2013/2014 Business Plan & Budget PRESENTED BY VISIT BEND

VISIT BEND is an innovative marketing organization dedicated to enhancing Bend’s economy by attracting as many visitors as possible to the City, and once they’re here, ensuring those visitors spend as much money as possible with local businesses.

THINK OF US as a full-service marketing, PR, & advertising agency with only ONE client: The Bend Tourism Industry

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WHO IS VISIT BEND?

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1PHOTO: PETE ALPORT / VISIT BEND

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As the 2014 fiscal year approaches, Bend’s tourism industry is strong, stable, and charging forward on a path of growth and innovation.

Bend’s transient room tax collections (TRT) and citywide lodging occupancy achieved historic highs in 2012, and the current fiscal year is on track to raise the bar even higher. Traffic to visitbend.com more than doubled over the past five years and is on pace to exceed one million visits in 2013. These indicators provide an accurate and exciting reflection of the growing demand for our destination.

In addition to the significant and broad economic impact of tourist spending, it’s now clearer than ever that tourism is a primary catalyst for attracting new residents and businesses to our city. It is with this in mind that Visit Bend works with the City of Bend on efforts to convert tourists to long-term residents.

From an organizational perspective, FY2013 marked an exciting and positive evolution of Visit Bend’s role as the City’s tourism bureau and sports commission. The organization attracted more visitors to the City, invested in new marketing technologies, and implemented strategies that produced quantifiable results for tourism stakeholders.

As the team tasked with the City of Bend’s largest economic development effort, we look forward to working with the community to achieve continued growth for Bend’s economy.

On behalf of Visit Bend’s staff and board of directors, thank you for your continued support of Bend tourism.

All the best,

Doug La PlacaPresident/CEOVisit Bend

DEAR TOURISM STAKEHOLDER

IntroductionTourism by the NumbersVisit Bend’s CompassVisit Bend’s Programs & ServicesThe Marketing Model - The Community Tourism Funnel

Organizational Chart - A Marketing Model of Efficiency

Fiscal Year 2013 In ReviewFiscal Year 2014 Goals & ObjectivesBend Tourism SWOT AnalysisHow We Measure SuccessThe 2014 PlanThe 2014 Budget

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Transient Room Tax (TRT) DataCitywide Lodging Occupancy DataWebsite Analytics SummaryBend in the MediaEvent & Group Hot Sheet What Visit Bend Would Do with More MoneyKey Performance IndicatorsFrequently Asked Questions

APP

END

IX

TABLE OF CONTENTS

45

1012-13

8 91114-15

67

$526 MILLIONANNUAL TOURIST SPENDING

IN DESCHUTES COUNTY (DEAN RUNYAN & ASSOCIATES)

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TOURISM BY THE NUMBERS

2.2 MILLIONNUMBER OF TOURISTS

THAT VISIT BEND ANNUALLY (RRC RESEARCH)

8,480 JOBSIN CENTRAL OREGON BECAUSE OF TOURISM

(DEAN RUNYAN & ASSOCIATES)

42% INCREASEIN BEND’S TRT (ROOM TAX)

COLLECTIONS SINCE 2004 (CITY OF BEND)

20% INCREASEIN BEND’S TRT (ROOM TAX)

COLLECTIONS SINCE 2009 (CITY OF BEND)

$3.5 MILLIONTOTAL TRT COLLECTED IN

BEND IN 2012 (CITY OF BEND)

$2.45 MILLIONTRT CONTRIBUTION TO THE

CITY’S GENERAL FUND IN 2012 (CITY OF BEND)

2NUMBER OF CONSECUTIVE RECORD YEARS FOR BEND’S

TOURISM INDUSTRY(CITY OF BEND TRT)

4,839BEND TOURISM TV & RADIO

COMMERCIALS AIRED IN 2012

2,314,722PAGEVIEWS ON

VISITBENDCOM IN 2012, A 31% INCREASE OVER 2011

(GOOGLE ANALYTICS)

60,000BEND ALE TRAIL MAPS DISTRIBUTED IN 2012

67%BEND VISITORS IN 2012 WHO

LIVE OUTSIDE OF OREGON

4.2AVERAGE NUMBER OF NIGHTS STAYED BY SUMMER VISITORS

IN 2012(RRC RESEARCH)

40%SUMMER TOURISTS WHO

VISITED AT LEAST 1 BREWERY(RRC RESEARCH)

33%SUMMER TOURISTS WHO

RODE BIKES DURING THEIR STAY (RRC RESEARCH)

16.5%SUMMER VISITORS FROM

CALIFORNIA(RRC RESEARCH)16.5%

SUMMER VISITORS FROM WASHINGTON

(RRC RESEARCH)

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VISIT BEND’S COMPASS

Visit Bend’s mission is to enhance the economic vitality of our community by promoting Bend as a year-round visitor, convention and event destination by maximizing collaborative partnerships, efficiently activating transient room tax

revenue into effective sales and marketing programs, and cultivating a world-class visitor experience.

Visit Bend’s vision is to be the most effective Destination Marketing Organization (DMO) in the State of Oregon, to provide the best delivery of tourism service and information to Bend visitors, to be the tourism marketing resource of

choice for businesses in Bend, and to be the industry leader in financial management and stewardship of public funds.

Visit Bend is an economic development organization whose function is to create an effective mix of marketing, sales, and service programs which are designed to produce a positive economic impact of visitor spending in Bend. Developing and implementing these programs results in enhancing the City’s livability by providing year-round

employment. Visit Bend sells the entire City and works in good partnership with all sectors of the Bend and Central Oregon visitor and convention industry.

Excellence in Stewardship of Public FundsOptimum Trust and Relationship with the Citizens of Bend and Bend City Council

Innovation, Creativity and Excellence in All That We Do Collaboration with Key Partners

Highest Level of Ethical StandardsReflect the Warmth, Friendliness, and Welcoming Nature of the Community

MISSION

VISION

VALUES

PURPOSE

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VISIT BEND’S PROGRAMS & SERVICES

Visit Bend

TM

artpillars of

CENTERBEND VISITOR

TM

BLOGBEND BUZZ

.COMMYMOVETOBEND

.COMBENDFORBUSINESS

TV/RADIO/PRINT/ONLINEADVERTISING

ATHLETIC EVENTSNATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP

MEDIA PITCHESPUBLIC RELATIONS &

.COMVISITBEND

VISIT BEND’S MARKETING MODEL (aka The Community Tourism Funnel)

Virtually everything Visit Bend does is designed to drive traffic to Bend and VISITBEND.COM. Visit Bend’s marketing model is founded on the fundamental strategy of generating customers through a comprehensive mix of MARKETING, SALES, and PUBLIC RELATIONS programs, then driving those customers toVISITBEND.COM where they are connected to Bend’s tourism stakeholders.

As a non-membership publicly funded organization, Visit Bend offers free listings on visitbend.com to tourism stakeholders to ensure transient room tax dollars benefit the entire tourism industry.

The premise is, we attract visitors to Bend and provide opportunities for local businesses to convert those visitors to customers.

[ [

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NUMBER 1VISIT BEND IS A LEADING

REFERRER OF WEBSITE TRAFFIC TO MOST BEND TOURISM BUSINESSES

(CHECK YOUR ANALYTICS!)

VISIT BEND’S website is the engine that converts Visit Bend’s marketing efforts to revenue for local businesses

TV • RADIO • PRINT • SEO / SEM • CITYWIDE EVENTS PUBLIC RELATIONS • BEND ALE TRAIL • BEND VISITOR CENTER SOCIAL MEDIA • ONLINE • BEND BUZZ BLOG • PILLARS OF ART

ROUNDABOUT ART ROUTE • THREE SISTERS SCENIC BIKEWAYMYMOVETOBEND.COM • BENDFORBUSINESS.COM

$ $

$$

$

$$

$

$

$$ $

Arts & Musuems

Golf Courses

Events

Ski Resorts

Tour Operators

Downtown Bend

Old Mill Distric t

NorthWest Crossing

The Eastside

Newport

Galveston

3rd Street

Restaurants

RetailLodging

VISITBEND.COM

VISITBEND.COM$

$$$

$

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ORGANIZATIONAL CHART - A MARKETING MODEL OF EFFICIENCY

Visit Bend’s staff and board of directors take great pride in the organization’s efficiency. With 6.5 FTEs, Visit Bend operated substantially below the 2012 industry staffing aver-age of 10.6 FTEs among the 14 tourism bureaus in Visit Bend’s comparative group defined by the Western Association of Visitor & Convention Bureaus (WACVB).

Additionally, only 29.6% of Visit Bend’s total 2012 operating budget was allocated to full-time and part-time salaries, compared to the industry average of 37.1%. While these metrics are impressive, Visit Bend further increases efficiency by not contracting out most marketing services. Most tour-ism bureaus use outside advertising agencies, but Visit Bend handles most marketing services in-house, including creative production, graphic design, copywriting, blog production, public relations, sales, social media, collateral development, and event management. This makes marketing much less expensive.

As stewards of public funds, the staff and board of directors continually look for new ways to ensure Visit Bend operates efficiently.

29.6%PERCENTAGE OF VISIT BEND’S 2012 OPERATING BUDGET ALLOCATED TO

FULL-TIME AND PART-TIME SALARIES COMPARED TO THE INDUSTRY

AVERAGE OF 37.1% (WACVB)

Board of DirectorsBen PerleChuck ArnoldJodie Barram

Jade MayerCarolyn Eagan

Dave Nissen

President/CEODoug La Placa

Marketing Director(open position)

Contract CFOScott Greenstone

Director of Sales & Sports Development

Kevney Dugan

Operations ManagerValerie Warren

PR & Communications Manager

Tawna Fenske

4 Part-time Welcome Center

Information Specialists

12 Bend Visitor Center Volunteer

Ambassadors

Noelle Fredland

Contract Interactive Agency

Lynnette Braillard

FISCAL YEAR 2013 IN REVIEW

With two months remaining, Fiscal Year 2013 is on track to be a record year for Bend tourism. Transient room tax collections (TRT), citywide lodging occupancy, and citywide average daily rate (ADR) will exceed the historic highs set in FY2012. Additionally, traffic to visitbend.com and the Bend Visitor Center will reach all time highs. Google Analytics from third party websites demonstrated record referrals from VISITBEND.COM.

Every available indicator suggests FY2013 will be another record year for Bend’s tourism industry. Listed below are a few tourism highlights from FY2013.

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• Visit Bend’s advertising campaign won gold and silver medals at the Oregon ADDYs.

• The Bend Visitor Center is on pace to host more than 20,000 visitors in FY2013, representing a new historic high.

• The Three Sisters Scenic Bikeway website was launched and the bikeway expanded from 4 to 8 routes.

• Visit Bend produced the Bend Buzz Blog and Bend Event Calendar Widgets to be installed on partner websites.

• Visit Bend secured Bend as the long-term host for the Oregon Senior Games.

• Bend hosted 14 regional & national citywide athletic events:

USA Track & Field Half Marathon National Championships USA Track & Field 50K National Championships

USA Masters Road Cycling National Championships Leadman Triathlon

Halloween Cyclocross Crusade US Gran Prix of Cyclocross

USA Snowshoe National Championships KTM Adventure Rally

Northwest Outdoor Writers Association Conference

• FY2013 Transient Room Tax collections are on pace to exceed $3.7 million for the first time.

• Citywide average daily lodging rates are on pace to set a new historic high, surpassing the previous record set in FY2012.

• For calendar year 2012, unique visits to visitbend.com equaled 770,489. This marked a historic high and a 37% year-over-year

increase.

• Visit Bend launched the largest TV and radio advertising campaign ever executed for Bend tourism. Over 4,000 TV and

radio commercials aired throughout Oregon and southern Washington on cable, DirecTV and NBC.

• The Bend Buzz Blog increased its readership by 67% year-over-year.

• 60,000 Bend Ale Trail maps were distributed and Ale Trail completions surpassed 6,000.

• The Roundabout Art Route was launched through a unique partnership between Visit Bend and Art in Public Places.

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• Achieve +3.5% year-over-year growth in TRT collections.

• Expand reach and frequency of Visit Bend’s award-winning TV and radio campaigns.

• Expand the Bend Ale Trail from 10 to 12 breweries.

• Exceed 1 million visits on visitbend.com.

• Install the Bend Buzz Blog and Event Calendar Widgets on partner websites.

• Work with Community partners to initiate the Tin Pan Alley Art Collection.

• Produce a Bend Ale Trail marketing video.

• Expand distribution of the Bend Buzz Blog.

• Improve communication and collaboration with COVA and other destination marketing organizations in Central Oregon.

• Win bidding process with USA Triathlon to host the 2014, 2015 and 2016 Duathlon National Championships.

• Produce a second mobile application called the Bend Buzz App that will provide push-notifications on events, special offers, and breaking tourism deals and news.

1 MILLIONVISITBEND.COM IS ON PACE TO EXCEED ONE

MILLION VISITS IN 2013 (GOOGLE ANALYTICS)

FISCAL YEAR 2014 GOALS & OBJECTIVES

PHOTO: PETE ALPORT / VISIT BEND

BEND TOURISM SWOT ANALYSIS

Despite the current momentum of Bend’s tourism industry, there remain many opportunities for improvement that will help ensure long term growth for Bend’s economy. Below is a list of a few of the Bend tourism industry’s STRENGTHS, WEAKNESSES, OPPORTUNITIES, and THREATS.

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• A beautiful and inspiring landscape • Hip and charming business districts• Unparalleled outdoor recreation• Sunshine!• Extraordinary craft beer culture and the Bend Ale Trail• Emerging arts and cultural attractions• Genuinely friendly community• Parks, trails, open spaces, and pristine rivers and lakes• Events, events, events!• A state-of-the-art Convention Center on the river• Strong collaboration between City of Bend and Visit Bend

STRENGTHS

• Low tourism volume during shoulder seasons and winter months• Shortage of funding for tourism promotion• Lack of enforcement with TRT compliance

WEAKNESSES

• Increase tourism during shoulder season and winter months• Increase TRT rate to generate more money for tourism promotion and public safety• Work with the City to increase compliance with TRT collections• Enhance recreational amenities (sports fields, trails, paddle parks)• New and updated lodging facilities

OPPORTUNITIES

• Downturn in national economy and consumer confidence• Increase in regional marketing from competitive destinations• Large scale forest fire and drought

THREATSPHOTO: PETE ALPORT / VISIT BEND

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HOW WE MEASURE SUCCESS

Visit Bend uses several metrics to gauge the ebbs and flows of Bend’s tourism industry and to evaluate the effectiveness of Visit Bend’s marketing efforts. When viewed cumulatively these metrics provide a reliable approximation of the health of the industry and the effectiveness of Visit Bend’s programs and services. Listed below are the primary TOURISM METRICS Visit Bend uses with a brief description of each.

TRANSIENT ROOM TAX COLLECTIONS (TRT) TRT collections serve as the primary metric Visit Bend uses to measure the ebbs and flows of the Bend tourism industry. Due to the demand driven nature of lodging pricing (the higher the demand, the higher the lodging rates), TRT collections provide a BLENDED METRIC of rate and occupancy that effectively approximates the overall demand for a destination’s lodging inventory.

CITYWIDE LODGING OCCUPANCYCitywide lodging occupancy is the percentage of available lodging units occupied for a defined period of time. Smith Travel Research(STR) occupancy data is the industry standard used by Travel Oregon, The Oregon Employment Department, most lodging companies, and Visit Bend. Along with TRT data, citywide occupancy data helps Visit Bend gauge the ebbs and flows of the City’s tourism industry.

WEBSITE TRAFFIC TO VISITBEND.COMVisit Bend’s marketing model is designed to drive customers and leads to visitbend.com where they are converted to customers for local businesses. As a result, the volume of visitors to Visit Bend’s website is a key metric used to evaluate interest in our destination and the effectiveness of our marketing.

REFERRAL TRAFFIC FROM VISITBEND.COM TO STAKEHOLDER WEBSITES Visitbend.com is designed to convert Visit Bend’s marketing efforts to revenue for local businesses. Therefore, the volume of website referrals sent from visitbend.com to the websites of tourism stakeholders is a primary metric used to evaluate the effectiveness of Visit Bend’s marketing.

BEND VISITOR CENTER TRAFFIC Despite the advances in mobile technology, Bend’s state-of-the-art Visitor Center remains an important part of the visitor experience. Traffic volume helps Visit Bend determine the relevancy of the Bend Visitor Center and provides ancillary (but immediate) data of the city’s tourist volume.

BEND VISITOR GUIDE REQUESTSVisit Bend’s online content is substantially more popular among tourists than printed brochures, but demand remains for a printed visitor guide. The quantity of visitor guides distributed is a secondary metric used to evaluate the demand for the messages and materials Visit Bend distributes.

RELOCATION PACKET REQUESTS Tourism serves as a gateway industry to attract new residents and new businesses to Bend. With this in mind, Visit Bend works with the City of Bend to convert tourists to residents. The volume of requests for relocation packets helps Visit Bend evaluate the effectiveness of these efforts.

BEND ALE TRAIL PASSPORTS DISTRIBUTED & REDEEMEDThe Bend Ale Trail has quickly become one of the signature visitor experiences in Central Oregon, and an important driver of tourism on a year-round basis. The number of passports distributed and redeemed is one of the metrics we use to gauge the effectiveness of the Bend Ale Trail marketing program.

THE 2014 PLAN

Visit Bend is firmly focused on achieving the FY2014 goals and objectives reflected on page 10. The following 10 KEY STRATEGIES provide a summary of Visit Bend’s primary efforts that will be employed to achieve those objectives. Each of these strategies and tactics will be initiated in the fourth quarter of the current fiscal year and will continue to be executed and enhanced through the conclusion of the upcoming fiscal year.

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STRATEGY #1 DESTINATION BRAND MARKETING Advertising the Bend tourism experience through mass media represents Visit Bend’s largest expenditure & a primary driver of traffic to visitbend.com.

STRATEGY #2 CITYWIDE EVENTS, CONVENTIONS & CONFERENCESCourting citywide groups is important to improve non-summer tourism & introduce new visitors to the destination.

STRATEGY #3 DIRECT MARKETINGCommunicating compelling marketing messages to our opt-in databases cultivates long-term customer relationships.

STRATEGY #4 PUBLIC RELATIONS Pitching story ideas to journalists is an effective and efficient way to generate national promotion for Bend. Refer to visitbend.com/pr for national press generated by Visit Bend.

STRATEGY #5 WEBSITES AND INTERACTIVE MARKETINGVisit Bend’s website is the most important part of Visit Bend’s marketing mix. Ensuring Bend tourism is supported by the best tourism website in the industry is Visit Bend’s most important job. Visit Bend’s hyperactive social media channels, an adventurous blog, a beer app, and numerous micro-sites extend and reinforce the Bend brand.

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THE 2014 PLAN

STRATEGY #6 CORPORATE PARTNERSHIPS Establishing marketing relationships with corporate partners extends Bend’s marketing reach & validates the destination.

STRATEGY #7 COMMUNITY LEADERSHIPAllocating time & resources to make Visit Bend an active participant in the community enables Visit Bend to be a broader value to the community, and ensures Bend’s tourism industry is represented in important community conversations.

STRATEGY #8 RESEARCHInvesting in high-quality research enables Visit Bend to deliver on the commitment to be a data-driven organization. Addi-tionally, the research is made available to the public—at no cost—to assist with business & economic development efforts.

STRATEGY #9 FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT Visit Bend is focused on achieving excellence in financial management & stewardship of public funds. This is an ongoing & unwavering priority for Visit Bend’s staff and board of directors.

STRATEGY #10 BEND VISITOR CENTERDespite the growing use of mobile technology, the state-of-the-art Bend Visitor Center remains an important part of the marketing mix. Visitation to Bend’s visitor center continues to increase every year.

PHOTO: PETE ALPORT / VISIT BEND

THE 2014 BUDGET

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VARIANCE

REVENUE FY2013 FY2014 $ %

City Funding $1,114,674 $1,131,394 16,720 1.5% Retail Sales $77,364 78,524 1,160 1.5% Advertising $66,400 73,040 6,640 10%

Events $21,011 128,500 107,489 511.6%Other $7,360 10,000 2,640 35.9%Total $1,286,808 $1,421,458 134,649 10.5%

EXPENSES FY2013 FY2014 $ %

Marketing 506,280 589,553 83,272 16.4% Group Sales 201,203 290,462 89,259 44.4%

Visitor Center 174,206 172,828 (1,378) (0.8%) General & Administration 360,974 365,218 4,244 1.2%

Total $1,242,663 $1,418,060 175,397 14.1%

NET INCOME (LOSS) $44,145 $3,397 (40,748) (3.7%)

PRIMARY BUDGET ALLOCATIONS

YEAR TO YEAR COMPARISON

42%

20%

12%MARKETING

GROUP SALES

26%

VISITOR CENTER

GENERAL & ADMIN

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THE 2014 BUDGET

REVENUE TOTAL $ TOTAL % City Funding 1,131,394 79.6% Retail Sales 78,524 5.5% Advertising Sales 73,040 5.1% Event Revenue 128,500 9.0% Other Revenue 10,000 0.7% TOTAL $1,421,458 100%

PERSONNEL EXPENSES TOTAL $ TOTAL % Base Pay 397,114 27.9% Incentive Pay 35,000 2.5% Payroll Taxes 37,378 2.6% Employee Benefits 42,599 3.0% Contract Labor - 0.0% TOTAL $512,091 36%

SALES & MARKETING EXPENSES TOTAL $ TOTAL % Visitor Development Fund 188,000 13.2% Online Marketing 49,152 3.5% Outdoor - 0.0% Photography 6,650 0.5% Print 28,264 2.0% Production 47,593 3.3% Radio 66,002 4.6% Trade Shows 6,704 0.5% TV 150,000 10.6% Collateral 36,800 2.6% Postage for Brochure Distribution 23,025 1.6% Public Relations 13,400 0.9% Promotions 33,649 2.4% Research 20,000 1.4% Web Development 16,652 1.2% Travel & Meals 20,100 1.4% Retail Purchasing 52,433 3.7% TOTAL $758,424 53.4%

OVERHEAD EXPENSES TOTAL $ TOTAL % Building Lease 45,837 3.2% Building Maintenance 8,289 0.6% Equipment Lease & Maint. 4,410 0.3% Professional Fees 34,300 2.4% Office Supplies 11,500 0.8% Utilities 5,000 0.4% Bank Fees 3,000 0.2% Dues & Subscriptions 8,409 0.6% Insurance 4,000 0.3% Licenses & Permits 2,000 0.1% Education & Training 900 0.1% Network & Telephone Co. 10,000 0.7% Non-Capital IT 500 0.0% Depreciation & Amort. 9,600 0.7% Interest Expense (200) 0.0% TOTAL $147,545 10.4%

TOTAL EXPENSES$1,418,060

4,839BEND TOURISM TV & RADIO

COMMERCIALS AIRED IN 2012

APPENDIX A: TRANSIENT ROOM TAX (TRT) DATA

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Transient Room Tax collections (TRT) serve as the primary metric Visit Bend uses to measure the ebbs and flows of Bend’s tourism industry. Due to the demand driven nature of lodging pricing (the higher the demand, the higher the lodging rates), TRT collections provide a BLENDED METRIC of rate and occupancy, effectively approximating the overall demand for a destination’s lodging inventory.

Bend’s TRT collections set a historic high in 2012 and are on pace to raise the bar even higher in 2013. Additionally, eight of the 10 months between April 2012 and January 2013 set historic highs for that given month. The chart below provides TRT collections from 2008 through 2013 for the City of Bend.

FY ‘08/09 CHANGE FY’09/10 CHANGE FY’10/11 CHANGE FY’11/12 CHANGE FY’12/13 CHANGE

JUL $449,316 -10.1% $433,489 -3.5% $489,662 13.0% $544,668 11.2% $543,438 -0.2%AUG $436,886 -9.7% $384,731 -11.9% $444,130 15.4% $480,388 8.2% $534,186 11.2%SEP $321,460 -7.8% $284,892 -11.4% $328,306 15.2% $377,773 15.1% $395,722 4.8%OCT $242,479 -1.0% $224,398 -7.5% $250,959 11.8% $229,891 -8.4% $280,250 21.9%NOV $152,624 -16.5% $144,153 -5.6% $152,274 5.6% $166,215 9.2% $178,469 7.4%DEC $151,022 -26.9% $185,489 22.8% $218,038 17.5% $205,601 -5.7% $228,195 11%JAN $142,493 -16.1% $143,102 0.4% $153,692 7.4% $158,458 3.1% $183,061 15.5%FEB $160,038 -21.6% $165,234 3.2% $181,006 9.5% $191,409 5.7%

MAR $167,398 -28.0% $198,289 18.5% $207,918 4.9% $225,231 8.3%APR $179,874 -21.9% $201,723 12.1% $215,623 6.9% $233,926 8.5%MAY $239,638 -16.0% $256,714 7.1% $290,647 13.2% $304,522 4.8%JUN $294,814 -13.0% $337,885 14.6% $348,207 3.1% $405,876 16.6%

FYTD $1,896,279 -11.2% $1,800,254 -5.1% $2,037,061 13.2% $2,162,994 6.2% $2,343,321 8.3%FY END $2,938,041 -14.3% $2,960,098 0.8% $3,280,461 10.8% $3,523,958 7.4%

The ORANGE HIGHLIGHT indicates a historic high

CITY OF BEND TRT REVENUEReported to Visit Bend by City of Bend Finance Department

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APPENDIX B: CITYWIDE LODGING OCCUPANCY DATA

APPENDIX C: 2012 WEBSITE ANALYTICS SUMMARY

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VISITBEND.COM is the foundation of Visit Bend’s marketing model. Virtually everything Visit Bend does is designed to drive traffic to visitbend.com where Visit Bend’s marketing efforts are converted to revenue for local business. Due to the significant role of Visit Bend’s website, we track the performance of the website closely. Listed below is a summary of visitbend.com’s primary metrics from calendar year 2012.

• 770,489 visits (up +37% over 2011)

- Average of 64,694 visits per month - July was the highest month with 108,382 visits - November was the lowest month with 31,480 visits • 2,314,722 pageviews (up +31% over 2011)• Average Time on Site, 2:38• Percentage of New Visits, 64.36%• Pages Per Visit, 3.1

TOTAL SITE TRAFFIC

• 68% from search engines (84% from Google)• 21% direct traffic• 10% referral traffic

TRAFFIC SOURCES

#1. City of Bend (ci.bend.or.us) 17,719 visits#2. Facebook (facebook.com) 10,358 visits#3. Comcast (xfinity.com) 1,026 visits#4. Cyclepub (cyclepub.com) 777 visits#5. Oxfordhotelbend.com 717 visits#6. USA Cycling (usacycling.org) 682 visits#7. Trip Advisor (tripadvisor.com) 627 visits#8. Bend Premier Cup Soccer Tourn. 623 visits#9. Travel Oregon 616 visits#10. Cyclocross Crusades 605 visits#11. Leadman Triathlon 535 visits#12. Downtown Bend Business Assn. 446 visits#13. Wanderlust Tours 412 visits#14. Bend Concerts (Amphitheater) 368 visits#15. OSU-Cascades 357 visits#16. Mt. Bachelor Ski Resort 352 visits#17. Triple Crown Sports 284 visits

Other Notable Referrers#39. Bend Chamber of Commerce 244 visits#43. Boneyard Beer 207 visits#44. City of Redmond 206 visits#51. Deschutes Brewery 177 visits#52. Old Mill District 176 visits#64. Brasada Ranch 132 visits#65. Crown Villa RV Resort 126 visits#69. Bend Brewfest 117 visits#259. Central Oregon Visitors Assn. (COVA) 20 visits

TOP TRAFFIC REFERRERS

• Bend, Oregon 19%• Portland, Oregon 12%• Seattle, Washington 10%• Eugene, Oregon 2%• Beaverton, Oregon 2%• Redmond, Oregon 1.6%• Vancouver, Washington 1.6%• La Pine, Oregon 1.5%• Salem, Oregon 1.44%• San Francisco, CA 1.3%• Los Angeles, CA 1%• Corvallis, Oregon 1%• Boise, Idaho 1%

GEOGRAPHIC ORGIN

2,314,722PAGEVIEWS ON

VISITBEND.COM IN 2012, A 31% INCREASE OVER 2011

(GOOGLE ANALYTICS)

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APPENDIX D: BEND IN THE MEDIA

Visit Bend

Visit Bend’s extensive public relations efforts over the last fiscal year resulted in significant regional and national media exposure. Here are a few of the highlights. For a complete list go to visitbend.com/pr

APPENDIX E: EVENT & GROUP HOT SHEET

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GROUP AND EVENT tourism is an important segment of Bend’s tourism industry. While events represent a relatively small portion of Bend’s overall tourism mix, they are critically important in building tourism during the SHOULDER SEASONS and WINTER MONTHS. In addition to helping smooth the tourism seasonality curve, groups and events introduce our destination to new visitors (i.e. they generate new product trial).

As this segment of Bend’s tourism industry continues to grow, Visit Bend will continue to cultivate our efforts to court citywide events to the city. Listed below are a few of the highlights from Visit Bend’s group and event efforts.

• US Snowshoe National Championships• USA Masters Road Cycling National Championships• USA Marathon Mountain Bike National Championships• Leadman Triathlon• KTM Motorcycle Adventure Rally• Halloween Cyclocross Crusade• US Gran Prix of Cyclocross

• American Canoe Association National Paddlesports Conference• USA Track & Field Club Cross Country Running National Championships• Halloween Cyclocross Crusade• USA Masters Road Cycling National Championships• US Gran Prix of Cyclocross• Leadman Triathlon• Oregon Senior Games

• 2014-2016 USA Duathlon National Championships• 2015-2016 USA Mountain Bike National Championships• International Mountain Biking Association World Summit• USA Track & Field Mountain Running Championships• National Craft Beer Conference

2012 HIGHLIGHTS

UPCOMING GROUPS & EVENTS

WHO WE ARE PURSUING

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APPENDIX F: WHAT VISIT BEND WOULD DO WITH MORE MONEY

EXPAND BEND’S ADVERTISING REACH TO SEATTLE & NORTHERN CALIFORNIA Approximately 70% of Bend’s summer visitors in 2012 came from outside the state of Oregon. However, current budgets fund advertising only in Oregon and Southern Washington. Extending the reach and frequency of Bend’s TV, radio, and online advertising programs would be the first priority of an expanded budget.

CREATE A CULTURAL TOURISM TRUST TO ENHANCE BEND’S CULTURAL TOURISM ASSETS & ESTABLISH LONG-TERM PUBLIC FUNDING FOR THE ARTSBend has a compelling and diverse collection of arts and cultural tourism assets. However, there is no established mechanism or budget to cultivate Bend’s cultural tourism assets with long-term public funding. This initiative is critical to diversifying Bend’s tourism offerings and improving tourism during the shoulder seasons and winter.

LAUNCH A WINTER ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN IN NORTHERN CALIFORNIA FEATURING THE BEND ALE TRAIL & MT. BACHELORBend’s winter tourism experience is significantly different than Northern California’s, and we think we can attract more winter visitors by differentiating Bend’s winter experience from Northern California’s—amazing breweries and big mountain skiing vs. uptight vineyards and long lift lines!

PRODUCE A LIBRARY OF BLOG VIDEOS PROMOTING BEND ATTRACTIONS The Bend Buzz Blog has quickly become some of Bend’s most important and compelling marketing content. The evolution of the Bend Buzz Blog is to produce 90 second video vignettes for each weekly blog post.

As an organization, Visit Bend employs an aggressive and innovative approach to economic development for the community. As a result of this approach, we are always looking for new ways to attract more tourists to Bend and drive more tourist dollars into the cash registers of local businesses.

Listed below are a few of the programs Visit Bend would initiate if additional tourism promotion dollars were available.

APPENDIX G: 2012 KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS

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770,489WEBSITE VISITS

BEND VISITOR GUIDE REQUESTS

RELOCATIONPACKET REQUESTS

1,182

BEND VISITOR CENTER TRAFFIC

18,037

99,006

PHOTO: TYLER ROEMER

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APPENDIX H: FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

HOW IS VISIT BEND FUNDED? ARE YOU CITY EMPLOYEES? By law, the City of Bend allocates 30% of transient room tax collections (TRT) to the promotion of tourism. This 30% is called the Tourism Fund and represents approximately 80% of Visit Bend’s total operating revenue. Additional revenue sources include advertising sales, event revenue, sponsorship revenue, and retail sales in the Bend Visitor Center. Visit Bend employees are not employees of the City, nor are they public employees. Visit Bend is a private, non-profit, independent marketing agency contracted by the City to promote tourism.

WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN VISIT BEND, THE CENTRAL OREGON VISITORS ASSOCIATION (COVA), AND THE OTHER TOURISM BUREAUS IN CENTRAL OREGON? Oregon’s state tourism commission (Travel Oregon), divides the state into seven tourism regions and assigns each region with a Regional Destination Marketing Organization (RDMO). COVA is the RDMO for Central Oregon. Within most regions, multiple Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs) exist. Whereas the RDMOs focus their marketing efforts broadly on behalf of the entire region, the DMOs focus their efforts more specifically on the city or destination that funds their efforts. Visit Bend is focused on marketing the city of Bend. The cities of Sisters, Redmond, and La Pine are also city specific DMOs.

IS VISIT BEND A MEMBERSHIP ORGANIZATION? HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO ADVERTISE THROUGH VISIT BEND? Visit Bend is a non-membership organization that promotes all Bend tourism businesses for FREE on visitbend.com, in the Bend Visitor Guide, through Visit Bend’s social media efforts, in the Bend Visitor Center, and through Visit Bend’s extensive public relations program. In addition to the free marketing support made available to all tourism stakeholders, businesses may purchase additional advertising on visitbend.com, the Bend Ale Trail Map, the Roundabout Art Route map, the Bend Visitor Guide, the Bend Relocation Packet, and in the Bend Visitor Center’s brochure rack program.

HOW DOES SOMEBODY GET APPOINTED TO VISIT BEND’S BOARD OF DIRECTORS? Visit Bend is guided by publicly drafted and approved bylaws that define the selection process of Visit Bend’s board members. The Visit Bend board of directors consists of seven positions: two representing the lodging industry, one city councilor, one city staff member, and three at-large positions. Per the bylaws, the city council representative is appointed by the mayor, the city staff member is appointed by the city manager, and the remaining five positions are elected by a majority vote of the sitting board members. Visit Bend’s bylaws are available to the public at visitbend.com/bylaws.

WHY DON’T I SEE ANY VISIT BEND TV COMMERCIALS OR HEAR ANY RADIO ADVERTISEMENTS IN BEND?Advertising represents Visit Bend’s largest expenditure, but since the advertising is intended to lure visitors to Bend, we activate our TV, radio and print in geographic markets where potential visitors live. Currently, the vast majority of Visit Bend’s advertising occurs in Oregon and Southern Washington. All of Visit Bend’s TV, radio, and print advertisements can be seen at visitbend.com/campaign.

VISIT BEND750 NW LAVA RD., STE. 160 BEND, OR 97701

541.382.8048 | VISITBEND.COM

All rights reserved; reproduction in whole or in part is prohibited without written permission from Visit Bend. Copyright 2013.