.7 84.1 60.5 73.8 City of Morro Bay 81.7 90.5 84.2 187.47 289.90 218.92 153.11 262.27 184.30 21.1 5.9 16.0 27.8 34.7 29.0 54.8 42.7 49.6 WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total City of Paso Robles 74.2 90.0 78.7 148.80 265.78 187.01 110.41 239.17 147.20 58.3 17.2 42.0 29.3 48.6 33.3 104.6 74.1 89.2 City of Pismo Beach 73.5 87.5 77.5 269.52 390.87 308.67 198.12 342.04 239.24 7.8 -3.4 3.9 30.5 29.6 28.8 40.7 25.2 33.9 City of San Luis Obispo 76.5 87.8 79.7 190.89 284.19 220.23 146.03 249.40 175.56 37.6 0.8 23.5 34.6 40.1 33.2 85.3 41.3 64.5 City of Morro Bay 72.4 84.1 75.8 180.66 280.38 212.29 130.87 235.84 160.86 16.0 -4.9 8.4 28.3 30.3 26.6 48.8 23.9 37.2 WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total City of Paso Robles 63.9 83.0 69.3 140.02 249.86 177.58 89.41 207.27 123.09 28.7 37.7 31.6 23.2 46.4 34.2 58.5 58.5 76.7 City of Pismo Beach 65.7 75.8 68.6 235.75 356.55 273.90 154.96 270.42 187.95 -9.7 -13.3 -10.8 18.0 20.1 18.4 6.6 6.6 5.6 City of San Luis Obispo 63.1 81.7 68.4 172.67 263.44 203.65 108.89 215.18 139.26 10.6 5.4 8.8 25.0 33.5 28.1 38.3 38.3 39.3 City of Morro Bay 63.3 77.6 67.4 165.50 252.12 194.01 104.69 195.63 130.67 -2.5 -4.8 -3.3 20.4 18.2 19.2 17.4 17.4 15.2 WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total City of Paso Robles 67.8 84.2 72.5 140.78 243.35 174.80 95.47 204.79 126.71 39.9 10.1 28.3 24.4 34.6 25.4 73.9 48.1 61.0 City of Pismo Beach 60.8 79.6 66.2 220.31 349.90 264.85 133.90 278.45 175.20 -0.3 -9.4 -3.6 17.4 19.1 17.0 17.1 7.9 12.7 City of San Luis Obispo 59.3 79.2 65.0 166.60 259.76 199.07 98.72 205.82 129.32 20.2 -1.5 11.6 21.9 32.7 24.5 46.6 30.7 38.9 City of Morro Bay 58.9 78.1 64.4 160.50 246.29 190.24 94.58 192.48 122.55 9.8 -3.6 4.7 20.9 18.7 18.2 32.7 14.5 23.8 Current Week Totals Percent Change Occupancy (%)ADR RevPar Occupancy (%)ADR RevPar Current Week Totals Percent Change Occupancy (%)ADR RevPar Occupancy (%)ADR RevPar RevPar Current Week Totals Percent Change Occupancy (%)ADR RevPar Occupancy (%)ADR RevPar Current Week Totals Percent Change Occupancy (%)ADR RevPar Occupancy (%)ADRFor the Week of August 22, 2021 to August 28, 2021 For the Week of August 15, 2021 to August 21, 2021. For the Week of August 08, 2021 to August 14, 2021 For the Week of August 01, 2021 to August 07, 2021 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 2014-15 2015-16 2016-17 2017-18 2018-19 2019-20 2020-21 2021-22 Change +/- to FY 19-20 July 508,195$ 541,806$ 591,184$ 636,778$ 699,845$ 761,346$ 844,845$ 877,391$ 861,241$ 884,317$ 913,019$ 535,638$ 1,035,459$ 113.4% August 511,564$ 542,194$ 574,395$ 623,655$ 674,244$ 732,271$ 774,501$ 765,232$ 728,932$ 775,513$ 826,465$ 622,435$ September 400,023$ 437,543$ 490,524$ 508,583$ 505,954$ 557,002$ 643,127$ 650,117$ 693,704$ 682,810$ 720,414$ 660,475$ October 414,870$ 442,586$ 437,805$ 469,977$ 509,435$ 594,032$ 642,221$ 628,049$ 601,208$ 650,101$ 711,393$ 626,320$ November 280,913$ 330,924$ 347,437$ 359,163$ 425,769$ 475,360$ 468,016$ 497,162$ 513,487$ 556,885$ 593,403$ 420,171$ December 246,684$ 274,417$ 314,784$ 319,451$ 355,315$ 391,132$ 429,600$ 434,836$ 473,701$ 488,296$ 488,757$ 233,987$ January 230,279$ 256,351$ 276,165$ 302,153$ 331,853$ 400,239$ 387,304$ 396,559$ 415,690$ 465,547$ 520,813$ 300,504$ February 273,373$ 302,246$ 323,359$ 344,160$ 366,980$ 431,510$ 466,915$ 439,735$ 503,451$ 524,327$ 596,021$ 425,501$ March 326,099$ 333,783$ 392,266$ 426,879$ 448,103$ 520,795$ 559,235$ 549,642$ 577,285$ 602,781$ 268,458$ 614,863$ April 423,158$ 451,133$ 475,913$ 486,850$ 564,617$ 610,894$ 609,439$ 708,724$ 641,919$ 741,364$ 69,184$ 742,319$ May 372,997$ 433,874$ 447,116$ 489,862$ 546,916$ 601,614$ 598,093$ 645,114$ 630,820$ 665,603$ 174,982$ 728,950$ June 490,326$ 512,543$ 578,234$ 610,948$ 630,729$ 727,028$ 731,038$ 765,362$ 796,899$ 835,727$ 409,945$ 973,791$ Total/Average 4,478,481$ 4,859,400$ 5,249,181$ 5,578,460$ 6,059,758$ 6,803,224$ 7,154,334$ 7,357,923$ 7,438,338$ 7,873,272$ 6,292,853$ 6,884,953$ 1,035,459$ 2020-21 2021-22 Change +/-2020-21 2021-22 Change +/-2020-21 2021-22 Change +/- July 54.5 82.2 50.7%165.96 226.69 36.6%90.53 186.23 105.7% August 61.0 162.84 99.27 September 63.1 167.66 105.79 October 61.9 162.18 100.38 November 49.85 145.06 72.32 December 33.32 123.53 41.16 January 40.5 124.24 50.28 February 54.4 138.33 75.18 March 66.7 144.67 96.55 April 70.5 169.50 119.42 May 65.8 181.33 119.38 June 76.0 203.39 154.53 Total/Average 58.13 82.20 0.51 157.39 226.69 0.37 93.73 186.23 1.06 Updated: 9/2/2021 TOT Comparison Occupancy ADR RevPAR*Figures from Smith Travel Research Report Report to City of SLO – TBID and PCC Public Relations Contract August 2021 PR ACTIVITY Implementation/Proactive Work Pitched the SLO County Art Council’s Plaza Pop-Up to regional media Connected SHAHRZAD with The Best of California with Pat Pattison for an interview about the Plaza Pop-Up Drafted ‘Meet Your Neighborhood Tasting Room manager’ Q&A for VisitSLO.com Connected with SLO Coast Wine Collective's new PR team Connected with Highway 1 Discovery Route's PR team Continued working on the Plaza Pop-Ups pilot program Continued working with Verdin on Support Local Campaign and implementation Continued working with the City and Noble Studios/DCI on overall tourism marketing campaign Responsive leads Pitched Libertine Brewing's Totchos to USA Today's 10 Best inclusion in Interesting Nacho Dishes Around the US Helped pitch the forthcoming Sustainable SLO Tree Planting Program for a story in Travel + Leisure Pitched Rosemary McClure new hotels in SLO for a story in the Los Angeles Times Pitched Madonna Inn for a red hotel rooms story to freelancer Carrie Bell Partnerships Met Michael Higgins working of Exploring Wine Regions in partnership with SLO Coast Wine Collective Coordinated SLO itinerary and hosted brunch for influencer @photoallison in partnership with Visit SLO CAL and Visit California Submitted story ideas for IPW in partnership with CCTC Submitted interview pitch to Brand USA 50 State Project & German Radio via CCTC Sent photos of "Pink Hotels" for a Visit California lead Sent photos to SLO CAL for recently hosted freelancer, Si Si Penaloza's story in Jetset Magazine Hosted freelancer Dakota Kim for breakfast in partnership with Visit SLO CAL Submitted EV charging stations to Visit SLO CAL for an e-roadtrip pitch Pitched "Where to Go in 2022", "California Events are Back" & "Historic Music Venues" story ideas to Visit California PUBLICATION PLACEMENTS UVPM AD VALUE PILLARS RESULT OF KSBY Six structures have risen in Mission Plaza 67,300,000.00 $15,500.00 Support Local Proactive pitching KEYT Colorful six-sculpture display coming to San Luis Obispo as final installation in Plaza Pop-Up series131,000.00 $30.15 Support Local Proactive pitching BUSINESS INSIDER How California wineries are surviving a record-hot summer and adapting their crops to climate change28,100,000.00 $6,500.00 Beer/Wine Responsive lead/Partnership media hosting L.A. BIZ Los Angeles Getaway: Here's what San Luis Obispo has to offer 3,470,000.00 $1,594.06 Family Media hosting w/DCI TRAVEL + LEISURE 9 Farmstays, Ranches, and Ingredient-driven Hotels Around the U.S.2,001,000.00 $1,614.20 Culinary Responsive lead/Partnership media hosting THE OUTSIDER MTB California’s Coast: A Non-Touristy Guide 22,200.00 -Cultural Partnership hosting READER'S DIGEST The 25 Best Wineries in the United States 70,666,185.00 $16,000.00 Beer/Wine MARKET WATCH Spend the night in a beagle’s belly or a helicopter cottage—9 quirky hotels that are worth the trip just to stay there48,400,000.00 $11,100.00 Cultural LOVE EXPLORING The most beautiful rail journeys in the USA 67,200,000.00 $15,400.00 Outdoor LOVE EXPLORING Your state's most beautiful small city and what to see there 48,400,000.00 $11,100.00 Cultural LOVE EXPLORING What you're missing out on in America's lesser-visited cities 134,300,000.00 $30,900.00 Cultural EAT THIS, NOT THAT These Are the Best Romantic Food Destinations in America 67,015,000.00 $15,444.86 Culinary NEW YORK DAILY NEWS The 50 most physically active cities in America 1,300,000.00 $1,000.00 Outdoor TRIPSAVVY The 10 Best Things to Do Along California’s Highway 1 Discovery Route 2,009,000.00 $480.77 Beer/Wine LIVE LIKE IT'S THE WEEKEND 23 Best Boutique Hotels in California for Design Lovers 20,000.00 $4.69 Cultural ONLY IN YOUR STATE 23 Quirky Roadside Attractions That Will Remind You How Weird America Is 2,014,000.00 -Cultural MOMMY POPPINS 30 Fall Day Trips from Los Angeles— Plus Weekend Getaways 338,000.00 $77.76 Family SUBARU DRIVE 3 Road Trips to Independent Bookstores 4,000.00 $1.00 Cultural KSBY Concerts in the Plaza makes return to Downtown SLO Friday 67,300,000.00 $15,500.00 Cultural KEYT Downtown San Luis Obispo tradition continues this summer 131,000.00 $30.15 Cultural NEW TIMES Hometown favorite Jade Jackson headlines the grand reopening of the Fremont Theater on Aug. 7 41,000.00 $9.32 Cultural NEW TIMES SLO Movement Arts Center presents The Little Prince at the PAC 41,000.00 $9.32 Cultural KCBX Central Coast museums offer Museums for All program 7,000.00 $1.68 Cultural TOTALS 23 610,210,385.00 $142,297.96 Report to City of SLO – TBID Guest Services Contract August 2021 Response to TBID Advertising Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 August 2020 August 2021 Calls to 1-877-SLO-TOWN 38 31 29 24 98 122 Hotel Availability Tracker Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 August 2020 August 2021 Email Response 28 28 26 27 86 109 Phone Calls to Hotels 97 92 84 91 298 364 Hotel Referrals Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 August 2020 August 2021 Visitors Served (walk-ins) 1,580 1,703 1,483 1,407 4,393 6,173 Guests Served (via phone and digitally) 402 394 327 436 2,301 1,780 Hotel Rooms Referred 404 427 341 365 1,322 1,537 Agency Report · August 2021 SLO-TBID Agency Repor t August Activity & Performance What’s Ahead: ●Quarterly Marketing Plan FY21-22: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1EGZygTPmTaB6x9QpgTrXwc84mj-dt1ltPi_tfA5A mCA/edit?usp=sharing Paid Media Paid search drove 30,867 impressions (a 10% increase PoP), 2,668 clicks, a 8.64% CTR ( a 5% decrease PoP) and 2,575 sessions (a 4% increase PoP) while driving 179 Book Now Conversions (14% decrease PoP), 519 hotel referrals (10% decrease PoP) and 25 homestay referrals (32% increase PoP) at a 10% increase in cost . Paid social drove 1,036,355 impressions, 194,565 users reached and 8,599 clicks across Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest with a 1.10% CTR for FB/Insta and .43% on Pinterest for 4,141 sessions (23% increase PoP) while driving 4 Book Now Conversions (33% increase PoP), 12 hotel referrals (71% increase PoP) and 1 homestay referral at a 30% increase in cost. Display drove 1,680,097 impressions (a 21% decrease PoP), 7,690 clicks, a .46% CTR (a 10% increase PoP) and 9,169 sessions (a 14% decrease PoP) while driving 1 Book Now Conversion (stayed the same PoP) and 3 hotel referrals and 1 homestay referral at an 7% increase in cost. ●Proactively monitored and optimized paid media placements ($30,327 spend) ●Planned California Visitors Guide placement ●Planned Expedia placements for Sept-Oct Email Marketing During the course of 2021-22, we have 12 emails. This will be sent on an as-needed basis, and will not necessarily be sent at a monthly cadence. Recent emails include: ●September California Wine Month Email ○Sent 8/25 ○A/B tested two headlines: One with a CTA to plan and one more inspiration based. The Inspirational subject line resulted in more opens. ○20.6% Open Rate 2 ○1.2% Click Rate ●CCTC Sponsored Email (Sent by CCTC) ○Delivered to CCTC to be sent in September Search Engine Optimization (SEO) & Content Creation Organic search traffic decreased period-over-period by 7% and increased 95% year-over-year . Organic hotel partner referrals decreased 30% (205 vs 291), Book Now decreased 36% (59 vs 92) and Homestay referrals decreased 26% (29 vs 39) period-over-period ( August 1-31, 2021 vs July 1-31, 2021 ). We saw a 15% decrease in Avg Session Duration, a 4% increase in bounce rate and a 7% decrease in pages per session PoP and 177% increase in sessions, a 5% decrease in bounce rate and a 2% decrease in pages per session YoY for organic search. Overall keyword rankings on the search engine results page increased 4% in August , compared to the previous period. In August, we saw additional positive MoM growth for many of the pages we have optimized including: a 121% increase to Where to Stay, an 58% increase to SF to SLO, a 86% increase to Weekend Trip from LA and a 36% increase to the wineries page. ●SEO Optimizations created: ○Page Optimization: Things To Do With Kids in San Luis Obispo ○Page Optimization: Hotels in San Luis Obispo ●Technical Improvement: Fix 404 Errors Onsite Blog Posts (2 per month) Completed: ●Blog #1: Welcome Back, Cal Poly Mustangs ●Blog #2: Fall in Love with SLO: Best Fall Activities in San Luis Obispo (posting soon) Website The website saw a 1% increase in sessions period-over-period ( ( August 1-31, 2021 vs July 1-31, 2021 ) and a 177% increase YoY; for a total of 41,598 sessions and 34,186 new users in August. From an engagement perspective, bounce rate increased by 6%, pages/session decreased by 6% and average session duration decreased by 15% PoP. ●Monthly Web Maintenance Items ○WordPress and Plugin Updates Social Media Management 3 The onboarding of Badger Branding has begun in order to hand off social media management—and they will take over full management in late September. In the month of August, we saw a 1.5% increase in reach on Facebook (Aug. 4-28 via Creator Studio), but a decrease in engagement. Our most popular post featured Clint from the Madonna Inn on horseback from our #SLOready shoot. On Instagram, we saw a decrease in reach and engagement which could be attributed to the need to expand intos reels, guides and other Instagram post types. We saw the highest reach on posts related to hiking, local beer and food. Visit California Stories Between Aug. 1 and Aug. 31, 2021, the previously created California Now Stories received 6,634 gallery impressions with a 60% avg. completion rate and 75% interaction rate. Search continued to be the highest traffic driver at 40%. The most viewed story was the 8 Most Instagrammable Spots in SLO. That was also the most interacted-with story this month. PR, Media, And Influencer Relations Proactive Pitch Development: ●Sustainable wines & trails (In progress) ●Road Tripping (sustainably) in SLO (Completed) ●SLO Keeps Summer Travel Hot (Completed) Ongoing Media Conversations: ●CONDE NAST TRAVELER, Molly O'Brien, Fall Destinations ●HOTELS ABOVE PAR, Carrie Bell, Red Rooms ●LA TACO, Javier Cabral, Summer travel, taco places ●TRAVELAGE WEST, Chelsee Lowe, Summer travel, family friendly experiences, possible media visit ●WINE TRAVELER, Sarah Phillips, Unusual wine tourism experiences ●KRISTI EATON, Freelance (Houston Chronicle, Self), Hotel Cerro + edible garden ●KATHY LEONG, Freelance (Bay Area Family Travel, Champagne Living) Possible media visit ●CASSANDRA BROOKLYN, Freelance (Daily Beast, NatGeo), Sustainable Destination, Media visit in December ●KAREN FRANCIS, Freelance (Medium, Blavity), Travel and Wine destination, Media Visit Hosted Media or Influencer Partnerships (6-9 partnerships in 2021-22) ●Completed: Developed Most Wanted Influencer List for approval; revised strategy 4 ●In Progress: Confirmed direction from SLOTBID; outreach to check interest, availability and proposals DCI’s All Client Pitch Initiative Proposed: (4-6 pitches throughout 2021-22) Progress: To Come DCI 2021-22 SLO Coverage Grid: ●https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/14yqVCn3Ee--W9-pX-xfqPZsidrKOrNJ2J7z4RtSXL 00/edit?usp=sharing 5 Tourism Business Improvement District Marketing Committee Meeting Minutes Wednesday, September 1, 2021 at 10:30 a.m. Teleconference BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT: LeBren Harris, Natalie Ward (departed 11:04) and Matthew Wilkins BOARD MEMBERS ABSENT: none STAFF PRESENT: Molly Cano, Tourism Manager Call to order time: 10:35 a.m. BUSINESS ITEMS 1. SLO TBID Sustainable SLO Tree Initiative Representatives from Noble Studios, DCI, Chamber and staff presented an initial brief with potential marketing strategies and tactics for the Sustainable SLO Tree Initiative for the committee’s review, discussion and ideas. The committee provide input and suggestions. Based on the input the team will bring back the updated program to the next committee meeting for program launch. Committee Action: By consensus, the committee approved the program concept. The committee suggested adding information on the program to the tear-off map and exploring other low impact opportunities for the hotels to showcase the program. 2. Key Landing Page Refresh Representatives from Noble Studios provided an overview of the approach and proposed key landing pages on VisitSLO.com to be refreshed in FY 21-22 for the committee’s consideration. Committee Action: By consensus, the committee approved the page refresh plan as presented. Staff will continue to work with Noble on selecting the pages for development. 3. SLO TBID Asset Production Representatives from Noble Studios provided an update for the committee on the status and plan for the upcoming photo and video asset shoot the week of September 6 – September 11, 2021. 4. New Business Items a. Committee Discussion: New SLO County Mask Mandate b. Future Agenda Items: None c. Next Regular Meeting Date: Wednesday, October 6, 2021 at 10:30 am Meeting was adjourned at 11:15 p.m. Tourism Business Improvement District Management Committee Meeting Minutes Thursday, September 2, 2021 at 10:30 a.m. Teleconference via Zoom BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT: Pragna Patel-Mueller, David Smith and Stephanie Bolles BOARD MEMBERS ABSENT: none STAFF PRESENT: Molly Cano, Tourism Manager Call to order time: 10:34 am BUSINESS ITEMS 1. Sales Lead Process Dusty Colyer-Worth from the SLO Chamber presented the proposed responsive lead process executed by the Chamber on behalf of the TBID for the committee’s review and input. The committee had no changes to the process proposed include the responsive follow up for both consumer leads and business leads derived from industry partners attendance at tradeshows. ACTION: By consensus the committee agreed to the process as outlined and directed the SLO Chamber to begin implementation. 2. New Business Items a. Committee Discussion- Asset shoot room needs; New SLO County Mask Mandate b. Future Agenda Items – none. c. Next Regular Meeting Date: Thursday, October 7, 2021 Meeting was adjourned at 11:03 a.m.