2016 - 2017 Tourism Budget Annual Report

as of March 31, 2017

404 W 2nd St The Dalles OR 541-296-2231

Lisa Farquharson

Community Marketing 2016-2017 Work Plan

Annual Report Summary State: Travel Oregon

▪ Travel Oregon Guide: Was updated for the 2016/2017 guide for a better listing of The Dalles. The 2017/2018 will have a complete re-write so that the East end of the Gorge is better represented.

▪ Travel Oregon completed the Gorge Wide Tourism Studio with the following areas having task committees formed: Culinary & Agritourism, Cultural Heritage, Adventure Travel & Outdoor Recreation, and Marketing & Communications. We are continuing to look at how this newly formed organization will be governed, financed, and sustained.

Region: Mt. Hood / Gorge

▪ CRGVA, Columbia River Gorge Visitors Association, has now become the CGTA, Columbia Gorge Tourism Alliance (after the Tourism Studio was completed). It will serve as our Gorge Wide Organization and hosts a website and all DMOs (Chamber Directors and Tourism Directors) are presently on the Core Alliance Team.

▪ Mt. Hood / Gorge Regional Guide is now being merged with a Gorge Wide publication. We were able to work with an existing publication and have merged the two publications together. This will give our visitors a better guide for our entire gorge area.

▪ Mt. Hood / Gorge completed their new website and have created a blog with each DMO from the Hood-Gorge region submitting a blog entry approximately every 6 weeks. www.hood-gorge.com

▪ Mt. Hood / Gorge Region completed a 5-video series featuring outdoor activities all the way through the region. They will be distributed to the DMOs in a month or two.

▪ The Region is working on a new series of videos that will have activities and such but with a seasonal type of theme. The completion date is projected for 2018.

▪ A new pod-cast series was developed from the Gorge Tourism Studio and has just gone live. The DMOs will be able to put on websites in approximately 30-60 days.

▪ New Hospitality Program has been developed and will have its first training session hosted in The Dalles on May 1 at the Civic Auditorium. This will be delivered Gorge wide by Trainer, Lee Weinstein. The program is called ‘We Speak The Gorge’. This training is a program that Travel Oregon provides to communities around Oregon.

Local: The Dalles Lobby:

▪ Added New Display for Community Events, Entry Forms, and Announcements to be displayed.

▪ TV in the Lobby continues to get attention from visitors, updated with community events.

▪ More brochures than ever available for our guests. More visitor centers are asking to put their brochures in our lobby due to our increased awareness about our community.

Operating:

▪ This Summer our office will be open Mon-Fri from September thru May and open only on Saturdays from June thru August. The Sunday hours will be distributed between Mon-Fri due to our increase in tourism traffic.

▪ Tourism Task Forces: are continuing to work on projects as necessary. Marketing:

▪ In the Media Coverage Report you will see where we have been published along with our numbers for exposure in print and digital.

▪ We have been targeting more of the outdoor activities this year with an emphasis on Fishing. We continue to work on marketing our normal avenues for history, wine, beer, hiking, cycling, wildflowers, birding, murals, and our community.

▪ The Sunsational Charm Trail is beginning its fifth year in May with 50+ businesses participating.

▪ This past fall we did a large FAM tour with an emphasis on Fishing (first of its kind) with tours in our community consisting of dining, beer tasting, wine tasting, attractions, shopping, and hikes. This FAM was in collaboration with Weinstein P.R.

▪ Communication and marketing to Ships highlighting activities, tours, and attractions available. The Ships really appreciate receiving the “The Crew News” every 2 weeks and a few of the coupons have been used in our community.

▪ Attended the NW Outdoor Sportsman Show for our third year and connected with approximately 3000 people while giving out 2000 brochures. We were able to build our email list of people interested in the outdoor activities with a drawing for a basket filled with everything about The Dalles. We partnered with Cousin’s Country Inn and Andy Nichols Art Glass. This year we went to a larger booth, 10x20. We had a very nice booth and made at least 5 connections with media who want to come and do a feature on our area.

▪ Attended Fish Camp 2016 and connected with 25 Travel Media personnel. Five of them have already written or reported about The Dalles.

▪ Working with the director of Fish Camp to do further promotion of our area at Special Fish Workshops at Sports Stores around the Northwest this Spring and Summer.

NEAR FUTURE Marketing Projects:

▪ We are working with NW Fishing Reports in Washington State for a new show that they are producing. It will begin in May on the Fox station in Tri Cities. They are producing a low budget 30 second commercial for The Dalles that will be aired every Saturday right before their show. This will continue through September.

▪ Road Runner Magazine did a great article on the Lewis & Clark trail last year and we hosted the riders for a mini-FAM tour. They just informed us that the July/August issue will have a feature on The Dalles and will have 4 rides mapped out for motorcyclist to ride. The Dalles is positioned to be the hub for all four rides!!!

Website:

▪ Our website is improving every day as you will see with the Website Statistics Report.

▪ Continuing to improve pages about different features for our area; (i.e. hiking, attractions, biking, etc.) by adding video and pictures, along with more links to our local businesses and organizations.

▪ The Marketing Committee continues to analyze our website for improvements to better meet the needs of our visitors.

Branding:

▪ A logo for Explore The Dalles was created last year and we are implementing it into our printed materials, online presence, presentations, and banners. We now have logo wear for our staff when at trade shows and leading FAM tours.

Social Media:

▪ We are active on Facebook and gaining ground outside of The Dalles. We have added an Explore The Dalles channel for the Social Medias and hope to gain momentum over the next 12 months as we use this for tourism and promote everyone in The Dalles.

▪ The tourism team is responsible for promotion of The Dalles Area on Twitter and Instagram. This is the cycling, hiking, family, and water sports crowd.

▪ Promotion on Pinterst is a partnership of Tourism and the Chamber to create a large presence of both things to do and businesses/organizations.

Special Projects: Focus Groups Summary:

▪ Cycling – Completed the new Cycling Map for The Dalles. This is on the website and the printed maps are being distributed.

▪ Food, Wine, Art – Our 2nd Farm 2 Fork was a great success. This event featured many of our local Ag farms, suppliers, and produce. The plans for the third Farm 2 Fork is in progress with the date set for August 19. The theme for this year is ‘Bounty from the County’.

▪ History – The Places of Historic Interest brochure has been updated, printed, and it is being distributed. The committee is working on a new Historic Walking Tour with a date for production to be early next year. This new brochure will replace 2 to 3 existing and outdated brochures.

▪ Ship Focus – We are continually working with ships to help create the best excursion experience for their guests and crew. NOTE: All of this was being done while still being active in other aspects of tourism, hosting FAM tours, working with Quarterly Tip Sheets, and continued work on the following types of tourism: Fishing, Water Recreation, Hiking, Cycling, Food, Wine, Beer, and special Operator Tour Groups.

Façade Rehab for Visitor Center:

▪ We are excited to begin our façade rehab, parking lot make over, and improvements for the Visitor Center. We will begin the project mid-May with a projected completion date of September of this year.

Print Publications (advertising):

▪ 101 Things to do in Oregon

▪ 1859 Magazine

▪ AAA VIA Oregon-Idaho Magazine

▪ Good Sam RV Park Guide

▪ The Gorge Magazine

▪ Columbia River Gorge Magazine (CRGVA)

▪ NW Travel Magazine

▪ Oregon Events Calendar

▪ Pamplin Media Group

▪ Portland Guide

▪ Portland Monthly

▪ Travel Oregon

▪ True West Magazine USA Today

▪ Western Journey - AAA VIA - Washington-Northern Idaho

▪ The Reel News

▪ Central Newspaper

▪ Veterans View

▪ Oregon Fish & Wildlife Journal

▪ Gary Lewis Outdoors

▪ NW Fly Fishing

▪ Mt. Hood and The Columbia River Gorge Magazine (Travel Oregon)

▪ The Oregonian Publishing

▪ Salmon Trout Steelheader

▪ Road Runner Magazine

Online Publications:

▪ Go Oregon

▪ TravelGuidesFree.com

▪ Travel Oregon

▪ Travel Portland

▪ OregonLive.com

▪ Northwest Fishing Reports

▪ Fishing Magician

At the heart of our approach will be the consistent application of The Dalles’ “Simply Sunsational” tourism branding in a way that builds intimacy and powerful

personal relationships between our visitors and The Dalles. Our marketing messag-es and advertisements need to leverage this relationship with the tourism brand

and create a sense of urgency to visit, explore, and stay in The Dalles.

The Dalles Area Chamber of Commerce

404 W 2nd St

The Dalles, OR 97058

Proposed Community Marketing Work Plan

1. Introduction

2. Marketing Objectives

3. Targeted Audience

4. Marketing Avenues

5. Campaign Overview

6. Conceptual Timeline

2017-2018

7. Work Plan Overview

8. Goals & Objectives

9. Budget

1. Introduction This document provides the detailed outline of our annual promotional objectives and marketing avenues. The Dalles Area Chamber of Commerce is charged with designing a marketing strategy under this plan which will identify strategic plans, partnerships and advertising platforms for tourism promotion.

2. Marketing Objectives Our marketing objectives are:

• Increased visitor spending combined with longer stays in the city of The Dalles • Year-round promotion with an emphasis on shoulder seasons • Geographical representation beyond attractions in the city of The Dalles • Capture more visitors coming to Oregon for a Gorge experience • Cross promotion of The Dalles area businesses • To provide excellent visitor information and service • Increased collaboration with tourism partners (i.e. CRGVA, Travel Oregon, Travel Portland, etc.) • Support and enhance shoulder season tourism events

3. Targeted Audience

Our targeted audiences are:

Active: • Motivated by new and unique experiences • Outdoor/extreme recreation enthusiasts • Drawn to organized physical sports • Stewards of local environment and giving back • Among highest spenders when presented with unique experience

Functional: • Independent of mind and are the least likely to worry about what others might think • They live a fairly relaxed pace of life: 42% have children at home and 25% are post family • One of the highest rates for taking vacations • Attraction goers

Traditional: • Strong orientation towards traditional values • Value individual attention and service • Self-reliant • Slow to adopt new options • Physical sports and lively nightlife don’t appeal

3. Targeted Audience Continued

Urban: • Strong, active, confident • High spenders • Style/brand important, but as an expression of their self-made identity • Looking for new challenges, new experiences, globetrotters • Favor city destinations as well as scenic locations

Our targeted geographical areas of focus are: • Portland Metro / Vancouver, WA • Seattle / Tacoma, WA • Central Oregon (Sisters, Redmond, Bend) • Oregon Coast (Astoria, Seaside, Newport, Florence) • Interstate 5 Corridor (Salem, Albany, Eugene, Roseburg) • I-84 Eastern Oregon & Washington (Hermiston, Pendleton, LaGrande, Ontario, Tri-Cities) • Columbia Gorge (Troutdale, Hood River, Klickitat, Mt. Adams, Goldendale, Maupin, Cascade Locks) • Yakima Valley (Ellensburg, Yakima, Toppenish) • Spokane, WA / Coeur D’Alene, ID

4. Marketing Avenues Our marketing avenues are:

• Print marketing materials utilizing “Explore The Dalles,” with tagline ‘Sunsational The Dalles’ branding • Print advertising of The Dalles for targeted advertising campaign • Social promotion via Pay-Per-Click targeted advertising • Professional video production for targeted advertising campaign • Video syndication via branded Youtube channel, regional Hood-Gorge, and Travel Oregon • Coordination with local partners (City of TD, Regional Chambers, hospitality, events, businesses)

5. Advertising Campaign Overview Our advertising campaigns will:

• Be designed to meet objectives and reach targeted audiences outlined in this marketing plan • Give visitors a visual experience to create a relationship with the “Explore The Dalles” brand and

create a sense of urgency to visit and stay in The Dalles • Continual development under 2014-17 Marketing Strategy of The Dalles Area Chamber Marketing Committee and the Board of Directors

6. Marketing Plan Conceptual Timeline 2014-2018 Tourism Marketing Strategy Development:

2014-15 Targeted advertising campaign development

Enhance visitor information & services, tourism and events

2015-16 Targeted advertising web and social media campaigns

Printed media development

Tourism events identification and planning

Development of targeted advertising video campaign

Research and identify shoulder season tourism in The Dalles

2016-17 Targeted advertising print campaign

Continuation of web and social media targeted advertising campaigns

Implementation of shoulder season tourism events

2017-18 Video targeted advertising campaign

Continuation of web and social media targeted advertising campaign on all platforms

Build ExploreTheDalles.com pages with more info, itineraries, pictures, video, and guest blog entries from local partners (Museums, guides, and organizations)

Building of shoulder season tourism events

7. Work Plan Overview Visitor Services • Fully staff and maintain the official City of The Dalles Visitor Center at the Chamber of Commerce

office. Monday thru Friday, September – May; 6 days a week Memorial Day thru Labor Day.

[Approximately 5200 man hours per year, 2.5 FTE, with 5 staff consisting of part time, full time, and

seasonal]

• Continually update and distribute visitor information to hotels, restaurants and other businesses.

Maintain visitor information binders provided to front desk staff at all hotels, to be done annually in

May of each year

• Work with Travel Oregon and the newly formed CGTA (Columbia Gorge Tourism Alliance) to

develop, implement, and host two of the 6 hospitality training programs, ‘We Speak,’ that will be

offered for the entire Gorge. This is to ensure a quality customer experience for visitors.

7. Work Plan Overview Continued

Visitor Services Continued • Update and provide map and materials for self-guided walking tours

• Respond to visitor information requests received via phone, email, social media and website

• Coordinate welcome greeters for groups, sports events, conferences and conventions

Community Marketing • Continue work with Weinstein PR on strong public relations campaign that includes quarterly tip

sheets, story development, frequent communication with national and regional publications, and coordination of Familiarization (FAM) tours. Also, maintaining contact with travel writers who participated in our FAM tours

• Participate as an exhibitor in the Tradeshows of targeted audiences; i.e. outdoor recreation, fish-ing, antiques, cyclists, etc. Participate in regional travel tradeshows with tourism partners (CGTA, RDMO, Travel Portland)

• Work with Mt. Hood / Columbia River Gorge Regional Destination Marketing Organizations (RDMO) in completing a new set of five Video Ads emphasizing Outdoor Recreation in the Gorge (broadcasting by Travel Oregon, YouTube, and each RDMO office)

• Continue to enhance the website to be even more user-friendly, increase tourism information to targeted audiences, and provide advertisement opportunities for a greater exposure for local businesses.

• Maintain electronic version of the brochure on Travel Oregon Website and other online opportunities. Continue to promote community events and happenings on event calendars in printed publications and travel websites

• Continue to expand and enhance “social media” presence (Facebook, Yelp, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, Pinterest, Google+, Flicker, TripAdvisor, Twitter, along with any new platforms that are beneficial to the community)

• Continue to work with and participate, as a Board member, for the newly developed Columbia Gorge Tourism Alliance (CGTA). Provide support and assistance for other programs or offerings to help bring more tourists to the Gorge.

• Continue to develop new, and enhance existing, "48 Hours in The Dalles" trip itineraries by working with regional partners and tourist attractions.

• Continue to update and print new vacation planner (schedule of events) inserts for the Explore The Dalles brochure

• Distribute Explore The Dalles brochures to Convention & Visitor Bureaus, state travel information centers, State Welcome Centers, Sister Chambers, and other tourism information outlets across the state; continuing to provide visitor information packets to individuals or groups attending out-of-town meetings and businesses or organizations who are hosting meetings in The Dalles area

• Continue to maintain and enhance Sunsational Charm Trail to encourage foot traffic from tourists into our local businesses

• Provide tourism perspective to community initiatives to solicit federal funding as a contributing

member of the Community Outreach Team

7. Work Plan Overview Continued

Advertising • Promote The Dalles cycling map on local, regional and national cycling websites

• Place printed and online ads in the Gorge Guide, Oregon’s 1859 Magazine, Travel Oregon Trip Planner, Oregon Events Calendar, Visitor Guide, Northwest Travel, True West, The Columbia River Gorge Guide, AAA (VIA), Veterans View, The Reel News, Salmon Trout & Steelheader, Fishing in the Mt. Hood Region, Northwest Fishing Reports TV & Web, Portland Guide, Community Newspaper, Portland Tribune, and the Gorge Kid's Guide

• Support national and international marketing strategies of Travel Oregon and Travel Portland with co-op advertising (working with local hospitality and tourism businesses to leverage advertising dol-lars) and providing The Dalles brochures as part of their travel trade activities

• Provide Marketing TRT Grants for organizations producing events that generate overnight stays thru applications and Chamber Board approval process

Partnerships Maintain and maximize key partnerships with Travel Oregon / Travel Portland / Oregon Tour &

Travel Alliance / Columbia Gorge Arts & Culture Alliance / Oregon Festivals & Events Association / Oregon Travel Information Council / Mt. Hood-Columbia Gorge Regional Destination Marketing

Organizations(RDMO) / Oregon Destination Marketing Organizations (ODMO) / Columbia Gorge Tourism Alliance (CGTA) / Oregon Film & Video / Wasco County / Columbia Gorge Discovery Center & Museum / The Dalles Dam/U.S. Army Corps of Engineers / Port of The Dalles / Northern Wasco County Parks & Recreation District / Wasco County Historic Landmarks / Oregon State Chamber of Commerce / Columbia River Gorge Chambers of Commerce / The Dalles Main Street Program / Eastern Oregon Visitors Association / Northwest Regional Chambers (continually looking for new opportunities and partnerships)

Evaluation Evaluation will be provided by Chamber Board review (includes City Manager), reports to the City,

and monthly financial reports from the City to the Chamber

8. Goals & Objectives

Visitor Services

Objective...

To capture more visitors coming to Oregon to come to the Gorge.

Task...

Develop and enhance a 48 hour itinerary in The Dalles for Groups and Website Visitors

Measurable Outcome...

Track information of visitors to include state of origin, reason for their visit, and how they heard of

The Dalles

8. Goals & Objectives Continued

Community Marketing

Objective...

Increase web traffic and exposure that encourages visitors to come to our community. Gain data that

will allow us to target the interested digital visitors with specific advertising and markets.

Task...

Enhance and add suggested itineraries for cycling, hiking, birding, and recreation pages with photos,

videos, and links to our area partners. Add Google analytics to each aspect along with an offline

tracking system.

Measurable Outcome...

Track and report activity per page and link on our outdoor recreation web pages for response and

interaction from guests. Gathering data that includes location of web visitor, ages, and gender.

Advertising

Objective...

Increased Visitor spending combined with longer stays in The Dalles.

Task...

Supply local hotels with Welcome Packets for their guests with groups and/or attending conference

events. Also supply hotels with a hospitality Notebook with updated information (every May) with the

annual events and brochures for attractions, restaurants, charm trail, and shopping.

Measurable Outcome...

Track and report the number of packets given at each location or for each conference. Track number

of visitors to attractions and Visitor Center by reporting visitor counts from each of the attractions

along with the count from the Visitor Center.

Partnerships

Objective...

Increased collaboration with tourism partners (i.e. Hood-Gorge regional RDMO, CGTA, Travel Oregon, Travel

Portland, etc..)

Task...

Participate as an exhibitor in travel trade shows, venues, and exhibits. Communicate with partners about

options for tours, retail, history, food, and beverages to help create more interest in our community.

Measurable Outcome...

Track and report number of brochure packets distributed at each event or venue.

% Change % Change % Change

Month 2016 2015 2014 2013 From 2015 2016 2015 2014 2013 From 2015 2016 2015 2014 2013 From 2015

January 47.20 38.60 34.7 32.8 22.40 64.10 62.40 60.5 58.4 2.80 54.00 54.20 52.2 51.0 -0.03

February 55.00 52.10 49.9 44.7 5.40 71.60 71.00 68.3 65.7 1.00 61.70 62.10 60.3 58.4 -0.08

March 59.00 56.30 58.3 47.7 5.00 74.70 73.70 70.8 68.4 1.30 66.40 66.70 65.3 63.5 -0.04

April 65.10 62.00 60.5 53.4 5.00 74.40 73.10 71.5 69.0 1.80 68.10 66.70 65.7 63.6 2.20

May 66.50 60.90 69.1 65.2 9.30 73.90 73.80 72.2 69.8 0.02 67.00 67.30 67.0 63.8 -0.05

June 86.10 80.10 72.1 71.2 7.50 80.60 80.20 78.0 77.0 0.05 73.10 72.90 71.7 69.7 0.03

July 85.70 85.30 83.3 78.8 0.50 83.10 82.80 82.0 80.4 0.40 74.40 75.10 73.6 70.9 -1.00

August 80.80 83.50 82.2 77.4 -3.20 81.10 81.10 82.2 80.5 0.00 70.20 70.50 71.6 69.0 -0.40

September 77.40 79.20 78.8 68.6 -2.20 77.90 76.20 73.9 72.1 2.10 68.80 67.70 65.7 63.2 1.60

October 61.10 62.00 72.9 61.7 -1.40 75.10 75.40 73.4 70.4 -0.30 68.60 68.80 68.0 64.6 -0.30

November 50.90 47.90 54.9 43.4 6.40 67.90 66.30 65.4 63.4 2.30 60.70 59.30 58.7 57.3 2.50

December 42.80 41.80 41.3 34 2.20 62.20 61.80 60.3 57.7 0.70 52.90 53.00 52.6 50.2 -0.10

Lodging Performance Statistics for Wasco County / Pacific NW / United States

Wasco County / Percentage of Occupancy Pacific NW / Percentage of Occupancy United States / Percentage of Occupancy

2013 - 2016

Tourism Lobby Statistics 2016 / 2017

2016 July 530 274 389 5 430 907 142 1216 $85.31

August 713 448 502 14 747 1006 202 30 $88.37

September 444 300 434 4 1280 701 789 940 $170.62

October 257 253 446 1 550 912 167 448 $5.24

November 194 184 447 2 280 422 122 140 $3.09

December 350 208 338 4 120 0 649 20 $7.96

2488 1667 2556 30 3407 3948 2071 2794 $360.59

2017 January 210 266 249 0 600 0 108 84 $21.29

February 208 242 260 4 2128 0 134 2020 $42.56

March 268 419 280 6 500 0 150 30 $6.41

April

May

June

686 927 789 10 3228 0 392 2134 $70.26

Totals 3174 2594 3345 40 6635 3948 2463 4928 $430.85

2012/2013 5232 5594 2733 63 990 0 2384 0 $1,866.23

2013/2014 5632 6186 3807 40 2879 1916 1831 25 $838.30

2014/2015 5527 5682 4960 59 3417 4712 956 959 $835.38

2015/2016 4837 4500 4722 62 7761 5713 1550 3296 $679.38

Requests Mailed Groups Postage (tourism)Walk-ins Phone Email Relocation Pkts Explore TD Cruise Boat Pkts

Month Sessions Users Page Views New Visitor % Returning %

July 8,729 6,805 32,668 69.6 30.4

August 11,875 9,048 45,371 67.5 32.5

September 5,254 3,952 22,402 64.5 35.5

October 5,304 4,090 23,452 65.7 34.3

November 6,367 4,727 32,738 63.3 36.7

December 4,204 3,353 18,009 68.6 31.4 Top Ages %

January 3,864 3,071 15,909 69.3 30.7 55-64+ 17.66 Female 62

February 4,365 3,372 17,708 68.2 31.8 25-34 21.45 Male 38

March 7,486 5,679 43,522 68.7 31.3 35-44 21.32

April 45-54 18.31

May 65+ 10.13

June 18-24 11.14

Total thru 3.31.17 57,448 44,097 251,779

Seattle 6.24

Gender %

*Not Set By Google

The Dalles 25.92

Hood River 9.92

Portland 10.44

TheDallesChamber.com / VisitTheDalles.comWebsite Statistics

July 2016 - March 2017

Top Cities % for Cities

The Dalles Chamber Website, Pageviews

July 1, 2016 - April 14, 2017 vs July 1, 2015 - April 14, 2016

The Dalles Chamber Website, Sessions

July 1, 2016 - April 14, 2017 vs July 1, 2015 - April 14, 2016

The Dalles Chamber Website, Users

July 1, 2016 - April 14, 2017 vs July 1, 2015 - April 14, 2016

This is a sample of the ads that we are using to market The Dalles and our surrounding area

2016 / 2017