2019 Impact Report Visit Baton Rouge - Horizontal

2019 IMPACT REPORT

TABLE OF CONTENTS

■ YEAR IN REVIEW | 2 ■ PARTNERS & AFFILIATIONS | 3 ■ AUDIENCE & REACH | 5 ■ PROMOTING THE CAPITAL CITY | 7 ■ PREMIER EVENT DESTINATION | 11 ■ LEISURE | 13 ■ WHILE THEY’RE HERE | 16 ■ WELCOME CENTERS | 18 ■ BOARD OF DIRECTORS | 19 ■ OUR PEOPLE | 20

IMPACT REPORT 2019 | 1

YEAR IN REVIEW

WHAT WE DO As the local expert and information resource for all things Baton Rouge, Visit Baton Rouge strives to share an authentic Louisiana experience and change the way people think of our city. Each year, our departments work together to support three foundational goals: increase visitation, cultivate local pride and strengthen local businesses and organizations through collaborative partnerships. Funded by an occupancy tax on Baton Rouge hotel rooms and short term rentals, our efforts continue to have a widespread impact on our community.

VISIT BATON ROUGE IN 2019 Our pride is rooted in experiences culminating from Baton Rouge’s strong sense of culture. From hotels and attractions to facilities and events, both our businesses and locals feel engaged and unified in helping us grow a stronger city, inside and out. In 2019, the Greater Baton Rouge area saw our initiatives come to life through continued growth in the number of new restaurants and entertainment for both locals and visitors to enjoy.

2 | IMPACT REPORT 2019

11.3

$958

4

15+

MILLION VISITORS

2019 AMERICAN ADVERTISING AWARDS

340

MILLION SPENT BY VISITORS

NATIONAL RECOGNITIONS FOR BATON ROUGE INCLUDING #1 ACOUSTIC MUSIC MECCA AROUND THE WORLD

MEETINGS, CONVENTIONS AND EVENTS H ELD IN BATON ROUGE

SOURCES: Longwoods International, Newsweek

PARTNERS & AFFILIATIONS

ATTRACTIONS

SHOPS & RETAIL

RESTAURANTS

HOTELS & ACCOMMODATIONS

VENUES

ANNUAL EVENTS

OUR PARTNERS

MOVIE AND TELEVISION PRODUCTIONS

Visit Baton Rouge successfully promotes East Baton Rouge Parish alongside our partners from across Louisiana. Combining resources with local industry and hospitality businesses, we can better leverage our expertise to identify opportunities for growth, develop compelling bids for new business, and provide support for existing business. At the end of the day, we aim to position the Baton Rouge area as a premier destination for both business and leisure travelers.

■ ■ ■ ■ ■

Our hospitality industry partnerships maintain the same vision as Visit Baton Rouge: promote our city and uplift our community. The collaborative efforts between Film Baton Rouge and Visit Baton Rouge integrate the local creative community within a national industry, while our collaboration with SportsBR garners attendance at athletic events to increase both tourism revenue and local pride, producing an economic impact of over $99 million.

First Responders – A&E Paradise Lost – Paramount TV Swing Grayson Family Christmas Lizzo Music Video – Featuring the SU Band

ATHLETIC EVENTS ■ US YOUTH SOCCER Region III Championships ■ Marucci World Series Opening Ceremonies ■ Cajun Classic Wheelchair Tennis Tournament

397,442 ONLINE VIEWS

FOR PARTNER LISTINGS

VISITOR SERVICES

SOURCE: Google Analytics

IMPACT REPORT 2019 | 3

PARTNERS & AFFILIATIONS OUR AFFILIATIONS In 2019, we elevated Baton Rouge’s profile through affiliations with local, regional and national like-minded organizations. The Southeast Louisiana Gumbo Group and the Southeast Tourism Society promote Baton Rouge on a local and regional level, while our work with Brand USA, also referred to as Visit USA, increases Baton Rouge’s recognition and appeal on national and international levels.

SOUTHEAST LOUISIANA GUMBO GROUP PROMOTES A 9 PARISH AREA OF LOUISIANA

SOUTHEAST TOURISM SOCIETY PROMOTES A 12-STATE SOUTHEAST REGION OF THE UNITED STATES

BRAND USA PROMOTES THE UNITED STATES GLOBALLY TO INTERNATIONAL VISITORS

In recognition for our commitment to industry excellence, Visit Baton Rouge is accredited as a Destination Marketing Organization by Destinations International. Visit Baton Rouge has been accredited since 2009.

4 | IMPACT REPORT 2019

AUDIENCE & REACH

WHEN VISITORS STAY, IT PAYS

ENDLESS ECONOMIC BENEFITS

When travelers pay for attractions, hotels, retail restaurants or transportation at a visiting destination, it supports the local businesses and stimulates our economy by generating additional tax revenue for state and local governments to invest in enhanced public services for residents and visitors alike.

BUILDING BUSINESSES

The more engaged our partners are, the more knowledge we have of all Baton Rouge has to offer. This helps us sell the area to meeting professionals and planners, entice visitors to choose Baton Rouge, and connect our partners with the over 11 million travelers who are likely to become customers.

GROWING OUR CITY

A stronger tourism industry allows Baton Rouge to better compete with other similarly-sized cities for entertainment and business opportunities. That means more sports events, concerts, restaurants, conventions, and more for locals to enjoy. All of this has a positive impact on perceptions of a destination, which continues this cycle of growth to improve our quality of life.

IMPACT REPORT 2019 | 5

AUDIENCE & REACH

MAIN PURPOSE OF TRIP

OUR VISITORS 2019 was a banner travel year for visitors. Our involvement in local, national and international initiatives expanded our reach and helped us strengthen relationships to benefit our city. During Festival Season in the spring, Baton Rouge saw a number of new festivals—like the famed Bandito Festival—and returning festivals—including the 10th anniversary of Bayou Country Superfest—for visitors and locals to enjoy music, food, art and authentic Louisiana culture.

And an undefeated football season for the Louisiana State University Tigers not only increased our average occupancy rate on game days, but also expanded tourism and travel in Baton Rouge in 2019.

WHO OUR VISITORS TRAVEL WITH ■ Spouse/Partner | 51% ■ Child(ren) | 33% ■ Friend(s) | 23%

42%

Visiting Friends/Family

13%

Special Event

6%

Casino

3%

Outdoors

27%

Festival Season

7%

Touring

6%

City Trip

3%

Cruise

$85.80 55.78% 81.3% GAME DAY WEEKEND AVERAGE OCCUPANCY

6 | IMPACT REPORT 2019

AVERAGE DAILY RATE

AVERAGE OCCUPANCY

2019 LSU NATIONAL CHAMPIONS

SOURCES: Longwoods International, STR

PROMOTING THE CAPITAL CITY

ONLY IN BATON ROUGE 2019 was a year to show both visitors and locals what an authentic Louisiana experience means, only in Baton Rouge. We worked with MESH and Morgan & Company—two of our long-standing advertising and media partners—to develop a campaign that would reach our target audiences based on their interests and the uniqueness of Baton Rouge. Maintaining the music, food and festival themes utilized in past years, our campaign leveraged over 300 years of history in Baton Rouge, as well as our growing culture and spirit.

What makes Baton Rouge one of a kind? The unique experiences and stories that have played a role in making our city what it is today. The 2019 marketing campaign sought to differentiate Baton Rouge from the rest of Louisiana by unearthing our quirky qualities, unknown facts and hidden gems. Touchpoints included print, digital and social media ads, as well as videos, to promote Baton Rouge. Utilizing a storytelling approach paired with illustrations and bold, vibrant visuals, our campaign let Baton Rouge’s authenticity speak for itself.

IMPACT REPORT 2019 | 7

PROMOTING THE CAPITAL CITY MAKING A NAME With publications constantly looking for interesting travel destinations and stories to share, maintaining connections with journalists across the nation was vital to gaining earned media placements and letting Baton Rouge’s authenticity shine. Our continuing efforts in public relations became a key driver of tourism in 2019 on a local, regional, national and international level.

As part of the Visit Baton Rouge Public Relations plan developed in 2019, Visit Baton Rouge continued working with Development Counsellors International (DCI) and other local partners to host journalists in our city, pitch creative story ideas and highlight Baton Rouge’s story. We attended two media missions focusing on stories around the culinary scene and Mardi Gras, where we traveled to New York City to meet with editors at multiple publications including Elle Magazine, Food Network Magazine, Martha Stewart Living, Travel + Leisure and Women’s Health Magazine, in addition to numerous freelance journalists.

In partnership with the Louisiana Travel Association, Visit Baton Rouge attended Atlanta’s Culinary Trails event in the fall, allowing us to feature the unique cuisines from each region in Louisiana. As part of the sponsorship, Visit Baton Rouge staff met directly with food bloggers and influencers in the Atlanta area as well as numerous journalists.

8 | IMPACT REPORT 2019

Our combined efforts and continuing partnerships reach locals and visitors alike, benefitting the people who call Baton Rouge home.

■ 15.7 million impressions ■ 4.5 billion editorial impressions ■ $40 million worth of earned media

PROMOTING THE CAPITAL CITY VISITBATONROUGE.COM Serving as a guide to all things Baton Rouge, VisitBatonRouge.com saw an increase in engagement in 2019 and continues to grow as a content hub for both locals and travelers alike. Our strategic focus on garnering organic traffic to the website meant users were seeing our content because of their interests. We utilized blog posts, email marketing, social media posts and video content creation and saw an increase in YouTube referrals that directed people to our website and more events, things to do, places to stay and local businesses.

■ ■ ■ ■ ■

1.9 million page views 350% growth in organic impressions 250% growth in organic clicks 176.3% increase in YouTube referrals 400 new email newsletter subscribers

2019 INTERACTIVE CALENDAR Never miss a beat in Baton Rouge

SOURCE: Google Analytics

1230 EVENTS SUBMITTED

BY PARTNERS

PROMOTING THE CAPITAL CITY

YOUTUBE VIEWS | 689,703

@VISITBATONROUGE 2019 became a year of exploration in every facet. Our ambassadors, Krewe de Rouge, took to their own platforms to promote the city and events, showing their followers all Baton Rouge has to offer. With the intention of building in more content-centric posts and increasing organic traffic to our website, we integrated new features from multiple social media platforms, including Instagram stories, to increase awareness across audiences, making social media the top referral source for VisitBatonRouge.com.

USER GENERATED CONTENT User Generated Content (UGC) became a focus for Visit Baton Rouge in 2019 to get locals engaged in the city and our brand. We encouraged audiences to use #ExploreBatonRouge to create a gallery from social media users who are already sharing content. By tapping into UGC and acquiring the rights to use, we could garner authentic photos and videos from visitors and locals to tell Baton Rouge’s story on our own platforms.

10 | IMPACT REPORT 2019

FACEBOOK LIKES | 115,986 TWITTER FOLLOWERS | 42,314 PINTEREST AVG MONTHLY VIEWERS | 30,573 INSTAGRAM FOLLOWERS | 14,416

PREMIER EVENT DESTINATION

ENHANCING THE EXPERIENCE Our Destination Experience and Sales Departments were instrumental in hosting many successful meetings, conferences and events in 2019. From curating customized marketing and attendance-building plans to sharing our network of quality referrals, Visit Baton Rouge supports local businesses and partners while providing a one-of-a-kind experience for event attendees long before planners arrive in Baton Rouge.

Our Destination Experience staff aims to make day-of logistics as easy as possible by providing hands-onassistance with details such as room preparation and presentations. With a better understanding of our travelers’ needs, we can equip them with the right information for a successful visit. In 2019, more than 35,000 welcome guides were distributed and more than 1,200 downloaded digitally.

SOURCE: Visit Baton Rouge

340

$54+ M

MEETINGS AND CONVENTIONS HELD

ESTIMATED ECONOMIC IMPACT

400

246

PARTNER REFERRALS

GROUPS SERVICED

152,853

ATTENDEES

IMPACT REPORT 2019 | 11

PREMIER EVENT DESTINATION

NOTABLE EVENTS IN 2019 ■ S OUTHERN ASSOCIATION OF COLLEGIATE

REGISTRARS AND ADMISSIONS OFFICERS

Hosting their 72nd Regional Convention in Baton Rouge at LSU, this event showcased Downtown Baton Rouge, bringing in more than 600 professionals from 14 states and the commonwealth of Puerto Rico.

■ NATIONAL BLACK POLITICAL SCIENTISTS In partnership with Southern University, National Black Political Scientists hosted their national convention bringing over 300 members from around the country.

■ NATIONAL FEDERATION OF PRESS WOMEN During their Annual Convention with attendees from across the country, the National Federation of Press Women incorporated tours of Baton Rouge to experience Louisiana’s authentic culture, music and food.

■ ALPHA XI The local chapter of Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity, recognized as the first successful and oldest Black Greek lettered organization, hosted members from Louisiana and Mississippi at its annual Multi Boule—Christmas is for the Archousai event.

■ U NITED STATES YOUTH SOCCER ASSOCIATION Drawing in approximately 13,000 total attendees for the US Youth Soccer Southern Regional Championships, Baton Rouge welcomed more than 200 youth soccer teams from across the Southern United States, totaling an estimated economic impact of more than $18 Million.

■ CAJUN CLASSIC WHEELCHAIR TENNIS TOURNAMENT As one of the only two Super Series tournaments in the United States and one of only six Super Series worldwide, the 30th Annual Cajun Classic was hosted in Baton Rouge, supported by the USTA and sanctioned by the International Tennis Federation (ITF), bringing in more than 100 national and international athletes.

■ VETERANS OF FOREIGN WARS For the first time, Baton Rouge hosted the Southern Conference of the VFW, bringing in 400 attendees, up from 250 attendees the previous year, from across the South.

$26 M ECONOMIC IMPACT

12 | IMPACT REPORT 2019

In 2019, Visit Baton Rouge hosted 48 international, national and regional sports events. For our commitment to impacting our community through sports events, we were honored with Sports ETA’s Sports Tourism Organization of the Year award.

LEISURE

578 14 3 92,301

QUALIFIED LEADS

GET DOWN TO BUSINESS With every new year, Visit Baton Rouge continues to grow as a host city with new venues and spaces for event organizers. Our Sales and Experience departments work together year-round to bring business travelers into our city by promoting Baton Rouge as a future meeting and convention destination to hundreds of potential local, regional and national clients. This includes building relationships with and advertising our city’s amenities to meeting planners, continuing initiatives like familiarization tours and site visits, and attending relevant trade shows and sales missions. We work to ensure that conference organizers and event coordinators have all resources they need to host and promote events in the city of Baton Rouge, bringing in a number of successful events, meetings and conventions in 2019.

SOURCE: Visit Baton Rouge

TRADESHOWS ATTENDED

SALES MISSIONS

ROOM NIGHTS BOOKED

BY STAFF

IMPACT REPORT 2019 | 13

LEISURE

BLENDING THE WORLD OF BUSINESS & LEISURE Industry trends show “bleisure” travel continues to grow each year. Business travelers are looking for conferences held in destination cities so they and their families can explore a new location or return visit after an event.

Through strategic email marketing and premier planning services, Visit Baton Rouge ensures business travelers and meeting organizers see an authentic experience in Baton Rouge before they arrive.

Our marketing toolkit gives meeting planners the online resources and assets that Visit Baton Rouge offers to promote their conference or event and grow their attendance. Highlighting all that our city has to offer lets them build an unforgettable experience in Baton Rouge. In collaboration with meeting planners, our experienced staff incorporates elements of Baton Rouge and our unique culture throughout the entire event.

From cocktail hours to offsite meeting experiences or welcome parties—business travelers are invited to come early and stay late to immerse themselves in Baton Rouge culture from start to finish.

14 | IMPACT REPORT 2019

LEISURE

A LOCAL LEISURE DESTINATION When Baton Rouge attracts visitors, everyone from local businesses to public services and residents benefit. Leisure travel promotes a stronger Baton Rouge and a cycle of constant tourism that stimulates our economy. From football season to Mardi Gras, leisure travelers experiencing our unique flair generate revenue to improve our city, ultimately creating jobs and attracting new events and entertainment for families in our community to enjoy.

NEW ATTRACTIONS AND EVENTS ■ ■ ■ ■

Sing the River Sculpture Baton Rouge Mural - Raising Cane’s River Center Relay of Voices Bandito Fest

IMPACT REPORT 2019 | 15

WHILE THEY’RE HERE ACTIVITIES AND EXPERIENCES (TOP 10)

39%

16%

12%

21%

12%

SHOPPING

BAR / NIGHTCLUB

16 | IMPACT REPORT 2019

CASINO

LANDMARKS / HISTORIC SITE

MUSEUM

11%

FINE / UPSCALE DINING

8%

12%

9%

7%

SWIMMING

ZOO

DANCE

BEACH / WATERFRONT

SOURCE: Longwoods International

WHILE THEY’RE HERE

BY WAY OF THE RIVER A growing number of travelers from all over the world can get an authentic view of Baton Rouge from the Mississippi River. The American Harmony—American Cruise Lines’ newest modern riverboat that can accommodate 180 passengers—took its inaugural cruise incorporating stops in Baton Rouge. To meet the growing demands of river cruises, the American Queen Steamboat company also added the American Countess to its fleet to begin paddling another 246 passengers next year.

The popularity of river cruises continues to rise, with Baton Rouge seeing an increase of more than 4,000 passengers in 2019.

■ 18,728 passengers ■ 98 dockings ■ 5 boats

SOURCE: Visit Baton Rouge

IMPACT REPORT 2019 | 17

WELCOME CENTERS

A WARM WELCOME Visit Baton Rouge’s Welcome Centers are located throughout the city and serve as information hubs for all things to do and see in Baton Rouge. Staffed with educated and passionate travel counselors, these welcome centers are filled with resources to help visitors plan their trip! Call or come by to browse brochures and other promotional materials for area attractions, restaurants, hotels and more.

WELCOME CENTER VISITORS ■ ■ ■ ■ ■

BTR Metropolitan Airport | 10,630 State Capitol | 73,886 Visit Baton Rouge | 4,512 Riverboats | 18,728 Burden Museum and Gardens Welcome Center | 1,904

TOTAL | 109,660

18 | IMPACT REPORT 2019

VISIT BATON ROUGE OFFICE DOWNTOWN

BATON ROUGE METROPOLITAN AIRPORT (BTR)

359 Third St. Baton Rouge, LA 70801 (225) 383-1825 | (800) 527-6843

9430 Jackie Cochran Dr. Baton Rouge, LA 70811 (225) 355-0925

Hours | Monday – Friday 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.

(Closed on major holidays)

Hours | M onday – Friday 9 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

LOUISIANA STATE CAPITOL 900 Third St. Baton Rouge, LA 70802 (225) 382-0580 Hours | Monday – Friday 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

(Closed on major holidays)

INFEAUX ON THE GEAUX MOBILE WELCOME CENTER Infeaux on the Geaux is our mobile information cart. Look for it at local festivals and events to find helpful resources on what to in and around Baton Rouge.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

NORMAN CHENEVERT, CHAIRMAN

COUNCILWOMAN DONNA COLLINS-LEWIS

Downtown Development District

Metropolitan Council

SCOTT MICHELET, VICE CHAIRMAN

MARK DRENNEN

Baton Rouge Lodging Association

Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge

CLAUDE REYNAUD, SECRETARY/TREASURER

MICKEY FREIBERG

Preserve Louisiana

Louisiana Restaurant Association – Baton Rouge Chapter

FLYNN FOSTER, IMMEDIATE PAST CHAIRMAN

MARY STEIN

Baton Rouge Area Chamber

Metropolitan Council

BEN BLACKWELL

REVEREND LEE T. WESLEY

Baton Rouge Lodging Association

Mayor-President

IMPACT REPORT 2019 | 19

OUR PEOPLE

DESTINATION SALES

ADMINISTRATION PAUL ARRIGO, CDME President & CEO

LAURALYN MARANTO Vice President of Administration

LORI LASSEIGNE Executive Assistant

UTE CRESS Travel Counselor

JESSICA COFFING

FATIMA GAUTIER, CAA

Director of Finance

Executive Assistant

GERALDINE BORDELON, CMP Director of Destination Sales

TRACY FRANCIS, TMP National Tourism Sales Manager

STEPHANIE CELESTINE National Convention Sales Manager

ZACH EBARB Sports & Convention Sales Manager

PROJECTS & EVENTS STACY SIMON Director of Projects & Events

20 | IMPACT REPORT 2019

ELISE PATTERSON

MICHAEL AGUIRRE

Events & Design Specialist

Convention Sales Manager

OUR PEOPLE

MARKETING & TECHNOLOGY KARRON ALFORD Director of Marketing & Technology

PAULINA TAVERA CRM Marketing Manager

DESTINATION EXPERIENCE ERICA SWEENEY GLORY

COURTNEY TAYLOR, CMP

Content Marketing Specialist

Director of Destination Experience

MEREDITH CONGER

ANNA GASPERECZ

Communications Specialist

Destination Experience Coordinator

BUILDING ON OUR FOUNDATION Our fundamental goals for 2019 were to increase visitation, cultivate local pride and strengthen local businesses.

Both tourism spending and resident satisfaction have increased, and we are proud of the contributions that our direct marketing and partnerships with local influencers have on the community. Baton Rouge continues to grow into a premier destination, and we are looking forward to our continued role in that growth.

SOURCE: Longwoods International

IMPACT REPORT 2019 | 21

www.visitbatonrouge.com