Bureau welcomes the rule of Laws - Redwoods.info

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PRSRT STD US POSTAGE PAID EUREKA, CA PERMIT NO. 114

Redwood Coast NEWS AND INFORMATION FOR MEMBERS OF THE HUMBOLDT COUNTY CONVENTION AND VISITORS BUREAU

HUMBOLDT COUNTY C O N V E N T I O N & V I S I TO R S B U R E A U 322 FIRST STREET EUREKA, CA 95501 W W W. R E D W O O D S . I N F O

Bureau welcomes the rule of Laws

R E T U R N S E RV I C E R E Q U E S T E D

The 2015 election results are in and Brad Laws of the Red Lion is the new Bureau president.

Brad Laws

shares and such, and 30,000 page views on our site. Not bad for a micro-campaign costing $6,000. Our popular drive-thru tree page enjoyed the most traffic. Close behind was our Ten

Must See Redwood Trees page, which features a certain Hollywood hunk's Pitt's stop along the Avenue of the Giants and Luke Skywalker's Endor moon heroics at Grizzly Creek Redwoods State Park. That page reached 100,000 on Facebook alone. Hungry theropods stampeding through Jurassic Park 2 help show off Fern Canyon on a third popular content marketing page. Other big bangs in FY15 included our

Google Ads, which reached 9.6 million and generated 140,000 site clicks. And five travel e-Newsletters that reached 5 million targeted travelers, with open and click rates double or triple industry averages. -- RS

According to Smith Travel Research, the Eureka/Crescent City area last year had an occupancy increase of .7 percent, average daily rate increase of 5 percent, and rev-

Adam Dick, left, and Justin Taylor

enue per available room increase of 5.8

Eureka chocolatiers among new members

new face on the

10-year highs! I congratulate all who

21-member board of directors too, Alegria

ensure our guests have comfortable places

Sita of Gala Events & Weddings.

to stay, good food to eat, and unforgettable

businesses that have joined our tourism

places to play. Since we moved here in

club since the last newsletter: Dick Taylor

June of 2014, my wife, three children and I

Craft Chocolate, Promises Bridal & Formal

Toni Dailey of

have camped, hiked, canoed, driven and

Wear and Oberon Grill in Eureka; View

Holly Yashi,

enjoyed much of the county. We have been

Crest Lodge in Trinidad; Sunshine

who remains on

fed, sheltered, assisted and loved by many

Outfitters, Redwood Curtain Brewing,

the Executive

of you. I offer my gratitude to all.

Crush Restaurant & Wine Bar in Arcata;

Intern a quick study We had a real challenge when our summer intern Megan Kramer arrived. What should we call her? We already had a Megan Kramer Megan in the office. Once resolved, it was smooth sailing. "Kramer," as she diplomatically agreed to be called, deftly tackled many projects from gathering materials for the state fair and posting photos on Instagram to updating Bureau web pages and posting comments on travel stories. Kramer, a Sacramento State University undergraduate back home in Eureka for the school holidays, said the experience was an eye opener. "There were more tourists than I expected here this summer, especially from far away," she said. "And I didn't know how much behind-the-scenes marketing goes on in the travel industry." Kramer performed with agility and grace. We wish her well back at Sac State.

What a great time to be in tourism!

percent. Our bed tax collections reached

meeting in Eureka from outgoing president

Brad Pitt, Jedi knight & dinosaurs have something in common

Our first Brad-cast

There is one

Laws took the reins at the July board

All are doing their part to boost tourism to Humboldt as part of a new content marketing strategy. Distributing custom articles from our site on major news and social media platforms, the Bureau generated 3.5 million impressions in just two months. Featured on sites like CNN.com, E! Online, People.com and CondeNaste.com, the content spurred 42,000 total brand engagements, including likes, comments,

FALL 2015

Committee and chairs the Marketing

adventures I am often reminded of a quote

in Humboldt County. For those who haven’t toured the new

Giants: “He listened to that which in the

recommend it. See their award-winning

redwoods is not sound but rather the

treats made from bean to bar before they

absence of it. And as he listened, he

are shipped all over the world. We can

absorbed a subtle comfort from those huge

vouch that the results are delicious, and

brown trees, so emblematic of immortality;

suggest you treat yourself to the Humboldt

in the thought he grew closer to his Maker,

Treasurer Chris

State University special edition bars with

and presently found the peace which he

Ambrosini of

Los Bagels slug slime.

sought.” I have felt this peace not only

Best Western

among the trees, but as waves crash

Plus Humboldt

against the mussel rocks at Patrick’s Point

Bay Inn, and

and water trickles through Fern Canyon. It

Hospitality

is truly magic.

Other officers for

Daniels of the Victorian Inn & Redwood Suites, Secretary Chris Smith of Abruzzi/Plaza Grill/Moonstone Grill,

Chair Marc Rowley of Coho

ing my tenure. As I learn of your many

Cottages &

accomplishments, it is hard not to be humbled. I see incredible opportunity to

going board member Lane Strope of Times

improve our visitor promotion efforts. With

Printing, who has ably served for many,

More Inside PAGE 2 Executive Director Tony Smithers’ Report Megan all over the map for market share

I look forward to meeting more of you dur-

China Creek Cottages. A big thanks to out-

many years.

the Riverlodge in Fortuna; and J29 Events

Dick Taylor factory in Old Town, we heartily

fiscal year 2016 are Vice President Lowell

Lane Strope

accomplishment that is Humboldt. In my from Peter Kyne’s novel, The Valley of the

Committee.

Alegria Sita

I also must pay homage to nature’s great

Please extend a warm welcome to these

this in mind, I am inclined to repeat, “What a great time to be in tourism!” -- Brad Laws

PAGE 3 Earned publicity value tops $3 million Bureau helps HLA “Follow the Magic” Tourists turn pics into cool & comfy tees PAGE 4 Brad Pitt, Jedi knight and tiny dinosaurs Intern proves to be a quick study

Executive Director’s Report I admit I’m not good at self-promotion. Funny to hear from a marketer, but it is easy to assume that your work speaks for itself. Well, that’s not always the case and I periodically commit to tooting the HCCVB’s horn more. It is important that tourism stakeholders appreciate the work that our staff accomplishes. For example, Media & Marketing Director Richard Stenger earns the county over $2 million every year in media publicity, having built relationships with many in the travel media, and pitching just the right story to just the right journalist. These stories, appearing in the media around the world, are more effective than paid ads. Richard manages a complex web of online advertising and social media. In the last year our Google Adwords reached nearly 10 million users and generated more than a hundred thousand clicks Sixty percent of those site visitors went to our lodging pages. We just completed a trial program of content marketing under Richard’s guidance. Unlike Adwords, which is based on search, content marketing delivers intriguing headlines and story snippets on popular websites, which when clicked lead to full stories on the Bureau site. The metrics are encouraging and we hope, budget permitting, to expand it. Our digital presence includes many social media successes. There are carefully groomed lists of Humboldt County followers on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube and other platforms. New content is created and posted almost daily, reminding Redwood Coast fans why they should visit soon. These are just a few of our proven results. On another occasion I’ll praise our Sales Manager Megan Parfitt, who is spectacularly building our international tourism and group business. And our Office Manager Charlotte Cerny, who manages our many administrative needs, updates the site and impressively interacts with visitors. I hope that you toot our horn too wherever you go. We have many wonderful relationships with local businesses, organizations, agencies and officials. They get it that tourism is a clean, expanding economy in Humboldt County with huge potential, but we have to invest in destination marketing and work as a team to offer the best visitor experience possible.

Megan all over the map earning market share for Humboldt This year the sales department has been building key relationships in the Asian, European and U.S. travel industry. In April,

trade familiarization, or fam, trip will tour Humboldt in September. The Bureau hasn't forgotten its strong

Megan Parfitt went on a sales mission to Los

European markets. Also in September,

Angeles to meet with the Tour Operators

Megan will welcome 13 UK tour operators to

Association of Japan. She showcased what

Humboldt on a fam trip.

the county has to offer Japanese travelers.

No doubt such attractions as the Avenue of

Some operators are developing tours to

the Giants, Old Town Eureka, Redwood

Humboldt and it's important for the HCCVB to

National Park and Humboldt Bay oysters will

help them create a product that will sell.

wow both delegations.

In June, Megan attended the International

Megan recently hosted a fam tour of

Pow Wow, the largest generator of travel to

Humboldt for French tour operators and

the United States. During the three-day

media (see below). France, one of our

Miami conference she met with 38 domestic

largest international markets, typically sends

and international tour operators.

visitors in search of our tall trees.

The Bureau has been moving into the

Bureau helps HLA campaign

The Bureau also hosted representatives

Korean market in partnership with Visit

from the Boston-based travel company

California's Korea office. Recently Megan

TourMappers, which works with international

ensured that translated Humboldt materials

tour operators buying products and services

and a Humboldt redwood backdrop were

within North America. Later this year the

present at Korea's largest travel & trade

company will go to Europe to sell our county

show. And for the first time, a Korean travel

attractions and lodging properties. -- MP

Publicity value tops $3M Victorian Seaport, Lost Coast shine in travel media spotlight Through email blasting, glad handing, tour

Shelter Cove scored big too. The Lost Coast

guiding and local chocolate bribing, Bureau

settlement celebrated its 50th anniversary in

outreach efforts generated more than $3.1

the spring, a milestone coordinated and

million in confirmed media placements during

pitched by the Bureau, which resonated with

fiscal year 2015. Besides the redwoods, the

the travel press.

mainstay of our publicity machine, other

The San Francisco Examiner and Chronicle,

attractions that generated gobs of good ink in

the Weather Channel, NBCBayArea.com,

recent months include Old Town Eureka.

California Weekends Getaway, and the Irish

Fox News, Sunset Magazine, the San

Times were among the outlets that gave

Francisco Chronicle, Desert Sun Magazine,

Shelter Cove nice birthday gifts -- prominent-

and guidebooks and travel e-newsletters

ly placed travel stories. In all, Bureau publici-

from Japan and Korea were enthralled by the

ty efforts helped place favorable Humboldt

historic seaport, especially for its renowned

media with an audience outreach of at least

Carson Mansion and Humboldt Bay oysters.

25 million.

-- RS

Fits to a Tee Want guests to stay another day? Direct them to the 2015 Redwood Coast Map & Unfortunately, some don’t understand that investing in a vibrant, growing tourism economy is the answer, not an obstacle, to many of our economic challenges. The Bureau is currently facing funding reductions and organizational change as we adapt to the evolving playing field of destination marketing. We are also having what looks like a record year for tourism in the county. I am proud of the work accomplished by our Bureau staff, and optimistic about what the future holds. -- Tony Smithers

The Redwood Coast is published by the

Guide or www.Redwoods.info/sweetspots

Humboldt County Convention & Visitors

so they can cash in Humboldt travel pic-

Bureau, a non-profit, member-based group

tures for super cool, comfy free t-shirts,

dedicated to promoting and expanding the

compliments of the Bureau.

Where does the Humboldt County Convention & Visitors Bureau end and the Humboldt Lodging Alliance begin? While the two organizations work together, they are separate corporations with different boards and funding sources. The Bureau performs administrative services for the Lodging Alliance, and provides marketing support with the HLA’s marketing agency, Misfit. With an annual budget of over $1 million, the alliance can run major advertising campaigns on a level the Bureau has never been able to afford—such as the “Follow the Magic” campaign currently in the market. The Bureau, however, is the official destination marketing organization (DMO) for Humboldt County, and as such implements a full-spectrum of marketing programs including online advertising, website, social media, publicity, travel trade sales, direct to consumer sales and visitor services. Our board and staff also provide leadership in destination management, which includes finding ways to improve our tourism product. There is no duplication in service or spending between the HCCVB and the HLA. In fact, we can proudly state that each organization’s expenditures leverage the other’s, and that the combined effort creates a powerful multiplier for the hotels, businesses and local governments investing in destination marketing. For example, the HCCVB is supporting the HLA’s current campaign in a number of ways. Until the HLA’s new website is ready it is the HCCVB’s site, www.Redwoods.info, which receives the traffic generated by the HLA campaign. The Bureau is also the fulfillment arm of the campaign’s print advertising, mailing Redwood Coast Map & Guides to hundreds of inquiries each month. We have also posted dozens of Follow the Magic videos online. Perhaps most importantly, the HCCVB board adopted the new destination branding developed by Misfit for the HLA -- Humboldt, California’s Redwood Coast (see example on tshirt to the left). That decision prevented competing brands in the marketplace, and demonstrated a commitment to partnership between the two organizations. After all, it really is all about heads in beds. -- TS

local tourism industry. To find out more, visit www.Redwoods.info, call 707-443-5097, or

F O U R FA S T FA C T S

send emails to [first name]@redwoods.info.

93 MILLION

1.4 MILLION

2.1 MILLION

60 PERCENT

Total impressions Bureau

Reach of Bureau content,

Visitors to our website

Portion of people clicking on

Richard Stenger, Marketing/Media Dir., x204

media & marketing efforts

including likes, shares,

www.Redwoods.info in

our Google Ads who visit

Megan Parfitt, Sales Manager, x203

generated between July 1,

comments, etc., on

FY15, the first time we’ve

lodging-related pages on our

Charlotte Cerny, Office Manager, x202

2014 and June 30, 2015.

Facebook in FY15.

crossed the 2M threshold.

website.

Tony Smithers, Executive Director, x205