calaveras visitors bureau 2014 annual dinner & innovations in tourism awards

2014 Annual Dinner

and Innovations in Tourism Awards

• Increased our web visitation in

2013 by 17.5% and exceeded

that by 21% for 2014 for over

12,300 unique visits monthly.

• Increased our Facebook likes by

29% (from 9,354 on January 1st

to 13,184 on October 19th) and

achieved a 9% engagement rate

on average for each post over

the last month.

• On May 1st, we launched our

mobile and tablet sites resulting

in a 98.25% decrease in the

bounce rate on our desktop site.

• Twitter followers have increased

in 2014 by 22% from 476 to 583.

2014 Highlights – Digital

Leveraged our marketing dollars with our

regional tourism marketing groups:

• Gold Country Visitors Association

• 2014 2 fam tours resulting in great

media coverage

• California Visitors Guide co-op ad

• Dog Trekker partnership

• 2015 plans - Gold Country Golf fam

• High Sierra Visitors Council

• 2014 1 fam tour with Visit California

France

• Gold Country contest with Visit

California France

• Developed new map brochure

• 2015 plans – itinerary development

2014 Highlights – Regional Marketing

2014 HIGHLIGHTS – Email Campaigns

Monthly VISITOR newsletters

are sent to nearly 5500

subscribers

Monthly MEMBER

newsletters are sent to 435

members and friends of the

CVB

Monthly copy of VISITOR

newsletters for members go

to the same 435 members

and friends

Why have we received the

Constant Contact All Star

Award for the last two

years?

The industry standard open

rate for email campaigns is

18.2%. Here’s how WE do:

2014 Highlights – Activities Guide

80,000 copies distributed through:• Fulfillment from ad reader response in:

• Sunset, VIA and CA Visitors Guide

• Gold Country Visitor Centers

• County rack distribution program

• Travel trade shows

• Media & tour operator fulfillment

• California State Fair – GOLD AGAIN!

• 2014 Certified Distribution:

• Doubled N. California Summers

Sports Program

• Doubled San Jose Corporate offices

• Added Oakland Airport

• Kept San Jose Airport and CA Welcome

Centers

Digital version also available on CVB website and issuu.com where it’s

fully interactive and can be shared anywhere online.

2014 HIGHLIGHTS: Presentations

• Presenting to top California tourism marketing organizations helps

reinforce our brand and reminds them that we’re here and have a

great deal to offer. For 2014 we presented to:

• San Francisco Travel – 15 minutes expanded to 2 hours to

include time with frogs and catered lunch by Lunch Lady Catering

paired with Calaveras wines.

• Visit California – 1 hour presentation with frogs, wine, rubber

chickens, chocolates and fantastic giveaways including an

overnight stay at Hotel Léger, free wine tasting and cave tours.

2014 HIGHLIGHTS: Website Upgrades

• Expanded our listings

• No longer just member based

• Unlimited listings under every

logical category

• Continued to expand the Member’s

Corner

• All board reports are posted

• Check out Highlights reports for the

latest on what we’ve achieved

• Events for our calendar can now be

submitted by YOU!

• Expanded the Weddings section

• Goal is to make it the best

Calaveras weddings resource

online

• We are seeking input –

suggestions and comments

welcome!

Member Programs: VIP

The Calaveras VIP Program is now more

valuable than ever:

• We obtained over 1600 new subscribers in

2014 from visitors center check-ins, online

requests and mobile sign-ups.

• About half our membership now participates

with incentive offers to visitors:

• 22 lodging properties

• 8 restaurants

• 20 recreation providers

• 11 retail stores

• 19 wineries

Member Programs: Frog Play

Launched last year, Frog Play now has over 150

subscribers:

• Give LOCALS a reason to stay local for

recreation, shopping, wine tasting etc.

• Sign up is automatic on smart phones – VIP

subscribers are redirected to Frog Play if their

zip code is from Amador, Calaveras or

Tuolumne.

• All subscribers get our monthly visitor

newsletters – encouraging them to attend local

events.

• Sign up NOW and join your CVB partners:

• 7 lodging properties

• 3 restaurants

• 9 recreation providers

• 6 retail stores

Member Programs: Employee Incentive

Exchange

• Reward your top employees for a job well done

with fun local experiences in an exchange

program without paying cash.

• Give Calaveras County tourism front-liners the

opportunity to directly experience and

recommend your product.

• You decide what to offer and who to exchange

with.

• Choose from 4 value levels:• Bronze - $25 to $50

• Silver - $50 to $100

• Gold - $100 to $150

• Platinum – over

$150

Innovations in Tourism Awards

2014

2014 Innovations in Tourism Awards

The nominees in the ATTRACTION category are:

• Angels Camp Museum for their new special programs,

extension of hours and huge increase in visitation.

• Brice Station Vineyards for their Hill Top concert series and

for hosting Theatre Under the Stars.

• Ironstone Vineyards for their wide variety of events year-

round, heritage museum, winery tours, great food and for

being a destination in itself.

• Local Roots Food Tours for providing an outstanding

culinary and wine tasting experience in Murphys.


The nominees in the EVENT category are:

• Calaveras County Fair and Jumping Frog Jubilee for annually

bringing in over 45,000 visitors for frog jump, rodeo, demolition derby,

the new outhouse race, etc.

• Calaveras Grape Stomp for being a fun and unique Calaveras wine

country event.

• Gold Rush Day for attracting over 7000 people in their second year to

enjoy historic exhibits, reenactments, live music and more.

• Lumberjack Day for creating a very popular event with lots of great

activities.

• Murphys Day of the Dead for creating a wonderful new, meaningful

event.

• Murphys Irish Day for creating a fun-filled day attracting large numbers

of visitors.


The nominees in the LODGING category are:

• Bruce and Wendi Davison for taking over the management

of Meadowmont Lodge, overhauling it and making it more

successful.

• Hotel Léger for their Backyard Blues and BBQ events,

Spaghetti Western Wednesdays etc.

• The Murphys Historic Hotel for braving Hotel Hell, bringing

in more events, building an outside bar and making other

upgrades.

• Worldmark by Wyndham for consistently bringing in large

numbers of guests to the county and for their excellent

concierge services at the front desk.


The nominees in the RECREATION category are:

• Barrel of Monkeez for creating a fun and inventive indoor

activities play center for children of all ages that’s open year-

round.

• Bear Valley Mountain for bringing in high profile events,

developing their summer programs and for making snow when

we need it!

• Cave & Mine Adventures for developing the zip lines at

Moaning Cavern Adventure Park and for operating and

funding the Murphys Information Center.

• Lake Camanche for offering a wide variety of tent camping

options including equestrian, outdoor movies on Saturday

nights, dog friendly cottages, etc.


The nominees in the RESTAURANT category are:

• CAMPS at Greenhorn Creek Resort for their dedication to excellence

and multiple high quality events including the 88 Days Mark Twain

presentations.

• Murphys Hotel Restaurant for being consistently delicious AND

incorporating Gordon Ramsay’s menu suggestions, and for enlarging

the outdoor eating area.

• Outer Aisle Foods for their live music, events, farmers market and

popular farm to fork model.

• Pickle Patch for their consistently great food and Open Market

Wednesdays with dinner, live music, arts and crafts festival.

• Roquefort for adding a late night window for local events.

• Sarafina’s Italian Kitchen for providing a popular, always delicious

restaurant option in the Arnold area.


The nominees in the RETAIL category are:

• Marisolio Tasting Room for olive oil and balsamic tastings, making

retail an interactive experience and for offering inspiring cooking

classes.

• Petroglyphe Gallery for developing art classes and fine art and music

focused events for visitors and locals.

• The Chocolate Lady for moving their chocolate manufacturing to

Angels Camp and opening Market 49 café.

• The Spice Tin for creating a retail environment that’s also an immersive

sensory experience.

• Timeless Home Gallery for bringing together local artists and using

social media to reach more traffic.