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Ft. Pierce • Port St. Lucie
• Hutchinson island
ST. LUCIE COUNTY
TOURIST DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL
Wednesday, June 8, 2016
St. Lucie County Administration Building
2300 Virginia Avenue, Fort Pierce
3rd Floor Conference Room
12:30pm
PLEASE NOTE LOCATION & TIME OF MEETING
1. Call to Order....................................................................................................... Commissioner Dzadovsky
2. Roll Call.............................................................................................................................. Tayler Hardison
3. Self-Introductions............................................................................................... Commissioner Dzadovsky
4. Approval of Minutes from Mayl 1, 2016............................................................ Commissioner Dzadovsky
5. Public Comment.......................................................................................... Commissioner Dzadovsky
6. Financial & Web Report ....................................................................................................Charlotte Bireley
a. April 2016 Revenue and P & L Report
b. April 2016 Monthly Expenses vs. Revenue Comp Report
c. May 2016 Website Activity Report
d. May Social Media Activity Report — Tayler Hardison
7. 2017 Proposed Budget.......................................................................................................Charlotte Bireley
8. Other Business.................................................................................................... Commissioner Dzadovsky
9. Adjournment....................................................................................................... Commissioner Dzadovsky
VISION STATEMENT
By 2017, the St. Lucie County Tourist Development Council will provide a greater impact in promoting
St. Lucie as a top Florida destination for Eco/Adventure/Agri Tourism; amateur/professional sports; and
other known assets, allowing for increased overnight stays.
Please 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 MEETING
Wednesday, May 11, 2016 0 12:30 P.M.
MINUTES
Members present: Commissioner Chris Dzadovsky
Vice -Mayor Linda Bartz, City of Port St. Lucie
Marilyn Minix, Road Runner Travel Resort
Terissa Aronson, St. Lucie County Chamber of Commerce
Chris Egan, Vistana's Beach Club — Sheraton PGA
Michelle MacNichol, Perfect Drive Vacation Rentals
Clive Daem, Dockside Inn
Paul Taglieri, St. Lucie Mets
Members absent: Commissioner Rufus Alexander, City of Fort Pierce
Staff present: Katherine Barbieri, St. Lucie County Attorney
Charlotte Bireley, St. Lucie County Tourism
Tayler Hardison, St. Lucie County Tourism
Mark Satterlee, Deputy County Administrator
Also present: Cathy Gibson, Motorized Kayak Adventures
Chris Higgins, Di Michelli's Catering
Jill Hanson, Residence Inn by Marriot
Rick Hatcher, Treasure Coast Sports Commission
1. CALL TO ORDER: Commission Chris Dzadovsky called the meeting to order at
12:35PM.
2. ROLL CALL: Tayler Hardison called roll.
3. GUESTS INTRODUCED THEMSELVES:
Guests introduced themselves.
4. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
The minutes from April 13, 2016 were approved.
5. PUBLIC COMMENT:
No public comments.
6. Financial & Web Report:
Charlotte Bireley stated that we collected $579,292 in overall revenue for March, which
is 6% up from March of last year, which also was a record breaking year. She reported
that year to date we are up 8.3% from last year. On the March P&L our portion of bed
tax revenue was $115,858 so we are well over budget with all expenses in line. She
Tourist Development Council Meeting 0 May 11, 2016
explained that in March, large invoices from Promotional entertainment (from
familiarization tours) and Promotional advertising came in for payment.
Charlotte explained that Year to date tourism is only 20% under the total goal. She went
over the total revenues and expenses for the month and there were no questions.
Charlotte went over the website visits summary. She said that April visits were over
13,000 more than last year's numbers and that page views were up and the bounce rate
was down.
Terissa Aronson asked Charlotte a question about advertising in New York during the
Mets season. Charlotte replied and described the full page in the Mets monthly
"yearbook".
Social Media Activity Update
Tayler Hardison gave the social media activity update. She reported that Facebook likes
have increased to 13,585 with no campaigns set in place for the month. She reported
that Instagram follows had increased to 517 in total which is a significant rise. Twitter
mentions were 24 for March and Visit St. Lucie made a total of 16,000 impressions. -
meaning that 16,000 users saw Visit St. Lucie content. The council requested a table or
key explaining each piece in the report for the next meeting.
7. 2017 Proposed Budget
Charlotte gave a brief breakdown of how the tourist tax is allocated. She then said that
in 2013 the council requested a Reserves Policy to be enacted so that 3-4 months of
the average tourist tax revenue to always be in our reserves. This year, we have an
estimated revenue of $550,000.
She reported that we are not changing our annual tax revenue for 2017 per the budget
department's recommendation. She went over the highlights of what is changing in
the budget including: a decrease in contract services and printing, an increase in
personnel for the new eco-tourism position, and an increase in funding to TCSC. She
also explained how she will be proposing the purchase of dedicated tourism vehicle
for distribution, marketing, press trips and tours. She also proposed an increase in
the promotional entertainment budget for more familiarization tours.
Charlotte explained that the Budget department is saying that the fund balance forward
brings our total budget to 1 million dollars for next year. Charlotte explained that the
budget for the visitor study was higher than what we budgeted the $40,000 cost will
be paid 50% in this year's budget and the remaining $20,000 in next year's budget.
Michelle asked about the balance forward and Charlotte explained that the extra funds
we generated above the budgeted revenue (right now it's an estimate) and that the
Page 2 of 4
Tourist Development Council Meeting 0 May 11, 2016
fund balance forward number may change as OMB finishes their audit and analysis
of spending trends.
Terissa asked about the return on investment for those line items and Charlotte said for
promotional advertising and promotional entertainment she can show from last year
at the next TDC meeting.
Chris Egan recommended that we increase our budget and Teresa and Michelle
agreed. Chris Egan made the motion for Charlotte to ask OMB for an increase to
$600,000 from $550,000. None opposed. Motion passed unanimously.
Commissioner Dzadovsky proposed tabling the 2017 budget until the June TDC
meeting when Charlotte brings the ROI and review of actuals. Chris Egan made a
motion to table 2017's budget for the next TDC meeting. Terissa and Michelle
seconded. None opposed. Motion passed.
8.2017 Fishing Commercial
Charlotte presented the fishing commercial for the upcoming fishing campaign for the
summer, targeting males in central and south Florida. The group proposed making a
minor change in the voiceover.
9. 11t Quarter E-Blast Commercial
Tayler Hardison presented the results for the a -blast sent out in March to the tourism
database. This email consisted of information on St. Lucie County spring festivals,
the New York Spring Training and hotel booking deals. Tayler explained that the
database consisted of over 40,000 emails and of those only 81 % were successfully
delivered. She explained that there were 3,358 unique opens and 5,513 total opens
of the email. Out of the 3,358 unique opens 284 people clicks on a link in the email,
with the "Free Travel Guide" link having the highest number of clicks. She also
highlighted that the most amount of clicks took place at 3:00 pm with the most mount
of opens at 6:OOpm. She concluded with the geographical results in that the USA had
91.6% of the opens with Canada, UK, France, and Australia to follow. Based off the
results she described the next steps they will be taking to ensure better results for the
following a -blast including change of colors, subject line and A/B testing.
10. County Tourism Manager Review
Commissioner Dzadovsky introduced the item to consider a discussion regarding
Charlotte Bireley's current title and salary. Commissioner Dzadovsky asked the
council to recommend changing Ms. Bireley's title from County Tourism Manager to
Chief Tourism Officer to give more credibility to her title when dealing with the public
and other entities that she interacts with regularly. Additionally, Dzadovsky stated that
the TDC was spending 100s if not 1000s of dollars on outside agencies. Since 2010
and under Charlotte's management, most of these services have been handled in-
house creating a savings for the TDC. Ms. Bireley also has the important
Page 3 of 4
Tourist Development Council Meeting 0 May 11, 2016
responsibility for working closely with partners, especially the local municipalities,
keeping City Mayors, councils and commissions informed through formal
presentations and more.
Mark Satterlee explained that Ms. Bireley also serves on the County's economic
development team.
Commissioner Dzadovsky stated that compared to the salaries of the tourism
department heads in Martin County and Indian River County, Ms. Bireley's salary is
much lower and St. Lucie County is a much larger entity to promote.
Terissa Aronson added that since working with Charlotte in the last few years, the
interaction with the Chamber and the County tourism office has increased as well as
the visibility of each.
Paul Taglieri made a motion to increase Ms. Bireley's salary by 9% or to a comparable
rate of the salary of Martin County's tourism manager. Clive Daem seconded. Motion
passed unanimously.
Mark Satterlee stated that he would speak with the County's Office of Budget and
Management department to explore the idea of reducing the TDC's annual funding to
the County's general fund (G&A) to help compensate Ms. Bireley's increase.
Chris Egan added that Ms. Bireley is a pleasure to work with, communicates well and is
well respected in the community.
11. Other Business
Commissioner gave a brief summary of the recent MOU signed with the Mets to explore
the expansion of the stadium and extend the contract with the County for 25 more
years.
Charlotte Bireley announced the upcoming Tourism Showcase on Wednesday, May 25
from 5:30pm-7:30pm at the Havert L. Fenn Center.
12. Adjournment
Meeting adjourned at 1:49 PM.
Page 4 of 4
TDC Apr. 2016
P & L Report
Variance
Actual Budget Budget
Bed Tax Revenue
$
57,049
$
49,500
15%
Carry Forward
$
32,667
$
32,667
0%
Interest
$
42
$
42
0%
Total Revenue
$
89,758
$
82,209
9%
Direct Expenses
Salaries
$
11,137
$
9,161
22%
Benefits
$
5,047
$
3,570
41%
Other Contract Services
$
600
$
5,417
-89%
Software Support
$
-
$
2,333
-100%
Travel
$
464
$
583
-21%
Communications
$
-
$
83
-100%
Postage
$
847
$
1,000
-15%
Printing
$
-
$
2,333
-100%
Promotional Activities
$
-
$
333
-100%
Promotional Entertainment
$
2,378
$
1,250
90%
Office Supplies
$
150
$
83
80%
Dues
$
-
$
333
-100%
Aid
$
24,000
$
24,000
0%
G & A
$
5,156
$
5,156
0%
Materials Center
$
175
$
83
110%
Promotional Advertising
$
5,340
$
16,667
-68%
Tax Collector
$
1,128
$
1,218
-7%
Total Direct Expenses
$
56,421
$
73,605
-23%
Net Income
$
33,337
37%
YTD as of
TDC Year to Date 2016
4/30/2016
Annual
Variance
P & L Report
Actuals
Budget
Budget
Bed Tax Revenue
$
498,866
$
550,000
-9%
Carry Forward
$
228,669
$
392,000
-42%
Interest
$
294
$
500
-41%
Total Revenue
$
727,829
$
942,500
-23%
Direct Expenses
Salaries
$
61,062
$
109,934
-44%
Benefits
$
24,910
$
42,834
-42%
Other Contract Services
$
2,620
$
65,000
-96%
Software Support
$
23,269
$
28,000
-17%
Travel
$
2,367
$
7,000
-66%
Communications
$
201
$
1,000
-80%
Postage
$
7,603
$
12,000
-37%
Printing
$
22,994
$
28,000
-18%
Promotional Activities
$
3,786
$
4,000
-5%
Promotional Entertainment
$
9,291
$
15,000
-38%
Office Supplies
$
374
$
1,000
-63%
Dues
$
2,908
$
4,000
-27%
Aid
$
148,000
$
175,000
-15%
G & A
$
36,092
$
61,868
-42%
Materials Center
$
206
$
1,000
-79%
Promotional Advertising
$
77,240
$
200,000
-61%
Tax Collector
$
8,436
$
14,616
-42%
Total Direct Expenses
$
431,359
$
770,252
-44%
Net income
$
296,470
41%
REVENUE VS. EXPENSE COMPARISON REPORT
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
1
FY 2013 FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016
Revenue/Expenses Revenue/Expenses J Revenue/Expenses Revenue/Expenses
Oct 29,907/64,915 Oct 37,747/59,908 Oct 36,505/26,241 Oct 38,190/68,910
Nov 31,030/21,990 Nov 38,322/33,206 Nov 40,217/69,602 Nov 45,677/35,981
D 38,317/41,879 43,340/35,143 50,417/38,845 60,421/37,675
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
J 53,040/114,083
65, t20/99,342
74,046/104,150 84,832/66,124
10
11
Feb
Mar
63,715/44,793 Feb
78,681/74,028 Mar
92,615/54,995 Feb :;97,234//43,8C6
122,457/58,448 Mar
51,043/22,700 Apr
39,488/17,578 May
96,839/91,967
12
13
109,221/51,665 115,858/58,382
14
15
Apr
47,873/43,389 Apr
59,760/47,839 57,049/56,421
16
17
May
36,763/39,537 May
45,070/44,247
18
19
Jun
36,026/42,975 Jun
40,300/38,109
42,301/45,680
20
21
Jul
37,501/42,929
46,119/90,391
46,827/40,112
22
23
Aug
33,897/17,838
38,691/25,846
44,255/25,105
24
25
Sep 31,214/34,978
26,413/31,450
34,153/46,309
26
TOTAL72 517,694/583,715 TOTAL 602,981/567,117
27
TOTAL 680,005/583,614 TOTAL JE 441,817/359,039
TDC Website Visitor Summary
www.visitstluciefla.com
2014
Oct
Dec
Total
Visits
12,183
14,343
14,114
9,642
8,990
12,628
10,378
8,963
7,578
7,459
7,514
10,570
124,362
Pageviews
33,558
37,766
37,652
24,667
22,694
30,011
26,661
22,454
18,808
17,756
20,954
25,658
318,639
Bounce Rate
54%
56%
56%
56%
57%
60%
58%
59%
59%
60%
61%
61%
58%
Avg Time
2:33
2:01
2:03
2:03
1:58
1:43
2:02
1:57
1:58
1:52
1:53
2:01
2.00
Visits
z
83%
85%
83%
82%
82%
84%
81%
80%
82%
83%
83%
84%
83%
Visits
14,865
15,849
18,593
10,851
10,572
18,151
11,410
11,793
10,472
11,492
10,711
11,821
156,580
Pageviews
36,667
37,505
42,836
25,700
24,525
33,831
27,491
26,869
24,112
26,482
25,124
28,690
359,832
Bounce Rate
59%
61%
64%
63%
63%
73%
59%
60%
57%
57%
57%
56%
61%
Avg Time
1:59
1:48
1:41
1:44
1:46
1:17
1:54
1:50
1:52
1:52
1:59
1:56
1:48
New Visits
83%
84%
86%
84%
83%
85%
73%
70%
65%
62%
65%
65%
75%
Febj
Mar
Apr
Oct
Novj
Dec
Visits
15,433
14,475
15,109
13,008
13,391
71,416
Pageviews
37,689
35,205
36,253
30,731
31,847
171,725
Bounce Rate
55%
55%
57%
56%
55%
56%
Avg Time
1:59
1:57
1:47
1:55
2:08
1:57
New Visits
69%
68%
68%
64%
60%
66%
Social Media Activity
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
1
2
Jan-16
Feb-16
Mar-16
16-Apr
May-16
Jun-16
Jul-16
Aug-16
Sep-16
Oct-16
Nov-16
Dec-16
Totals
3
4
ffFaceboo
5
Page Likes Total
13,147
13,457
13,585
13,706
--
6
Reach
21,575
70,283
42,443
53,155
187,456
7
Engagement
13,370
21,571
12,581
9,916
57,438
8
9
10
Instagram
11
Posts
22
27
15
13
77
12
Engagement
583
1,701
1,937
557
4778
13
New Followers
252
177
88
93
610
14
15
16
Twitter
17
Tweets
43
49
51
44
187
18
Mentions
31
20
24
38
113
19
New Followers
172
182
169
63
541
20
Impressions
6,583
22,800
16,000
29,000
74,383
21
Profile Visits
1,145
2,170
1,664
1,376
6,355
22
23
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
24
25
26
27
28
29