The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink AboutTDC 062018 AgendaPlease note – Meetings are recorded. Anyone with a disability requiring accommodation to attend this meeting should contact the St. Lucie Tourism Office at (772) 462-1472 or TDD (772) 462-1428 at least forty-eight (48) hours prior to the meeting. ST. LUCIE COUNTY TOURIST DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL Wednesday, June 13, 2018 at 12:30pm 3rd Floor Conference Room St. Lucie County Administration Building 2300 Virginia Avenue Fort Pierce, FL 34982 1. Call to Order ......................................................................................................................Chris Dzadovsky 2. Roll Call .............................................................................................................................. Tayler Hardison 3. Self-Introductions ..............................................................................................................Chris Dzadovsky 4. Approval of Minutes from April 11, 2018 & May 9, 2018 ...............................................Chris Dzadovsky 5. Public Comment… ............................................................................................. ……… Chris Dzadovsky 6. Financial & Web Report .................................................................... Charlotte Bireley & Tayler Hardison a. April 2018 Revenue and P & L Report b. April 2018 Monthly Expenses vs. Revenue Comp Report c. March Website Activity Report d. March Social Media Activity Report 7. History of Tourism Capital Funding Projects… ................................................. ……… Charlotte Bireley 8. Zora Neale Hurston Dust Tracks Heritage Trail… ..................... ……… Caleta Scott, City of Fort Pierce 9. FY 2019 Treasure Coast Sports Commission Contract Modifications… ........... ……… Charlotte Bireley 10. FY 2019 Proposed Budget… .............................................................................. ……… Charlotte Bireley 11. Other Business ...................................................................................................................Chris Dzadovsky 12. Adjournment ......................................................................................................................Chris Dzadovsky ST. LUCIE COUNTY TOURIST DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL MEETING Wednesday, April 11, 2018 ◊ 12:30 P.M. MINUTES Members present: Commissioner Chris Dzadovsky, St. Lucie County Commissioner Rufus Alexander, City of Fort Pierce Michelle MacNichol, Perfect Drive Vacation Rentals Karen Marrone, Hutchinson Island Plaza Hotel & Suites Terissa Aronson, St. Lucie County Chamber of Commerce Members absent: John Wilkes, The Sunrise Theater Mayor Oravec, City of Port St. Lucie Buzz Smith, The Beachfront Inn Paul Taglieri, St. Lucie Mets Staff present: Katherine Barbieri, St. Lucie County Attorney Tayler Hardison, St. Lucie County Tourism Wren Underwood, St. Lucie County ERD Amanda Thompson, St. Lucie County ERD Also present: Ryan Strickland, Treasure Coast Sports Commission Rick Hatcher, Treasure Coast Sports Commission Noreen Kruse, Hutchinson Island Plaza Hotel & Suites Laura O Biren, Port St. Lucie Civic Center Marshall Adams, AE Backus Museum 1. CALL TO ORDER: Commissioner Chris Dzadovsky called the meeting to order at 12:34 PM. 2. ROLL CALL: Tayler Hardison called roll. 3. GUESTS INTRODUCED THEMSELVES: Guests introduced themselves. 4. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Tourist Development Council Meeting ◊ April 11, 2018 Page 2 of 3 The minutes from December 13, 2017 and March 14, 2018 were approved. 5. PUBLIC COMMENT: No public comment. 6. Financial & Web Report: Tayler Hardison reported that Tourism revenues were $540,500 for the month of February 2018, which was an 11.9% increase over revenues from February of 2017. She reported that Tourism revenues were up 13.3% year to date (October-February). She noted that the Promotional Advertising account will be adjusted as invoices arrive at different times for upcoming summer promotions. Commissioner Dzadovsky noted that on the Revenues vs. Expenses report, there will be Carry Forward budget discussion to come at a future meeting. Web Report: Tayler Hardison went over the web report for the month of March 2018. She noted that there were no paid campaigns directed to the site in the month of March. She highlighted the increase in web visits and time on site. She showed that 60% of web users from March were from Florida. She also explained that 47.6% users in the month visited the site via organically searching for it. Social Update: Tayler Hardison went over the social media update for the month of March 2018. She reminded the TDC that since no paid social media campaigns were performed this month, there was a direct change in the data reflected on Facebook in terms of reach and engagement. She explained that the Video Views count is a reflection of less posts that include video during the month. Tayler highlighted the dramatic increase in followers on Instagram for March and attributed this to more active posting, CrowdRiff and Insta-stories. Tayler announced that over the summer is when the majority of paid social campaigns will take place for the year. 7. Tourism Activity Update Treasure Coast Sports Commission Rick Hatcher reported on the end of Vinnyball; with record breaking funds collected this year and that they will mostly go back to Vinny. He also noted that the New York Mets Spring Training games’ attendance exceeded those of last year-with one less game. Michelle MacNichol inquired if the St. Lucie Golf Trail is still being maintained. Ryan Strickland said that yes, part of it will still remain a golf course under the new ownership. Ecotourism Update Tourist Development Council Meeting ◊ April 11, 2018 Page 3 of 3 Wren Underwood went over the Earth Day preparations for the event that took place on April 21st. She explained that she is currently working on putting together a St. Lucie Nature Guide. 10. Other Business • Tayler Hardison mentioned that the Tourism Office recently hosted 2 golf media travel writers in St. Lucie County. They focused mainly on our great golf assets in the area. Tayler also talked about hosting the Canadian writer, Marie Poupart, who was hosted in St. Lucie in February for a variety of activities from Horseback riding and hiking with Wren on our top preserves. Her work will be published in the Montreal Newspaper and will be shared with the group when posted. • Tayler Hardison shared that the Tourism office is currently working on fun interactive booth for the 3 upcoming family day games in New York this summer. • Tayler Hardison encouraged the hoteliers in the room to participate in the summer “Friends & Family” campaign. • Commissioner Dzadovsky presented the case for support from the TDC via funding for the repairs on 10A Buoy. Teresa Aronson suggested reviewing the impact the fishing buoy has on Tourism at a later meeting. • Teresa Aronson updated the group on the upcoming Treasure Coast Tourism Showcase that will take place on Sunday, May 20th. • Laura O’Brien announced that there may be an open opportunity for new hotel development at the Civic Center and that it will be a perfect location for conventions and large meetings. 11. Adjournment The meeting adjourned at 1:15PM. ST. LUCIE COUNTY TOURIST DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL MEETING Wednesday, May 9, 2018 ◊ 12:30 P.M. MINUTES Members present: Commissioner Chris Dzadovsky, St. Lucie County Mayor Oravec, City of Port St. Lucie Karen Marrone, Hutchinson Island Plaza Hotel & Suites Buzz Smith, The Beachfront Inn Members absent: Paul Taglieri, St. Lucie Mets Terissa Aronson, St. Lucie County Chamber of Commerce Commissioner Rufus Alexander, City of Fort Pierce Michelle MacNichol, Perfect Drive Vacation Rentals Staff present: Katherine Barbieri, St. Lucie County Attorney Tayler Hardison, St. Lucie County Tourism Allison MacDonald, St. Lucie County Tourism Amanda Thompson, St. Lucie County ERD Also present: Ryan Strickland, Treasure Coast Sports Commission Rick Hatcher, Treasure Coast Sports Commission Jill Hanson, Residence Inn Laura O Brien, Port St. Lucie Civic Center Shyanne Helms, City of Fort Pierce Joe Sweat, City of Fort Pierce 1. CALL TO ORDER: Commissioner Chris Dzadovsky called the meeting to order at 12:43 PM. 2. ROLL CALL: Tayler Hardison called roll. 3. GUESTS INTRODUCED THEMSELVES: Guests introduced themselves. Commissioner Dzadovsky announced the newest member to the Tourism Team, Allison Macdonald now serving as the Marketing & Public Relations Coordinator. Allison gave a brief introduction of herself & work background. Tourist Development Council Meeting ◊ May 9, 2018 Page 2 of 3 4. APPROVAL OF MINUTES The minutes from April 11th, 2018 were not approved because there was not a quorum. 5. PUBLIC COMMENT: No public comment. 6. Financial & Web Report: Charlotte Bireley reported that Tourism revenues were $628,000 for the month of March 2018, which was an 11% increase over revenues from March of 2017. She reported that Tourism revenues were up 12.7% year to date (October-March). She noted that the Salaries/Benefits account was higher than budgeted because there were three payrolls for the month. Charlotte noted on the year to date report that there is a 22% variance, which is a good trend. Buzz Smyth asked what Tourism Office attributes the higher bed tax in the month of March year over year to. Charlotte & Karen Marrone explained that the hotels are continually raising nightly rates during the winter season, and March is when the season peaks with tourists. Web Report: Tayler Hardison went over the web report for the month of April 2018. She noted that there were no paid campaigns directed to the site during the month. She highlighted the continued increase in web visits and time on site. She showed that 60% of web users from April were from Florida. She also explained that approximately 80% of the visits to the site were from users who had never visited before. Social Update: Tayler Hardison went over the social media update for the month of April 2018. She reminded the TDC that since no paid social media campaigns were performed this month, there was a direct change in the data reflected on Facebook in terms of reach and engagement. Tayler announced that over the summer is when the majority of the paid social campaigns will take place for the year. 7. Friends & Family Campaign Charlotte updated the TDC on the status of the Share Your St. Lucie (Friends & Family) campaign launching June 1st. She went over the objectives & strategies set in place to make this campaign a success. She then showed the group the many different ad designs created to be used for social media, flyers, rack card and the billboard. Buzz Smyth & Mayor Oravec made comments about making the “Share” and “Invite” call-to- action words stand out more to make the message clearer. Tourist Development Council Meeting ◊ May 9, 2018 Page 3 of 3 8. Tourism Activity Update Treasure Coast Sports Commission Rick Hatcher went over the Economic Impact Report for Quarter 1 and 2 of fiscal year 2017-2018. In quarter 1, Rick highlighted the total number of room nights drawn from the events was approximately 1800. Rick shared that many “crossover events” (events taking place in a neighboring county) helped us gain additional room nights. In quarter 2, Rick noted that Vinnyball played a huge role in bringing over 8000 room nights to the county over the course of two months. He then went over the upcoming events for quarter 3 and 4 on the Treasure Coast. 9. Other Business Buzz Smyth made an announcement about the upcoming events taking place at Causeway Cove including the Fishing Frenzy and the 4th of July Blowout. Charlotte Bireley showed the group the Tourism Showcase video that will be used as a paid promotion on social media and reminded the group about the event taking place on May 20th at the Port St. Lucie Civic Center. Commissioner Dzadovsky announced that John Wilkes will no longer be serving on the council as his last day at the Sunrise Theater was Monday, June 7th. 10. Adjournment The meeting adjourned at 1:47 PM. TDC April 2018 Variance P & L Report Actual Budget Budget Bed Tax Revenue 64,579.02 $58,050 11% Carry Forward 37,486$ 37,486$ 0% Interest 42$ 42$ 0% Total Revenue 102,107$ 95,578$ 7% Direct Expenses Salaries/Benefits 16,303$ 17,395$ -6% Other Contract Services 2,000$ 5,000$ -60% Software Support 149$ 2,500$ -94% Travel 1,527$ 708$ 116% Communications 104$ 150$ -31% Postage 518$ 750$ -31% Printing 1,477$ 1,458$ 1% Promotional Items 1,698$ 333$ 410% Promotional Entertainment 4,819$ 1,308$ 269% Office Supplies 67$ 125$ -46% Dues 15$ 333$ -95% Aid 39,500$ 39,500$ 0% G & A 5,131$ 5,131$ 0% Materials Center 281$ 83$ 237% Promotional Advertising 4,276$ 18,750$ -77% Training & Seminars -$ 167$ -100% Equipment -$ -$ 0% Tax Collector 1,218$ 1,218$ 0% Total Direct Expenses 79,084$ 94,909$ -17% Net Income 23,023$ 23% TDC Year to Date 17/18 YTD as of 04/2018 Annual Variance P & L Report Actuals Budget Budget Bed Tax Revenue $567,968 $645,000 -12% Carry Forward 262,402$ $449,830 -42% Interest 294$ $500 -41% Total Revenue $830,664 $1,095,330 -24% Direct Expenses Personnel 121,517$ $208,742 -42% Contract Services 39,441$ $60,000 -34% Software Support 7,297$ $30,000 -76% Travel 6,181$ $8,500 -27% Communications 386$ $1,800 -79% Postage 8,795$ $9,000 -2% Printing 29,433$ $17,500 68% Materials Center 438$ $1,000 -56% Promotional Items 2,563$ $4,000 -36% Promotional Entertainment 6,920$ $17,000 -59% Promotional Advertising 100,642$ $225,000 -55% Office Supplies 1,322$ $1,500 -12% Dues & Memberships 3,390$ $4,000 -15% Aid (TCSC)167,000$ $215,000 -22% Training & Seminars 285$ $2,000 -86% Equipment -$ $0 0% G & A 38,061$ $61,868 -38% Tax Collector 8,526$ $14,616 -42% Total Direct Expenses 542,197$ $881,526 -38% Net income 288,467$ 35% REVENUE VS. EXPENSE COMPARISON REPORT 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 A B C D E F G H I J K L FY 2015 FY 2016 FY 2017 FY 2018 Revenue/Expenses Revenue/Expenses Revenue/Expenses Revenue/Expenses Oct 36,505/26,241 Oct 38,190/68,910 Oct $49,813/$89,284 Oct $56,433/$97,941 Nov 40,217/69,602 Nov 45,677/35,981 Nov $48,793/$34,578 Nov $56,787/$52,810 Dec 50,417/38,845 Dec 60,421/37,675 Dec $53,209/$63,456 Dec $65,393.05/$83,381 Jan 74,046/104,150 Jan 84,832/66,124 Jan $79,044/$87,085 Jan $91,095/$84,624 Feb 97,234/43,806 Feb 96,839/91,967 Feb $96,610/$78,371 Feb $108,100/$75,697 Mar 109,221/51,665 Mar 115,858/58,382 Mar $115,320/$65,749 Mar $125581/$65,506 Apr 59,760/47,839 Apr 57,049/56,421 Apr $75,166/$94,748 Apr $64,579.02/$79,084 May 45,070/44,247 May 48,445/39,469 May $56,693/ $67,053 May Jun 42,301/45,680 Jun 49,530/52,614 Jun $50,181/$75,735 Jun Jul 46,827/40,112 Jul 53,175/73,314 Jul $55,335/$56,966 Jul Aug 44,255/25,105 Aug 46,295/35,178 Aug $48,667/$50,119 Aug Sep 34,153/46,309 Sep 41,906.41/78,244 Sep $55,749/$70,288 Sep TOTAL 680,005/583,614 TOTAL 738,211/706,209 TOTAL $784,680/$833,563 TOTAL $564,968.07/$539,043 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Total Visits 13,532 12,169 12,262 9,722 10,803 9,011 13,935 11,949 29,025 10,765 9,538 10,217 152,928 Bounce Rate 57%57%51%51%55%57%70%73%70%64%47%46%61% Average Time 1:45%1:43%2:00 1:28 1:37 1:36 1:10 1:07 1:12 1:45 3:25 3:08 1:32 New Visits 61%62%66%72%70%69%73%73%62%72%63%64%67% Social Sessions 292 276 264 879 492 302 659 2,740 4,263 2,450 1,500 1,719 15836 Mobile Usage 32%34%37%41%40%39%32%47%51%55%48%48%42% Jan Feb Mar Apr May Total Visits 11,974 12,256 12,882 14,038 18,994 70,144 Bounce Rate 31%24%20%17%18%22% Average Time 2:51 3:13 3:20 5:12 5:12 3:57 New Visits 85%81%80%80%81%81% Social Sessions 1819 478 360 332 336 3325 Mobile Usage 56%56%52%48%55%53% Acquisition-May 2018 Top 5 States 1. Florida 61% 2. New York 4% 3. Georgia 4% 4.New Jersey 2% 5.Michigan 2% Organic Search: Users who searched for something that led them to the site Direct: Users who typed in the URL or had a bookedmarked page Referral: Users who clicked on a link to the site via source site Social: A user who visited our website via a social platform Other: Paid marketing that directed users to the website (i.e. SEM) May 2018 Web Report 2017 2018 Social Media Activity May 2018 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O May June July Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Totals Facebook New Likes 97 118 72 163 138 131 70 85 391 188 153 92 77 17,378 Total Reach 18,867 22,708 33,218 122,154 27,027 259649 99837 228233 81849 42867 55848 26091 21098 1,039,446 Post Engagement 4,549 6,512 4,063 11,562 3,697 7,542 3,772 5,156 12,342 5,097 2,792 2,696 2,143 71,923 Video Views 747 5,032 16,734 35,269 11,105 33,278 22,387 59,481 34,580 12,301 2,002 2,318 1,293 236,527 Instagram Engagement 1,940 2,723 1,952 1,970 3,039 1,250 1,310 2,615 1,990 1,499 1,581 1,478 1,355 24702 New Followers 166 179 55 205 95 111 56 80 159 120 400 36 37 2106 Twitter Mentions 72 112 152 136 122 110 104 64 58 73 50 76 44 1173 New Followers 36 42 75 38 66 25 55 98 25 40 34 31 34 1,793 Impressions 47,600 55,600 47,800 121,000 44,800 58,800 39,000 73,000 50,700 35,500 56,300 138,000 66,300 834,400 Profile Visits 600 1,497 1,163 1,744 1,161 1,109 1,219 1,901 1,322 824 1,268 1,314 1,434 16,556 Reach/Impressions Number of how many people viewed our posts Enagagement Likes/favorites, comments and/or shares New Follower A new user that can see all Visit St. Lucie posts on their feed Tweet A status posted on Twitter via text, photo or video in 140 characters Mention Someone tagged @VisitStLucie in their own post Page Likes Someone on Facebook has liked the Visit St. Lucie page 2018