Virginia's Blue Ridge - 2015 Progress Report

Building Destination partnerships

Roanoke Valley Convention & Visitors Bureau

2015 PROGRESS REPORT Building Destination Partnerships

LEADERSHIP VIEWPOINT

Contents

Dear Tourism Stakeholders,

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2014-2015 Visitor Impacts: Spending, Hotel Room Demand, Room Revenue, Lodging Tax Revenue

2

Travel Expenditures, Employment, State and Local Tax Receipts

3

W. Lee Wilhelm, III Chair

Virginia Mountains Region

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Destination Marketing: PRSA Awards, eNewsletter & Social Media, Virginia’s Blue Ridge Campaigns

“Building Destination Partnerships” was our theme in 2015! With the combined investment from our five local governments (Cities of Roanoke and Salem and Counties of Roanoke, Botetourt and Franklin) and support from over 1,000 partners, Virginia’s Blue Ridge (VBR) region was noticed. The investment generated RECORD rooms sold and lodging tax revenue. According to STR, Inc., VBR sold 1,178,771 hotel rooms in 2015 increasing Room Demand by 6.2% or 69,283 more rooms over 2014.

Comparing calendar year lodging tax collections, VBR governments collected $6,756,368 during 2015, or an increase of 10% over 2014. Tourism is BIG business and an economic driver for the region.

A great example of “Building Destination Partnerships” was the formation of the new Virginia Mountains Region. Virginia’s Blue Ridge fit better in Landon C. Howard a region representing our best asset, the mountains.

President The Roanoke Valley Convention & Visitors Bureau also led the Destination Vision planning process for the region forging a future path of success for tourism and economic development.

6-7

Convention & Sports Sales

8

Public Relations

9

Local Stakeholder Engagement

As the official destination marketing organization, we are committed to growing our tourism economy, attracting more visitors, more economic prosperity, more jobs and more recognition of the great benefits our industry contributes. We look forward to working with you, our investors and partners, in ensuring the success of Virginia’s Blue Ridge.

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Partnership Services

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Visitor Services & Hospitality Training

Warm Regards,

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W. Lee Wilhelm, III

Destination Visioning Process

Chair

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Landon C. Howard President

Note – STR, Inc. formerly Smith Travel Research

Looking Ahead, Board of Directors, Staff

MISSION

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VIRGINIA’S BLUE RIDGE

The mission of the Roanoke Valley Convention & Visitors Bureau (RVCVB) is to promote Virginia’s Blue Ridge as a unique destination, with an outstanding

64

81

ROANOKE

95

quality of life, for leisure tourism, meetings, sporting events, recreation and business, and to facilitate the financial and cultural growth of the community as an exceptional place to live, work, and recreate.

64

460

VT

77 220

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The Roanoke Valley in Virginia’s Blue Ridge boasts the largest metropolitan center in the Blue Ridge Mountain chain.

Front and back cover – McAfee Knob (Roanoke County)

www.VisitVaBlueRidge.com

Building Destination partnerships

VISITOR IMPACTS $784

GENERATED

EQUIVALENT OF

MILLION

=

spending in VIRGINIA’S BLUE RIDGE

$181.29

$2,558

in STATE & LOCAL TAXES

per resident injected into the

for every resident of our region

LOCAL ECONOMY

GROWTH

6 YEARS of INCREASED VISITOR SPENDING IN VIRGINIA’S BLUE RIDGE

HOTEL ROOM DEMAND

ROOM REVENUE $100,000,000

1,200,000

Rooms Sold

Room Revenue

$99,778,880

1,178,771 $95,000,000

1,150,000

1,100,000

1,109,488

$90,000,000

$91,208,913

1,085,730 1,050,000

$85,000,000

1,056,484

$85,724,882 $83,148,287

1,000,000

$80,000,000

997,490

$78,391,404

975,622

950,000

2010

2011

$75,000,000

2012

2013

2014

2015

$75,023,204 2010

Source: STR, Inc.

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

Source: STR, Inc.

LODGING TAX REVENUE 5.3% 1.4%

18.0%

Locality

2015 Revenue

City of Roanoke (8% tax rate).......................$4,355,709 City of Salem (8% tax rate) .........................$1,027,499 61.0%

County of Roanoke (7% tax rate)..................$1,282,315 County of Botetourt (5% tax rate)....................$376,700 County of Franklin (5% tax rate).....................$101,758

14.3% Source: Local governments

2015 PROGRESS REPORT

$7,143,981

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Building Destination partnerships

IMPACT

providing JOBS & TAX REVENUE

IN VIRGINIA’S BLUE RIDGE

TRAVEL EXPENDITURES

EMPLOYMENT 7,700

$800,000,000

Employment

Expenditures

$775,000,000

$784,452,109

$750,000,000

$754,714,762

$725,000,000

$730,369,364

$700,000,000

7,600

7,602 7,500

7,450

7,400

$703,604,146

7,300

$675,000,000 7,200

$650,000,000

$650,570,772

7,236 7,162

7,100

$625,000,000

7,082 7,000

$600,000,000

2010

2011

2012

2013

2010

2014

Source: Virginia Tourism Corporation

2011

2012

2013

2014

Source: Virginia Tourism Corporation

STATE & LOCAL TAX RECEIPTS

PAYROLL $160,000,000

$56,000,000

Payroll

State & Local Tax Receipts

$55,588,166

$55,000,000

$155,000,000

$155,280,772 $54,000,000

$150,000,000

$150,006,752

$54,374,223

$53,000,000

$145,000,000 $52,000,000

$52,412,806

$142,508,106

$140,000,000

$51,000,000

$134,891,665

$50,932,827

$135,000,000

$50,000,000

$134,891,665

$49,000,000

$130,000,000

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

Source: Virginia Tourism Corporation

$49,350,368 2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

Source: Virginia Tourism Corporation

TOURISM IS BIG BUSINESS 2

www.VisitVaBlueRidge.com

Building Destination partnerships

Formation of the VIRGINIA MOUNTAINS REGION was made official on May 11, 2015 Virginia’s Blue Ridge (including the Counties of Botetourt, Franklin and Roanoke along with the Cities of Roanoke and Salem), Virginia’s Western Highlands (including the Counties of Alleghany, Bath, Craig, Highland and City of Covington) and Bedford County announced the formation of the new Virginia Mountains Region. “Collectively this new identity embraces a brand name with a better sense of place,” stated Carey Harveycutter, Director of Tourism, City of Salem and Virginia Mountains Region liaison. Mr. Harveycutter went on to say, “This

Rita McClenny, President & CEO of the Virginia Tourism Corporation, is recognized for her support of the Virginia Mountains Region

designation better defines what the region has to offer, where the region is located and more importantly gives visitors an accurate description of the region.”

Randall Rose, Senior Development Specialist with the Virginia Tourism Corporation added, “Virginia’s majestic mountains and the towns within them are as iconic as they come, inspiring travelers to visit and experience their next great adventure through our peaks and valleys. Virginia Tourism Corporation is proud to showcase the natural beauty, charming downtowns and amazing tourism assets that are a part of the Virginia Mountains Region. We look forward to working with our enthusiastic local tourism partners who supported the collaborative effort to incorporate the Virginia Mountains Region designation.”

Virginia Mountains Region partners

2015 PROGRESS REPORT

3

Building Destination partnerships

Destination Marketing The RVCVB launched a new responsive website in April 2015. This responsive site allows

over

0 600ni,q0u0 e

viewers to see the same information on all devices, as well as provide better optimization on search engines.

u visitors

web/mobile site visits: WON A NATIONAL OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT AWARD In the Travel/Tourism Category for website design and development

+

605,792 80,191

website & mobile unique visitors inquiries

685,983 TOTAL

calculated visits & impact:

x

685,983 .47

x

322,412 $694

% of inquirers who visited (source: Texas A&M Conversion Study)

2.2 party size X 2.4 days X $131.43 spending (source: Texas A&M Conversion Study)

impact $223,753,928 estimated in direct spending 2015 PRSA Silver Lin Chaff Award for the Virginia’s Blue Ridge website

chocolatepaper is thrilled to partner with the CVB in showcasing the richness of Virginia’s Blue Ridge. Whether welcoming guests to our region or downtown to our store, the CVB provides resources for all of us!

– Melissa Palmer, chocolatepaper

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www.VisitVaBlueRidge.com

Building Destination partnerships

eNewsletter & Social Media 79%se consumer database: 127,727 increa

104%se social media: 82,679 increa

Web Banner Ad

73,918 likes

380 followers

2,733 followers

798 followers

4,490 followers

360 followers

The Roanoke Valley Convention & Visitors Bureau is an unmatched mouthpiece for growing our economy and quality of life and it’s obvious that they love what they do. Their personal connection to our patrons makes them a priceless partner in our business and for our community!

– JD Sutphin, Big Lick Entertainment

Virginia’s Blue Ridge Campaigns A Spring/Summer and a Fall campaign were developed in 2015.

These campaigns were more successful as a results of these corporate sponsors:

FINKS · VIRGINIA TECH · ROANOKE/BLACKSBURG REGIONAL AIRPORT · ALLEGIANT AIR

Virginia’s Blue Ridge digital billboard promotion at Virginia Tech games

Fly. Play. Win. campaign

Fly. Play. Win. Web Banner Ad

2015 PROGRESS REPORT

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Building Destination partnerships

Conventions & Sports Sales SALES PRODUCTIVITY

· Virginia Welcome Center Seminar

48 Booked Groups:: 37 Booked Room Nights: 13,151

· Leads Distributed: · ·

TOURISM INDUSTRY-RELATED BOOKINGS

· VA-1 Conference

March 2016

November 2016

· Virginia Recreation & Park Society

November 2016

· Virginia Society of Association Executives

May 2017

CONVENTIONS & SPORTS HOSTED ·

37 groups representing 13,534 Attendees

SPORTS ·

90+ sporting events were held in Virginia’s Blue Ridge

ATTENDED MULTIPLE INDUSTRY TRADE SHOWS, INCLUDING: · NASC, RCMA, VSAE, Connect Marketplace, and Connect Sports

The Salem Half Marathon was announced – November 18, 2015 and will take place October 15, 2016

SPORTING EVENTS HOSTED: The Roanoke Valley in Virginia’s Blue Ridge welcomed

127

teams from 31 states for the ASA/USA Girls 14U Class A Fast Pitch National Championship, July 24 – August 1, 2015.

Teams and families contributed to over

7,000 total

room nights during the week long national championship and brought a direct spending of $3.7 million to our community.

Welcome event for ASA/USA Girls 14U Class A Championship

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www.VisitVaBlueRidge.com

Building Destination partnerships

Supporting the efforts of the Roanoke Valley Convention & Visitors Bureau is a priority for us. They are great advocates for Virginia’s Blue Ridge region, with diverse programs implemented by sincere, dedicated team members. The results of those programs are tangible and essential to their partners and the region.

– Hilton Garden Inn-Roanoke

MEDICAL CONFERENCE HOSTED: Virginia’s Blue Ridge was honored to host the fifth installment of the premier North American conference, Collaborating Across Borders (CAB V) in September 2015. Nearly 800

people from several different countries

attended. “The conference brought together a growing community of people, professions, and organizations committed to collaboration as the best way of providing quality for our patients and better health outcomes,“ said David Trinkle, M.D., Associate Dean for Community and Culture at the Virginia Tech Carillion School of Medicine.

Medical Tourism is a growing regional opportunity with VTC, Jefferson College of Health Sciences and the City of Roanoke.

CAB V Photo Album 2015 PROGRESS REPORT

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Building Destination partnerships

Public Relations

media /pr results:

1 13 tRo N ON

RETU ENT INVESTM

4

hosted media tours

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number of journalists hosted

66,199,299 $1,328,041

media coverage circulation total advertising equivalency

Top 10 Mid-Sized American Cities to Visit (Roanoke) – World Property Journal / 2015

A PERFECT

ROAD TRIP

Received a Gold PRSA Award for the 2014 Progress Report

at any time of the year

–

find your trail: 15 SPECTACULAR HIKES

around the USA (McAfee Knob) – USAToday.com / June 5, 2015

The Class J611 steam engine arrives back in Roanoke after full restoration with a huge welcoming crowd

The Roanoke Valley Convention & Visitors Bureau has been most supportive of the Harvester Performance Center. Since we have opened in April 2014, they have been extremely helpful in directing visitors to our venue. We are grateful for their conscientious attention to our business though referrals, the Visitor Information Center and keeping visitors abreast of our music venue. Thank you for everything you do!

– Sheila Silverstein, Assistant General Manager, Harvester Performance Center

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www.VisitVaBlueRidge.com

Building Destination partnerships

Local Stakeholder Engagement Annual meeting - June 25, 2015 The 30th Annual RVCVB Meeting was held on June 25th at the City Market Building. Our theme was Building Destination Partnerships. Bill Geist of DMOproZ shared details of the Destination Vision Plan and awards were given to dedicated partners and stakeholders.

Attendees at the Annual Meeting along with unique themed centerpieces for Building Destination Partnerships

Bill Geist, President of DMOproZ, presented the Destination Vision Plan

The Virginia Museum of Transportation received the Golden Star Award for initiating the FireUp611 campaign to restore the historic steam engine. (Note: Larry Landolt with Tour

Roanoke was awarded the Tourism Ambassador Award and Trixie Averill, Virginia Tourism Corporation Board member received the RVCVB Past Chairs’ Tourism Excellence Award)

1st Annual Holiday Open House - December 10, 2015 Networking is essential to SUCCESS! The Bureau held the first annual Holiday Open House in the Visitor Center lobby to thank our tourism partners and stakeholders for the

economic impact successes in 2015.

2015 PROGRESS REPORT

9

Building Destination partnerships

Partnership Services

PARTNERSHIP GROWTH ALLOWS FOR ENHANCED OPPORTUNITIES - In 2015, the free partnership program continued to grow, reaching a record 1,071

business partners.

- With a continuously growing partnership, the RVCVB continues to conduct monthly Partner Extranet training programs to enable our partners to enhance their presence on our website. Our Arts & Culture promotion is stronger than ever, offering enhanced connections and training sessions for artists and performers. Our website Artist Directory now includes

over

143 individual artists.

- Our new responsive website enhanced the presence of the Wedding section by placing it as a main navigation point in the industry headers on the site, allowing visitors easier access to locating information about destination weddings in the region. The Wedding section now includes over

230 businesses, including wedding venues, all types of wedding vendors and services, as well as helpful information to plan your wedding in Virginia’s Blue Ridge.

- Expanded partnerships with 8

regional breweries brought Blue Ridge Beerway,

forth the branding of the Virginia’s

which includes printed rack brochures and promotion of a new URL:

Weddings Section of VisitVaBlueRidge.com

www.VABeerway.com that resides on the RVCVB website.

THE RVCVB CONTINUES ITS PARTNERSHIP WITH ARES TRAVEL INC. WHICH CONTINUES TO PROVIDE ENHANCEMENT TO OUR WEBSITE AS WELL AS CONTRIBUTING $54,395 IN ATTRACTION TICKETS, FLIGHTS, CAR RENTALS AND HOTEL ROOM SALES.

Roanoke Valley CVB does an incredible job marketing the entire region including small businesses like ours. Their creative use of websites, branding, advertising, social media, networking and media tours are definitely helping to showcase the great tourism assets we have in the Virginia’s Blue Ridge region. We are very appreciative that Botetourt County decided to join this great marketing organization and have seen first-hand the benefits of this regional cooperative effort. Thanks again for all the good work, keep it up.

– John Mays, Owner, Twin River Outfitters

INFORMATION BROKER MACRO-ECONOMY Potential Customers

Virginia’s Blue Ridge Tourism Industry

Consumers Travel Agents Tour Operators Meeting Planners

Attractions

Roanoke Valley Convention & Visitors Bureau

Restaurants Hotels Rental Cars Retail

VBR Connects – Co-op Marketing Luncheon

The Roanoke Valley Convention & Visitors Bureau (RVCVB) serves as an information broker for Virginia’s Blue Ridge (VBR) macro tourism economy, representing and working with over 1,000 hospitality and tourism businesses and government partners.

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www.VisitVaBlueRidge.com

Building Destination partnerships

Visitor Services & Hospitality Training The Visitor Services team welcomed out-of-town guests to Virginia’s Blue Ridge daily last year at the Visitor Information Center. The Center opened special hours on Thanksgiving Day to greet over 13,000 Drumstick Dashers. The staff was also on hand to welcome back the Class J611 Steam engine behind our building.

VISITOR SERVICES MAKES AN IMPACT IN VARIOUS WAYS: · Staff on segway to assist visitors with information during 12 major event weekends · Staffed over 12 information tables at meetings, sports groups and festivals · Shipped over 95,500 Visitor’s Guides and maps to Welcome Centers, AAA offices and distribution outlets · Fulfilled 2,521 visitor requests via mail · Assisted with 2,115 partner referrals · Hosted 30 AAA Travel Counselors · Trained over 50 front line staff · Virginia Welcome Center exhibited Virginia’s Blue Ridge displays for the month of July on I-77 North

Customer Service Excellence in Hospitality Training workshop

· Virginia’s Blue Ridge Geocache logged over 250 total visits

Excellent Customer Service Leads to

Visitor Services team staffed several information tables throughout the year

REVIEW

“Southern Hospitality” Reviewed September 26, 2015

I always stop at visitor’s centers whenever I go someplace I have never been before. Here, the staff were extremely friendly and helpful. Not only did they give us information about Roanoke, but also maps and information on our eventual destination, Smith Mountain Lake. She also advised us on the best route to get from Roanoke to Smith Mountain Lake....

2015 PROGRESS REPORT

The Roanoke Valley Convention & Visitors Bureau has been an outstanding promoter over the years for the travel and tourism industry. Their partnership with the City of Salem has been remarkably successful, particularly with sports groups. Every year, there are several national and regional tournaments hosted in Salem, bringing in thousands of visitors from all over the country. Our restaurant thrives on this business and we proudly support the Roanoke Valley CVB in strengthening our economy.

– Bob Rotanz, Mac and Bob’s Restaurant, Salem

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Building Destination partnerships

Destination Visioning Process A GREAT PLACE TO LIVE IS TYPICALLY A GREAT PLACE TO VISIT! In the summer of 2014, the Roanoke Valley Convention & Visitors Bureau (RVCVB) embarked upon an ambitious destination visioning process to identify opportunities to help guide the region’s future development. To assist the effort, the Bureau engaged the services of DMOproZ (formerly known as Zeitgeist Consulting) to direct the process that included a comprehensive destination assessment, in-depth conversations with key community leaders, governmental officials and several rounds of focus groups and listening sessions in which residents of Virginia’s Blue Ridge could offer their input into the plan. Ultimately, this process produced a series of mind maps that will guide destination development conversations and advocacy over the next decade.

DMOproZ Bill Geist presents to several stakeholders

The RVCVB held several community visioning sessions where over 350 participants shared their thoughts on the region’s destination vision from tourism stakeholders to elected officials, as well as business leaders and young professionals. Mind maps were created as a result of this collaborative effort. Shown below is our consolidated mind map.

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www.VisitVaBlueRidge.com

Building Destination partnerships

Looking Ahead The 2030 Destination Vision Plan represents a guide to the future of regional tourism. The Roanoke Valley Convention & Visitors Bureau Board of Directors have identified items in the vision plan to forward and enhance the attractiveness of (and visitation to) Virginia’s Blue Ridge. Utilizing a prioritization tool, the Board identified the most important initiatives before the destination and will be working with stakeholders to accomplish these goals.

Board of Directors W. Lee Wilhelm, III

Shirley B. Holland

Jeffrey A. Marks

R. Carey Harveycutter, Jr.

McNeil Roofing, Inc. Chair

WDBJ Television, Inc. Vice Chair

Kenneth Lanford

Doug Blount

Pete Larkin

Roanoke County Parks, Recreation & Tourism

Jeremy Carroll

Glenn, Feldmann, Darby & Goodlatte

Richard L. Caywood County of Roanoke

Renee “Butch” Craft

The Roanoker Restaurant

Tarah Holland

County of Franklin (1/2015 - 6/2015)

Entre Computer Center Past Chair

City of Salem Treasurer

Dave Andersen

Dominion Lodging (1/2015 - 6/2015)

Barton J. Wilner

Carilion Clinic Secretary

Lanford Brothers Company, Inc.

Charles A. Price, Jr.

Susan E. Short, Ph.D.

Harrison Museum of African American Culture

Virginia Tech

James E. Taliaferro, II

Office of Congressman Robert W. Goodlatte (VA-6)

James Revercomb, Jr.

Gary Larrowe

Charles L. Robbins, III

BB&T (Retired) (1/2015 - 6/2015)

The Hotel Roanoke & Conference Center

Christopher P. Morrill

Brent Robertson

Joyce Waugh

Bhanu Patel

Douglas B. Robison

Gretchen Weinnig

Richard “Pete” Peters

Ssunny Shah

Leonard Wheeler

County of Botetourt City of Roanoke

La Quinta Inn – Roanoke Salem Botetourt County Parks, Recreation & Tourism (1/2015 - 11/2015)

Roanoke Mountain Adventures

County of Franklin

City of Salem

Gary D. Walton

Roanoke Regional Chamber

Wasena City Tap Room and Grill Baymont Inn & Suites Salem

Fink’s Jewelers

Wheeler Broadcasting

Staff ADMINISTRATION

MARKETING

Landon C. Howard

Debora Wright

Heidi R. Mowry

Catherine Herlocker

President

Director of Administration

SALES Alex Michaels

Director of Sales

Kelly D. Burd-Adams Director of Accounts

Erica Musyt

National Sales Manager

Director of Marketing

PUBLIC RELATIONS & VISITOR SERVICES Catherine Fox

Director of Public Relations & Tourism

Partnership & Marketing Sales Manager

Taylor Ricotta

Alexandra Chitwood

Part-Time Staff: Visitor Services Leads Holly Marden

Partnership & Marketing Sales Specialist

David Aldridge

e-Marketing Manager

Shannon Keener

Events Marketing Coordinator

Public Relations & Visitor Services Coordinator

Renee Sala Jane Smith

Weekend Part-Time Ahondryea Brooks

Lori Phillips

Sales & Services Manager

Jenna Pendleton

Sales Administrative Specialist

Amelia Glaser Antoinette Hatten Ray Keys Heidi Miller Wayne Sanburn Velma Thomas

Volunteers:

2015 PROGRESS REPORT

Ann Andrews Hugh Brown Elizabeth Callahan Joe Cummings Terry Eastman Marlene Efkeman

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Building Destination Partnerships

ROANOKE VALLEY CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU 101 Shenandoah Ave. NE – Roanoke, VA 24016-2044 – 540.342.6025

WWW.VISITVABLUERIDGE.COM