ANNUAL REPORT 2021
City of Columbia Convention & Visitors Bureau • VisitColumbiaMO.com • 573.874.CITY (2489)
LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR Each year I prepare
a letter summing up what the past 12 months has looked like for the Convention and Visitors Bureau and our tourism community as well as what we are looking forward to in the coming year. As I sat down to write, I will admit that I did not have an easy time. I went into 2021 thinking we had to be at the end of the pandemic. I had grand plans of huge events, conventions and meetings returning at 100% and no more news reports of how many cases we had overnight or how high our positivity rate was. I doubt if any of us predicted we would be entering 2022 with a new variant bringing higher COVID numbers, schools going back to virtual learning and even more uncertainty moving forward. I know we are all tired - tired of pivoting, the term ‘new normal,’ virtual meetings, cancelations, and staffing issues. My normally positive outlook was less than rosy. So I went to the experts, the CVB staff, and asked them what their wins were for 2021. What a difference perspective makes. The incredible team at the CVB reminded me of exactly how hard they have worked this year and that we indeed had many successes in 2021 that did and will spell success for our community: •
The CVB team worked in partnership with our Parks and Recreation department to create and staff multiple events throughout the year in celebration of Columbia’s Bicentennial. We were able to use Show-Me Strong funding to help bolster our marketing efforts Our department was reaccredited for four more years of Destination Marketing Accreditation Program (DMAP), which serves as a visible industry distinction defining quality and performance standards in destination marketing and management. New sports and meeting marketing campaigns were created and launched. The sales department continued to work hard to secure meetings and conventions for Columbia. The team was successful in securing repeat business, winning
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new-to-Columbia events, and setting up our meetings and conventions market for success in the years to come. Our sports sales team secured NAIA Cross Country National Championships for three years as well as the 2022 NCAA Midwest Cross County Championships and the 2025 NCAA National Championships. As well as securing sporting events through bids, the sports sales team is beginning to create and host events. This will help generate additional revenues for the CVB and allow for more control of the events in the community. Our Columbia Tourism Ambassador program has continued to thrive and has close to 200 ambassadors trained and ready to welcome our visitors. The City Special Events Committee, led by the CVB’s Special Events Manager, was able to help the True/False Film Fest mitigate COVID restrictions and requirements to be able to hold their festival and bring hope that events could indeed start to take place. True/False was the first large event held in 2021. After that, Columbia was able to host the Show-Me State Games, the Roots N Blues Festival and a celebration for the Bicentennial along with many other smaller events, including live concerts on 9th street, at Rose Music Hall and events at Missouri Theatre. Citywide hotel occupancy and lodging tax continues to slowly recover. As of December, hotel occupancy was down 4% year-over-year from 2019, and lodging tax was still down approximately 20% from 2019. That is an improvement from last year at this time, and I know the numbers will continue to improve.
Looking into 2022 we will see a new airport terminal that could not have happened without our hotel community’s hard work and success. The Sports Fieldhouse, with help from Tourism Development Funds, will start work on an expansion that will bring more tournaments and visitors to our community. The CVB will begin work on a tourism strategic plan that will help guide our future growth, both internally and for our community. The True/False Film Fest is scheduled to be back downtown, with other festivals planning to be back in person. And the CVB team will continue to strive for success. How blessed we are with the tourism community we have in Columbia and with what we have to look forward to, it just takes perspective. Here’s to a great 2022!
Amy Schneider, Director
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CONTENTS CVB Overview
Pg. 4
Your CVB Team
Pg. 5
Economic Growth
Pg. 6-8
Industry Partners
Pg. 9
Destination Awareness
Pg. 10-11
2021 by the Numbers
Pg. 12-13
Looking Ahead
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Pg. 14
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CVB OVERVIEW The Columbia Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) is a department of the City of Columbia and serves as the official Destination Marketing Organization (DMO) for Boone County. The CVB is solely funded by the 5% lodging tax collected on hotel and motel rooms in the city of Columbia. This 5% is divided in the following way: • 1% - Operations and Staff • 1% - Tourism Development Program • 2% - Destination Marketing, Sales, Services, etc. • 1% - Columbia Regional Airport (COU) terminal project The CVB promotes Columbia and Boone County as an entire tourism product. This includes dining, outdoor recreation, festivals and events, sports, shopping, arts and culture, history, and anything else that might persuade a visitor to travel to the area. Columbia is also a highly desirable destination for meetings, conferences and sporting events. Once a visitor chooses Columbia, we depend on our tourism industry partners to give them an exceptional experience. This is vital in creating new and repeat visitorship. During their time in our destination, visitors spend money staying in hotels, eating in our restaurants, shopping in our stores, using our airport, fueling at our gas stations and more. The CVB uses the remaining portion of that spending to continue our destination marketing and sales to bring in more visitors. The rest of the spending goes to support local businesses, jobs and quality of life.
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573.874.CITY (2489)
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YOUR CVB TEAM
Amy Schneider
Julie Ausmus
Director
Tourism Administrative Supervisor
Andrea Quiroz Jira
Megan McConachie
Industry Relations Specialist
Strategic Communications Manager
Amanda Willmeth Event Services Specialist
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Beth Mead
Zach Franklin
Tourism Sales Supervisor
Sport Sales Supervisor
Terra Crane
Adam Ziervogel
Tourism Services Specialist
Zach Waller
Public Information Specialist
Sports Sales Manager
Amy Jaco
Tourism Services Specialist
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ECONOMIC GROWTH Tourism Development Program The Tourism Development Program, which began in 2000, continues to be a very beneficial asset to the Columbia Convention and Visitors Bureau as a way to continue support and promotion of Columbia as a destination. It is funded through a portion of the Columbia Lodging Tax. Applications are submitted by for-profit and not-for-profit organizations who request funds to assist with developing and enhancing festivals, events and attractions that will generate overnight visitation in Columbia hotels and have a positive economic impact on the community. During FY 2021, $425,000 were appropriated with a funding total of $166,000 were awarded to 20 applications. Applications are received from five different categories: Signature Series, Festivals & Events, Sports Development, Attraction Development and Community Sponsorships. There were five Signature Series applications: True/ False Film Fest, Roots N Blues Festival, Show-Me STATE GAMES, Art in the Park, and the “We Always Swing” Jazz Series. These events were awarded a total of $80,000 and are Columbia’s largest and most established festivals, generating national press coverage for the community. However, the pandemic continued to impact the ability of some festivals and events to take place, and unfortunately, a large part of the “We Always Swing” Jazz Series went virtual and Art in the Park was canceled.
through a competitive bid process to the Missouri State High School Activities Association (MSHSAA) Cross Country Championships. Although the CVB did not receive any Attraction Development applications during FY2021, the Columbia Center for Urban Agriculture received $25,000 as the third and final installment of a $75,000 total sponsorship made in 2017 for the expansion and upgrade to the Columbia Farmer’s Market at Clary-Shy Park. Community sponsorships are for events that do not necessarily generate overnight stays in hotels but do have an economic impact on Columbia as a tourism destination. During FY2021, 13 applications were received with a funding total of $33,500 for event promotion, marketing and entertainment costs. Some of these events were Fire in the Sky, Harvest Hootenanny, CoMo Disc Club Mid America Open Championships, Boone Dawdle, the Missouri Symphony’s Hot Summer Nights and Family Fun Fests.
Two Sports Development applications were received in FY2021 and total funding in the amount of $37,500 was awarded to The American Jr. Golf Association (AJGA) Stan Utley Missouri Championships and the Missouri Basketball Coaches Association Clinic, Showcase and Norm Stewart Classic. Funds also provided support
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ECONOMIC GROWTH Sales Update In 2021, the Convention and Visitors Bureau sales team continued to change and adapt. At the first of the year, the convention sales team focused on continuing its strategy of consistent communication with meeting planners through a combination of emails and phone calls, as well as a small number of face-to-face calls when possible. In-person calls were difficult as most planners were either working remotely or their offices were not open to outside visitors. In the spring, the industry saw a return to in-person meetings. Although the attendance numbers were low, the number of meetings was higher than anticipated. Through the remainder of 2021, meetings continued to book on very short cycles and cancel on equally short cycles. Through the end of the year, the number of leads sent, meetings booked and meetings serviced continued to climb. The sales team’s booking pace percentage for the last quarter of 2021 is higher than its booking pace percentage for the same timeframe in 2019. The CVB convention sales team has strived to be a constant, calm presence amidst a sea of changes in hotel staffing, meeting planners changing places retiring, and shifting demands for responsible meeting practices. The sales team has been successful in establishing itself as a trusted resource and has not only maintained existing relationships but also forged new ones. The result is that going into 2022, the sales team has been able to bring new-to-Columbia meetings and has hosted several site visits for planners that had not previously considered Columbia as a meeting site. New-to-Columbia future events booked in 2021 include: Midwest Regional T-Bucket Alliance, Missouri Retired Teachers Association, Nursing Home Insurance Trust, American Council of Engineering
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Companies, and the Missouri State Troopers Association. Additionally, after an absence of over 20 years, the Missouri Association of Convention and Visitors Bureaus will hold their 2022 conference in Columbia.
Sports Update / Sports Commission
The sports team experienced some big wins in 2021, building off the momentum it ended on in 2020. In total, the sports market had an estimated $11 million impact on the local economy in 2021. The sports sales team was able to book an estimated $5 million of economic impact through eight newly awarded events. One of those events awarded is the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Cross Country National Championships. Columbia was awarded this event for the years 2024, 2027 and 2030 in partnership with Columbia College. Columbia also was awarded the 2022 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Midwest Cross Country Championships in partnership with Mizzou Athletics. None of this would be possible without the support and dedication of the Columbia Parks and Recreation Department as they have not only built a first-class facility but put in endless hours to ensure the success of these events.
Cont.
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ECONOMIC GROWTH Columbia has grown into a true disc golf destination. In September of 2021, Columbia was able to put that reputation to the test as it hosted Columbia’s first Professional Disc Golf Association (PDGA) Major Championship in the Tim Selinske U.S. Masters Championship. This event was hosted in partnership with the Columbia Disc Golf Club and Columbia Parks and Recreation. The first-class event was given the following feedback, “You and everyone on your team should be extremely proud of what you guys pulled off. This was by far the best Selinske to date. You have set a new standard.” – Shawn Sinclair, PDGA Event Manager. In 2021, the Columbia Sports Commission created and hosted its owned and operated events. The idea behind creating these events was to help stabilize the sports market in the case a number of bids are lost in a given year, to help generate revenue for the CVB, and to give the organization more control of events in Columbia. The Columbia Sports Commission hosted two pickleball tournaments. The fall tournament was a recreational tournament open to anyone, and the spring tournament was labeled the Missouri State Indoor Pickleball Championships and was only open to United States of America Pickleball Association (USAPA) members as it was one of three sanctioned events that took place in Missouri. In 2022, the sports team is looking to expand on its owned events, including a partnership with Columbia Parks and Recreation on a boy’s lacrosse event at Gans Recreation Area. These current and future successes would not be possible without the support and dedication from local facility partners and stakeholders.
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INDUSTRY PARTNERS Continued Pandemic Recovery While it initially appeared the COVID-19 pandemic would have a much smaller impact in 2021, the Delta variant surge resulted in additional disruptions to the travel and tourism industry and the economy in general.
-The You Don’t Say series in partnership with KBIA, including an exceptional live event at the Missouri State Historical Society. -Multiple pop-up parks, which allowed residents from all over our community to learn about the bicentennial and enjoy hands-on activities.
The CVB continued to emphasize its role as a resource for its tourism industry partners while also moving ahead with regular sales and marketing efforts to support the destination. Regular communication, sharing resources and other tactics were used to reach out to industry partners to learn more about their situations and how the CVB could assist.
-Bicentennial-related curriculum in Columbia schools, including a student art contest that resulted in beautiful work and a commemorative journal.
As people began to travel and plan events again, the CVB ramped up its sales and marketing efforts, resulting in new-to-Columbia meetings, conventions and sporting events while continuing to establish Columbia as a safe and desirable leisure destination.
-A full weekend of events over the 4th of July holiday weekend that included multiple concerts, activities, and historic tours, concluding with an outstanding Fire in the Sky.
Moving into 2022, the CVB will continue to fulfill its mission by supporting its partners while also continuing to grow sales and marketing activities. The CVB also will continue to respond to the ever-changing circumstances of Covid-19 as the industry moves through the pandemic together.
-Events and activities in partnership with the Parks and Recreation Department, including the CoMo 200K, a bicentennial-themed Family Fun Fest and golf cart tours.
-The in-progress expansion of Flat Branch Park, which will be enjoyed by generations of Columbia residents and visitors.
CoMo200 Columbia was able to celebrate its Bicentennial in 2021 with the support of the Mayor’s Task Force on Bicentennial Planning and Celebration (CoMo 200) and staff support from the Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Columbia Parks and Recreation Department. Multiple events and initiatives were all able to be executed, including:
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DESTINATION & TOURISM AWARENESS CTA Update Despite the pandemic, our Certified Tourism Ambassador© (CTA) Program remained strong in 2021. The CTA Program is a nationally recognized and accredited tourism program that provides participants with the knowledge and resources they need to make every visitor encounter a positive experience. In 2021, five total CTA classes were held, certifying an additional 30 new tourism ambassadors. There are currently 132 active tourism ambassadors and over 80% of them have renewed for an additional year. CTAs were kept up to date on what is happening in the community and with tourism partners. “Lunch & Learns” were held with the True/False Film Fest organizers to hear about planning the first outdoors True/False Film Fest at Stephens Lake Park and with the Central Improvement District (CIDThe District) staff for updates. CTAs also had lunch on the stage at the Missouri Theatre and heard information on the history of the theatre and the upcoming MU Concert Series. Networking events were held at two new or newly renovated tourism venues, Waves Cider Company and Katfish Katy’s, and several CTAs volunteered and participated in one of the City’s Clean-Up Columbia events. The CTA Program has been an asset to help the CVB reach local employees, volunteers and residents on the importance and power of tourism and its impact on the local economy.
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New Sport and Meeting Campaigns In 2021, the CVB team worked with its creative marketing vendor, Woodruff, to create a new sports brand, sports marketing campaign and meetings marketing campaign. To begin, the team created a standalone sports brand that the CVB and Columbia Sports Commission can use to set itself apart in the sports marketplace. The logo establishes Columbia as a destination that is serious about sports. The accompanying campaign, entitled “Hype,” creates excitement around what Columbia has to offer as a sports destination while also emphasizing the expertise and support offered by the CVB’s sports team and sports commission. The sports campaign has digital, social and video components to reach sports planners and other important stakeholders. The new meetings marketing campaign, entitled “It’s Your Time,” centers on both the expertise offered by the CVB’s sales team and the opportunities having an event in Columbia offers a meeting planner. These features include Columbia’s location, dining options and off-site activities. The meetings campaign has print, digital and social components with a video component to be added in 2022. Examples of these campaign components can be seen on the next page.
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2021 BY THE NUMBERS Tourism Stats FY19
Website Stats
FY20
FY21
Hotel Tax Revenues $3,180,892
$2,127,888
$2,545,362
Occupancy
57.27%
43.90%
$89.84
Average Daily Rate (ADR) Revenue per Available Room (RevPAR) Tourism Related Spending - Boone County Tourism Related Employment Boone County TDP Applications Received TDP Funds Awarded Special Events Permitted
FY19
FY20
FY21
Visits/Sessions
357,741
354,082
240,363
52.01%
Users
300,525
298,393
200,696
$78.51
$81.76
Time on Site
1:03
:49
2:41
$53.20
$35.51
$43.54
$425,607,600
$386,864,652
$393,240,010
Top Pages
11,632
10,328
9,348
Events, Request Visitor Guide, Events, Home Home Page, Family Page, Request Activities, RestauVisitor Guide, What rants Providing to Do, Family Fun, Carryout and Dining Delivery during COVID
40
33
20
$376,000
$385,000
$166,000
83
15
51
Advertising Effectiveness Study Awareness
Social Media Followers FY19
FY20
FY21
Facebook fans
8,890
9,774
10,317
Twitter followers
8,157
8,163
8,094
Instagram followers
8,058
9,370
10,240
Events, Home Page, Things To Do, Parks and Trails, Dining, Meeting Planners
FY19
FY20
FY21
31%
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
Campaign ROI (in$65 cludes PR) Households 2,100,000 Reached Incremental Trips
44,600
Incremental $22.6 million Spending Incremental Room 134,000 Nights Average Party $500 Spend
Columbia Tourism Ambassadors FY19
FY20
FY21
Certified in the Year
89
16
30
Active CTAs
248
156
132
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2021 BY THE NUMBERS Sports and Meeting Sales
Meeting Planner Conversion Study
FY19
FY20
FY21
Leads Sent
88
109
72
Attendees
14,219
15,356
19,064
Room Nights
21,364
41,693
31,139
Economic Impact
$8,188,164
$14,682,401
$11,695,218
Meetings Serviced 315
90
97
Meetings Confirmed
354
252
165
Room Nights
44574
35,435
30,380
Attendees
94125
52,248
114,086
Economic Impact
$27,495,648
$22,462,281
$31,599,040
108
41
17,055
10,312
$20,998,418
$11,790,701
Meetings & Sports Lost Due to N/A COVID-19*** Room Nights Lost N/A due to COVID-19 Economic Impact Lost due to N/A COVID-19
Industry Partner Survey FY19
FY20
FY21
4.68
N/A
4.73
3.83
N/A
3.97
4.27
N/A
4.69
4.14
N/A
4.45
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FY20
FY21
305,000
N/A
N/A
$33.3 million
N/A
N/A
305,000
N/A
N/A
$275
N/A
N/A
Visitor Profile FY19
FY20
FY21
Columbia Visitation Drivers
Dining, Shopping, N/A Nightlife
N/A
Overnight Visitors
87%
N/A
N/A
Stayed in a Hotel
70%
N/A
N/A
Average Nights Stayed
2.3
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
4.00/5
N/A
N/A
4.18/5
N/A
N/A
Overall Satisfaction 4.24/5 Feel Safe in Columbia Columbia is Welcoming
***Includes conferences and sporting events
Sales & Services Team Satisfaction Online Initiatives Satisfaction CVB Staff Professionalism Overall CVB Satisfaction
Sales Staff Converted Attendees Incremental Travel Revenue (Staff & Ads) Convention Marketing Converted Attendees Convention Marketing ROI Future Meetings
FY19
Sports Sales Economic Impact of Booked and Supported Events
FY19
FY20
FY21
N/A
N/A
$11,542,459
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LOOKING AHEAD Sales and Sports Outlook
CVB Strategic Plan
Convention Sales: The meetings and conventions market has shown a strong performance in the last quarter of 2021 and that trend looks to be continuing in 2022. The meeting booking cycle continues to shorten, so the convention sales team anticipates booking many meetings for 2022 and 2023 within a three-to-nine month window. Currently, the meetings booked report shows room nights above 8,000 and an economic impact in excess of $8 million. The CVB is confident that it will continue to book meetings for 2022 through regular sales activities.
The Columbia Convention and Visitors Bureau has contracted with Blue Elephant DMO Solutions to create a strategic plan for the department in 2022. The process will include a destination immersion and stakeholder interviews by Blue Elephant along with a comprehensive data review to better understand strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats for both the CVB and Columbia as a destination. Once priorities are established, the CVB team and partners will work together to develop actions to move both the organization and destination forward.
Based on reports, the meetings bookings pace is at 127% of the target for 2022. The Meeting Sales Team has seen recent success in the association market, which is a very strong market for Columbia, with requests for proposals generated from groups that have booked outside Columbia in the past along with successful site visits from the association and government markets.
COU Expansion
Sports Sales: The year 2022 looks promising early on as the sports team awaits responses on bids submitted in late 2021. The Sports Commission is also eagerly awaiting six Missouri State High School Activity Association (MSHSAA) State Championship bids. MSHSAA State Championship bids are instrumental pieces of business for Columbia and are foundational events the Sports Commission looks to build around. There also are a few events that were booked in 2019-2020 that were not able to take place due to Covid-19 but will happen for the first time in 2022.
The new Columbia Regional Airport terminal (COU), which is funded in part through the Columbia lodging tax, is scheduled to be completed in 2022. This new terminal will feature a more modern appearance and a larger building. This new facility will allow for the opportunity to attract additional flights and airlines to COU for visitors and residents in the future.
The Sports Team’s 2022 economic impact goal is currently $12 million dollars, and it feels confident with current events booked and prospected pieces of business that the goal will be surpassed.
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