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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMarketing Cmte - 10-20-2015T3 PALM DESERT PALM DESERT MARKETING COMMITTEE APPROVED MINUTES Tuesday, October 20, 2015 — 2 p.m. Administrative Conference Room I. CALL TO ORDER Rolf Hoehn called the meeting to order at 2:00 p.m. II. ROLL CALL Members Present: Members Absent: Emily Bird-Hrivnak Arlene Amick Franchesca Forrer Kerry Graves Rolf Hoehn, Chair Mahasti Islami Theresa Maggio, Vice -Chair Bruce Nation Jeffrey Norman Ray Rodriguez Staff /Others Present: Bob Spiegel, Mayor Pro Tern Jan Harnik, Councilwoman Donna Gomez, Tourism & Marketing Manager Rudy Acosta, Assistant City Manager Martin Alvarez, Economic Development Director David Hermann, Management Analyst Barbara Blythe, Tourism & Marketing Specialist Jane Stanley, Recording Secretary III. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS Mayor Pro Tern Spiegel noted that today is Ray Rodriguez' birthday and the Committee wished him a "Happy Birthday." APPROVED MINUTES PALM DESERT MARKETING COMMITTEE OCTOBER 20, 2015 IV. CONSENT CALENDAR A. MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF SEPTEMBER 15, 2015. Theresa Maggio moved, by Minute Motion, to approve the minutes of the September 15, 2015, meeting as presented. The motion was seconded by Ray Rodriguez and carried by an 8-0-2 vote. (AYES: Bird-Hrivnak, Graves, Maggio, Nation, Norman, Islami, Rodriguez and Hoehn; NOES: None; ABSENT: Amick and Forrer): V. CONSENT ITEMS HELD OVER .= VI. NEW BUSINESS A. REVIEW OF TRANSITIONAL MARKETING PROGRAM FOR FISCAL YEAR 2015/16 Donna Gomez reported that she, as well as staff, has been working with H&L Partners for the past several months bringing them up to speed with our existing programming, past efforts and goals. H&L Partners have taken time to review and assess the information and have made some recommendations, which will be presented today. Their report was included in the agenda packet for this meeting. At this point, Franchesca Forrer arrived at the meeting. Ms. Gomez went on to say that with the new agency, this will be a transition year for the marketing efforts. Reviewing the report, she said H&L thought we were spread a little too thin. A better investment for a stronger return is a focused message in a smaller geographic market. To make a stronger impact, print ads will be either half or full -page ads. Partnerships will be grown and maximized. The target audience will be skewed younger; 30-54 years old who are interested in specific activities. Studies show the return on investment is greatest with the drive market. Responding to questions, the fly market will be addressed by CVB programs. H&L made a proposal for PR that addresses "influencers." To reach key markets with higher impact H&L recommended print ads in only four publications: LA Magazine, San Diego Magazine, Palm Springs Life, and Orange Coast. 2 APPROVED MINUTES PALM DESERT MARKETING COMMITTEE OCTOBER 20, 2015 Mayor Pro Tern Spiegel questioned why Sunset magazine was not included, to which Ms. Gomez responded it is very expensive to advertise in it. There are co-ops with the state that enable us to get into Sunset. H&L recommends a strong digital campaign. Search Engine Marketing (SEM) entails creating landing pages to feed information being looked for on Google. To better control content, the email newsletter will be done in- house by Barbara Blythe. The strength of SEM is that someone can be tracked and followed on all their digital devices, as well as thorough testing and quick changing of ads. With the huge growth in social media, paid ads will be included on Facebook. Bruce Nation added that Facebook ads are affordable. Mr. Hoehn noted that social media is the ideal tool for reaching participants at local events. Councilwoman Harnik suggested increasing exposure by asking people to "please share" when they are on Facebook. Ms. Gomez noted that with Visitor Services moving to City Hall, Barbara Blythe now has more time to focus on social media. She and Ms. Gomez will soon develop a social media strategy that the Committee will have an opportunity to see. Ms. Blythe conveyed that we need to be consistent across all platforms: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest. Snapchat and YouTube will be included in the strategy discussions. Ms. Gomez went on to say that we will be experimenting with Native Ads, a new platform, which is more of an editorial style. Some programs that have a high level of tracking will be invested in. One of the Out of Home (OOH) advertising opportunities that will be investigated is digital advertising at the Palm Springs Airport on the back wall in the baggage claim area. The City will again be taking advantage of a co-op with the CVB for 6,400 spots on cable television in the drive markets, which will cost $25,000 for January to April. Westin Mission Hills has also committed to this, and the JW Marriott has again committed to the CVB's "Summer Chill" co-op program. Ms. Bird-Hrivnak remarked that this is an affordable way to reach a large area. 3 APPROVED MINUTES PALM DESERT MARKETING COMMITTEE OCTOBER 20, 2015 H&L had asked for the City's TOT numbers, restaurant and retail sales for the last several years so they can have baseline information to make sure we are making an impact on our community. As in the past, most of the programming runs December through May. 70% of the overall budget is for digital, 21 % for print, 6% for television and 3% for Out of Home. The total budget is $403,000. The creative department at H&L came up with a re -vamped "Feel the Warmth" campaign, which was included in the report. Ms. Bird-Hrivnak said people will only see the up -front, bold copy, that she likes, and the logo, and won't read the small copy in the ad. Ms. Gomez noted that the big city market that we're in has people that lead hectic lives, and are so busy that they want an escape, which this campaign addresses. This may not be a long-term program, but the strong message will take us through this advertising season. The call to action is to get away from it all and escape. There is some funding to develop some additional photography that depicts shopping, dining and group trips. We also have access to the CVB's photography. The challenge is not just to get visitors to come on weekends, but getting them here for a few days. There was discussion regarding people differentiating Palm Springs from Palm Desert. Ms. Bird-Hrivnak commented that the drive market is savvy to the different destinations. Councilwoman Harnik added that the decision to put the Palm Desert logo on the El Paseo benches and waste receptacles was deliberate because they had heard so many times that El Paseo is associated with Palm Springs. Mayor Pro Tern Spiegel said H&L has done an excellent job and he is impressed with their work. Ms. Bird-Hrivnak asked whether H&L had addressed how events play into the strategy. Ms. Forrer pointed out that the younger demographic values and looks for experiences. Jeffrey Norman moved, by Minute Motion, to support the Transitional Marketing Program for Fiscal Year 2015/16 as presented. The motion was seconded by Franchesca Forrer and carried by a 9-0-1 vote. (AYES: Bird-Hrivnak, Forrer, Graves, Maggio, Nation, Norman, Islami, Rodriguez and Hoehn; NOES: None; ABSENT: Amick): VII. CONTINUED BUSINESS None C! APPROVED MINUTES PALM DESERT MARKETING COMMITTEE OCTOBER 20, 2015 VIII. OLD BUSINESS None IX. REPORTS FROM CITY COUNCIL LIAISONS Councilwoman Harnik reported that November 2"d is the tentative date for the groundbreaking of the Hotel Paseo. X. REPORTS AND REMARKS A. Chair Mr. Hoehn will report next month on the Tennis Garden. September air traffic was down considerably. In contrast, hotel occupancy rates were up except in Palm Desert. B. Committee Members Kerry Graves related that The Living Desert is back to extended hours. Upcoming events include Howloween, the opening of the butterfly aviary, and Wild Lights. Franchesca Forrer expressed that it's all about "Street," which will be on Saturday, November 7th. It's a free, interactive party with food, art and fashion that is also a First Weekend event. Jeffrey Norman said the 4th Family Fun Day kicked off the season this past Sunday, October 18th. Theresa Maggio said November will include 25 member events. The biggest and most exciting new amenity is the 24,000 square foot Car Vault. November 51h is Welcome Home Weekend. Emily Bird-Hrivnak was excited to report that the Marriott has partnered with The Biggest Loser as one of three resort partners in the U.S. The grand opening will be this weekend. The Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year event will again return. Ray Rodriguez noted that the caws redesign is progressing. Bruce Nation reported that the Mountain View course is ready to re -open this coming Friday after overseeding. There will be a First Weekend brunch on November 8th, and 12 Dining Under the Stars events have been planned beginning November 121h 5 APPROVED MINUTES PALM DESERT MARKETING COMMITTEE OCTOBER 20, 2015 Mahasti Islami related there are still a few tenants building out spaces at The Gardens and the Village. Cruise Night will be there for First Weekends. Two holiday events are planned benefiting Big Brothers Big Sisters and Animal Samaritans. The 18th annual concert series will be 8 weeks instead of 12 beginning January 9th. The center is 96% leased. C. Staff David Hermann distributed the 2016 calendar titled "A Natural Beauty." Tom Brewster shot most of the photos, which will also be used for marketing purposes. The City Council now views the calendar as an opportunity to market the City. XI. INFORMATIONAL ITEMS A. Visitor Services Report Ms. Gomez noted the report, included in the agenda packet. There were no comments. XII. NEXT MEETING DATE— NOVEMBER 17, 2015 XIII. ADJOURNMENT With Committee concurrence, the meeting was adjourned at 3:30 p.m. Janettanley, Recordkg Secretary L