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HomeMy WebLinkAbout5.2b 2022 CVB Annual ReportCottage Grove Convention & Visitors Bureau 2022 Annual Report DISCOVER 2 | Cottage Grove Convention and Visitors Bureau Board of Directors convention & visitors bureau Overview The Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) markets and promotes Cottage Grove as a year-round visitor destination, working in partnership with industries, corporate partners, state partners, city departments and regional destination marketing organizations. The CVB serves as the primary marketing organization responsible for the development and implementation of promotional programs to ensure positive economic impact in Cottage Grove through steady growth of the travel industry. Mission The CVB’s mission is to promote Cottage Grove as a premier destination for leisure travelers, weddings, and outdoor enthusiasts, a recognized and successful host city for meetings and conventions, and a prominent and respected venue for sporting events. Staff Steve Dennis, Chair Justin Olsen, Vice Chair Laurie Levine, Director Gretchen Larson, Director (May-Dec.) Christine Costello, Director (Jan.-May) Taylor Bengtson, Administration Specialist Jaime Mann, Assistant to the City Administrator Julie Prior-Miller, Marketing and Communications Specialist Steve Hanson, Director (Aug.-Dec.) Jennifer Levitt, City Administrator Druscilla Nute, Director (Aug.-Dec.) Renee Bade, Director (Aug.-Dec.) 2022 Annual Report | 3 Board of Directors A Message from the Convention and Visitors Bureau Chair I am excited to share that the CVB had a successful year promoting Cottage Grove as a year-round visitor destination. We worked with industries, corporate partners, state partners, city departments and regional destination marketing organizations to showcase the city and ensure positive economic impact in Cottage Grove through the steady growth of tourism. Economic factors have continued to play a role in the bounce back of overnight hotel stays, however we recorded steady gains. We knew travel and hotel stays would continue to be slightly down worldwide so the CVB laser-focused on bringing people to Cottage Grove for one-day or weekend long outdoor events and activities. We’ve launched several successful social ad campaigns throughout the year which have brought in visitors from around the metro area who have visited our retail establishments, restaurants and parks. We continued promoting city events, activities, restaurants, and retail opportunities using a multi-faceted approach that included social media advertising, website content, blog posts, videos, photos and creative partnerships. Another major endeavor of our efforts in 2022 was the 2023 Cottage Grove Visitors Guide. I’m especially proud of this annual creation that boasts 36 pages of amenities and showcases the opportunities for visitors and travelers to discover our unique city. Even if you have lived here your entire life, I am willing to bet you’d find a hidden gem in the Visitors Guide that you never knew existed. We will continue forming relationships with businesses in town. A successful partnership and two-way dialogue are critical to our mission, which is: • Promoting Cottage Grove as a premier destination for leisure travelers, weddings and outdoor enthusiasts. • Ensuring Cottage Grove is a recognized and successful host city for meetings and conventions. • Establishing the city as a prominent and respected venue for sporting events. Together, we weathered innumerable challenges, many of which are highlighted in this report and appear alongside the creative solutions and strategies implemented to continue growing tourism. I look forward to 2023 as we continue to discover Cottage Grove. Steve Dennis, Chair of the Cottage Grove CVB 4 | Cottage Grove Convention and Visitors Bureau Accomplishments The 36-page guide represents the opportunities for visitors and travelers alike to discover our unique city. From lodging facilities, outdoor parks and recreation, events, meeting venues and more, there’s something inside for everyone. Flipping through the pages is truly a reminder of what people who live here already know: The city is a special place to live, work and play. By the Numbers • This is the second annual publication for Cottage Grove. • This guide boasts 36 pages full of amenities, activities and information about Cottage Grove. • There are 9 total ads in this publication. • $5,645 in revenue was collected from advertising dollars through this publication. In Addition to the Numbers • This publication was created entirely in-house in 2022 including design, proofing and editing, providing massive cost savings to the CVB by not having to hire an outside organization. • The online/digital guide is an elevated version of the printed piece, which includes links driving traffic to local businesses, advertisers and the Discover Cottage Grove website. 2023 Visitors Guide Where You Can Find It • This publication is located at information kiosks at the Minneapolis/St. Paul airport. (See photo below.) • You can also find this publication at the 11 rest stops/visitor centers/welcome centers 2022 Annual Report | 5 Accomplishments Discover Cottage Grove Website The Discover Cottage Grove website continues to house valuable information for visitors. Staff frequently update the event calendar throughout the year, add pages pertaining to upcoming contests or giveaways, add pages for new businesses into our directory and continually look for ways to improve the user experience. Addition of businesses and other various highlights of new businesses we’ve included this year: • Grey Duck Disc Golf • Burn Boot Camp • Pizza Ranch ‘Coming Soon’ • Shepard Farm • Cottage Grove Ravine Regional Park as a venue to host weddings or use as a business meeting place. Accessibility In November of 2022 staff added additional functionality to the Discover Cottage Grove website. This functionality includes the ability to change the language shown from English to the viewers primary language. Website Most Viewed Pages 1. Holiday Train event page 2. Home page 3. Calendar of events 4. Contest entry 5. Things to do Sessions by Device Mobile 82.0% ↑ Desktop 14.1% ↑ Tablet 4% ↑ Users by Month January 1K ↑ February 1.5K ↑ March 2.1K ↑ April 1.3K ↓ May 1.7K ↑ June 4K ↑ July 1.9K ↑ August 1.4K ↑ September 1.3 K ↓ October 4.3K ↓ November 6.1K ↑ December 4.9K ↑ 6 | Cottage Grove Convention and Visitors Bureau Top Channels We continue to see our social ad campaign marketing pays off in high dividends when it comes to traffic to our website. In 2022 60.4% of this traffic was attributed to come from social media. 26.8% of traffic to our website came from organic searches in 2022 as opposed to 12.4% in 2021. What does this tell us? This shows us that our name is getting ‘out there’. More people have heard of Discover Cottage Grove, so more people are searching for Discover Cottage Grove. Top Socials Facebook continues to outperform all other social media channels when it comes to where our website traffic is coming from. 98.57% of our users are finding Discover Cottage Grove information there and going to our website. Instagram Stories comes in second to drive website traffic from social media. By the Numbers 2022 was a year of huge success for our website. We were up in terms of users, new users, number of sessions, page views, pages per session and average session duration. We also achieved decreasing our bounce rate which was one of the goals outlined in our 2021 annual report. The below chart shows 2022 numbers vs. 2021 numbers in grey. Website Accomplishments 2022 Annual Report | 7 Discover Cottage Grove, MN Discover Cottage Grove: Connect with Us Discover Cottage Grove: Recreation Promo Discover Cottage Grove: Fall Biking Promo Discover Cottage Grove: : Winter Promo The CVB worked with South Washington County Telecommunications Commission (SWCTC) to produce five promotional videos to highlight the city’s unique amenities and offerings. Since working with SWCTC in 2021 and talking about our desire for video footage for Discover Cottage Grove, staff and SWCTC worked diligently to outline and capture footage for many events in 2022 to be used for promotional materials in 2023 and beyond. Videos Footage captured: • Strawberry Fest • Disc Golf • Splash Pad • Bike Park • River Oaks Patio • Hamlet Skate Park • Haunting Experience • Monster Bash Parade • Halloween Extravaganza • Pumpkin Chuck • Hale to the Bird • Holiday Train Accomplishments In addition to capturing footage and cutting videos, staff also created a Discover Cottage Grove YouTube channel and added a Discover Cottage Grove playlist under the city’s YouTube channel. We’re hoping these steps help gain the widest reach possible by viewers. 8 | Cottage Grove Convention and Visitors Bureau Photos Working with professional photographers and businesses not only allows us to form relationships within our community and business sector, it allows us to extend our reach with the best talent available highlighting Cottage Grove’s beautiful and unique amenities at little to no cost to us. Goals of Photos • High-quality, clear images • Displaying authenticity • Highlighting diversity • Race • Gender • Age • Ability • Active shots • Visually engaging • Showcasing Cottage Grove in a positive light Discover Cottage Grove Photo Contest Hosting a photo contest drives traffic to our website, increases our social media engagement and allows us use of photos from participants. Professional Photography • Nathan Klok • Three photos for use in guide and for promotional materials • Sigrid Dabelstein • Cottage Grove Community Night at the St. Paul Saints game Nathan Klok Discover Cottage Grove Photo Contest Sigrid Dabelstein Photography Accomplishments 2022 Annual Report | 9 Discover Cottage Grove Photo Contest Accomplishments Photos In-House Photos •Afton Apple Orchard • Bike Park • Blizzard Bash in Ravine Regional Park • Boondocks Vintage Boutique • Caribou Coffee • Cottage Grove Farmer’s Market • Cottage Grove Floral • Cottage Grove Ravine Regional Park • Disc Golf • Dust ‘Em Off Snowmobile Event • Food Truck Thursdays at City Hall • Halloween Extravaganza • Hazen P. Mooers Park • Hidden Valley Park • Highlands Park • Holiday Train • Hometown Holiday Celebration • Hy-Vee • Junction 70 • Lil’ Riders Day • Monster Bash Parade • Oakwood Park • Paddleboats • Pumpkin Chuck • Ravine Regional Park • River Oaks Golf Course and Event Center • Rooted in Junk • Seasonal outdoor photos • Shepard Farm opening • Shepard Farm • Skoolie events • Strawberry Fest • Whistling Well Farm • Woodridge Park and surrounding area Discover Cottage Grove’s Photos 10 | Cottage Grove Convention and Visitors Bureau Social Media Twitter Stats Jan. 1- Dec. 31, 2022 By the Numbers • 52 followers ↑ Accomplishments Instagram Stats Jan. 1-Dec. 31, 2022 By the Numbers • 369 posts ↑ • 500+ stories ↑ • 670 followers ↑ • 16,897 paid reach ↑ • 87,935 reach ↑ 284.8% In Addition to the Numbers • Promoted businesses and amplified partnerships within Cottage Grove by re-posting stories and interacting with businesses increasing their social engagement. • Connected with social media influencers and photographers. • Influencers, individuals and businesses share our information and helped broaden our reach. Facebook Stats Jan. 1-Dec. 31, 2022 By the Numbers • 420 posts ↑ • 500+ stories ↑ • 2,618 followers ↑ • 498,201 paid reach ↑ • 567,573 page reach ↑ 36.2% In Addition to the Numbers • Sought out and connected with food trucks via Facebook. Began to build relationships for future partnerships. • Connected to local businesses and marketing teams to establish professional relationships (i.e. Junction 70, Cottage Grove Bike Park). Effective social media plays a key role in building our brand and bringing people to Cottage Grove. The interactive and visual nature of Facebook, Twitter and Instagram all provide powerful opportunities for people to engage and experience Cottage Grove through video and photos. Giving potential visitors a first-hand look at the city’s restaurants, parks, recreational opportunities, wedding venues and other offerings has been incredibly effective. We have reached thousands of people and shown them all the city has to offer. We’ve helped promote businesses through newly created partnerships. The best part? We have had fun doing it — and our followers have also been enjoying the ride. #winning 2022 Annual Report | 11 Accomplishments By the Numbers • Ad impressions in 2022: 1,635,649 (↑ from1,404,806 in 2021). • Ad engagements in 2022: 53,517 (↑ from 42,819 in 2021). • Website traffic directly as a result of social media ad campaigns in 2022: 19,012 (↑ from12,702 in 2021). • Total website traffic in 2022: 31,313 visits (↑ from16,300 visits in 2021). Top Performing Social Ad Campaign Holiday Train • Impressions: 406,052 • Clicks: 18,653 (9.18%) • “Good” industry average: 1% click rate Social Media Ad Campaigns The top performer of all social campaigns this year; the 2022 Holiday Train. This ad ran from November 8 through December 12, 2022. Not only does effective social media play a key role in building our brand, but effective social media ad campaigns reach new users, target specific audiences, increase brand visibility and at a relatively low-cost, helps to increase sign ups and lead generation. Some advantages of marketing through social media ads as opposed to “traditional” ads include the fact that social ads allow more engagement than conventional online advertising. Not only can people click where to go, they can also “like” and “share” without costing the advertiser anything extra. This also plays into another benefit social ads provide — when users see their contacts have interacted with a post, click rates increase and readers consider the ad to be less intrusive. 12 | Cottage Grove Convention and Visitors Bureau Accomplishments Events Cottage Grove Community Night at the St. Paul Saints Game Discover Cottage Grove teamed up with the St. Paul Saints on June 11, 2022 to promote ‘Cottage Grove Community Night’ at the St. Paul Saints game. Setting our tent and materials up across from the third base line, we stood out from the crowd and had plenty of room to talk to passers by about visiting Cottage Grove the following weekend for the Strawberry Festival. Strawberry Fest Ambassadors stood with us and sold buttons for the Strawberry Fest as a fundraiser. From city council members, staff and a plethora of community members coming out to the join us for the game, in addition to thousands of people there to watch baseball, the Discover Cottage Grove name and brand was able to get in front of many new faces. The board agreed, it was a fun night and a great success! Medallion Hunt Discover Cottage Grove sponsored the 2022 Strawberry Fest Medallion Hunt. Staff scouted locations, wrote clues and had a great hunt with lots of positive feedback from visitors and the surrounding community. Visitors from Inver Grove Heights ending up winning as a team. Jana and Brad, 2021 Medallion Hunt Winners 2022 Annual Report | 13 Accomplishments Getting Around Event Circuit Here, there, everywhere! Or at least it felt like it. With our new Discover Cottage Grove tent, table and swag items, Discover Cottage Grove was able to begin hitting the event circuit. Our goal? To start getting our name ‘out there’, attracting visitors to our city and letting the community know who we are and what we’re here for. Swag Distribution Through our relationship with the Strawberry Fest committee, the Strawberry Fest Ambassadors were able to distribute Discover Cottage Grove frisbees at the parades they attended throughout Minnesota and Wisconsin during the summer. Tagging How else did we get our name out there? Great question! Staff also went out and ‘tagged’ eight locations around Cottage Grove with our Discover Cottage Grove logo. DCG @ One Family Tournament DCG @ Strawberry Fest Marketplace DCG @ Public Safety Golf Tournament DCG @ the Saints Game Jana and Brad, 2021 Medallion Hunt Winners 14 | Cottage Grove Convention and Visitors Bureau Accomplishments Giveaways Follow Us on Social Media The focus of this campaign was to attract new audiences to like and follow Discover Cottage Grove’s social media pages. By adding a component where people had to give us their email address to enter the contest, we were able add hundreds of new contacts to our email distribution lists which showcases the best that Cottage Grove has to offer. Giveaway: Ticket packages to the St. Paul Saints game June 11, 2022. Discover Cottage Grove Photo Contest This campaign’s focus was to highlight the city of Cottage Grove from the viewpoint of those who live, work and play here. Submissions were also added to our photo archive to be able to use for marketing purposes. By collecting participants email addresses through submissions, we were able to add hundreds of new contacts to our email distribution lists showcasing Cottage Grove’s parks, businesses and upcoming activities. Giveaway: Ticket packages to the St. Paul Saints game June 11, 2022. Marketing Swag Everyone loves free stuff. Giving marketing swag away helps with lead generation, building relationships, brand recognition and ‘gets our name out there’ in places we otherwise can’t get. So what swag did we have this year? • Frisbees • Hand warmers • Pens • Board and staff shirts • Luggage tags 2022 Annual Report | 15 Effectively marketing the City and showcasing it as a recreation, retail and meeting destination requires a multi-faceted approach. Social media, the Visitors Guide and the website are important pieces of the puzzle that are supplemented by other initiatives such as the Discover Cottage Grove blog. The monthly e-newsletter, advertising in publications as well as other promotional pieces. Discover Cottage Grove Blog Having a blog presence not only helps us showcase amenities, businesses and upcoming events to a wide audience, it also helps us increase traffic to our website and boost our search engine optimization (SEO) in Google and other search engine rankings. • 20 blog posts from Jan.-Dec. 2022 ↑ Explore Minnesota Listings In 2021 we launched an account through Explore MN to create listings about Cottage Grove, which gives Explore MN the ability to market and advertise these listings for us free of charge. In 2022 we re-organized our account to try and increase visibility across various local businesses, events and attactions. We created separate accounts for restaurants that are unique to Cottage Grove so we could market their events such as bingo at Muddy Cow, or live music at the VFW. Having multiple pages for businesses, events and attractions means we have more places to market Cottage Grove to potential visitors. Communications/Marketing Accomplishments Miscellaneous • Ad in Have Fun Biking’s Minnesota Bike/Hike Guide • Dasher board ad at the Cottage Grove Ice Arena Discover Cottage Grove Monthly Newsletter By industry standards a ‘good’ open rate is: 15-20%. • January – 41% open rate • February – 38% open rate • March – 40% open rate • April – 46% open rate • May – 41% open rate • June – 42% open rate • July – 36% open rate • August – 45% open rate • September – 32% open rate • October – 35% open rate • November – 41% open rate • December – 41% open rate Total subscribers: 902 ↑ 16 | Cottage Grove Convention and Visitors Bureau Explore Minnesota 2023 Tourism Marketing Grant The 2023 Tourism Marketing Grant Program is designed to assist individual, established nonprofit Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs) and/or primary tourism organizations by providing matching funds for the purpose of tourism marketing to stimulate travel for the economic benefit of their communities. In November, Marketing and Communications Specialist Julie Prior-Miller submitted a request for $14,000 for assistance through the Explore Minnesota 2023 Tourism Marketing Grant, which was awarded. Total reimbursement costs will be $14,000 if all funds are used. This grant requires 1:1 matching funds. The grant revenue will be applied to the third quarter of the Visitor’s Bureau 2023 budget and the expenses will be applied in the first and second quarters of 2023. Affiliate Welcome Center Program Many community welcome centers across the state are designated as Explore Minnesota affiliates. Explore Minnesota allows these centers to use the Explore Minnesota logo on signs and state travel brochures to distribute to visitors. Affiliate locations are included in Explore Minnesota publications and online at exploreminnesota.com. The program provides standardized information for “on-the-road” travelers and increases the economic benefits to the state and its communities. Benefits of the program to participating communities include access to state maps, use of the Explore Minnesota Tourism logo in signing, and geographically incorporating Explore Minnesota Affiliate Welcome Center locations on Explore Minnesota Tourism publications and websites to increase visitor awareness. In 2022, we were granted this opportunity through the end of 2026. Grants 2022 Annual Report | 17 Budget Budget Highlights Revenue • Budgeted revenue = $76,348 • Total 2022 revenue = $90,716 Revenue Breakdown • State grant: $14,000 from Explore Minnesota • Lodging Tax: $74,426 Q1 • Budgeted: $16,587 • Actual: $19,580 18.0% Q2 • Budgeted: $16,587 • Actual: $19,608 18.2% Q3 • Budgeted: $26,587 • Actual: $33,620 26.5% Q4 • Budgeted: $16,587 • Actual: $17,908 8.0% Overall • Budgeted: $90,716 • Actual: $90,716 18.8% Expenses • Budgeted expenses = $75,363 • Total 2022 expenses = $74,891 Expenses Breakdown • Marketing expenses • Budgeted: $48,375 • Actual: $44,283 • Operations Expenses • Budgeted: $410 • Actual: $3,436 • EDA Trust/city payback expenses • Budgeted: $5,945 • Actual: $5,945 • Administration fee (5% of lodging tax + 25% City contractual services) • Budgeted: $19,904 • Actual: $21,217 *Revenue and expense figures do not include budgeted salary and benefits expense or ARPA funds received. Those numbers offset each other in our budget. 18 | Cottage Grove Convention and Visitors Bureau Looking Ahead 2022 was a year of growth. Advancement. Expansion. We built our reserves in terms of photos and video coverage. We expanded our reach within our social media channels to thousands more people. We added tools to our tool box like hosting a blog, giving away swag items, holding contests and attending events to leverage our marketing efforts. In 2022 our goals for the convention and visitors bureau were many, but incremental and necessary to attain the growth of where we are today. Looking ahead to 2023 we have fewer goals, but bigger plans. The ‘Big 3’ 1. Host a food truck event. Research. Plan. Organize. Build relationships. Draw visitors. Connect community. Grow revenue. (Eat great food.) 2. Bring a mural wall to the City of Cottage Grove. Murals are not a new concept. From early cave drawings to Banksy’s Balloon Girl, murals attract new local businesses, help bring customers to pre-existing locations, boost the economy of an area and create vibrant neighborhoods people want to visit, live in and take care of. 3. Hold a strategic planning session. Bring in an outside consultant to help us develop a 3-5 year strategic plan for the Cottage Grove Convention and Visitors Bureau. Goals 2022 Annual Report | 19 2022: Sustained Growth Summary The Cottage Grove CVB had an overall successful year despite the continued lingering effects on travel due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 2022 Achievement Highlights • Exceeded 2022 budget estimations. • Received an Explore MN marketing grant for $14,000. This grant will be used in 2023 for several online paid social media campaigns, driving traffic to our website and social channels, and promoting local events, venues and Discover Cottage Grove itself. • Invested in event materials such as a tent, table, chairs and tablecloth to be able to attend events. • Invested in swag items to eleveate our marketing efforts. • Launched an email targeting Cottage Grove area business owners to help them identify influxes of traffic to our city to better prepare and serve their customers. We had 0 people unsubscribe from this list all year and an average of a 50% open rate. Both of these numbers tell us business owners liked receiving these updates. • Bolstered and expanded Discover Cottage Grove and Explore Minnesota activity calendars resulting in events and activities getting picked up by Explore MN’s newsletter distribtion lists which combined are distributed to over 250,000 people. • Partnered with the South Washington County Telecommunications Commission (SWCTC) to capture footage throughout the year and create five videos showcasing unique aspects of Cottage Grove. In addition to these accomplishments, the CVB is proud to have started establishing long-term relationships with its local lodging facilities, area businesses, community members and more. The CVB values these partnerships and remains steadfast in its commitment to effectively promote Cottage Grove as a premier tourist destination. DISCOVER COTTAGE GROVE COTTAGE GROVE CONVENTION & VISITORS BUREAU 12800 Ravine Parkway S., Cottage Grove MN, 55016 Discover our website discovercottagegrove.com Discover us on social @discovercottagegrove #discovercottagegrove