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Home My WebLink About10142019 City Council Laydown - Chamber Marketing Plan ( (Q (Lk Ltlillon (c.)AGAAA-4-0 - ,`• >i `4, ,y t• t e� 4 a • ,r�..1e t l• . " -� 4 .. • - k ', • At - s • �' •,aa.. r,5.rr may._fir;,. ,-��.,1 . Marketing Plan for Seward Marketing and Management Services for 2020-2024 10.04.2019 Seward Chamber of Commerce 2001 Seward Highway Seward, AK 99664 Executive Summary ;, It is our pleasure to present this plan to continue providing community promotion services on behalf of the people of Seward in the areas of both visitor services and local year-round economic development. Our community enjoys a vibrant visitor industry in the summer season and an ever- growing marine support service industry in the winter. Through our efforts promoting the Seward Marine Industrial Center, The Blue Pipeline Incubator and Alternative Energy, we are seeing progress and sustainability. Our plan for 2020-2024 includes destination management services, in addition to the destination marketing, visitor services and economic development historically included in our scope of work. Our team is lean yet highly effective, and has a well-earned reputation as one of the strongest chambers in the state. We collaborate with Alaskans specializing in visitation promotion, alternative energy programs and the Blue Economy—that allows us to build nimble project teams and deliver optimum value. Working closely with groups like the Port & Commerce Advisory Board, we facilitate productive working relationships between local government, private industry and local residents to increase year-round jobs and economic health for Seward. We are excited about Seward's bright future and look forward to continuing our work in service to the community of Seward. Our Approach Historically, the Chamber's marketing effort has focused on three key areas: • Generating visitor demand through effective destination marketing • Managing the Visitor Information Center year-round • Administering select economic development projects Like many other destination organizations, the Seward Chamber is seeking to expand the scope of our work to include a more intentional focus on destination stewardship. The goal is to curate more meaningful visitor experiences, encourage sustainable visitor growth, and elevate the quality of life for our entire community. In order to do that, we, as a community, must do a better job of accounting for the real impacts of tourism on our local resources, including the long-term health of our infrastructure and incredible natural and cultural assets. We recommend focusing on the following service areas and specific activities during the next marketing plan period (2020-2024). Destination Marketing We estimate spending 40-45 percent of our marketing budget on destination marketing (yearly average over 2020-2024). Selected activities and deliverables: • Content development c Continue to curate and develop compelling content for Visit Seward's owned media channels, including original blog posts, photography, and videos • Owned media c Launch an all-new Seward.com in 2020 c Continue to develop and distribute the Seward Destination Guide • Social media c Continue to administer Visit Seward's social media channels and stay on top of best practices in this rapidly-evolving field • Earned media c Continue to prioritize earned media opportunities, including: developing relationships with travel writers, pitching story ideas to publications that are aligned with our target audiences, and Identifying high-value partnerships with influencers • Paid media Continue making strategic decisions about paid media, including: print, radio, and TV opportunities • Travel trade Conduct outreach to travel industry stakeholders who are most likely to refer high-value visitors to Seward and provide them with the resources they need • Meeting sales c Working with local industry partners, develop materials to generate demand for Seward as an ideal location for small to medium-sized groups, meetings, and events Diversification of Jobs and Local Entrepreneurial Opportunities We estimate spending 25-30 percent of the annual marketing budget on economic development projects that directly support community promotion in industries other than tourism (yearly average over 2020-2024). Selected activities and deliverables: • Begin developing a three-year strategic job creation and diversified plan in 2020 • Continue to support the development of Seward's ocean-based economy through funding the Blue Pipeline Incubator at $25,000 per year through 2021 • Consider additional special projects for 2022 and beyond in partnership with PACAB and City administration • Facilitate and organize economic development events like Alaska Start-Up Week, Small Business Saturday, and attending industry shows like Pacific Marine Expo • Partner with PACAB for a late fall Alternative Energy Fair • Continue to collaborate with our partners - The Alaska Railroad, AVTEC, Sustainable Seward, the Alaska Chamber, and the City of Seward on projects as yet unidentified PE 3 Visitor services: elevating our visitor experience We estimate spending 20-25 percent of Visit Seward's annual budget on visitor services (yearly average over 2020-2024). Selected activities and deliverables: • Continue administering the Visitor Information Center (serves approx. 17,000 visitors per year), including: o Year-round staffing o Building and grounds maintenance o Utilities & IT support Destination management: planning for strategic growth in our visitor industry and working towards integrated sustainability We estimate spending 10-15 percent of Visit Seward's annual budget on destination management (yearly average over 2020-2024). Selected activities and deliverables: • Facilitate the development a long-range sustainable tourism plan by 2024 o Conduct extensive public outreach and stakeholder engagement meetings to identify pinch points related to our tourism industry o Identify and evaluate best practices from other relevant destinations A tentative budget will be submitted to City Administration for the following 4-year marketing plan. Scott Meszaros, City Manager Date Carole Tallman, President SCOC Date Marketing& Bed Tax Funds Seward Chamber of Commerce, CVB Promotion j 2020 L —_ 50%2018 bed tax $278,032.00 Seward Marketing Plan Administration $60,000.00 Oversight& Implementation by Chamber Staff Destination Marketing Content Development - For all media outlets &collateral 40- 45°%° Owned Media- Seward.com, Destination Guide $87,213-$98,114 Social Media-Visit Seward FB, Instagram Earned Media-travel writers, story ideas, partnerships _ Paid Media- Print, Radio, (TV?) Meeting Sales- Promote Seward to small - medium events $96,343.00 Approximately Diversification of Jobs Blue Pipeline Incubator & Local Entrepreneurial - Alternative Energy Fair- Late Fall Opportunities 25-30°%0 _ Alaska Start-Up Week, Small Busines Saturday $54,508-$65,410 Pacific Marine Expo Work with Industry Partners Develop job creation &diversification plan $54,508.00 Approximately Visitor Center Operations Year-round Staffing 20 - 25% Building & Grounds Maintenance $43,606- $54,508 Utilities& IT Support $45,000.00 Approximately Destination Management - Conduct public outreach & stakeholder engagment mtgs 10- 15% II Identify and evaluate best practices $21,803-$32,705 ! :Ultimately developing a long range sustainable plan for $22,181.00 Approximately $278,032.00 [_Total Seward Marketing Plan 2020 411.6. sad ALASKA