HomeMy WebLinkAbout06-10-2026 TBID Agenda Packet
Tourism Business Improvement District Board
AGENDA
Wednesday, June 10, 2026, 10:00 a.m.
Council Hearing Room, 990 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo
The Tourism Business Improvement District Board holds in-person meetings. Zoom participation will
not be supported at this time. Attendees of City Council or Advisory Body meetings are eligible to
receive one hour of complimentary parking; restrictions apply, visit Parking for Public Meetings for
more details.
INSTRUCTIONS FOR PUBLIC COMMENT:
Public Comment prior to the meeting (must be received 3 hours in advance of the meeting):
Mail - Delivered by the U.S. Postal Service. Address letters to the City Clerk's Office at 990
Palm Street, San Luis Obispo, California, 93401.
Email - Submit Public Comments via email to advisorybodies@slocity.org. In the body of your
email, please include the date of the meeting and the item number (if applicable). Emails will not
be read aloud during the meeting.
Voicemail - Call (805) 781-7164 and leave a voicemail. Please state and spell your name, the
agenda item number you are calling about, and leave your comment. Verbal comments must be
limited to 3 minutes. Voicemails will not be played during the meeting.
*All correspondence will be archived and distributed to members, however, submissions received
after the deadline may not be processed until the following day.
Public Comment during the meeting:
Meetings are held in-person. To provide public comment during the meeting, you must be
present at the meeting location.
Electronic Visual Aid Presentation. To conform with the City's Network Access and Use Policy,
Chapter 1.3.8 of the Council Policies & Procedures Manual, members of the public who desire
to utilize electronic visual aids to supplement their oral presentation must provide display-ready
material to the City Clerk by 12:00 p.m. on the day before the meeting. Contact the City Clerk's
Office at cityclerk@slocity.org or (805) 781-7114.
Pages
1.CALL TO ORDER
Chair Pearce will call the Regular Meeting of the Tourism Business
Improvement District Board to order.
2.PUBLIC COMMENT FOR ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA
At this time, people may address the Committee about items not on the agenda.
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.
3.CONSENT
3.a MINUTES OF TBID SPECIAL MEETING ON MAY 14 5
3.b SMITH TRAVEL REPORT (STR)7
3.c TRANSIENT OCCUPANCY TAX (TOT) REPORT 9
3.d SLO CHAMBER PUBLIC RELATIONS MONTHLY REPORT 11
3.e SLO CHAMBER GUEST SERVICES MONTHLY REPORT 15
3.f NOBLE STUDIOS & UNIQUELY DRIVEN MARKETING MONTHLY
REPORT
19
3.g BADGER BRANDING ORGANIC SOCIAL REPORT 29
4.BUSINESS ITEMS
4.a CAL TRAVEL SUMMIT PARTICIPATION (10 MIN)
Staff will present an opportunity for participation in the CalTravel
Summit, taking place in Napa Valley from August 31-September 2.
4.b TBID CONTRACT APPROVALS (20 MIN)
The Board will approve the contractor agreements including one-year
agreements with Badger Branding for organic content marketing and the
SLO Chamber for Guest Services and Public Relations.
4.c FY 2026-27 TBID PROGRAM BUDGET (25 MIN)
The Board will finalize and approve the FY 26-27 TBID budget and
program allocations as recommended by Management Committee for
recommendation to City Council.
4.d VISIT SLO CAL CO-OP MARKETING CONSIDERATIONS (20 MIN)
Staff will present the cooperative marketing opportunities with Visit SLO
CAL for the Board’s review and approval.
4.e ELECTION OF CHAIR & VICE-CHAIR (10 MIN)
The committee will elect a Chair and Vice-Chair for the term of July
2026 to June 2027.
5.TBID LIAISON REPORTS & COMMUNICATION
5.a HOTELIER UPDATE
5.b MARKETING COMMITTEE UPDATE
5.c MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE UPDATE
5.d PCC UPDATE 39
5.e VISIT SLO CAL UPDATE
5.f TOURISM PROGRAM UPDATE
6.ADJOURNMENT
The next Regular Meeting of the Tourism Business Improvement District Board
is scheduled for July 8, 2026 at 10:00 a.m. in the Council Hearing Room at City
Hall, 990 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo.
LISTENING ASSISTIVE DEVICES are available -- see the Clerk
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) 781-7114 at least
48 hours before the meeting, if possible. Telecommunications Device for the
Deaf (805) 781-7410.
Agenda related writings or documents provided to the Tourism Business
Improvement District Board are available for public inspection on the City’s
website, under the Public Meeting Agendas web page:
https://www.slocity.org/government/mayor-and-city-council/agendas-and-
minutes. Meeting video recordings can be found on the City’s website:
http://opengov.slocity.org/WebLink/Browse.aspx?id=61016&dbid=0&repo=CityCl
erk
1
Tourism Business Improvement District Board Minutes
May 14, 2026, 9:00 a.m.
Hotel Cerro 1125 Garden St. San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
TBID Board Present: Member Mark Eads, Member Nipool Patel, Member Prashant
Patel (arrived at 11:18am), Member Dante Specchierla, Vice
Chair Lori Keller, Chair Clint Pearce
City Staff Present: Economic Development & Tourism Manager Laura Fiedler,
Tourism & Community Promotions Manager Jacqui Clark-
Charlesworth
_____________________________________________________________________
1. CALL TO ORDER
A Special Meeting of the San Luis Obispo Tourism Business Improvement District
Board was called to order on May 14, 2026 at 9:00 a.m. at Hotel Cerro, 1125
Garden Street, San Luis Obispo, by Chair Pearce.
2. PUBLIC COMMENT FOR ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA
Public Comment:
None
--End of Public Comment--
3. CONSENT
Motion By Vice Chair Keller
Second By Member Patel
To approve items 3a to 3k.
Ayes (5): Member Mark Eads, Member Nipool Patel, Member Specchierla, Vice
Chair Keller, and Chair Pearce
Absent (1): Member Prashant Patel
CARRIED (5 to 0)
3.a MINUTES OF TBID REGULAR MEETING ON APRIL 8
3.b SMITH TRAVEL REPORT (STR)
3.c TRANSIENT OCCUPANCY TAX (TOT) REPORT
Page 5 of 42
2
3.d SLO CHAMBER PUBLIC RELATIONS MONTHLY REPORT
3.e SLO CHAMBER GUEST SERVICES MONTHLY REPORT
3.f NOBLE STUDIOS & UNIQUELY DRIVEN MARKETING MONTHLY
REPORT
3.g BADGER BRANDING ORGANIC SOCIAL REPORT
4. BUSINESS ITEMS
4.a VISIT SAN LUIS OBISPO MARKETING RETREAT
The Board engaged in a full-day workshop to discuss strategic initiatives
and imperatives that will help develop the FY 2026 -28 Marketing &
Business Plan. No formal action taken.
5. ADJOURNMENT
The meeting was adjourned at 4:00 p.m. The next Regular Meeting of the
Tourism Business Improvement District Board is scheduled for June 10, 2026 at
10:00 a.m. in the Council Hearing Room at City Hall, 990 Palm Street, San Luis
Obispo.
_________________________
APPROVED BY TOURISM BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT BOARD:
XX/XX/202X
Page 6 of 42
MAY 2026
WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total
California 66.34 67.49 66.67 199.11 191.92 197.03 132.09 129.52 131.36 -1.28 -1.45 -1.33 2.26 3.13 2.51 0.96 1.63 1.15
City of Paso Robles 53.06 76.39 59.72 162.69 283.21 206.73 86.32 216.35 123.47 -15.23 -4.41 -11.58 -2.01 5.06 2.83 -16.94 0.42 -9.07
City of Pismo Beach 56.48 75.97 62.04 199.21 300.20 234.54 112.51 228.05 145.52 4.66 -5.45 0.89 3.14 10.01 5.22 7.95 4.01 6.15
City of San Luis Obispo 61.16 80.96 66.81 149.89 225.49 176.06 91.67 182.54 117.63 -2.70 5.48 -0.01 3.75 5.22 5.18 0.95 10.99 5.17
City of Morro Bay 56.06 71.90 60.58 122.62 182.96 143.08 68.74 131.55 86.68 4.28 2.91 3.81 5.36 2.62 4.02 9.87 5.61 7.98
WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total
California 67.50 82.75 71.86 194.11 212.01 200.00 131.02 175.45 143.72 1.09 0.60 0.93 4.20 0.56 2.89 5.34 1.16 3.84
City of Paso Robles 58.54 87.53 66.82 162.42 305.74 216.06 95.08 267.62 144.37 -15.64 -0.85 -10.65 -5.72 4.00 1.29 -20.46 3.12 -9.50
City of Pismo Beach 56.08 80.02 62.99 200.15 314.36 242.00 112.24 251.56 152.43 -1.15 -2.56 -1.56 5.25 11.73 8.23 4.04 8.87 6.54
City of San Luis Obispo 61.94 90.54 70.11 151.56 248.78 187.43 93.88 225.26 131.41 0.86 9.42 3.86 6.31 11.83 9.90 7.22 22.36 14.14
City of Morro Bay 59.15 86.18 66.87 122.78 196.48 149.92 72.62 169.32 100.25 6.33 8.87 7.25 4.62 2.58 3.92 11.24 11.68 11.45
WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total
California 69.56 84.42 73.81 193.05 221.05 202.20 134.28 186.62 149.23 2.39 3.37 2.71 2.93 5.01 3.69 5.40 8.56 6.50
City of Paso Robles 62.65 88.24 69.96 168.19 320.51 223.08 105.37 282.83 156.07 -9.94 -3.85 -7.84 1.92 0.48 2.24 -8.21 -8.21 -5.77
City of Pismo Beach 59.22 78.16 64.63 199.65 379.68 261.86 118.23 296.75 169.23 4.52 -10.73 -1.30 3.45 5.75 2.12 8.13 8.13 0.79
City of San Luis Obispo 70.75 93.26 77.18 155.24 266.60 193.69 109.82 248.65 149.49 10.68 4.25 8.37 4.97 4.36 3.85 16.18 16.18 12.55
City of Morro Bay 62.22 91.77 70.66 124.02 245.99 169.28 77.16 225.74 119.61 6.87 7.88 7.25 4.80 7.47 6.39 12.01 12.01 14.10
WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total WD WE Total
California 63.75 75.64 67.15 177.06 197.99 183.80 112.88 149.76 123.42 1.65 -1.28 0.69 2.18 2.79 2.32 3.86 1.47 3.02
City of Paso Robles 61.32 86.54 68.53 190.45 328.56 240.28 116.79 284.34 164.66 -9.79 0.20 -6.42 3.31 12.89 9.07 -6.80 13.12 2.07
City of Pismo Beach 60.06 83.66 66.80 242.74 377.59 291.00 145.78 315.90 194.39 -5.78 -7.40 -6.37 7.17 10.97 8.72 0.97 2.76 1.79
City of San Luis Obispo 68.42 90.73 74.79 166.87 243.91 193.57 114.17 221.31 144.78 8.21 4.13 6.76 7.74 5.62 6.42 16.58 9.99 13.61
City of Morro Bay 62.78 86.28 69.50 148.85 201.99 167.70 93.45 174.28 116.55 5.43 4.72 5.18 8.20 6.00 7.19 14.08 11.00 12.74
Percent Change
RevPar
Percent Change
Occupancy (%)ADR RevPar
Occupancy (%)ADR
Occupancy (%)ADR RevPar
Current Week Totals
RevPar
For the Week of May 03, 2026 to
May 09, 2026
Current Week Totals
Occupancy (%)ADR RevPar
Current Week Totals
ADROccupancy (%)
Occupancy (%)ADR RevPar
For the Week of May 10, 2026 to
May 16, 2026
Current Week Totals
Occupancy (%)ADR RevPar Occupancy (%)ADR RevPar
Percent Change
For the Week of May 24, 2026 to
May 30, 2026
For the Week of May 17, 2026 to
May 23, 2026
Percent Change
Page 7 of 42
Page 8 of 42
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 2022-23 2023-24 2024-25 2025-26
Change +/- to
previous FY
July 508,195$ 541,806$ 591,184$ 636,778$ 699,845$ 761,346$ 844,845$ 877,391$ 861,241$ 884,317$ 913,019$ 530,064$ 1,214,080$ 1,297,863$ 1,245,883$ 1,296,972$ 1,310,543$ 1.05%
August 511,564$ 542,194$ 574,395$ 623,655$ 674,244$ 732,271$ 774,501$ 765,232$ 728,932$ 775,513$ 826,465$ 623,523$ 992,620$ 1,057,478$ 1,037,434$ 1,118,215$ 1,174,918$ 5.07%
September 400,023$ 437,543$ 490,524$ 508,583$ 505,954$ 557,002$ 643,127$ 650,117$ 693,704$ 682,810$ 720,414$ 660,405$ 965,595$ 1,039,589$ 1,024,869$ 935,689$ 952,359$ 1.78%
October 414,870$ 442,586$ 437,805$ 469,977$ 509,435$ 594,032$ 642,221$ 628,049$ 601,208$ 650,101$ 711,393$ 632,733$ 889,485$ 993,400$ 986,681$ 921,418$ 1,083,144$ 17.55%
November 280,913$ 330,924$ 347,437$ 359,163$ 425,769$ 475,360$ 468,016$ 497,162$ 513,487$ 556,885$ 593,403$ 422,488$ 722,487$ 770,599$ 757,010$ 825,128$ 845,440$ 2.46%
December 246,684$ 274,417$ 314,784$ 319,451$ 355,315$ 391,132$ 429,600$ 434,836$ 473,701$ 488,296$ 488,757$ 236,391$ 638,253$ 628,735$ 628,260$ 637,018$ 690,460$ 8.39%
January 230,279$ 256,351$ 276,165$ 302,153$ 331,853$ 400,239$ 387,304$ 396,559$ 415,690$ 465,547$ 520,813$ 302,621$ 557,369$ 554,408$ 621,595$ 696,606$ 732,270$ 5.12%
February 273,373$ 302,246$ 323,359$ 344,160$ 366,980$ 431,510$ 466,915$ 439,735$ 503,451$ 524,327$ 596,021$ 426,144$ 716,045$ 735,450$ 687,480$ 745,586$ 844,531$ 13.27%
March 326,099$ 333,783$ 392,266$ 426,879$ 448,103$ 520,795$ 559,235$ 549,642$ 577,285$ 602,781$ 268,458$ 614,973$ 820,473$ 807,997$ 850,274$ 806,319$ 943,659$ 17.03%
April 423,158$ 451,133$ 475,913$ 486,850$ 564,617$ 610,894$ 609,439$ 708,724$ 641,919$ 741,364$ 69,184$ 742,477$ 1,068,408$ 1,056,663$ 1,025,966$ 1,034,160$ 1,151,897$ 11.38%missing 3 hotels
May 372,997$ 433,874$ 447,116$ 489,862$ 546,916$ 601,614$ 598,093$ 645,114$ 630,820$ 665,603$ 174,982$ 760,006$ 919,831$ 910,508$ 989,619$ 1,025,327$
June 490,326$ 512,543$ 578,234$ 610,948$ 630,729$ 727,028$ 731,038$ 765,362$ 796,899$ 835,727$ 409,945$ 973,975$ 1,100,000$ 1,160,330$ 1,201,226$ 1,317,578$
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$ 6,925,799$ 10,604,646$ 11,013,020$ 11,056,297$ 11,360,016$ 9,729,221$
2024-25 2025-26 Change +/- 2024-25 2025-26 Change +/- 2024-25 2025-26 Change +/-
July 83.3 81.5 -2.2% 203.44$ 203.66$ 0.1% 169.32$ 166.07$ -1.9%
August 77.0 78.4 1.8% 194.96$ 195.11$ 0.1% 150.17$ 152.98$ 1.9%
September 70.0 68.6 -2.0% 184.04$ 186.68$ 1.4% 128.89$ 128.14$ -0.6%
October 69.3 71.7 3.5% 178.25$ 188.88$ 6.0% 123.49$ 135.46$ 9.7%
November 66.7 64.9 -2.7% 171.07$ 171.69$ 0.4% 114.06$ 111.36$ -2.4%
December 59.7 60.1 0.7% 146.24$ 147.73$ 1.0% 87.35$ 88.76$ 1.6%
January 62.3 61.7 -1.0% 144.11$ 145.77$ 1.2% 89.82$ 90.01$ 0.2%
February 67.1 70.7 5.4% 160.58$ 167.18$ 4.1% 107.72$ 118.23$ 9.76%
March 65.7 72.5 10.4% 161.64$ 162.88$ 0.8% 106.23$ 118.12$ 11.19%
April 73.2 76.7 4.8%183.34$ 195.07$ 6.4% 134.22$ 149.63$ 11.48%
May
June
Total/Average 69.43 70.68 1.8% 172.77$ 176.47$ 2.1% 121.13$ 125.88$ 3.9%Updated: 06/03/2026
Occupancy (%) ADR RevPAR*Figures from Smith
Travel Research Report
TOT Comparison
Page 9 of 42
Page 10 of 42
SLO Chamber of Commerce
Public Relations
Contract
Report to the City of San
Luis Obispo – TBID & PCC
May 2026
Page 11 of 42
SLO Chamber of Commerce
Implementation and Proactive Work
Hosted travel writer Cassandra Brooklyn on a CCTC Road Trip Pass Fam in partnership w/Uniquely Driven,
Ventura Harbor Village, Visit Santa Barbara & See Monterey
Hosted influencer Nikole Sebergandio in partnership with Amtrak Pacific Surfliner
Hosted influencer Camille Scherr for Highway 1 Influencer Co-Op w/Visit SLO CAL
Began planning for SoCal Media Mission travel writer Linda Laban's upcoming visit
Continued to plan for hosting influencer Sam Capaldi in partnership with SLO Wine Mixer team
Met with 11 Phoenix-based media on Visit SLO CAL Phoenix Media Mission
Met with travel writer Kai Oliver-Kurtin, who recently relocated to San Luis Obispo
Continued working with the City and Noble Studios/Uniquely Driven on overall tourism marketing
campaign
2
Responsive Work & Partnerships
Pitched "BBQing", "Michelin Chefs with unique stories" and "Rooftop season" to Visit California
Spent a day with Autumn Enoch for in market familiarization
Reviewed June social media calendar for Central Coast Tourism Council
Attended TBID Marketing Retreat with the whole team
Media Features
Proactive Work
MSN Canada | My mom and I have gone on a trip together every year for the past decade. We've
mastered the art of planning them. | UVPM: 161,053,307
As a result of hosting Alexa Mellardo in 2024 in partnership w/DCI
Travel + Leisure | I’ve Lived in California My Whole Life—These Are the Most Underrated Destinations to
Visit in the State | UVPM: 15,200,024
As a result of hosting Chelsee Lowe in 2023 in partnership w/DCI
Yahoo Travel | I’ve Lived in California My Whole Life—These Are the Most Underrated Destinations to
Visit in the State | UVPM: 471,324
As a result of hosting Chelsee Lowe in 2023 in partnership w/DCI
Reader’s Digest | Looking for Adventure? These States Were Just Named the Best Places in the U.S. for
Outdoor Thrills | UVPM: 3,730,765
As a result of hosting Cassandra Brooklyn in May 2026 in partnership w/Uniquely Driven
Film Threat | San Luis Obispo International Film Festival Celebrates 32 Years of Independent Cinema |
UVPM: 108,585
As a result of media hosting in partnership w/SLOIFF
Page 12 of 42
SLO Chamber of Commerce
Media Features
Media Monitoring
MAY TOTALS:
Placements: 14
UVPM: 181,626,845
YEAR TO DATE TOTALS:
Placements: 183
UVPM: 4,908,302,721
3
PUBLICATION PLACEMENTS UVPM
TRAVEL OFF PATH One Of California’s Best-Kept Secrets Had Its Best Year
Ever For Tourism 484,334.00
THE TRAVELER Highway 1 Reopens: How to Plan California’s Iconic
Coastal Drive 157,114.00
DECORHINT These 15 California Roads Are Lined With Stops That
Make A Quick Errand Feel Like A Day Trip 104,573.00
DECORHINT 10 California Old-School Motels That Make Road Trips
More Fun 104,573.00
DECORHINT 12 Dreamy Towns In Central California That’ll Make You
Want To Leave Everything Behind 104,573.00
TRAVELS WITH ELLE 20 Epic Weekend Trips To Take From San Francisco, CA 17,816.00
GUESSING HEADLIGHTS 6 Places That Feel Like a Fresh Start Without Needing a
Long Flight 21,047.00
PASADENA WEEKLY Behind-the-Scenes Magic: Actor Haley Joel Osment
honored at SLO Film Fest 27,516.00
HOTEL ONLINE
Courtyard by Marriott San Luis Obispo Unveils Fully
Reimagined Property Following Comprehensive Year-
Long Renovation
41,294.00
Page 13 of 42
Page 14 of 42
SLO Chamber of Commerce
Guest Services
Contract
Report to the City of San
Luis Obispo
May 2026
Page 15 of 42
SLO Chamber of Commerce
VISITOR INTERACTION
May.
2025
Apr.
2026
May.
2026
Walk-Ins 6,341 4,686 4,717
Phone Calls 155 132 131
Email & Digital 1,525 1,618 1,656
2
CALLS TO 877-SLO-TOWN
May.
2025
Apr.
2026
May.
2026
Calls 30 33 41
HOTEL REFERRALS
May.
2025
Apr.
2026
May.
2026
Referrals 59 48 65
HOTEL AVAILABILITY TRACKER
May.
2025
Apr.
2026
May.
2026
Email 95 92 98
Phone Calls 97 121 114
INFORMATION REQUESTS
May.
2025
Apr.
2026
May.
2026
Fullfilled 28 0 0
EVENTS SHARED
May.
2026 YTD
VisitSLO.com 18 132
DEMOGRAPHIC SNAPSHOT
International Travelers
Asia 6%
Europe 34%
Middle East 0%
Australia/NZ 10%
UK 18%
North America 22%
Central America 0%
South America 10%
Africa 0%
Domestic Travelers
West Coast 20%
Southwest 15%
Midwest 28%
South 15%
East Coast 23%
California Travelers
Northern CA 18%
Central Coast 39%
Central Valley 5%
Desert 2%
Southern CA 36%
Page 16 of 42
SLO Chamber of Commerce
Farmer ’s Market
The Visitor Center had their first
Farmer’s Market of the year at the
end of the month. It was a rainy one
but we look forward to continuing to
connect with our visitors at our
booth throughout our season.
“I’ve been leaving messages and comments
everywhere I go that SLO is the best city and
everyone needs to visit at least once. I love every
chance I get to come back here.”
Flight attendant from Houston, TX that stops into
the VC whenever he is in town. This trip he got to
stay at Hotel SLO, eat breakfast with the locals at
Louisa’s Place, and grab a coffee to go from
Anderson Social.
TBID Marketing Retreat
Other Highlights
3
This month the Chamber team met with our
fellow TBID contractors, TBID board, and City
Tourism team to review and discuss our vision
for Visit SLO in the coming years. We came back
with some great ideas on ways to support both
our hotelier and local SLO community.
Guest Quote of the Month
Page 17 of 42
Page 18 of 42
SLO Marketing Activities Report
Key Performance Highlights
May 2026
At-a-Glance Highlights
● Total Website Sessions: 87,767 (-18% YoY)
● Top Traffic Source: Paid Social
● Total Lodging Referrals: 5.7K (+31% YoY)
● Top Performing Ads by CTR on Meta:
○ SLC | Remarketing | Video | Intro | Long Form (8.55%)
○ SLC | Remarketing | Video | MidWeekend | Long Form (7.98%)
○ SLC | Remarketing | Video | Sustainability | Long Form (7.83%)
● Earned Media Reach (from Uniquely Driven PR Efforts): 28,840,123
○ 4 national placements were secured, most notable was distribution of a
press release detailing summer and Fourth of July experiences which was
picked up by a high-UVM travel trade outlet.
FYTD KPI Performance
Expected Pace through May: 92%
Page 19 of 42
Overall Performance Summary
Overall website traffic to VisitSLO.com has declined YoY largely due to losses in Organic
Traffic. However, we are seeing strong engagement from almost all channels with a 52%
YoY increase in lodging partner referrals.
Hotel referrals continue to outperform goals and pacing at 96% to goal (baseline is 91.6%
as we are 11 months through the fiscal year). So while traffic continues to fall slightly
behind goals, our primary KPIs are holding strong.
We are continuing to implement new creative assets for the SLO Life Coach campaign,
including the new short-form video cutdowns on select paid channels while featuring
the full-length videos on our paid landing pages and across other organic pages on the
site. We are also rolling out the new SLO Life Tips short-form videos to drive further brand
awareness and consideration in upper and mid-funnel channels over the next few
weeks.
We are continuing to see lodging referral growth YoY with the budget injection, a 58%
increase. Search, demand gen, and PMAX campaigns are the ones driving the increase
in lodging referrals. Demand gen and PMAX campaigns are seeing increased efficiency
with the changes to our bidding strategy to drive more referrals vs traffic/awareness.
Website
● Total Website Sessions: 87,767 (-18% YoY)
● Total Lodging Referrals: 5,702 (+31% YoY)
● Avg. Pages/Session: 1.76(+8% YoY)
● Average Session Duration: 1m 55s (-13% YoY)
● Top Lodging Referral Channels: Paid Search, Organic Search and Cross-Network
Paid Media Snapshot
● Paid Search
○ Sessions: 7,472 (+62% YoY)
○ Impressions: 76,037 (+61% YoY)
○ Clicks: 7,394 (+61% YoY)
○ CTR: 9.72% (Flat YoY)
○ Lodging Referrals: 3,685 (+60% YoY)
○ Cost: $19,381 (+52% YoY)
● Paid Social
○ Sessions: 23,120 (+2% YoY)
○ Impressions: 1.9M (-5% YoY)
○ Clicks: 52.9K (+6% YoY)
2
Page 20 of 42
○ CTR: 2.79% (+12% YoY)
○ Total Referrals: 7 (-88% YoY)
○ Cost: $19K (+2% YoY)
● Display, Demand Gen, & PMAX
○ Sessions: 15,682 (+59% YoY)
○ Impressions: 1.7M (-72% YoY)
○ Clicks: 19,607 (-64% YoY)
○ CTR: 1.11% (+32% YoY)
○ Lodging Referrals: 383 (+57% YoY)
○ Cost: $14,150 (+30% YoY)
● Demand Gen | Video
○ Sessions: 2,207 (+146% PoP)
○ Impressions: 344,297 (+120% PoP)
○ Clicks: 1,170 (-26% YoY)
○ CTR: 1.38% (+12% YoY)
○ Lodging Referrals: 5
○ Cost: $1,236 (-44% YoY)
Key Insight: Our budget injection has helped us boost sessions and lodging referrals by
more than 58% compared to this time last year. We strategically reviewed our
campaigns and increased the budgets of those generating the most lodging referrals,
helping us drive performance gains. Moving forward, we will continue to optimize and
refresh campaigns for optimal performance.
We also continue to see an increase in lodging referrals from our demand gen and
PMAX campaigns. Additionally, we have updated our paid social and display/video
assets with the new cut-down videos for SLO to see if these shorter-form videos will
increase engagement and conversions.
Last year, paid social ran a promotional campaign (Hello SLO Life + Middle Name
Giveaway), which boosted conversions. Moving forward, we are exploring ways to boost
conversions on the platform while maintaining our reach and awareness push.
Owned Channel Snapshot
SEO + Content
● Organic Search Sessions: 17,043(-16% YoY)
● Organic Search Partner Referrals: 3,286 (-11% YoY)
● Organic Search Impressions: 1.77 Mil (-4% YoY)
● Organic Search Clicks: 12,162 (-17% YoY)
● Organic Search CTR: 0.69% (-13% YoY)
● Page 1 Keywords: 7.1K (+17% YoY)
● Sessions from LLMs (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, etc): 128 (+8% YoY)
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● Partner Referrals from LLMs (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, etc): 26 (+100% YoY)
● Top Impression Gains: Hearst Castle, San Luis Obispo weather, things to do in san
luis obispo, day trips from san luis obispo, nates on marsh, pacific coast highway ,
avila beach
● Top Click Losses: things to do in san luis obispo, slo movie theater, san luis obispo
hotels
Key Takeaway: While Organic Sessions (-16%), Clicks (-17%), and CTR (-13%) declined in
May, high-intent lodging partner referrals remained flat YoY. This divergence proves
VisitSLO.com continues to weather the shift toward AI-driven search. The drop in
traditional organic clicks is due to Google AI Overviews (AIO) and rich SERP features
capturing broad, zero-click discovery queries. For instance, while we rank #1 for "things
to do in san luis obispo," the SERP is crowded with an AIO block and sponsored links.
However, Visit SLO is capturing dominant real estate inside the AI Overview
itself—securing both the primary multi-source featured card and key contextual
inline citations (e.g., Pismo Beach). The 11% drop in overall partner referrals stems
almost entirely from top-of-funnel "things to do" and restaurant queries.
AI Share of Mind & Visibility
● Google AIO Dominance vs. ChatGPT Opportunity: Visit SLO is a market leader in
search-based AI visibility, capturing 63% of Google AIO citations, outperforming
slocal.com (53%). However, a significant gap remains in conversational AI, where
we hold only a 4% citation share in ChatGPT compared to slocal.com's 32%.
● Weekly Volatility: For the week of May 24, overall Brand Mentions (31.8%) and
Brand Citations (29.5%) pulled back -11% WoW, reflecting ongoing volatility in AI
model training and data sourcing.
● Citation Stability: AI Overview opportunities slightly decreased from April to May
(3.2K vs. 3K) alongside ranking URLs (1.5K vs. 1.4K). This signals a refinement and
stabilization of Google's AI Overview footprint as the algorithm tightens triggers
for certain travel queries.
● AI Traffic Growth: Actual direct referrals from LLMs continue to surge, with
sessions up 8% and partner referrals jumping 100% YoY (albeit from a small
baseline), validating our footprint in emerging discovery channels.
4
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AI Brand Presence for the week of May 24, 2026 (compared to May 17, 2026)
5
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Recommendations:
● Write for Conversational Prompts: Update your content to answer natural,
multi-intent prompts rather than just keywords. Instead of just optimizing for
"things to do in SLO," optimize for "What is a good day trip itinerary in San Luis
Obispo for a couple who loves wine and hiking?"
● Audit the Competitor: Analyze slocal.com’s top-performing pages to see what
kind of natural language, long-form guide structures, or structured data they are
using that ChatGPT prefers.
● Move from Broad to Hyper-Niche: Stop competing solely on broad terms like
"best restaurants in SLO." AI answers those instantly. Instead, create deep-funnel,
hyper-specific content like "The best dog-friendly outdoor patios in SLO with fire
pits" or "Where to find gluten-free dinner options near the Fremont Theater." AI
models struggle to answer these accurately without pulling directly from a
definitive source.
Email Marketing
Total Sessions fell -72% YoY (373 vs. 1,317), but this decline was due to campaign
volume: last year we sent two emails (including a high-performing "Middle Name
Giveaway" email), whereas this year we only sent the monthly newsletter on May
21, 2026. The traffic driven by the single May send resulted in strong engagement
metrics and nearly doubled total partner referrals.
The primary drivers of interest were the main CTA "Explore Outdoor Eats" and the
secondary "Enter Here!" CTA. This tells us that restaurant content and
interactive/incentivized elements resonate strongest.
● Emails Sent: 1
● Avg. Open Rate: 45.8% (34.4% Benchmark)
● Avg. Click Rate: 1.3% (3.8% Benchmark)
○ The most clicks on the main CTA “Explore Outdoor Eats” as well as the
second CTA “Enter here!” CTA
● Avg. Unsubscribe Rate: 0.37% (0.33% benchmark)
● Total Sessions: 373 vs 1,317 (-72% YoY)
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● Total Partner Referrals: 69 vs 35 (+97% YoY)
● Total Lodging Referrals: 16 vs 25 (-36% YoY)
● Session Conversion Rate: 9.65% (+536% YoY)
● Engagement Rate: 56.69% (+12% YoY)
● Average Engagement Time Per Session: 1m 04s (+65% YoY)
● Page Views Per Session: 2.10 (+27% YoY)
Recommendation: To bridge the benchmark gap in future sends, we should consider
restructuring our email layouts to give these high-performing themes more visual
prominence above the fold, or experiment with shorter copy blocks to encourage more
immediate clicks.
7
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Web Maintenance & Creative
MRO Services
Updates
● VisitSLO.com theme: Gutenberg anchor links and smooth scroll now offset for the
sticky nav and WP admin toolbar
● Centralized scroll/admin layout CSS variables in _layout.scss
● Moved custom HTML block with inline styles on homepage into theme. Once
deployed, we can remove the custom HTML block.
Changed
● @wordpress/scripts: 31.7.0 → 32.3.0
● @wordpress/icons: 12.0.0 → 13.2.0
● gsap: 3.14.2 → 3.15.0
● swiper: 12.1.3 → 12.2.0
● Added legacy-peer-deps=true to .npmrc so npm install resolves conflicting React
peer dependencies across @wordpress/* packages.
● Set fontDisplay: swap for Montserrat in theme.json so fallback text renders while the
variable font loads (addresses Lighthouse font-display / FCP).
● Video Hero: Side image uses loading="eager", fetchpriority="high", and
decoding="async" for LCP request discovery (Lighthouse).
● advanced-custom-fields-pro: 6.8.0.1 → 6.8.2
● gravityforms: 2.10.0 → 2.10.2
● permalink-manager-pro: 2.5.3.2 → 2.5.3.4
● the-events-calendar: 6.15.20 → 6.16.2 (Nexcess licensing integration; Harbor
dashboard tweaks)
● tiny-compress-images: 3.6.13 → 3.6.14
● wordpress-seo: 27.4 → 27.7 (schema aggregator fixes; Content Planner
enhancements)
Website Services
● May Website Services Efforts:
○ 0h out of 120h were used for May 2026
■ Remaining hours: 0
8
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Creative Services
● May Creative Services Efforts:
○ 2.25h out of 150 hours were utilized for May 2026
■ Remaining hours: 94.75
○ Stakeholder updates, Questions from Intern on website functionality
○ Ongoing discussions with City Staff to maximize remaining hours in June
Earned Media Activity
Earned Media Highlights
Total Impressions/Circulation: 28,840,123
Placements: 4
Press Coverage
● 5/9/26: Ciao Bambino: Hit the Open Road on California’s Central Coast (Tanci
Chheda) (Reach: 20,635)
● 5/14/26: Hilton Blog: Iconic cross-country road trips for summer (Cassandra
Brooklyn) (Reach: 95,467)
● 5/18/26: EIN Presswire: San Luis Obispo Summer 2026 Guide: New Restaurants,
July 4th Events and Travel Updates (Uniquely Driven) (Reach: 250,854)
○ Travel and Tour World: Summer 2026 in San Luis Obispo Coastal Highway 1
Road Trips, Electric Car Friendly Stopovers, Global Downtown Dining, and an
Unforgettable Fourth of July Weekend: All You Need to Know (Reach:
28,473,167)
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Page 28 of 42
May 2026
SLO TBID - SHARESLO
ORGANIC SOCIAL REPORT
Date: 06/10/26Page 29 of 42
Followers: 43,789 ( .1%)
Total Net Growth: -53
Total Posts: 195
Total Views: 365,420 ( 3%)
Total stories: 178
Total Engagements: 5,284 ( 3.5%)
Engagement Rate: 1.4% ( .6%)
INSTAGRAM
In May, Meta initiated a major crackdown on bots and inactive spam profiles on May 6th, 2026, causing significant follower
decreases. We lost 561 followers from this, but gained back 508 through the month. Follower loss typically affects analytics across
the board. We are happy to report that our analytics only slightly decreased.
TOP POSTS:
Page 30 of 42
Page Followers: 109,026 ( .2%)
Total Net Audience Growth: 223
Total Posts: 16
Total Impressions: 1,926,634 ( 25%)
Total Organic: 145,211 ( 48%)
Total Engagements: 3,012 ( 48.5%)
Engagement Rate: .2% ( 0%)
Video Views: 301,479 ( 32%)
FACEBOOK
TOP POSTS:
In May, we did not see the Meta cleanup effect this platform as our followers actually increased by 223. Our impressions
decreased because of the 98% spike in organic impressions last month. We are happy to see that two of our top posts were
different than IG top posts, which means we are making content that reaches both audiences.
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Followers: 3,396 ( 2.3%)
Followers Gained: 77
Impressions: 9,283 ( 26%)
Engagement: 383 ( 27%)
Engagement Rate: 4.1% ( 2.4%)
In May, we saw a slight decrease in performance. We are hoping to get back up in the 1k range for views next month by posting a
new series that performed well on IG. We will continue to repurpose IG reels on this platform.
TIKTOK
TOP POSTS:
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Total Audience: 546 ( 1.3%)
Total Net Growth: 8
Total Posts: 4
Impressions: 404 ( 32%)
Engagements: 23 ( 64%)
Engagement Rate: 5.69% ( 25%)
LINKEDIN
In May, we saw increases across the board! We gained 8 new followers, our impressions, engagements, and engagement
rate increased. Itineraries for solo travelers, our iconic sando spot, and SLO Film Fest posts were top performing.
TOP POSTS:
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Impressions: 6.62k ( 8.8%)
Engagements: 324 ( 29%)
Outbound Clicks: 3
Saves: 63 ( 47%)
Total Audience: 3.97k ( .5%)
Engaged Audience: 263 ( 8.6%)
In May, we saw an increase in total audience, which means we extended our reach to new users. Our impressions and
engagements slightly decreased, but we still saw a lot of success in how many views we are getting. We will continue to
mirror from IG to this platform since seeing the success over this past year.
PINTEREST
TOP POSTS:
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WHAT WE WORKED ON THIS MONTH:
- SLO Local Interview Reel (New Series) (21.3k Views)
- 30 Years of Concerts in the Plaza Reel (40.5k Views)
- 2 Ticket Tuesdays
- Pink Drank x Adam Montiel (31.2k Views)
- Blues Baseball (12.8k Views)
- May / Bike Month Content
- 3 Ways to Bike SLO Reel (8.2k Views)
- Mother’s Day Reel (7.9k Views)
- Trending Content
- San Luis Obispo Anthem (6.5k Views)
- Tips for Getting Downtown Reel (13.8k Views)
- Patios for Spring Dining Reel (15.9k Views)
- 1 accepted collab (@slocal, @sloairport) (18.1k Views)
- 8 invited collabs (@nevada_, @eatpetra, @concertsintheplaza, etc.)
- SLO Life Coach & SLO Life Tip Reel & Stories
- Events Highlight Updated Weekly / PR Placements Shared in Stories
.
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JUNE’S FOCUS:
- Start of Summer
- Summer Sweets Reel
- Ticket Tuesday Collaborations w/
- Renaissance Faire
- Concerts in the Plaza
- MidWeekend Date Night Reel
- Dog Day in SLO Reel
- Hotels w/ Spas in SLO Reel
- Mural Tour Reel
- Tours & Tastings Reel
- Upcoming Events Reel
- BBQ in SLO Part 2 Reel
- SLO Life Tips
- New Businesses in SLO
- Hub n Spoke : Mid-State Fair Reel Page 36 of 42
THANK YOU!
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Page 38 of 42
1
Promotional Coordinating Committee Minutes
May 12, 2026, 5:30 p.m.
Council Hearing Room, 990 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo
PCC Members Present: Committee Member Dan Fredman, Committee Member Anni
Wang, Committee Member Samantha Welch, Vice Chair
Robin Wolf, Chair John Thomas
PCC Members Absent: Committee Member Dante Specchierla
City Staff Present: Tourism & Community Promotions Manager Jacqui Clark-
Charlesworth, Economic Development & Tourism Manager
Laura Fiedler
_____________________________________________________________________
1. CALL TO ORDER
A Regular Meeting of the San Luis Obispo Promotional Coordinating Committee
was called to order on May 12, 2026, at 5:32 p.m. in the Council Hearing Room
at City Hall, 990 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo, by Chair Thomas.
2. PUBLIC COMMENT FOR ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA
Public Comment:
Mary Verdin, president and CEO of Verdin Marketing, introduced herself to the
committee.
--End of Public Comment--
3. CONSENT
Motion By Committee Member Wang
Second By Committee Member Welch
To approve Consent Items 3.a to 3.f.
Ayes (5): Committee Member Fredman, Committee Member Wang, Committee
Member Welch, Vice Chair Wolf, and Chair Thomas
Absent (1): Committee Member Specchierla
CARRIED (5 to 0)
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2
3.a MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING ON APRIL 8
3.b 2025-26 COMMUNITY PROMOTION BUDGET REPORT
3.c SLO CHAMBER MONTHLY PUBLIC RELATIONS REPORT
3.d SLO CHAMBER GUEST SERVICES REPORT
3.e SLO CHAMBER GRANT SUPPORT REPORT
3.f TRANSIENT OCCUPANCY TAX (TOT) REPORT
4. BUSINESS ITEMS
4.a CULTURAL ARTS & COMMUNITY PROMOTIONS GRANT
RECOMMENDATIONS (30 MIN)
Committee Member Welch recused herself due to her conflict of interest
as a Board Member for Downtown SLO; she exited the room at 5:44 p.m.
and returned at 5:57 p.m.
Tourism & Community Promotions Manager Jacqui Clark-Charlesworth
presented the recommendations of the grant review subcommittee.
Public Comment:
Patty Thayer
LeBren Harris
--End of Public Comment--
Motion By Committee Member Wang
Second By Vice Chair Wolf
To approve the CACP grant review subcommittee recommendations as
presented, except with a modification to approve the $10,000 grant for
Downtown SLO to be used as follows: 75% of funding towards the items
listed in the “grant funding request allocation” section of their application
towards the audience of their choice and 25% of funding towards out-of-
county targeting with advertising of their choice.
Ayes (5): Committee Member Fredman, Committee Member Wang, Vice
Chair Wolf, and Chair Thomas
Abstention (1): Committee Member Welch
Absent (1): Committee Member Specchierla
Page 40 of 42
3
CARRIED (4 to 0)
4.b ARTOBER 2026 PROGRAM PLAN (15 MIN)
Tourism & Community Promotions Manager Jacqui Clark-Charlesworth
and Devan Spiegel from Verdin Marketing presented the ARTober 2026
program plan and responded to inquiries.
Public Comment:
None
--End of Public Comment--
Motion By Committee Member Fredman
Second By Committee Member Wang
To approve the proposed scope of work for the ARTober 2026 Program
Plan from the FY 2025-26 Community Promotions budget.
Ayes (5): Committee Member Fredman, Committee Member Wang,
Committee Member Welch, Vice Chair Wolf, and Chair Thomas
Absent (1): Committee Member Specchierla
CARRIED (5 to 0)
4.c PUBLIC ART IDENTITY PROGRAM UPDATE (15 MIN)
Tourism & Community Promotions Manager Jacqui Clark-Charlesworth
and Devan Spiegel from Verdin Marketing presented the proposed public
art logo and responded to inquiries.
Public Comment:
Meghan Tolley, City of San Luis Obispo Recreation Manager, spoke in
favor of the new public art identity.
--End of Public Comment--
Action: No action taken on this item.
4.d FY 2026-27 COMMUNITY PROMOTIONS PROGRAM BUDGET
DISCUSSION (30 MIN)
Tourism & Community Promotions Manager Jacqui Clark-Charlesworth
presented the draft budget for new year and responded to inquiries.
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4
Public Comment:
None
--End of Public Comment--
Action: No action taken on this item.
5. PCC LIAISON REPORTS AND COMMUNICATION
5.a CACP LIAISON REPORT – Liaison Assignments
No CACP Liaison report updates.
5.b COMMITTEE OUTREACH UPDATE – Committee Report
No updates at this time.
5.c TBID BOARD REPORT – TBID Meeting Minutes: April 8, 2026
Tourism & Community Promotions Manager Jacqui Clark-Charlesworth
provided an update on items the TBID has been working on.
5.d TOURISM PROGRAM UPDATE – Staff Report
Tourism & Community Promotions Manager Jacqui Clark-Charlesworth
provided an update on the Tourism Program.
6. ADJOURNMENT
The meeting was adjourned at 7:21 p.m. The next Regular Meeting of the
Promotional Coordinating Committee is scheduled for June 10, 2026 , at 5:30
p.m. in the Council Hearing Room at City Hall, 990 Palm Street, San Luis
Obispo.
_________________________
APPROVED BY PROMOTIONAL COORDINATING COMMITTEE: XX/XX/202X
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