st. johns county tourist development council … agenda packet … · st. johns county tourist...

ST. JOHNS COUNTY TOURIST DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL Regular Meeting

Monday, February 27, 2017, 1:30 p.m.

1. CALL TO ORDER – Jack Peter, Chairman

2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

3. ROLL CALL – Dena Masters

4. APPROVAL OF AGENDA (Action Required)

5. PUBLIC COMMENT – 3 minutes ‐ Not related to agenda items

6. ADMIN AND SPECIAL USES – Tera Meeks

New TDC Vice Chair (Action Required) ‐ Public Comment

Easter Parade, Florida’s A&M Marching Band Funding Request ‐ $5,000 (Action Requested)

‐ Public Comment

ACH Grant Funding Panel Members (Action Required) ‐ Public Comment

2018 ACH Grant Guidelines (Action Required) ‐ Public Comment

7. STRATEGIC PLAN WORKSHOP

8. MEMBER COMMENTS

9. NEXT MEETING DATE – March 20, 2017

10. ADJOURN

TDC Regular Meeting – February 27, 2017

Agenda Item 6 – Admin & Special Uses – Tera Meeks - St. Augustine Easter Festival funding request of $5,000 for Florida’s A & M

University Band Performance in Easter Parade. (Action Requested)

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Dena Masters

From: Cynthia Williams <[email protected]>Sent: Tuesday, February 07, 2017 2:48 PMTo: Tera MeeksCc: [email protected]: RE: Thank you 2017 Easter Parade

We are pleased to announce that the Florida A&M University’s “Marching 100” band has submitted a contract to participate in the 2017 Easter. While we are very excited about the band marching in the parade, we are confronted with the necessity of covering the financial costs associated with their travel and expenses to our city. The Willie Galimore Chapter of the Florida A&M University National Alumni Association is committed to paying half the expenses and we are requesting financial support to defray expenses. What an excellent way to encourage the Arts, promote collegiality and unite our community! From: Tera Meeks [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Monday, February 06, 2017 5:41 PM To: Cynthia Williams <[email protected]> Cc: [email protected] Subject: RE: Thank you 2017 Easter Parade No problem at all. If you think of any questions about the process before the February 27th meeting or if I can provide additional information, feel free to give me a call. Have a good evening, Tera Meeks Tourism and Cultural Development Director 500 San Sebastian View St. Augustine, FL 32084 Phone: 904.209.4428 Email: [email protected]

From: Cynthia Williams [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Monday, February 06, 2017 5:20 PM To: Tera Meeks <[email protected]> Cc: [email protected] Subject: Thank you 2017 Easter Parade

Hi Ms. Meeks,

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On behalf of the Willie Galimore Florida A&M National Alumni Association in St. Augustine, thank you for your consideration today in listening to the needs of our citizens. I will forward your written request on Tuesday. Have a nice day!

Cynthia A. Williams, Principal St. Johns Technical High School, 6‐12 St. Johns Virtual School K‐12 (904) 547‐8493

TDC Regular Meeting – February 27, 2017 Agenda Item 6 - ACH Funding Panel Vacancies (Action Required)

- Tera Meeks Review and recommend ACH Funding Panel Applicants The Tourism and Cultural Development Department (TDC) is in receipt of eighteen (18) applications for the Arts and Cultural Heritage Funding Panel (ACHFP). The applications have been reviewed and applications that do not meet the requirements for the category are noted as “not qualified.” The panel is comprised of nine (9) members, with no less than six (6) members being residents of St. Johns County and no more than three (3) members residing out of the County who are Arts, Culture or Heritage professionals. Of the nine members two (2) serve as alternates, one must be a county resident the other will be a non-county resident. St. Johns County resident members serve two (2) year terms and non-residents serve one (1) year terms. Due to expired term limits, the ACHFP is in need of three (3) Out-of-County panellists and three (3) In-County panellists. In-County Applicants

1. Gregory Alatis 2. Darlene Allia 3. Danny Berenberg – Expired Term (Eligible for reappointment) 4. Janet Bialka 5. Conrad Matt 6. Rod Morris 7. Walter O’Kon 8. Nancy Scott 9. Heather Shaw-Stillman 10. Robert William Stewart – not qualified

Out-of-County Applicants

1. John Graham – Expired Term (Eligible for reappointment) 2. Alexis Hill 3. Camille Russell Love 4. Meri Mass – Expired Term (Eligible for reappointment) 5. Daniel Mayer 6. Anne Pryor 7. Trudy Wild – Expired Term (Eligible for reappointment) 8. Catherine Wines

Name Employment Education Member Of/Active In Tourism Marketing Exp Tourism Business Operations Performing and Visual ArtsSpecial Event Organization and

PromotionsHistoric interpretation

Gregory AlatisSales Consultant and

Market TraderBA in English

Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church

St. Augustine Greek Festival

St. Augustine Beach Civic Association

Co‐Chair and A&C Vendor Chairman

for St. Aug Greek Festival 2013 ‐

2016

St. Aug Greek Festival 2005 ‐

present

Lifetime patron of the

Performing and Visual ArtsGreek Festival 2005‐present NA

Darlene Alliaenrolled agent/Allia

& Associates

tax and

accounting

NAEA

NOC

FSEA

CAPA

none provided none provided

Naples Orchestra & Chorus

Bayshore Cultural &

Performing Arts

Big Brother/Big Sister

Involved in special events for

both NOC and CAPA. Advertising

and sponsors for events.

Implemented ticket sales

none provided

Danny

Berenberg

Attorney/Capital

Development

Consultant

Juris Doctorate

FL Chamber Music Project Founder

Jacksonville Zoo

UNF College of Educ. & Human Serv

FSCJ Foundation Board

Jacksonville Symphony Board

Visit Jacksonville Board

Bloomington MN CVB Board

Jacksonville Symphony

Orchestra

Founder FL Chamber Music

Project

Consultant to Players by the

Sea (Jax Bch)

Jacksonville Zoo ‐ Range of the

Jaguars & Garden, Tiger and

Primate campaigns

Delius Presentation of

the FL Chamber of

Music Project

Janet Bialka

Social Worker,

Interior Designer,

Bookstore Owner

BA

Ponte Vedra Library

Dayton Ballet

Junior League

Focus Cummer

none provided non provided

Adventures in the Art for PV

Library & art history

programs for library &

Sawgrass Women's Club

Educational tours with the

Cultural Center, Focus Cummer

and PV Library

Presentations on

influence of Japanese

prints, forgotten

women artists and

Georgia O'keefe

Conrad MattInnkeeper of The

Pirate Haus

BA in Middle

Eastern Studies

Historic Florida Militia

Big Brothers

Combat Vets Motorcycle Assn

VFW & American Legion

Florida Historic Militia

Combat Vet Motorcycle Assn

Pirate Haus Inn

Re‐enactment eventsnone provided Various historic reenactments

Various historic

reenactments

Rod Morris Planet Earth Realty High school

San Marco Chamber Music Society

Florida Chamber Music Project

Cyndi Stevenson Election Team

Jimmy Johns Election Team

Dawn Nichols Election Team

As a Real Estate Broker, I am an

enthusiastic promoter of St. Johns

County

I often deal with the out of

state/county buyers for

Florida Real Estate

none providedSan Marco Chamber Society

Eventsnone provided

Walter O'kon Architect MA Architecture

Masons Hastings Lodge

Romanza Arts Group

Daytona Beach Bagpipe Band

Business Manager for Pipe and

Drum Band ‐ Venues and Events

Have served in various

leadership capacities

visual and building design

presentations

planning and executing parades

and still performance of pipe

band

Fort Mose CSO,

Architectural

Commissions for

Historic Buildings

Nancy Scott Attorney Juris Doctor

Archaeological Institute of America

UP Museum of Archaeology and

Anthropology

American Research Center in Egypt

none provided none provided Museum Docent

69th annual meeting in 2017 of

the Florida Anthropological

Society

none provided

Heather

Shaw‐Stillman

Occupational

Therapist

MPA Health Care

Mgmt.

CPSA cpt 117

Monday Club

FNPS Sea Oats Chapter

St. Augustine Historical Society

none provided none provided Amateur artist 30 years

assisting in art exhibits and other

events for volunteer

organizations

none provided

Robert William

StewartUNF

graduate degree

in Law, Business

and Education

ABA

EDUCAUSE

HIMSS

CHIME

none provided none provided4 years work with Notre

Dame athletics TV

volunteer for habitat for

humanity, Red Cross, United

Way, American Cancer Asso.

none provided

2018 ACH Funding Panel In‐County Applicants

Name Employment Education Member Of/Active In Tourism Marketing Exp Tourism Business Operations Performing and Visual ArtsSpecial Event Organization and

PromotionsHistoric interpretation

John GrahamTomlinson‐Graham

GroupMA History

Alliance of Artist Communities

League of American Orchestras

Americans for the Arts

Tourism marketing studies and

programs w/ Walton and Broward

Counties

none providedMangmt of performing and

presenting art organizationsnone provided none provided

Alexis Hill

Arts, Culture &

Events Manager ‐

Reno

Masters Public

Administration

Riverwalk Merchant Association

Reno Bike Project

Sierra Arts Foundation

Wolf Project Committee

Sales for Lake Tahoe Shakespeare

Festival

11 City of Reno annual events

Staff liaison to North Lake

Tahoe Resort Association

Reno‐Sparks Convention

Reno Visitors Authority

Lake Tahoe Shakespeare

Festival

Multiple municipal events

manages more than 280 special

events in City of Reno

Projects with Nevada

Historical Society and

Historic Reno

Preservation Society

Camille Russell

Love

City of Atlanta,

Mayor's Office of

Cultural Affairs

BA in Psychology

Metro Atlanta Arts Fund

Atlanta Jazz Festival Society


Regional Leadership Institute

Atlanta selected as one of the Top

25 Arts Destinations by American

Style Magazine

Directs the artistic and

cultural programming for the

City of Atlanta

oversees programming at

two municipal galleries

oversees production staff for

special event programs

Atlanta gallery exhibits

and regular

programming

Meri Mass Polk Arts Alliance Rutgers University


Polk State College Adv Board

Polk Vision Arts & Culture Commit

Southeastern Univ. Advis. Board

marketing for Polk county arts

organizationsnone provided

Historic Polk Theatre

Publications at Performing

Arts Center

County events organization and

promotion

Historic Polk Theater

League of Historic

Theaters

Daniel MayerThe Arts Center ‐

Carrboro NC

BA Art History

and Political

Science

Coyote Central Arts Education

Khambatta Dance Company

Carborro Arts Commission

Carrboro Economic Sustain Comm

on the board of municipal tourism

advisory commission

worked with arts non‐profits

and partnered with Tourism

Businesses

Visual Arts Gallery

Art School staff

Director of a photography

school

event planning via non‐profits none provided

Anne Pryor Wisconsin Arts BoardPHD Cultural

Anthropology

Madison Curling Club

Community Groundworks

Wisconsin Teachers of Local Culture

Works in Wisconsin Dept of Tourism

attend and organize sessions

for Wisconsin Governor's

Conference on Tourism

Organize folk arts concerts,

festivals, exhibits for a state

wide and regional audience

Festivals, Concerts, Cultural

Toursnone provided

Trudy Wild

Grants Admin at

United Arts of

Central Florida

AAS Erie State

College


Grant Managers Network

Florida Cultural Alliance

Grants Management for TDT funded

programs of Orange County Arts and

Cultural Affairs, work with Visit

Orlando and Americans for the Arts

non‐provided

managed United Arts' Artist

Development Grant

program and exhibits for

award winners

support for United Arts and

Community eventsnone provided

Catherine Wines Architect MA Architecture

Elko Arts and Cultural Advisory Board

Elko Convention and Visitors Authority

Starr Valley Progressive Women's Club

Northeastern Nevada Museum

Development Committee

marketing Committee of Elko

Convention and Visitors Authority

Northeastern Nevada

Museum exhibits and

promotion

Wild Iris Yoga and Wellness

Co‐op marketing

Shakespeare in the Canyon

Art of the West

Elko Centennial 2017 committee

member

Northeastern Nevada

Museum history and

arts exhibits

2018 ACH Funding Panel Out of County Applicants


Agenda Item 6 – Admin & Special Uses – Tera Meeks - ACH Grant Program Guidelines FY2018 (Action Required)

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ST. JOHNS COUNTY TOURIST DEVELOPMENT

ARTS/CULTURE/HERITAGE GRANT PROGRAM 2018 FISCAL YEAR

Board of County Commissioners approved February 21, 2017

This program is administered by the St. Johns Cultural Council as part of a tourist development agreement with St. Johns County.

Introduction: Arts, Culture and Heritage can be expressed through local customs, crafts, cuisine, visual and performing arts, history, literature and oral traditions. Areas rich in these unique resources have an increased appeal to many travelers and often these areas see a higher than average level of tourism. Tourism is a significant contributor to the overall economy of St. Johns County and tourism provides both direct and indirect benefits to the citizens by generating additional tax revenue and support for local businesses and jobs. The intent of the Arts, Culture & Heritage (ACH) Grant Program is to enhance the positive economic impacts of local tourism by encouraging memorable unique events and supporting enhanced advertising and promotion of quality tourism opportunities. Events and programs selected for funding through the grant program must have an Arts, Culture, and Heritage focus; have high artistic quality; historic authenticity; and offer cultural experiences that are unique as well as generate visitor interest and draw from outside St. Johns County. Funding priority will be given to events, programs and performances that generate high-value overnight stays and occur during non-peak tourism periods. Not all applications will be awarded funding either fully or partially. This is a highly competitive process and applications will be reviewed and scored on rigorous criteria. Awarded funds are intended to supplement, not supplant the project budget. Late applications will not be considered and no exceptions will be made. Applicants are encouraged to submit applications early. A courtesy review of early submissions is available by appointment with the Cultural Council; however this review is for technical purposes only and does not guarantee the award of funding. This grant opportunity is funded through the Tourist Development Tax (TDT) which is paid by individuals who rent overnight accommodations such as hotels/motels, condos, campsites, etc. for a period of six months or less while visiting St. Johns County. More information about the TDT can be found in the enabling legislation, Section 125.0104, Florida Statutes which can be found here.

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Purpose: The purpose of the Tourism Development ACH Grant program is to provide financial support to events, programs and performances that are unique and will generate interest from outside the county and attract overnight visitors. Events and programs should be of the scale and quality to attract visitors and support the local brand, “Florida’s Historic Coast has Culture Around Every Corner”. Eligibility Requirements: 1. Events/performances/programs must take place in St. Johns County. 2. Arts, Culture or Heritage must be the primary focus of all funded events/performances/programs

including fundraisers. Applications that include an ACH event simply as an add-on or a component that is

secondary to the overall purpose of the event will not be eligible for funding. 3. All events/performances/programs must be open and accessible to the general public.

Events, performances or programs must be promoted to the public and cannot be unreasonably restrictive through admittance fees, public access or crowd capacity, which limit tourist participation.

Events which require the purchase of a ticket to a third-party venue will not be considered for funding.

4. Applicant must be an established organization qualified to do business in Florida.

Units of local government and higher education are eligible for programs and events that have an ACH focus.

Organizations that are not Florida corporations/organizations/entities must qualify with the Florida Department of State to do business in Florida.

5. All applicants must have a checking account with a licensed financial institution. 6. Applicant must demonstrate sufficient available funds for planning and implementation of the

event/performance/program. This is a reimbursement grant. Therefore funds for awarded grants are only paid

following the submission of paid invoices documenting eligible expenses, proof of received matching funds, and submission of the interim or final report. Applicants should understand that funding advances are not made as part of this grant.

Payments or reimbursements for expenses occurring outside of that time period are not allowed without the written consent of the TDC Executive Director.

7. Matching funds must be provided for all grants. 8. Proof of necessary permits required at the time of application.

Applicants proposing to present events/performances/programs that require permits from federal, state, county or city governments must provide a copy of the permit or proof of application for the permit with the submission of the grant application.

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Should the permit be denied, the applicant must submit an amended application. If a permit is denied and no other date/time/location is allowed, the application will be

withdrawn from consideration or if a contract has been awarded, it will become void. 9. Projects must be completed within the fiscal year for which funds are awarded.

All grant awards are for one year. The fiscal year begins October 1st and runs through September 30th of the following

year. Submittal and Review Process: 1. Application Preparation Workshops

The St. Johns Cultural Council will host a series of application submittal workshops. Attendance at one of these workshops is highly encouraged as the workshops provide the opportunity to review the application requirements, required format of the submitted application and have both general and specific questions answered. The workshop schedule and locations will be provided at a later date. If an applicant has questions about the grant program or the application process, they must attend the application preparation workshop to have those questions addressed.

2. Grant Review Panel and application scoring Submitted grant applications are reviewed by an appointed Grant Review Panel with seven (7) voting members and two (2) alternate members. The Grant Review Panel members independently score the grant applications in each grant category. Applicants are encouraged to attend the subsequent funding panel scoring meeting (date and time to be determined) and may offer brief updates and respond to questions from the funding panel members. The panel members may revise their scores based on the applicant updates and responses. Once all the panel member scores for each application have been finalized, the high and low score of the seven voting panel members are removed from consideration and the remaining five scores averaged. Recommendation of award of the grant(s) by the funding panel does not guarantee funding of the grant(s) in the Fiscal Year 18 budget.

3. Review and recommendation by the TDC

The TDC receives the final scores of the Grant Review Panel and at their discretion make a recommendation to the Board of County Commissioners for award of grant dollars. The TDC may decide to fully fund the top scoring applications or may choose to partially fund any or all of the applications proportionally based on the scores of the Grant Review Panel. The TDC may also set a minimum acceptable score for receipt of funding. Recommendation of award of the grant(s) by the TDC does not guarantee funding of the grant(s) in the Fiscal Year 18 budget.

4. Review and award by the BCC The BCC receives the recommendation of the TDC and awards the grant funding. Grant Categories:

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Organizations may submit grant applications for multiple events however only one application per event is allowed. Duplication or overlap between applications, including programming, matching funds and use of awarded grant funds, is not allowed and may result in disqualification of an application. I. Visitor Experience Grant Up to 20% of FY18 funds allocated to ACH Grants will be awarded in this category Max award per event, performance, program with advertising, $10,000 Max award per organization for this category with advertising, $30,000 These free events/performances/programs enhance an area’s visitor appeal by reinforcing the unique

positive “selling points” of the area’s visitor experience which help to differentiate the destination from other available options. The draw of this type of programming is the uniqueness of the activities (which may include historical re-enactments or parades) that are based in local culture and heritage. These programs must be high quality, historically accurate when relevant, and add value to the visitor experience. The events should have no commercial activity unless that activity is limited to period appropriate or hand-made items. If awarded a grant, the details of the funded event(s) must be submitted to historiccoastculture.com at least 150 days in advance.

Qualifying Criteria:

Free of charge and open to the public May be single day, multiple consecutive days or multiple days over a limited but specified period

with a minimum of 6 hours of programming Must provide a match of at least 50% of the requested grant amount. The match may consist of

cash or documented in-kind donations of goods, services or volunteer hours (assigned value of volunteer hours shall comply with County Policy). All grant recipients will be required to document in detail, the sponsoring organization’s expenditures for the program/event including those for the required marketing activities.

Allowable Use of Funding: At least 50% of grant funding must be allocated to advertising and promotion of the

program/performance/event o Up to 25% of the advertising and promotion grant funds may be allocated to in-county

promotion through the lodging industry o Organizations may elect to have event advertising and promotion (totaling 50% of the

grant award amount) completed by the County via the Cultural Council. If this election is made, the County reserves the right to exercise full control over the type of advertising utilized and the content/look of that advertising. If this option is selected, the organization may only submit reimbursement requests for 50% of the total awarded grant amount.

o T-shirts are not considered to be advertising or a form of promotion Up to 50% of grant funding may support direct program presentation costs

o A receipt signed by the payment recipient must be issued (and submitted with the grant reimbursement requests) for payments to all support staff, including historical re-enactors

o Any items which will be sold (merchandise, food, etc.) at the event cannot be paid for with TDC funds

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Evaluation Criteria:

Does the event meet all of the above listed Qualifying Criteria and Allowable Use of Funding Criteria? (failure to meet these criteria may result in disqualification of the application)

Does the event draw attendance from or have direct interaction with tourists already in the area? Is the event high quality and does it enhance the experience of the impacted tourists? Is the event unique to the local area? Is the event directly related to the local art, culture and heritage of the area? Does this event occur during a non-peak tourism period? Or for events with period appropriate

dates that are scheduled during peak periods, will the event generate enhanced tourist visitation? II. Annual and Special Events Grant At least 50% of FY18 funds allocated to ACH Grants will be awarded in this category Max award per event, $60,000 Max award per organization for this category, $120,000

These annual and special events are well organized, highly visible programs/events/performances that have a regional or national draw for visitors such as performances of major nationally and internationally recognized performers and performing arts companies; festivals that include such recognized performers and performances; art, culture and heritage exhibitions from nationally and internationally recognized cultural and heritage institutions. These events may be scheduled for a single day, multiple consecutive days, or multiple days over a limited but specified period. These programs and events must have a demonstrable tourism impact with an emphasis on generating overnight stays. If awarded a grant, the details of the funded event(s) must be submitted to historiccoastculture.com at least 150 days in advance.


Event must have a demonstrable regional or national draw for visitors Event must generate overnight stays and incremental economic activity Event must be open to the public Event may be scheduled for a single day, multiple consecutive days or multiple days over a

limited but specified period. A minimum of 6 hours of programming is required. Must provide a 1:1 match of the requested grant amount. Up to 25% of the match may consist of

documented in-kind donations of goods, services or volunteer hours (assigned value of volunteer hours shall comply with County Policy).

Only events as defined above will be considered. On-going programs are not eligible for funding. Allowable Uses of Funding:

At least 50% of the grant funding must be allocated to out of county advertising and promotion o T-shirts are not considered to be advertising or a form of promotion

Up to 50% of the grant funding may support direct program presentation costs o Any items which will be sold (merchandise, food, etc.) at the event cannot be paid for

with TDC funds. Grant funds may only be used for expenses directly resulting from the annual or special event

and may not be used for operational expenses such as normal staffing or “rent” paid to institutions for staging special exhibits. These expenses also may not be utilized as an in-kind match for the grant.

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Is the event high quality (e.g. reputation of participating artists/exhibitions/performers) and does it provide a significant draw for tourists?

Is the event unique to the local area? Is this event during a non-peak tourism period? Or for events with period appropriate dates that

are scheduled during peak periods, will the event generate enhanced tourist visitation? Expected total attendance and percent of total attendance attributed to out of County visitors Projected number of overnight stays and period of lodging occupancy Experience and qualifications of management and partners coordinating the event

III. Resource Development Grant Up to 15% of FY18 funds allocated to ACH Grants will be awarded in this category Max award per application, $30,000 Max award per organization for this category, $30,000

As tourism throughout the State continues to grow, there is a need for investment in the development of local arts, culture and heritage resources to stay a competitive destination. These projects will expand or improve the existing tourist resources currently available and provide new and continued draw for a broad spectrum of tourists. These As tourism throughout the State continues to grow, there is a need for investment in the development of local arts, culture and heritage resources to stay a competitive destination. These projects will expand or improve the existing tourist resources currently available and provide new and continued draw for a broad spectrum of tourists. Resource Development projects must be of professional quality and have a result in a programmatic improvement, have a demonstrable impact on the attractiveness of the area as a tourism destination and be of professional quality. The projects must have an with an emphasis on either generating overnight stays or increasing the appeal for tourists already visiting the area through new or improved unique and authentic experiences. These projects will expand or improve the existing tourist resources currently available and provide new and continued draw for a broad spectrum of tourists. This funding may not be used for facility repairs or maintenance (e.g. window replacement, interior/exterior painting, roof repairs, parking lot improvements/repairs, etc.) nor may these funds be used to enhance marketing efforts such as website improvements or production of video. nor may it be used for facility maintenance such as replacing windows or painting interior/exterior of a facility. Examples of eligible projects may include development of display quality interpretive signage, installation of outdoor art displays, creation of a self-guided tour, expansion of exhibition space, implementation of an interactive kiosk system for visitors or other similar projects. This funding may not be used to enhance marketing efforts such as website improvements or production of video nor may it be used for facility maintenance such as replacing windows or painting interior/exterior of a facility.

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All projects must comply with F.S. 125.0104 to receive funding.As tourism throughout the State continues to grow, there is a need for investment in the development of local arts, culture and heritage resources to stay a competitive destination. These projects will expand or improve the existing tourist resources currently available and provide new and continued draw for a broad spectrum of tourists.

Qualifying Criteria: Must be a qualified non-profit or government entity Must provide a cash match of at least 50% of the requested grant amount Developed resource must be available to the public Developed resource must have a focus on art, culture or heritage based tourism in St. Johns

County Expenditure of grant funds must result in a finished product and may not be used strictly for

design or conception of a project Allowable Use of Funding:

Funds may be spent on the development of the tourism resource as outlined in the awarded grant

o Funding may not be used for staff costs of hosting or operating an event/program/performance.


Does the application meet all of the above listed Qualifying Criteria and Allowable Use of Funding Criteria? (failure to meet these criteria may result in disqualification of the application)

Is the resource to be developed of professional quality? Will the resource to be developed improve the uniqueness and authenticity of the local tourism

experience? Does the resource to be developed provide a significant improvement to the local arts, culture,

heritage tourism industry through increased overnight stays or increased appeal for tourists already visiting the area?

IV. Marketing Support Grant Up to 15% of FY18 funds allocated to ACH Grants will be awarded in this category Maximum award per application, $20,000 Maximum award per organization for this category, $20,000

Local St. Johns County based non-profits with a mission of Arts, Culture or Heritage provide an ongoing draw for out of County visitors. Assisting these non-profits through enhanced funding for event/performance/program marketing increases both the short-term and long-term appeal of the local area for tourists. These marketing dollars may be utilized to promote a single event or multiple events that are open to the public. If awarded a grant, the details of the event(s) being marketed with grant funds must be submitted to historiccoastculture.com at least 30 days in advance.

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Must be an eligible non-profit organization based in St. Johns County that is open to tourists a minimum of 150 days per year and has an annual operating budget of at least $200,000 (excluding capital and endowment)

Must provide a 1:1 cash match of the requested grant amount Advertisement for programs/events/performances awarded a separate ACH grant during the

same grant cycle are not eligible for additional marketing support under this category Allowable Uses of Funding:

Awarded grant funds must be used for out of county advertising and promotions o T-shirts are not considered to be advertising or a form of promotion

Up to 50% of the grant funds may be used for contracted marketing services from a qualified/credentialed marketing company



Are the events to be advertised high quality and do they provide a significant draw for tourists? Are the events to be advertised directly related to the local art, culture and heritage of the area? Expected total attendance and percent of total attendance attributed to out of County visitors Projected number of overnight stays and period of lodging occupancy

Funding Restrictions: Awarded grant funds may not be provided or utilized for any of the following:

1. Capital improvements, including expenditures for the acquisition, construction or alteration of a facility, unless allowed by Florida Statutes, Chapter 125.0104, Paragraph 5 Authorized Uses of Revenue

2. Mortgage payments

3. Purchase of equipment, which has a useful life of one year or more and a unit cost of

$100.00 or more

4. Payment of past deficits

5. Administrative costs

6. Activities and events intended only for the applicant’s membership or local community

7. Activities and events, which do not promote tourism in St. Johns County

8. Food, lodging, and personal transportation for traveling out-of-county

9. Rent paid to a sponsoring organization for hosting a special event

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10. Scholarships, plaques or awards 11. Food or beverages for the event or activity

Matching Fund Requirements:

Regardless of the funding level awarded for your program or event, payments/reimbursements will not exceed the documented expenditures and required matching amounts.

In-kind services are defined as goods or services provided for the festival, event or program for which you would normally have to pay. The value of the match should be based on what you would normally have to pay for the goods or services, and what you actually have to pay. Documentation of the value will be required from the contributing entity. Applicants are encouraged to list in-kind donations as demonstration of additional community support even if those donation will not be used as part of the match for the grant.

Matching funds based on projected earned income from the event or program may not exceed 25% of the total matching funds required. If full matching funds are not committed at the time of application, recipients must indicate how additional funds will be raised before the event or program start date.

Volunteer time or hours are not eligible as in-kind, except where noted.

Matching funds in one grant application may not be used as matching funds in another grant application. Each applications costs and match must remain totally separate and auditable.

TDC funds allocated to an organization cannot be used as matching funds for another ACH grant application or as matching funds for any other St. Johns County program.

Contract Reporting Requirements:

Once the Panel awards have been reviewed and subsequently approved by the Board of County Commissioners, all contracts will be issued by and returned to the Tourist Development Council office. Interim and Final Reports and all reimbursement requests are to be submitted to the TDC office.

1. Recipients must submit an interim report when applying for reimbursement, detailing the

progress of their event and status of matching funds raised.

2. A final report must be submitted with reimbursement requests within two months after the event or before the end of the fiscal year (September 30th), whichever occurs first.

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3. Included in the Final Report, must be a documented assessment of results measures against the applications projections for attendance, overnight stays and out of County visitors in attendance.

4. Any funded event or activity that fails to file reports required in the application will not

be eligible for TDC funding during the next funding period. Under no circumstances, will payment be made for an event with reports outstanding.

5. Recipients must notify the SJC Cultural Council and TDC in writing of any substantial

changes (i.e. date, venue, event content etc.) to their event/program plans at least 150 days prior to the event or program start date. Failure to do this can result in suspension of the contract and jeopardize future funding. Upon approval of the changes, the grant recipient will be responsible for updating any info previously submitted to historiccoastculture.com.

6. All information provided to the TDC in conjunction with the ACH Funding Program will

become a matter of public record.

Record Keeping and Audit:

1. Funding recipients agree to allow TDC staff access to their program or event for the purpose of determining economic impact and ROI. If tickets are required for the program or event, the funding recipient is required to collect either a street address or email address along with the purchaser’s name for the purpose of surveying the purchaser about attendance at the program or event. Recipients must cooperate with the TDC staff and/or contractors in providing email addresses of ticket buyers and vendors for the purpose of surveying.

2. All contracts are subject to programmatic and financial audit by the TDC or other County

staff or authorized personnel. All programmatic and financial documents that are part of the Contract are subject to public inspection.

3. Recipients must acknowledge funding by the St. Johns County Tourist Development

Council in all advertising and publicity for the event or program. That can be achieved in one of the following ways:

a. If the primary “call to action” of the ad is to direct people to an event / program

specific event website, you may place the “St. Augustine | Ponte Vedra on Florida’s Historic Coast” logo on the site’s opening page with a link to www.floridashistoriccoast.com and the words “Plan your stay in St. Augustine | Ponte Vedra today.

b. If ad, poster, flier’s call to action is something else, the language, logo and website address above must be printed.

Color & B&W versions are available

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c. Additional logo or credit line options may be available.

4. The TDC reserves the right to request additional information beyond that requested in the funding application.

Definitions: Marketing Related Definitions

Promotion: A variety of activities specific to your funded program or event designed to attract overnight visitors and excursionists to the program or event. May include in-county, out-of county, and/or out-of-market activity.

Advertising / Paid Media: Paid advertising placements in traditional publications such as newspapers or magazines or outdoor media; web-based placements on commercial sites; paid broadcast spots on television or radio; and/or event-specific direct mail (electronic of traditional). This may include the production and distribution of event-specific brochures or fliers (T-shirts, on-site banners or similar items will not be considered advertising).

Earned Media: Public relations/publicity costs associated with efforts to generate editorial content/mentions other than paid placements in media outlets i.e.: news releases, event or program-specific newsletters, photography or videography for promotional purposes.

Pooled Advertising: Funded events/programs for several organizations may be listed in one advertisement or brochure based on common dates or themes.

Out-of-Market: Outside the Jacksonville MSA and any counties adjacent to St. Johns County not part of the Jacksonville MSA.

Other Program Definitions

Admissions: Revenue from the sale of admissions, ticket subscriptions, and memberships for the program.

Application Cash: Funds from Applicant’s present and/or anticipated resources that Applicant plans to provide to proposed project.

Budget Detail: Itemized breakdown of proposed program expenditures and income.

Contracted Services Revenue: Revenue derived from fees earned through sale of services. Include sale of workshops, etc., to other community organizations, government contracts for specific services, performance or residency fees, etc.

Eligible Non-profit: Organization recognized as having a non-profit status by the Florida Department of State Division of Corporations.

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Foundation Grants: Revenue from grants by private foundations.

Fundraisers: Events that produce revenues beyond what is needed for event expenses and intended proceeds are designated for other purposes.

Government Grants - Federal: Revenue from grants by agencies of the federal government.

Government Grants - State/Regional: Revenue from grants by the State government and/or multi-state consortiums of state agencies.

Government Grants - Local: Revenue from grants or appropriations by city, county and other local government agencies including the St. Johns County Tourist Development Council.

Holidays: New Year’s week, one week prior to Palm Sunday to one week after Easter Sunday, Memorial Day weekend, July 4th weekend, Labor Day weekend, Thanksgiving weekend, Christmas week.

In-Kind Contributions: Donated goods and services for which a fair market value shall be calculated, if an organization chooses to use them as partial matching funds. Do not include volunteer / administrative personnel.

Multi-Day Event: Any event that lasts longer than one day and less than 32 days.

Multi-Month Event: Any event that spans two or more months, or extends more than 31 days.

Moderate Demand Periods: see definition of “Peak”

Near Peak: see definition of “Peak”

Non Peak: Events and programs occurring Sundays through Thursdays during times not identified as “Peak” (see definition below).

Other Private Contributions: Revenue from cash donations including gross proceeds from fund raising events.

Outside Professional Services - Cultural: Payments to performers, guest speakers or curators whose services are specifically and exclusively engaged for a funded program performed by non-employees.

Outside Professional Services - Other: Payments to firms or persons for non-cultural services that are specifically and exclusively incurred for a funded program or festival performed by non-employees.

Out of Market: “Out of Market” refers to geographic areas and non-contiguous counties to St. Johns County. i.e. Clay, Duval, Flagler and Putnam Counties are “out-of county” but NOT “ Out-of-Market.”

Peak Periods: visit www.floridashistoriccoast.com/events for more information Thanksgiving Day 4-day Weekend Christmas/New Year’s week Daytona Speed Week/ Daytona 500 Bike Week

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THE PLAYERS Championship Memorial Day Weekend Fourth of July Personnel: Payments for administrative, marketing, curatorial, technical/promotion employees including salaries, wages, fees and benefits to organization staff, specifically identified with the funded program.

Program Services Revenue: Includes ticket, concession, merchandise and upsell (VIP) sales and other earned revenue generated from the program or event.

Remaining Operating Expenses: All expenses not entered in other categories.

Space Rental: Payments specifically identified with this project but not owned or leased by your organization on an annual basis.

Total Operating Budget: Gross itemized summary of organization’s probable or actual expenditures and income for a proposed current or completed fiscal year.

Travel: Costs directly related to travel of an individual or individuals specifically identified with the program. Costs must be in accordance with Florida State Statute 112.061.

Venue: The scene or setting such as a physical location where the event or activity takes place.


Agenda Item 7 – Strategic Plan Workshop – Tera Meeks - Review and Discussion of Draft Strategic Plan presented by

Herb Marlowe – Analytica

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Strategic Choices: Options for the Strategic Plan

St. Johns County Tourist Development Council

Draft 5.0 February 18, 2016

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Table of Contents

Executive Summary 3 Explanatory Notes 1&2 3 Context analysis 1: General Industry Trends 4 Context analysis 2: Data specific to St. Johns County 8

St. Johns County: Its current position in the marketplace 8

Stakeholder perspectives on tourism issues 8

The economic value of tourism to the County 9

Positioning Statement 10

Vision 12

Desired Result 12

Mission 12

Roles 13

Values 13

Goals 13

Goals & Strategies 14

Goals, Strategies & Objectives 20

Appendix A: Elaboration of General Industry Trends with examples 30

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Executive Summary

This summary will be written after the TDC has indicated those strategies it will adopt and the

priorities that it has set.

Explanatory Note 1

This “strategic choices” document was developed from the perspective that the Tourist

Development Council (TDC) is responsible for leading the growth of the tourism sector of the St.

Johns County economy. Tourist Development Councils of other counties have that same

responsibility. TDCs in the state vary in how they structure themselves to carry out that

responsibility. Some have a small staff and outsource or privatize their marketing and other

responsibilities. Others have a full staff of county employees who manage all the functions.

Both models have proven effective, primarily because it is the quality of staff, not the

organizational form which is important.

St. Johns has chosen a privatized model in which the VCB and Cultural Council carry out various

responsibilities and tasks. This work, however structured, remains the work and responsibility

of the TDC for which it is accountable, for which it should provide strategic direction and for

which it must develop and hold to performance standards. Some if not many of the specific

objectives listed in this document may well be assigned to one or both of your contractors.

That assignment, which means most of the work may be done by the VCB or Cultural Council, is

still the work of the TDC. For that reason, when the word “staff” is used in this report, it

encompasses not only county employees but also contracted services.

Explanatory Note 2

This report offers many strategies to improve the tourism economy of the County. The next

step in developing the strategic plan is to determine which strategies to adopt, which to

prioritize and which to reject.

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Context Analysis 1: General Industry Trends

The tourism industry has sustained growth in the recent past and such growth is projected to

continue into the near future. This growth is sustained globally by the growing middle class in

the developing world and nationally by international visitors, the retiring baby boomers and the

priorities of the millennial generation which make travel a priority.

Given the critical contribution that tourism makes to St. John’s County, it is important to

identify major trends and patterns of the industry as they are relevant to the County. These

trends may be grouped into three themes. These are:

The growing significance of authentic and distinctive experience

Relationship marketing

Personalization and niche tourism

In addition to these three themes, the topic of demographic change is a significant one for the

tourism industry. From a generational perspective, how the County positions itself with respect

to the Boomer, Gen X and Millennial generations is an important topic. This context analysis

concludes with a discussion of three strategic factors that all tourism economies must address.

Themes

Theme 1: The growing significance of authentic and distinctive experience

Tourism, particularly personal, has always been driven by the desire to experience something.

To see something new or different or spectacular. To have an adventure of some sort. To meet

new people. From this perspective, tourism has always been about experience and so this is

nothing new.

What is emerging as increasing important are experiences that are authentic and distinctive.

Rather than conceive of authenticity and distinctiveness as “either‐or” experiences, it is more

accurate to conceive of them as continuums. As a continuum, it is the visitor who determines

what they deem to be authentic or distinctive. Any point on those continuums may be

enjoyable and rewarding but based on the visitor’s life experiences that will be assessed as to

the degree of authenticity and distinctiveness.

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While acknowledging these are relative concepts, there are some key dimensions that

determine authenticity and distinctiveness. These include:

Local.

Non‐standard.

History.

Natural.

Low degree of pre‐packaged features.

Unique

Theme 2: Relationship marketing

Just as tourist have always traveled for experience, marketing has always been about

relationships. Trusted relationships determined early markets and today we still acknowledge

the importance of networks in business development. Relationship marketing is nothing new.

That acknowledged, the power of social media and other communication tools along with

better and more powerful analytic tools, have brought new depth and importance to

relationship marketing. Social media has made word of mouth recommendations readily

available and various rating tools enable those recommendations to be trusted or not. The

ability to review a web site and view the persons involved make businesses more personal.

.

Theme 3: Personalization and niche tourism

As the tourism market expands, it is logical that there will be further differentiation by the

expansion of niche markets. It is also logical that experienced travelers will seek experiences

more customized to their personal interests, schedules and budget. As the world shrinks due to

communications and information technology, there will be new forms of tourism and visitation

as people seek alternatives for various challenges or opportunities as well as finding people

who share their interests. Examples of these trends are quoted below.

Just as with experiences and relationships, the desire for niche and personalized experiences

are not new. What is occurring are growing opportunities to identify niches, to identify specific

experiences that are desired, to determine the market size.

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There is a growing emphasis on niche marketing with the perspective being that it is easier and

more profitable. Niche marketing avoids the generalist problem in which you are trying to stick

out from the crowd. Niche marketing is also becoming easier. Linked‐In for example has over

50,000 interest groups.i

The following factors will impact the future of personalized and niche markets:

1. There is a growing expectation that experiences can be personalized. With the rise of

“big data” more and more is known about the consumer. The corollary to that fact is

that this data is expected to be used to “personalize” the visiting experience.

2. A competitive advantage can be gained by personalizing the experience.

3. What people value can be better understood. With this understanding comes the

opportunity to provide that value in a profitable manner.

4. Personalization will be a market differentiator.

5. The technology for personalization will increase. Businesses or community’s that don’t

stay up will fall behind.

Framing the Market: Demographic segments (Millennial, GenX or Boomer) or Travel Mindsets

From a demographic perspective, there are three major market segments: Millennials, Gen X

and Boomers. In an ideal world, all three generations could be pursued as your visitor market.

Yet in a world of resource constraints, careful consideration must be given to where resources

are invested. Baby boomers currently have the greatest disposable income, but Millennials give

priority to travel and are shaping their travel preferences now.

This statement of the problem frames the challenge as one of determining generational

strategies. It is a valid and important way to understand the challenge and has practical

implications for marketing strategy and local experiences to be promoted. While the boomers

may have the money today, the future is the millennial.

But there is another way to frame this problem. Instead of a focus on generations, focus on

travel mindsets. A mindset is a way of thinking, a mental attitude. Rather than basing strategy

on generations, strategy is based on attracting persons who have certain travel mindsets. The

following mindsets are ones that St. Johns County is best prepared to meet. These include:

Diverse and authentic experiences. St. Johns can provide a wide range of experiences including

distinctive history, a variety of active outdoor opportunities, a range of cultural and

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entertainment events and venues, distinctive culinary options. Given these assets, a focus on

the traveler who wants diverse experiences, regardless of their age group, is a clear

opportunity.

Relationships. Three of the top five reasons for travel can be considered relationship travel.

These were: multigenerational travel, travel with immediate family and celebration travel. St.

Augustine is a popular wedding site, the beaches offer the opportunity for family and multi‐

generational experiences. Additionally, the golf courses provide opportunities for business

relationship development.

Active. Both the climate of the county and its physical features offer a variety of opportunities

for active tourism. Currently dominated by the beaches and golf courses, the expansion of

bicycling pathways offers another active option. Should the county decide to pursue the sports

tourism market, it has the climate conducive to success in that arena.

Within these three mindsets are numerous niches. The challenge for a travel mindset strategy

is determining which niches to pursue.

This does not mean that the practical differences between generations are ignored. Millennials

can be best reached through social and mobile media while boomers rely more on traditional

media. How one best communicates to the “active” traveler may well indeed consist of various

strategies that have their basis in generational preferences. But these are matters of

technique, not of strategy.

The strategic factors relevant to all destinations

There are three factors that all tourism destinations must strategically address. These are:

Strategies that develop and emphasize a destination’s competitive attributes and

purpose to the general market. These strategies address the question of why visit us?

What makes us different? What will you gain from a visit?

Strategies to communicate the destination’s purpose to customers in key feeder

markets. These strategies address how to best answer the question of why to continue

to visit.

Strategies to ensure the customer experiences align with the destination’s purpose

across various tourism products. These strategies reflect the reality that one does not

want to leave the visitor experience to chance. It recognizes that consistent quality of

experience is a differentiator.

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Context Analysis 2: Data Specific to St. Johns County

St. Johns County: Its current position in the marketplace

As a basis for strategy development a branding survey was conducted by a sub‐contractor, H2R

Marketing. This survey focused on potential drive visitors (Atlanta, Raleigh, Orlando and

Tampa) and used as comparison sites Charleston, Savannah, Williamsburg and Annapolis. The

key findings of this scientific survey (error rate of 3.5+/‐) included:

80% of those who have visited have a positive or strongly positive view of the area. This

percentage leads all competitors.

66% of prior visitors are labeled brand promoters. This means they recommend the area

to others.

The county is fourth in top of mind awareness among 15 vacation sites. It is exceeded

only by “’beaches”, Orlando, and New York.

51% indicate they plan to visit in the next year. This percentage is higher than

comparison sites as well as research norms of other sites. The market potential for the

area is above average among comparison sites.

The areas’ strengths are a variety of things to do, safe and navigable, unique local

restaurants, and clean hotels. The gap is in new things to do.

The true barriers to future or return visitation as a lack of interest in historic attractions,

not enough for children to do, and expense.

Stakeholder Perspectives

This stakeholder survey was developed to test the support for a range of ideas that had been generated from various interviews and focus groups. A total of 52 persons responded, most of whom had participated in the focus group/interview stage. This is not a scientific survey and should simply be viewed as one data source. The key areas of support include: A four‐part mission for the TDC which consists of:

a. Create destination awareness and attract visitors

b. Promote and support distinctive visitor experiences

c. Provide overall community benefit

d. Actively plan for community wide tourism management

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Substantive consensus that TDC resource allocation strategy should include:

A focus on visitor experiences that could become economic drivers with the music industry as an example

A shift of TDC resources into a greater focus on visitor experience Diversification. There was a continued recognition of the importance of history along with broad support for diversifying the local tourism economic via additional emphases on arts and culture, culinary and local food experiences, sports and active leisure and nature based experiences. Infrastructure. There was strong agreement that the TDC should support “services” infrastructure that would enhance the visitor experience. There was support, mixed with a level of concern, that the TDC should invest in facility maintenance and development.

The economic value of tourism to the County

A separate analysis of the economic value of tourism to the County was conducted. This report

encompasses the economic benefits of tourism to St. Johns County as well as other, less

tangible benefits which have an indirect economic benefit.

The key findings of this economic analysis include:

40 to 50% of the jobs in St. John’s County are directly or indirectly related to tourism.

The arts, entertainment and recreation sector has as a location quotient of 2.33 while

accommodations and food services has a quotient of 1.80. This means that St. Johns

County has times 2.33 more arts, etc. than the average county and 1.8 times the

average amount of accommodations and food services.

Tourism raises the quality of life in the county. As the location quotient data indicate,

the County has more options for food, for retail and entertainment, for arts and culture

experiences than would a county of its size normally due to its tourism industry.

56 to 63% of purchasing power of the county is driven by the tourism industry.

St. Johns County’s return on investment in tourism is 165%. Visitors generate directly or

indirectly $67,372,853 in various taxes and it costs the county $40,771,372 to serve

them.

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Answering the Strategic Factors: A Positioning Statement

A positioning statement precedes the vision and mission statements in the sense that it lays the

foundation for those statements. It is a more detailed discussion of the desired future. This

positioning statement is organized around the above strategic factors discussion, not in terms

of specific strategies but in terms of general approach.

St. Johns County’s competitive attributes and purpose

The current competitive attributes of the County include:

A year‐round climate that allows for consistent outdoor activities

A distinctive historic district along with interesting architecture

World class golf courses

Beaches and waterways

Diverse cultural experiences

A strong culinary tradition

A dedicated bicycling system

Diverse lodging choices

Convention facilities of a size appropriate to the County

Local farms

Preserved natural spaces and waterways

Each of the above are of course always subject to pressures for increased quality of experience

as well as expansion in certain circumstances.

The purpose: A distinctive experience

The intent of the tourism industry in St Johns County is to provide the visitor with a wide range

of options for a variety of authentic and active experiences, some of which are rarely found

outside of the County. These options are provided in setting and venues that enables visitors to

build and strengthen relationships with their family, friends, colleagues, residents and local

institutions. This combination of activities, experiences and venues will enable the visitor to

have a truly distinctive experience that they will wish to repeat.

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Communicating the purpose to customers in key feeder markets

St Johns County will use the full range of approaches and technologies to communicate the

opportunity for a distinctive experience in the County. It will emphasize the use of those

technologies that communicate distinctive experiences and build relationships such as user‐

generated content tools as well as the opportunities for word of mouth advertising. Finally, it

will seek to better understand its feeder markets.

Ensuring the customer experiences align with the destination’s purpose across various tourism

products

One of the advantages that specific tourism venues have is the ability to put in place quality

controls that help ensure a consistent quality experience. These control mechanisms, along

with various feedback tools, help them adapt to new desires and fix problems.

Destinations face a much more complex challenge in seeking that what the visitor experiences

is consistent with what was promoted. A destination has no formal control over the multitude

of venues that exist in it. Some do a great job of customer service, others a minimal job. The

quality of the experience can vary greatly as both product quality and the staff delivering the

product vary in skill and attitude.

Given these limitations, a destination can still take meaningful actions to support the alignment

of expectation with experience. These actions include:

Support institutions and organizations that provide training to staff on the experiences

the destination wants it visitors to have while visiting and the skills that contribute to

these experiences

Provide training on the use of various social media tools and their analytics

Compile social media analytics as a community feedback tool

Foster collaborative planning among various public and private entities to ensure a

positive visitor experience

Provide public infrastructure that enhances the visitor experience (this can range from

benches and bathrooms to major facilities)

Provide information on trends and emerging markets to local industry

Provide information about the factors that determine whether an experience was

positive or not to the TDC and local industry

Keep the community informed about the value of visitors to the community and the

benefits that ensue from visitors

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Vision

St. Johns County is the premier vacation and business/leisure destination in Florida.1

Desired Result An annual growth rate of 10% in the tourist development tax.23

Mission The mission of the Tourist Development Council is to strengthen and grow the tourism sector of the St. Johns County economy by:

a. Creating and maintaining destination awareness that attracts visitors b. Promoting and supporting distinctive visitor experiences of ever‐improving

quality c. Facilitating county‐wide tourism management planning

1 This vision statement over time may be modified to further define those areas where the County is the premier. At this point in time it can certainly be argued that the County offers the premier golfing and history destinations in Florida. As the plan is implemented, the vision statement also provides a decision‐making test for future investment – “can we become the premier or near premier destination for this activity?” or “does this investment help us move to a premier status?” 2 The purpose of the desired result component of the strategic plan is to identify the primary outcome that the plan should produce. The adopted desired result has several benefits. These include:

It provides a basis for “yes‐no” decision making. A strategic plan helps you decide which opportunities to pursue. The first level of this decision making is whether the investment being considered will help achieve the desired result at all. The second level of this decision making is which of several options will best achieve the desired result. A third level addresses priority setting among options, each of which will help produce the desired result.

A second benefit is that it provides a metric by which to assess existing investments. Are these investments creating enough significant value that the result will be achieved is the test for each investment?

3 This desired result is significant for several reasons:

If achieved, it will enable the TDC to consider a wide range of strategic plan options which are not currently feasible.

Given the broader fiscal challenges facing St Johns County, particularly a low commercial/residential ratio, the growth of the tourism industry is an important strategy. Greater hotel and venue growth will help grow the commercial valuation. More visitors add to the sales tax growth of the County. And finally, the tourism venues offer the opportunity to introduce the County to various business leaders.

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Roles To fulfill its mission, the Tourist Development Council may assume the following roles:

Policy and strategy developer and implementer o Establish policy direction for market investments including growth and

maintenance strategies

Investor o In marketing strategies, innovation or incubation of new products, and support

service or facilities that enhance the visitor experience

Public Fiduciary o The TDC is responsible for the proper use of public funds, the determination as

to whether specific expenditures are helping create the desired result and the determination of the ROI of the various program and marketing expenditures.

Innovation and Research & Development o Maintaining a competitive edge in this highly competitive field is key to long

term success. To assist the tourism industry to do so, the TDC may function at times as an educator, at times as a researcher, at times as an investor in an innovative product, at times as a source of incubation, at times as a network developer to link together events or businesses for their mutual benefit.

Convener and facilitator o The TDC can bring together various public and private interests to identify

significant trends, needs, or opportunities. Based on these discussions, it may facilitate and support various activities that serve to strengthen the tourism sector.

Values

Stewardship: prudent management of public revenues consistent with their intended purpose

Innovation

Fairness

Accountability

Goals

Diversify the range and type of experiences available to visitors

Maintain a high level of brand awareness

Promote an ever‐improving level of visitor experience

Leverage tourism investments to improve the overall economic condition of the county

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Goals & Strategies


To better achieve the desired result of 10% annual bed tax growth, a broader range of experiences will be needed. One of the weaknesses the County faces is that some visitors feel they have been there, done that and nothing new. Diversification will address this weakness while adding additional reasons to visit the County in the first place. The various diversification opportunities are presented below.

o Sports tourism. Sports tourism encompasses amateur, professional, and collegiate sports. Sports tourism accounts for 15% of all Florida visitors. In St Johns County golf and fishing are the two dominant current forms of sports tourism along with sporting events such as runs and various beach activities of a sporting nature. Active tourism. Active tourism can be considered a sub‐set of sports

tourism with the distinction being sports tourism mainly refers to team or group sports while active tourism refers to individual activities which may or may not be done in a group. Fishing, bicycling, walking, running, hiking are all sports which can be pursued individually or in some group form. These may also be competitive or non‐competitive in nature.

o Business/Leisure (Bleisure). This form of tourism consists of the person visiting

the county for business purposes but who chooses to extend their stay for various leisure purposes. At the current time this is most often golfing or fishing, but it could include any of the other experiences discussed here.

o Signature Events. A signature event is one which draws national and

international visitors, draws national media attention in its field and is held on a regular schedule so that attendance can be planned. Its value is several fold. First is the economic benefit gained from the visitors and various events that are associated with the signature event itself. Second is the publicity value that accrues to the host community. Third are potential spin off benefits which can range from support businesses for whom the signature event is a major portion of their business to individuals or businesses that choose to come to the host community. St Johns County currently has one signature event that meets the above criteria: The TPC championship.

o Eco‐tourism. Eco‐tourism is nature based tourism. Obviously, beach based visits are nature based. However, given their dominance in the state, the term is more often used in the context of lesser used environments such as rivers or marshes for kayaking, nature trails through parks and reserves, wildlife viewing including birding, or visits to other natural spaces.

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o Cultural and Music tourism. This form of tourism covers a variety of venues

from art galleries to music festivals. Given its broad range of diverse experiences, there are a variety of sub‐markets. If the TDC were to make this market a priority, research would be needed to determine which sub‐markets would help best achieve the desired growth result.

o Heritage tourism. Heritage tourism focuses on the history of the community. St. Augustine is a leader in heritage tourism. The question is how this leadership can be strengthened and the experience improved. Living history. Living history is a sub‐set of heritage tourism which

emphasizes the use of re‐enactors to make history come alive. Re‐enactors can be used for older historic periods, such as the Spanish period, but they can also be used for more recent history such as the idea to have golf re‐enactors, i.e. Bobby Jones, at golf courses that attract visitors.

Archaeology. The opportunity to participate in a “dig” is a form of active tourism which appeals to a niche market.

Architectural. One of the appeals of St. Augustine is its distinctive architecture.

o Local food and culinary tourism. There is a “foodie” sub‐culture which is

attracted to local dining experiences distinctive to the area. While there is a target market, this form of tourism is better viewed as making the area attractive from the perspective of “more to do” and prolonging a stay. Distinctive and high quality food and liquor options help create an image of the community as a high‐value place.

o Ag‐tourism. Ag‐tourism can take several forms from periodic farm visit days or roadways to essentially bed and breakfasts that allow the visitor to experience farm life. Ag‐tourism, like local food and culinary tourism, is a limited target market but certainly serves to expand the range of things to do and thereby may extend the stay while enriching the experience.

o Family based tourism. Currently one important area of tourism for St. Johns County is what may be termed family based tourism. This form of tourism is expressed as nuclear family visits, multi or cross generation visits or extended family visits. While often centered on the beaches, this form of tourism is often looking for additional things to do.

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o Wedding‐tourism. Weddings are a significant niche market in St. Augustine while there are other venues in the county which also serve this market. The challenge here may not be growth as much as one of maintaining a competitive advantage.

Maintain a high level of brand awareness and feeder market sensitivity

The brand research conducted for this project indicates a very high level of brand awareness in existing target markets. However, other feeder markets may not be as well understood and the level of brand awareness in those markets may or may not be as high. One intent of this goal is to maintain brand awareness in existing feeder markets while strengthening brand identity in other markets. For this goal to be achieved, a richer understanding of the potential markets and how to reach those markets will be needed. This understanding will enable the TDC to determine which additional markets to pursue and how to best invest its marketing resources to achieve the desired annual growth result. The strategies for achieving this goal include:

o Feeder market analysis. This strategy seeks to better understand existing or emerging feeder markets, including international markets, and their characteristics. It further seeks to understand which aspects of those feeder markets could best meet the desired growth result.

o Continuous marketing impact analysis. This strategy is a continuous analysis of

which means of marketing represent the greatest value or ROI to the TDC and its desired growth result. The world of marketing is rapidly changing with the rise of social media and the increasing importance of relationship marketing. It appears there is decreasing value of print media as a communication tool. There are beginning questions as to the value of web sites. This strategy emphasizes the fiduciary responsibility of the TDC to understand which marketing channels present the best value for the markets it is seeking to reach. This strategy recognizes the dynamic nature of marketing and the need to continuously adapt by investing in those channels most effective now.

o Target market understanding and marketing approach. Current analytic techniques and marketing tools enable better and more effective micro‐targeting of specific markets. To use these techniques however requires a solid understanding of the various markets. For example, within the music market are a wide range of sub‐markets ranging from opera and classical to current sub‐markets of country, hip‐hop and rock. Each of these markets have differing potential to help meet the desired growth results as well as creating the overall desired image. A better understanding of the Hispanic market is needed.

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The first two goals focus on getting people to the County. The focus of this goal is ensuring they have a quality experience while they are in the County so that (1) they choose to return and (2) they become “sales people” for the County by communicating their positive experience. The TDC has a limited role and impact in the quality of specific venues. Those businesses will prosper or not based on their own performance. What the TDC must focus on, often in partnership with the responsible local governments and other institutions, is the quality of the public experience: safety, cleanliness, accessibility, attractiveness, appropriate space and the intangible but significant variable of feeling welcomed. Specific strategies the TDC would pursue, in collaboration and partnership as strategy appropriate include:

o Trams and other forms of alternative transportation. Increasing access to large tourism events by providing trams or some other forms of transportation to relieve parking and congestion can improve the experience. Ensuring coordination and communication of these alternatives is important for this strategy to succeed.

o Signage and circulation. Communicating signage needs to the appropriate

entity, supporting distinctive signage where needed and providing real‐time information about traffic and parking via apps are all tools that can improve the visitor’s experience.

o Coordinated event and experiences marketing. On any given day, and

particularly on weekends, there are a variety of experiences available in the County. The opportunity is to leverage these various events so that they support each other while providing a richer visitor experience.

o Facility maintenance. Obviously maintaining facilities is important both for the

visitor experience and protection of an existing investment. Given the scope of facility maintenance needs, it is important to clarify the TDC’s role and responsibility in facility maintenance as well as the responsibility of other local governments or institutions. Therefore, this strategy concentrates on role definition and the development of criteria that will be used to determine whether the TDC provides facility maintenance funding and what conditions may be required. Among the criteria that should be considered is the impact of the investment on achieving the desired annual growth result.

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o Facility development. As with facility maintenance, facilities may well be needed to develop a target market. The prime consideration here, other than financial capacity, is the degree to which a facility will lead to the desired annual growth result.

o Language diversity. Just a random walk around downtown St. Augustine will

encounter a variety of languages being spoken. Encouraging and supporting various tools that make it easier for the non‐English speaker to visit the County will better the experience of those visitors.

o Workforce training. As a convener and facilitator, the TDC can partner with various workforce and training entities to help provide training on hospitality skills, venue management skills and other supportive skills to provide a workforce better prepared to deliver quality visitor experiences.


St. Johns County faces an ongoing structural shortfall of resources adequate to meet needs and public expectations. This shortfall is due in large part to a comparatively low commercial tax base. For the most part residential valuation is inadequate from the perspective of needed maintenance and capital improvements. While the purpose of the TDC is to strengthen and expand the tourism sector of the local economy, this can be done in a way which helps build a stronger overall economy that has a better commercial/residential ratio. This occurs in part due to the growth of tourism related properties that enhance the commercial tax base. Some other strategies which could also contribute to a better ratio are discussed below.

o Growth of the music industry. In addition to the visitors it attracts, the music industry itself is much broader than the music event itself. A wide variety of supportive businesses (food and beverage, advertising, security, etc.) are needed for events to be produced. As events expand in number or size, there is commensurate growth in these support services. Beyond the support services element, there is the creative class element which tends to draw related (or unrelated) creative and entrepreneurial endeavors to an area. This can create a synergistic effect in which a growth cycle then occurs. Austin is an example of the interaction between a strong music element and a high technology element. All of this can ultimately benefit the overall economy and the commercial tax base of the County.

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o Sports capital. Just as music events require a support network, so do sports. While there are direct hotel stay benefits to sports, a variety of services can develop such as food and beverage, parking, security, advertising. The more consistent, frequent, and sufficient scale sports events are, the more likely a viable support sector will emerge. As with the music industry strategy, there will be ultimate benefit to the overall economy and the commercial tax base of the County.

o Target industry conventions. The county’s economic development unit and the

VCB currently cooperate on this strategy which seeks to attract conventions related to the target industries of the County. This is an excellent example of leveraging local resources for multiple benefits.

o Infrastructure development. Most TDCs in the state that have chosen to make significant infrastructure investments have done so with the understanding that residents may have some access to these facilities. This relieves to some degree capital pressures on county government.

o Financial sustainability and stability. The TDC must be prudent in its investments

to ensure that it can sustain them over time as appropriate. In addition, it must consider financial adjustments over time that may be needed to fulfill its purpose and achieve its desired growth results.

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Goals, Strategies & Objectives


o Sports tourism Establish and charge a short‐term task force to be coordinated and

supported by the TDC Executive Director with the following responsibilities:

Develop a recommendation for either a sports commission or sports committee that includes:

o Role and purpose; o Staffing needs; o Funding source and amount; o Other logistical and planning topics.

Conduct a market analysis of sports tourism opportunities appropriate to St. Johns County;

o Including estimated return on investment (ROI) and potential contribution to the desired growth result.

Based on market study findings conduct an infrastructure analysis to determine if the County has the needed infrastructure or could develop it.

o As a sub‐set of this analysis the potential for partnerships and joint use development with Flagler College and the County should be considered.

Present findings and recommendations to the TDC. Implement the recommendations adopted by the TDC.

o Active Sports

Charge the TDC Executive Director with the following:

Convening of a short‐term work group that would: o Identify existing active sports resources in the county; o Identify improvement and growth opportunities; o Estimate which of these growth opportunities would best

help the TDC achieve its desired growth result; o Develop an estimate of resources needed to make this

opportunity operational; o Estimate the (ROI) of such an investment and potential

contribution to the desired growth result; o Prepare and submit a report to the TDC.

Enact any items adopted by the TDC.

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o Business/Leisure Charge the TDC Executive Director, with support as needed from

contracted agencies, to analyze the existing scope of business/leisure travel in the County and determine opportunities and needed investments to expand that category of travel.

Estimate the (ROI) of such an investment and potential contribution to the desired growth result.

o Signature event(s)

Charge the TDC Executive Director, with support from the Cultural Council Director and Visitors and Convention Bureau President, to prepare a report addressing the following topics:

Strategies and needed investments to further optimize the existing signature event, the TPC championship;

Development of criteria for determining if an event would be a signature event;

Identification of one or more existing events or potential events, that have the potential to become a signature event or determine that an additional signature event is not feasible now;

Determine priority if more than one is identified;

Develop a business plan for the top ranked possibility that would identify needed start‐up resources and the potential “owner” and “manager” of the event;

Estimate the (ROI) of such an event and potential contribution to the desired growth result.

o Eco‐tourism

Charge the TDC Director, in collaboration with County recreation staff. State parks staff and other entities as determined by the TDC Director to be needed, to develop an analysis of the needed investments and potential ROI to further develop and market a blue‐ways/green‐ways attraction.

Provide a report and recommendations to the TDC. Implement those recommendations adopted by the TDC.

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o Cultural and Music Charge the TDC Director, in collaboration with County staff and contract

staff, to conduct a marketing study of potential event growth for the Amphitheater, the resources need to achieve that growth and the estimated ROI and contribution to the desired growth result of that investment.

Charge the TDC Director to establish as work group tasked to:

Identify music‐related industries that would be a good fit for St Johns County;

Identify approaches to engage in an active outreach to those industries;

Identify the resources need to engage in the outreach;

Estimate the (ROI) of such an effort and potential contribution to the desired growth result.

o Heritage tourism.

Living history

Charge the TDC Director to establish a work group tasked to: o Develop a broad re‐enactment strategy that would have

county‐wide features; o Identify opportunities to use re‐enactments as an

attraction in the less busy times (such as mid‐week); o Develop a promotion strategy; o Develop funding criteria; o Estimate the (ROI) of such an effort and potential

contribution to the desired growth result. Archelogy

Charge the TDC Director, in collaboration with the City of St. Augustine archeologist, to:

o Identify opportunities to expand visitation related to archeology;

o Identify promotion opportunities; o Estimate the (ROI) of such an effort and potential

contribution to the desired growth result. Architecture

Charge the TDC Director, in collaboration with appropriate staff to:

o Identify opportunities to expand visitation related to archeology;

o Identify promotion opportunities; o Estimate the (ROI) of such an effort and potential

contribution to the desired growth result.

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o Local food and culinary tourism Charge the TDC Director to establish a task force of stakeholders and staff

to:

Identify opportunities to expand this market;

Identify marketing strategies to support that expansion;

Identify the needed resources to support the expansion;


o Ag‐tourism

Charge the TDC Director to meet with local Farm Bureau, IFAS and the FL Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services to examine:

The feasibility and value of an agricultural tour or roadway of the food and liquor products of the County;

Methods to expand the number or scope of local food/beverage producers;

Ways to promote the development of local culinary resources that draw upon the local agricultural economy

Prepare a report to the TDC summarizing this discussion that incorporates estimates of needed investments and potential ROI and impact on the desired growth result.

o Family based tourism Charge the TDC Director to meet with hoteliers, attractions, restaurants

and other stakeholders to identify:

Current family visitation patterns;

Additional activities or activity gaps that families have identified as being of value;

Resources that would make the County more attractive to families

Estimates of needed investments. Prepare a report to the TDC summarizing this discussion that includes:

Priorities if any;

Estimates of the (ROI) of such an effort and potential contribution to the desired growth result.

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o Wedding tourism Charge the TDC Director to meet with stakeholders in the Wedding sector

to identify:

Current wedding activity patterns;

Additional features that wedding parties have identified as being of value;

Resources that would make the County more attractive to wedding parties;

Estimates of needed investments. Prepare a report to the TDC summarizing this discussion that includes:

Priorities if any; o Estimates of the (ROI) of such an effort and potential


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Maintain a high level of brand awareness

o Feeder market analysis. Charge the TDC Director and staff selected by the Director to:

Conduct a feeder market analysis;

Identify in this analysis those feeder markets which have the highest potential of growth;

Identify marketing strategies most likely to be effective with the target market;

Identify the cost of this marketing effort;


Present a report to the TDC including recommendations. Implement adopted recommendations.

o Continuous marketing impact analysis.

Charge the TDC Director to develop, using any appropriate resources, as a regular discussion item on the TDC agenda, a discussion of marketing strategy by target market or technique. This discussion should focus on impact, ROI, estimated contribution to the desired growth result as well as alternative methods.

Based on TDC discussion and direction, the TDC Director should direct adaptation of marketing strategy.

o Target market understanding and marketing approach.

A component of the regular TDC agenda item on marketing, a substantive discussion of the chosen target market and its sub‐markets should be conducted. This discussion should focus on impact, ROI, estimated contribution to the desired growth result as well as alternative methods.

Based on TDC discussion and direction, the TDC Director should direct adaptation of marketing strategy.

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o Trams and other forms of alternative transportation. Charge the TDC Director with the following:

Review of legal parameters and current practices regarding use of TDC funds to provide transportation services;

Convene a stakeholder group to determine when and where improved transportation would provide a significant benefit;

o Coordinate with the appropriate parties on a budget for transportation services;

o Identify the party responsible for coordinating and managing the transportation services;

o Estimate the (ROI) of such an effort and potential contribution to the desired growth result;

If there is sufficient added‐value, approve or bring to the TDC an agenda item approving such an investment.

o Signage and circulation.

Charge the TDC Director with the following:

Convene a stakeholder group to determine where additional signage would be needed. This group should include those entities responsible for signage.

o Develop with this group a plan for improved signage. o Determine the cost estimate of improved signage o Determine if and where the TDC should cost‐share. o Estimate the (ROI) of such an effort and potential


Provide a report to the TDC on recommended actions.

Enact any approved actions.

o Coordinated event and experiences marketing. Charge the TDC Director with the following:

Convene a stakeholder group to determine issues and opportunities for more coordinated marketing.

Develop with the group recommendations for improvement, including any resources that would be needed;


Provide a report to the TDC on recommended actions. Enact any approved actions.

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o Facility maintenance. Charge the TDC Director with the following:

Review of legal parameters and current practices regarding use of TDC funds for facility maintenance;

Review and refinement of criteria that the TDC would use to consider maintenance funding;

o Including an estimation of the (ROI) of such a project and potential contribution to the desired growth result.

Review and refinement of a process and structure though which maintenance funding needs can be considered;

Provide a report to the TDC on recommended actions; Enact any approved actions.

o Facility development.


Review of legal parameters and current practices regarding use of TDC funds for facility development;

Review and refinement of criteria that the TDC would use to consider facility development funding;

o Including an estimation of the (ROI) of such a project and potential contribution to the desired growth result.

Review and refinement of a process and structure though which facility development funding needs can be considered;

Provide a report to the TDC on recommended actions; Enact any approved actions.

o Language diversity.


Convene a stakeholder group to determine issues and opportunities for improved language diversity;



Provide a report to the TDC on recommended actions. Enact any approved actions.

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o Workforce training. Charge the TDC Director with the following:

Convene a stakeholder group to determine issues and opportunities for improved workforce training;



Provide a report to the TDC on recommended actions. Enact any approved actions


o Music industry

The objectives discussed in the expansion goal would address this strategy.

o Sports capital


o Target industry conventions


o Infrastructure development


Working with the appropriate public bodies, conduct an analysis of what additional facilities (bathrooms, parking, etc.) that would improve the visitor experience.

o Provide a findings report to the TDC which would include whether there is an appropriate funding role for the TDC.

Conduct a feasibility analysis of a performing arts center o This analysis should include Including an estimation of the

(ROI) of such a project and potential contribution to the desired growth result.

Examine the feasibility of a tourism business incubator. o If determined feasible include a business plan for the

development of such an incubator Including an estimation of the (ROI) of such a project and potential contribution to the desired growth result.

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o Financial sustainability and stability The TDC Executive Director is charged with:

Providing relevant information and education materials should the City of St. Augustine seek the authority to levy a historic preservation bed tax;

If the desired growth results are obtained, at an appropriate time in the future the continued relevance of the county ordinances regarding the bed tax should be placed on the TDC agenda for discussion.

Provide an annual update to the TDC on the value and potential impact of adding the 5th cent to TDC funding.

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Appendix A: Context Analysis 1: General Industry Trends with Quotations and Further Elaboration

The tourism industry has sustained growth in the recent past and such growth is projected to

continue into the near future. This growth is sustained globally by the growing middle class in

the developing world and nationally by international visitors, the retiring baby boomers and the

priorities of the millennial generation which make travel a priority.

The future of tourism in St Johns County is indeed bright and the County can position itself to

strengthen its competitive advantages in a highly competitive marketplace. For the near future

at least, tourism will continue to be the primary driver of the St. John’s local economy, with

somewhere between 40 and 50% of all jobs in the county directly or indirectly related to

tourism.

Given the critical contribution that tourism makes to St. John’s County, it is important to

identify major trends and patterns of the industry as they are relevant to the County. These

trends may be grouped into three themes. These are:

The growing significance of authentic and distinctive experience

Relationship marketing

Personalization and niche tourism

In addition to these three themes, the topic of demographic change is a significant one for the

tourism industry. From a generational perspective, how the County positions itself with respect

to the Boomer, Gen X and Millennial generations is an important topic. This context analysis

concludes with a discussion of three strategic factors that all tourism economies must address.

Themes

Theme 1: The growing significance of authentic and distinctive experience

Tourism, particularly personal, has always been driven by the desire to experience something.

To see something new or different or spectacular. To have an adventure of some sort. To meet

new people. From this perspective, tourism has always been about experience and so this is

nothing new.

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What is emerging as increasing important are experiences that are authentic and distinctive.

With respect to authenticity, there is obviously a strong market for the fabricated and managed

experience of theme parks. Yet today there is a growing market for places that are “real” in the

sense they were not created as a “tourist place” but rather developed as regular communities

that have some interesting features. St. Augustine versus Disney World is a classic example of

this dichotomy.

With respect to distinctive, there is clearly a market for chains of various types. Yet at the same

time there is a growing desire to dine at “one of a kind” places, shop in unique stores, and have

some sort of visiting experience that cannot be easily duplicated elsewhere.

Rather than conceive of authenticity and distinctiveness as “either‐or” experiences, it is more

accurate to conceive of them as continuums. As a continuum, it is the visitor who determines

what they deem to be authentic or distinctive. Any point on those continuums may be

enjoyable and rewarding but based on the visitor’s life experiences that will be assessed as to

the degree of authenticity and distinctiveness.

While acknowledging these are relative concepts, there are some key dimensions that

determine authenticity and distinctiveness. These include:

Local. Whether it be the locavore movement (food locally sourced) or local crafts, the

fact that the product or service is generated locally and has some local history is a factor

in determining the degree of authenticity and distinctiveness.

Non‐standard. Retail chains of all types (food, clothing, electronics, building supply,

etc.) are driven by economic and management factors to standardize their store layouts,

their menus, their products, etc.). While highly functional (and profitable), very little

distinguishes one Lowe’s from another, one Best Buy from another. While there may be

some cosmetic adaptations to local architecture, the product is the product is the

product. As such there is nothing significantly different among the retail chains. By

their very nature, they cannot provide a distinctive experience. (As an example of the

continuum concept, large hotel groups such as Marriott are developing distinctive

properties designed to fit the interests of various sub‐groups. Thus, there is both the

standard product and the distinctive product).

History. Places and properties that have a history encompassing both time and events

are viewed as both authentic and distinctive. Similarly, events or practices that have a

history are viewed as authentic and distinctive.

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Natural. To the degree that a place is not man‐made, it is more readily viewed as

authentic. Given the diversity of nature, most natural features have some distinctive

element. The more dramatic, the more obvious and recognized is the distinctive nature

of the place. Niagara Falls, Iguazu Falls and Victoria Falls are all viewed as highly

distinctive.

Low degree of pre‐packaged features. Again, from a continuum perspective, the degree

to which the experienced is controlled is an element of authenticity. Authentic

experiences have some element of chance, some possibility of surprise.

A review of various hospitality, leisure and tourism research web sites identified the following

quotations relevant to this theme. These include:

Travelers are increasingly demanding that travel enrich their lives, and be driven by exposure to

unique experiences and integration with local atmospheres, as opposed to travel driven by a

singular product (e.g., individual hotel or attraction) within a destination. Source: ey.com

By 2020, this market (i.e. Millennials) will be taking 47% more international trips than in 2013,

with many young travelers looking for:

Unique and authentic experiences

Opportunities to learn something new

Source: Treksoft.com

Regarding authentic experiences, although Boomers would like to eat a meal with locals (50%),

or tour with locals (40% among international travelers), they are not as open to staying with

locals, domestically or abroad (18%). Source: Treksoft.com

People are increasingly seeing travel to bring balance back into their lives. Almost half (48%) see

going on holiday as a moment to reflect and make better lifestyle choices. Source:

webintravel.com

Affluent travelers are shopping for experiences. The affluent consumer is different. They make

different kinds of buying decisions. They buy on reputation. Source: travelmarketreport.com

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“They (millennials) are the most passionate about travel; and they have the most motivation

about why they want to travel; and they are the ones who want to take more trips, go see more

places and spend more money on experiences than on things,” Source: Hotelnewsnow

2014 was a record‐breaking year for travelers roaming widely for sports, music festivals and

carnivals. Brazil welcomed 1m World Cup visitors and saw 2m people dancing on the streets for

each day of the Carnival; 40,000 music fans from 60 different countries raved at Serbia’s

legendary Exit Festival; and comeback concerts (like Kate Bush’s first live performances in 35

years in London) sparked a flurry of flights being booked along with gig tickets. The boom in

travel for international events looks set to skyrocket in coming years, led by Croatia’s

smorgasbord of music festivals, the ever‐growing Edinburgh Fringe and Vietnam’s reinvention

as a festival destination. Source: www.lonelyplanet.com

58% of travelers plan to prioritize spending on experiences rather than material possessions

while on holiday. Source: Webintravel

Many millennials are more than happy to spend larger‐than normal sums on trips, it just should

be for the right types of purchases, like experiences. “They may not spend a lot on a car or live in

a really cheap apartment. They don’t eat out a whole lot,” said Sharalyn Orr, Executive Director

of Frank N. Magid Associates, a consumer research firm. “They’re saving because they’d rather

go to concerts, or would rather travel whenever they can.” Source skift.com

Theme 2: Relationship marketing

Just as tourist have always traveled for experience, marketing has always been about

relationships. Trusted relationships determined early markets and today we still acknowledge

the importance of networks in business development. Relationship marketing is nothing new.

That acknowledged, the power of social media and other communication tools along with

better and more powerful analytic tools, have brought new depth and importance to

relationship marketing. Social media has made word of mouth recommendations readily

available and various rating tools enable those recommendations to be trusted or not. The

ability to review a web site and view the persons involved make businesses more personal.

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The importance of relationships, which may vary from personal to a trusted source, are re‐

shaping marketing strategy as well as shaping the visit experience itself. Examples of emerging

trends in marketing are quoted below.

Local bloggers are replacing travel writers. Travel bloggers are quickly replacing travel writers

as influencers who have become social media rock stars who churn out content their followers

crave. Source: adweek.com.

User‐generated content is replacing advertising. Social media plays a pivotal role in how the

millennial traveler makes their decisions. In fact, 87% are looking at Facebook for travel

inspiration. (Those “epic” selfies you took on your Barbados getaway? They’re working.) Brands

need to embrace the power of UGC (user‐generated content) over traditional advertisements if

they are to connect with this generation. Millennials will post their experiences on social media.

In fact, 97% will post while traveling, and 75% will post once a day.

Word of Mouth is Key. Millennials look for word of mouth recommendations (Treksoft.com).

The declining importance of print media. Studies show that traditional print media is over‐

supported by advertising spend today compared to the amount of audience attention it gets,

despite how much that advertising spend has already dropped," said Chris Christensen, an

independent travel journalist and creator of the blog and podcast Amateur Traveler.

"Traditional outlets pay [writers] less because they have less, [and] many PR firms have told me

that they started working with bloggers because there just were not that many staff journalists

to work with anymore. Source: Adweek

The rise of social media. Social media platforms have become intrinsic elements of travel and

they are an increasingly prominent source of travel information, product recommendations,

critiques and sales. They also allow individual customers to share their experiences — both good

and bad — with friends, followers and the broader online community. Source: ey.com. Social

media plays a pivotal role in how the millennial traveler makes their decisions. In fact, 87% are

looking at Facebook for travel inspiration. Source: Internetmarketinginc.

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Relationships themselves matter. interacting with staff and forging genuine relationships on

holiday will be an increasingly important hallmark of travel in 2017. Travelers are starting to

understand that human touch is irreplaceable. and crave this human interaction to make their

holiday memorable.

42% of travelers asserted they would not stay in an accommodation without

friendly/helpful staff.

40% confirmed they would not stay in an accommodation with more than three negative

reviews.

Source: Adweek.

The necessity of mobile. Want to appeal to the millennial mindset? Consider this:

85% of millennials check multiple sites before booking their travel to get the best deal

possible.

46% book travel through a smartphone or tablet.

Source: Internetmarketinginc.

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Theme 3: Personalization and niche tourism

As the tourism market expands, it is logical that there will be further differentiation by the

expansion of niche markets. It is also logical that experienced travelers will seek experiences

more customized to their personal interests, schedules and budget. As the world shrinks due to

communications and information technology, there will be new forms of tourism and visitation

as people seek alternatives for various challenges or opportunities as well as finding people

who share their interests. Examples of these trends are quoted below.

Just as with experiences and relationships, the desire for niche and personalized experiences

are not new. What is occurring are growing opportunities to identify niches, to identify specific

experiences that are desired, to determine the market size. For example, American Express

reported on the emergence of the “PANK” market. This acronym stands for Professional Aunts,

No Kids. Demographic research indicated that 47 percent of women age 15 to 44 were

childless in 2010, up from 35 percent in 1976.). Moreover, research showed that women in

their 30s without children were more likely to have a college degree and a higher salary than

mothers of the same age.ii

There is a growing emphasis on niche marketing with the perspective being that it is easier and

more profitable. Niche marketing avoids the generalist problem in which you are trying to stick

out from the crowd. Niche marketing is also becoming easier. Linked‐In for example has over

50,000 interest groups.iii

The growing significance of niche marketing is in direct proportion to the desire for authentic

experiences customized to the interest of the traveler. Gillick says, “Niche markets provide a

portal to gain insight into the heart of a destination and therefore they structure a travel

experience and lay bare the destination in the eyes of the traveler. And the beauty of it all is

that each individual traveler defines what kind of insight they want to achieve and what, to

them, constitutes the ‘heart’ of the destination. It could be the people, or the culture,

mountains, crafts, music, food, or the fact that they can buy masks or running shoes or

postcards. And for many travelers it doesn’t stop there. Niche interests blend into the enjoyable

pursuit of TMT—Travel Multi‐Tasking—that combines many wishes, goals and activities into

one vacation experience.iv

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The following factors will impact the future of personalized and niche markets:

6. There is a growing expectation that experiences can be personalized. With the rise of

“big data” more and more is known about the consumer. The corollary to that fact is

that this data is expected to be used to “personalize” the visiting experience.

7. A competitive advantage can be gained by personalizing the experience.

8. What people value can be better understood. With this understanding comes the

opportunity to provide that value in a profitable manner.

9. Personalization will be a market differentiator.

10. The technology for personalization will increase. Businesses or community’s that don’t

stay up will fall behind.

Examples:

The combining of business/leisure travel – “bleisure”. the ‘bleisure’ boom is well and truly

underway, and 2017 will see a further upswing not only in the blurring lines between leisure and

business travel, but in the value attached to workplace travel opportunities.

Of the 40% of global travelers who journeyed for business this year, 46% would travel

even more for business in 2017.

49% of business travelers have extended their business trips to further enjoy the

destination, while 75% intend to do so the same or more in the coming year.

30% of travelers said they would accept a lower paid job if it meant they could travel

more for work.

Source: Webintravel.com

Disabled Travelers. Travelers with disabilities have more opportunities than ever to explore the

world with the assistance of hi‐tech support and creative planning. A study done by the Open

Doors Organization, the TIA, and the Society for Accessible Travel and Hospital (SATH) indicates

that disabled travelers currently spend approximately $3.3 million a year on travel. "Dialysis

cruises" using portable dialysis equipment are planned for patients and their families; road trips

are taken with wheelchair accessible vans and buses; and transportable nebulizers and oxygen

cylinders are made available for travelers with respiratory problems.

Source: Entrepreneur.com

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Medical Tourism. The Medical Tourism industry is valued at US$439 billion, with a projected

growth rate of up to 25% year‐over‐year for the next 10 years as an estimated three to four

percent of the world's population will travel internationally for healthcare and health‐related

treatment. This means the medical travel market could soar to US$3 trillion by 2025. Source:

http://hotelmarketing.com/index.php/content/article/medical_tourism_industry_trends_2017#

sthash.SPAU99J4.dpuf

Travelers with Pets. Traveling with pets is a very specialized niche that is growing quickly as

demand increases and resources expand. According to TIA, more than 29 million Americans

traveled with their favorite canines and kitties during the last three years. Pet lovers cross all

economic spectrums, but luxury and business travelers are more likely to spend the extra cash

and make the necessary arrangements to bring their beloved companions with them. Source: Entrepreneur.com

Adventure travel. Adventure travel has become increasingly popular over the years. In fact, the

Travel Industry Association (TIA) reports that over the past 5 years, 98 million adults have taken

an adventure trip. Adventure means different things to different people. There are the more

extreme adventures (rafting, spelunking, parasailing, skydiving), and there are the “soft”

adventures (walking, cycling, fishing, camping, horse riding). Source: www.resdy.com Grandtravel. "Grandtravel" is a specialized niche that is one of the fastest growing travel

trends, representing more than 21 percent of all trips taken with children last year, Source:

Entrepreneur.com

Gender group travel. As an indication of the growing trend for both younger and older women

to go on short getaways with their girlfriends, the number of women‐only travel companies

have increased by 230% in the past 6 years (GutsyTraveler). There is a similar trend for men.

Source: www.rezdy.com

Bud and Breakfast. This is a tour site that assist travelers who want to engage in marijuana use

to identify places where use is legal as well as experience differing types of marijuana. Source:

https:/budandbreakfast.com

Worldpacker. This is a web site that identifies opportunities where one can trade labor for

accommodation. www.worldpackers.com

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Framing the Market: Demographic segments or Travel Mindsets

From a demographic perspective, there are three major market segments: Millennials, Gen X

and Boomers. In an ideal world, all three generations could be pursued as your visitor market.

Yet in a world of resource constraints, careful consideration must be given to where resources

are invested. Baby boomers currently have the greatest disposable income, but Millennials give

priority to travel and are shaping their travel preferences now.

This statement of the problem frames the challenge as one of determining generational

strategies. It is a valid and important way to understand the challenge and has practical

implications for marketing strategy and local experiences to be promoted. While the boomers

may have the money today, the future is the millennial.

But there is another way to frame this problem. Instead of a focus on generations, focus on

travel mindsets. A mindset is a way of thinking, a mental attitude. Rather than basing strategy

on generations, strategy is based on attracting persons who have certain travel mindsets.

These mindsets are one’s that St. Johns County is best prepared to meet. These include:

Diverse and authentic experiences. St. Johns can provide a wide range of experiences including

distinctive history, a variety of active outdoor opportunities, a range of cultural and

entertainment events and venues, distinctive culinary options. Given these assets, a focus on

the traveler who wants diverse experiences, regardless of their age group, is a clear

opportunity.

Relationships. Three of the top five reasons for travel can be considered relationship travel.

These were: multigenerational travel, travel with immediate family and celebration travel. St.

Augustine is a popular wedding site, the beaches offer the opportunity for family and multi‐

generational experiences. Additionally, the golf courses provide opportunities for business

relationship development.

Active. Both the climate of the county and its physical features offer a variety of opportunities

for active tourism. Currently dominated by the beaches and golf courses, the expansion of

bicycling pathways offers another active option. Should the county decide to pursue the sports

tourism market, it has the climate conducive to success in that arena.

Within these three mindsets are numerous niches. The challenge for a travel mindset strategy

is determining which niches to pursue.

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This does not mean that the practical differences between generations are ignored. Millennials

can be best reached through social and mobile media while boomers rely more on traditional

media. How one best communicates to the “active” traveler may well indeed consist of various

strategies that have their basis in generational preferences. But these are matters of

technique, not of strategy.

The strategic factors relevant to all destinations

There are three factors that all tourism destinations must strategically address. These are:

Strategies that develop and emphasize a destination’s competitive attributes and

purpose. These strategies address the question of why visit us? What makes us

different? What will you gain from a visit?

Strategies to communicate the destination’s purpose to customers in key feeder

markets. These strategies address how to best answer the question of why. Why St.

Johns rather than other places.

Strategies to ensure the customer experiences align with the destination’s purpose

across various tourism products. These strategies reflect the reality that one does not

want to leave the visitor experience to chance. It recognizes that consistent quality of

experience is a differentiator.

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i Chipkin, H. Making the case for niche marketing. Travel Market Report. ii Spors, K. The two hottest niche markets you’ve probably never heard of. www.americanexpress.com iii Chipkin, H. Making the case for niche marketing. Travel Market Report. iv Gillick, S. What travelers want: embracing the niche market triad. www.travelindustrytoday.com

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