Twentynine Palms Tourism Business Improvement District Meeting - Special Meeting

TWENTYNINE PALMS TOURISM BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT SPECIAL MEETING AGENDA 6136 Adobe Road Twentynine Palms, CA 92277 www.29palms.org / www.Visit29.org Thursday, August 30, 2018 CLOSED SESSION AGENDA 3:00 P. M. CALL TO ORDER Pledge of Allegiance. Roll Call. CLOSED SESSION A “Closed” Session of the Tourism Business Improvement District (TBID) may be held in accordance with state law which may include, but is not limited to, the following types of items: personnel matters, labor negotiations, security matters, providing instructions to real property negotiators and conference with legal counsel regarding pending litigation. The Closed Session will be held in the City Hall Conference Room located at 6136 Adobe Road, Twentynine Palms, California. Any public comment on Closed Session items will be taken before the Closed Session. Any required announcements or discussion of Closed Session items or actions following the Closed Session will be made in the City Council Chambers, 6136 Adobe Road, Twentynine Palms, California. 1 Closed Session - Public Employee Performance Evaluation, Pursuant to Government Code 54957 - Marketing Specialist and Social Media Specialist. REGULAR SESSION AGENDA 4:00 P. M. CALL TO ORDER Pledge of Allegiance Roll Call Closed Session Announcements Changes to Agenda PRESENTATIONS 2 29 Palms Chamber of Commerce - Report 3 MCAGCC - Report 4 Action 29 Palms - Report Page 1 of 9  5 Social Media Marketing - Report 6 Marketing Specialist - Report BUSINESS 7 Approval of Minutes from the TBID Meeting on July 26, 2018. 3-5 Twentynine Palms Tourism Business Improvement District Special Meeting - 26 Jul 2018 - Minutes - Pdf PUBLIC COMMENTS DISCUSSION AND POTENTIAL ACTION ITEMS 8 Releasing of the job announcement and Request for Proposal (RFP) for the TBID 7-9 marketing position. RECOMENDATION: The TBID Boardmembers will give direction for employment or Release of a Request for Proposal (RFP) for the TBID Marketing position. TBID Marketing Announcement BOARDMEMBER COMMENTS MARKETING SPECIALIST COMMENTS FUTURE BOARDMEMBER INITIATED ITEMS ADJOURNMENT It is the intention of the City of Twentynine Palms to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act in all respects. If you are a person with a disability who requires a disability-related modification or accommodation in order to participate in a meeting, including auxiliary aids or services, please request such modification or accommodation from the City Clerk at (760) 367-4890 (facsimile). Notification at least 48 hours prior to the meeting will enable the City to make reasonable arrangements to assure accessibility to the meeting. Please advise us at the time whether you will require accommodations to participate in meetings on a regular basis. Any person affected by any application on this agenda may submit their concerns in writing prior to the meeting or appear in person and be heard in support or opposition to the proposal at the time the matter is considered on the agenda. The staff reports, applications and environmental documents may be viewed at either the office of Community Development or the office of the City Clerk, 6136 Adobe Road, from 7:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m. Monday through Thursday, except legal holidays. The Invocation is given per Policy 10-01, and does not reflect the views of the City but rather is an expression of speech by a private citizen making the presentation. Telephone inquiries may be made at (760) 367-6799. If you challenge any agenda issue in court, you may be limited to raising only those issues that you or someone else raised at the public meeting described in this notice, or in written correspondence delivered to the City of Twentynine Palms at, or prior to, the public meeting. This notice of agenda is hereby certified to have been posted on or before 4:00 p.m., August 27, 2018. Cindy Villescas, City Clerk Time/Date Page 2 of 9  TWENTYNINE PALMS TOURISM BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT MEETING MINUTES City Hall, 6136 Adobe Road, Twentynine Palms, CA 92277 www.29palms.org / www.Visit29.org July 26, 2018 CALL TO ORDER - Vice Chair Congdon called the meeting to order at 3:03 p.m. Roll Call – The following TBID Boardmembers were present: Congdon, Dusastre, Maharaj, Mehta, and Viloria Adjourn to Closed Session – Vice Chair Congdon adjourned to closed session at 3:04 p.m. CLOSED SESSION 1. Closed Session - Public Employee Performance Evaluation, Pursuant to Government Code 54957 - Marketing Specialist and Social Media Specialist. REGULAR SESSION AGENDA Call to Order - Chair Mehta called the meeting to order at 4:03 p.m. Pledge of Allegiance – Vice Chair Congdon led the Pledge of Allegiance. Roll Call – The following Tourism Business Improvement District Advisory Boardmembers were present: Congdon, Dusastre, Maharaj, Mehta, and Viloria. Closed Session Announcements – There was no reportable action. Changes to Agenda – None PRESENTATIONS 2. 29 Palms Chamber of Commerce Ashley Smith, 29 Palms Chamber of Commerce Assistant Executive Director, presented a report for June 2018 and indicated that 1,270 visitors were recorded in the visitor center in June, although visitors are still recorded with pen/paper and count is not always complete. She also mentioned the broken TV in the visitor center kiosk that displays the city slide show, which also needs to be replaced. Marketing Specialist Waite indicated that she has the original slides and can update and replace the city slide show. Board consensus to instruct City Manager Luckino to use Marketing Equipment funds in the budget to (a) purchase a Tablet with a stand for the visitor center, as previously discussed and agreed to, so that visitors can sign in electronically and supply email addresses as well as demographic information; and (b) purchase a replacement TV screen for the visitor center kiosk for the city slide show. 3. Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center (MCAGCC) Kelly O’Sullivan, Marine Corps base representative, presented two safety posters produced by the base, “How to Stay Hydrated” and “Ten Commandments of Survival,” to share with visitor center, hoteliers, etc. She will email digital copies to put on the Visit29.org website. Boardmember Maharaj suggested that a Marine Base page should be on the website, featuring the history of the base; Ms. O’Sullivan said she can supply a digital copy of the 65th anniversary history book they created for the base, which contains good background material. 4. Action 29 Palms Maureen Franklin, Action 29 Palms boardmember, gave a report on the murals. Neighbors in Nature II is being restored on the visitor center building; Morongo Basin Healthcare District wants to put a mural on the building they purchased on Split Rock; Action 29 Palms purchased a backlit panel at California Welcome Center, which Page 1 of 3 Page 3 of 9  Twentynine Palms Tourism Business Improvement District Meeting July 26, 2018 will show Spirit of Mara mural and promote the park entrance in 29 Palms; and Chalkfest 29 is set for November 3 & 4. 5. Social Media Marketing Robin Zimmermann, TBID Social Media Specialist, was out of town; however, she submitted the latest social media stats on July 10, which are included in the draft Marketing Plan 2018-2019. 6. Marketing Specialist Vickie Waite, TBID Marketing Specialist, reported that 154 leads have been received so far from the “Visit 29!” ad in the California Road Trips publication, which came out in July, and 25% included email addresses. Summer Nights in the Desert emails went out in July, and had a 37-40% open rate. Three new pages were added to the Visit29.org website (49Palms Oasis, Indian Canyon, Sustainability), and two blogs were posted; she is in the process of updating the VHR list and page listings. Google Analytics reported almost 2,000 site users in July and there were 5,204 pageviews; the latest Google Analytics report is included in the draft updated Marketing Plan. The draft updated Marketing Plan 2018-2019 was given to the board, and Word version will be emailed; it needs to be reviewed and comments/additions received on or before June 30. Boardmember Dusastre suggests a quarterly newsletter be sent to lodging partners, with updates, programs being implemented, TOT stats, etc. Boardmember Maharaj suggests also sending it to other partners. Marketing Specialist Waite will add this idea to the Marketing Plan. BUSINESS 7. Approval of TBID Meeting Minutes for May 10, 2018, June 14, 2018 and July 5, 2018. A motion was made by Chair Mehta, seconded by Boardmember Dusastre to approve the TBID Meeting Minutes as submitted. All in favor. TBID Meeting Minutes from May 10, 2018, June 14, 2018, and July 5, 2018 were approved. PUBLIC COMMENTS - NONE DISCUSSION AND POTENTIAL ACTION ITEMS 8. Tourism Marketing Budget 2018-2019 - Review, discuss, change and approve proposed TBID Budget for 2018- 2019 Fiscal Year. ACTION: a. A motion was made by Chair Mehta, seconded by Boardmember Dusastre, to increase Contract Services up to $100,000. All in favor. b. Board consensus to ask City Manager Luckino to add the city’s MCCS/MCAGCC budget for advertising and sponsorship as an Appendix to the TBID Marketing Plan and Budget. c. A motion was made by Chair Mehta, seconded by Boardmember Viloria, to amend the budget by deleting 4 travel shows: LA Travel & Adventure Show 2020 prepay for $3,270, San Diego Travel & Adventure Show 2019 for $1,500 expenses, IPW 2019 for $1,500 expenses, CalTravel Summit 2019 for $2,000 expenses, for a total of $8,270. All in favor. d. A motion was made by Chair Mehta, seconded by Boardmember Dusastre to change Sunset Magazine print ads from 3 Travel Directory ads at $1,750x3 to one 1/4-page ad per Boardmember Dusastre’s suggestion and allocate $5,000 for the ad. All in favor. e. A motion was made by Chair Mehta, seconded by Boardmember Viloria to increase the Billboard Ads line item from $4,000 to $6,000 and investigate pricing for digital billboards. All in favor. Page 2 of 3 Page 4 of 9  Twentynine Palms Tourism Business Improvement District Meeting July 26, 2018 f. A motion was made by Chair Mehta, seconded by Boardmember Dusastre to eliminate Sunset Magazine and Desert Magazine print ads, change them to digital ads only, move that money to Internet Marketing, and increase the total Internet Marketing budget to $25,000. All in favor. g. A motion was made by Chair Mehta, seconded by Boardmember Viloria to increase the Sponsorships category from $7,000 to $10,000 to allow for additional outreach to other national parks and organizations per Boardmember Viloria’s suggestion. All in favor. h. A motion was made by Chair Mehta, seconded by Boardmember Dusastre to add a Revenue line item for $7,500 to cover potential income from the Merchandise for Resale. All in favor. 9. Future Meetings Schedule - Confirm dates for August and September 2018 meetings and review Timeline to Complete TBID Renewal Procedure for FY 2018-2019. The Board agreed that the next TBID Advisory Board meetings will be Thursday, August 30 and Thursday, Sept. 13. 10. Partnerships - (a) BLM Mojave Trails National Monument, (b) Night Sky Festival in November. a. BLM Mojave Trails National Monument. Boardmember Dusastre announced that September 18- 19-20 are being considered for another 3-hour training session, to be held at the Community Services Building in Luckie Park, and all hoteliers and staff will be invited. She will work with Marketing Specialist Waite on an announcement once the final date has been selected. b. Night Sky Festival in November. Vice Chair Congdon briefly announced that plans are moving along for the event on November 10 at Sky’s The Limit, Luckie Park, and Community Center. BOARDMEMBER COMMENTS - NONE CITY MANAGER COMMENTS - NONE FUTURE BOARDMEMBER INITIATED ITEMS - NONE ADJOURNMENT– Chair Mehta adjourned the meeting at 5:11 p.m. Respectfully Submitted, Vickie Waite, Marketing Specialist Page 3 of 3 Page 5 of 9 Page 6 of 9  CITY OF TWENTYNINE PALMS EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY The following employment opportunity for the TBID Board. Application Deadline: FULL TIME MARKETING DIRECTOR Starting Salary: If you are interested in applying for this position, please contact City Hall for a full job description at 760-367-6799 or visit www.29palms.org. Strategic Planning • Implement strategic, integrated, and innovative marketing plans and programs that align with the organization’s strategic planning goals, and drive increased visitation, length of stay and repeat visits during off-peak season. • Analyze and review current tourism trends and statistical data on all market segments. Identify research methodology to ensure key metrics are tracked using industry best practices. • Work with the TIBID to help shape direction of the organization and its ongoing strategic initiatives. • Utilizes multi-media and multi-level communications strategies to develop a fully- integrated marketing plan, using an innovative mix of marketing programs with focus on digital and social media, technological applications, and broadcast media. • Liaises with Visit California, Central Coast Tourism Council and other strategic partners’ PR/media teams to ensure inclusion and maximum exposure for the destination. • Cultivates media interest and participation in promotional campaigns, for signature events and seasons and other organizational initiatives, • Understands and develops specific Content Marketing, related to Visit 29! to create strategic content plans to leverage editorial coverage and editorial opportunities in social and digital marketing initiatives • Maintain current knowledgeable about the cities geographic regions and its tourist attractions • Develop and maintain marketing budgets. Creates and manages communications budgets and provides accurate forecasting and updates. • Effectively tracks and measures all tourism and marketing initiatives and campaigns, tracking response, leads, sales, retention and ROI • Plan, develop and execute integrated marketing and sales campaigns across disciplines including travel trade marketing, direct to consumer marketing, public relations, social media, content creation etc. Brand Marketing • Oversee development and roll-out creative marketing programs brand that drives visitation to Visit 29! and can serve as a platform for local stakeholder use beyond the hospitality industry. • Develop, plan and implement targeted, integrated marketing programs that support DMO mission. • Oversee all advertising, brand messaging and collateral development to ensure consistency and adherence to brand goals. Page 7 of 9 Media Relations • Establishes and maintains relationships with key local, regional, national, and international trade media and publications • Oversee implementation of strategic, targeted public relations programs that support the strategic plan and help the organization achieve its mission and goals. • Be the point of contact for all media, representing the Visit 29! Tourism organization • Work with area partners to ensure marketing information is included in press outreach provides a balanced representation of partners during in-market press trips. • Work in collaboration with Visit 29! key partners and external media relations a to identify ways to generate significant media coverage in priority outlets. Monitor all news coverage, and share relevant news with the advisor board, tourism partners and community • Maintain and update the crisis communications plan; coordinate with area emergency services and other identified organizations to ensure plan alignment; serve as communications lead during incidents. Partnership Development • Oversee community outreach program in collaboration with the TIBID board Engagement to help build trust among partners and stakeholders. • As the leader, act as liaison with Visit 29! partners, key contacts at chambers and visitor centers, and outside strategic partners and stakeholders to enhance partnerships. Maintain positive relationships with same. • Identifies and develops new sponsorship opportunities for the TBID’s programs and initiatives. Negotiates and secures co-op marketing partners for TBID’s co-op programs. • Regularly meets with key partners, local government, and businesses from the hospitality/tourism industry • Responsible for identifying key community events to sponsor/support and for securing CVB or Partner attendance at those events. • Negotiates event and other program sponsorships. Social Media and Digital Marketing • Develop and oversee an integrated social media strategy and plan that supports Visit 29! Tourism goals. Develops and updates content for website and social media outlets. • Maintain and enhance Visit 29! official tourism website and social media sites, including content updates, coordinating cooperative membership sites and links to other pages. • Monitor coverage, public sentiment, and reputation. The ideal candidate is: • A visionary and strategic marketing leader, possessing an ability to communicate and implement innovative, creative and effective marketing strategies; • A recognized branding innovator who brings a track record of successful brand stewardship and a deep understanding of traditional and digital and social media to engage consumers and improve brand awareness; • An experienced and successful marketer possessing a wealth of marketing knowledge, and creative capabilities accumulated from contributing to the growth of a highly respected brand; Page 8 of 9  • A strategic communications professional with a keen sense of drafting and delivering messages that convey the value of tourism (or another brand) and creating support among key stakeholders. • A collaborator who enjoys working with a diverse group of professionals, is successful in consensus building, and is committed to the vision and success of the organization. • Knowledgeable of the travel industry, online channels of distribution, and digital tools/strategies to effectively target key markets with measurable results. • Creative, organized and detail oriented. • A strong communicator, possessing the ability to communicate effectively verbally and in writing with all publics including a Board of Directors, elected officials and critical stakeholder and partner groups. • A team motivator, capable of setting and exceeding individual and group Key Performance Indicators and other tracking methods. • A team player, able to work collaboratively and constructively with key stakeholder’s industry partners. • Flexible; able to adjust to changing conditions and circumstances. Meets deadlines. • Tenacious about achieving very high standards of performance and professionalism; positive and cooperative. • Capable of providing strategic marketing counsel to partners and visitor-serving colleagues. • Politically astute; able to guide and support local community relations efforts. • Competent with vendor engagements, departmental budgets and goal forecasting. EXPERIENCE AND EDUCATION: • Graduation from a four-year college from an academic institution or equivalent related work experience, with a minimum of 5 years’ experience in senior marketing roles in the tourism and other relevant industries. Required Skills: • 7+ years of relevant industry experience • Extensive knowledge of on and offline marketing outlets for the tourism sector • Understanding of advertising metrics and reporting • Ability to think strategically about marketing activities • Ability to provide direction and input to TIBID • Experience managing reports and delivering annual presentations • Excellent verbal, written and organizational skills • Confident public speaker • Strong knowledge of online communications strategies and tactics, usability standards, branding and latest digital techniques, tools and best practices • Deadline and detail oriented • Ability to work with minimum supervision and with excellent time management skills • Proficient in MS Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Adobe, WordPress, social media software such as Hootsuite, photo editing, video editing) • Ability to travel to signature events Page 9 of 9