HomeMy WebLinkAbout07. Business Survey Report for Town CouncilVAIL COMMUNITY BUSINESS SURVEY
TOWN COUNCIL PRESENTATION
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction 3
Methodology 4
Business Information 5
Customer Service from the Town 9
Communication & Engagement 12
Special Events 16
Marketing 20
Safety & Security 25
Community Vision & Collaboration 28
Employee Services 32
Transportation & Parking 35
Housing 38
Loading & Environmental Programs 45
Key Findings 48
INTRODUCTION
This survey is intended to provide Vail’s Town Council and town staff insight into how the
business community views their relationship with the Town as well as how public policies are
impacting businesses in Vail. There was is specific interest in gathering feedback on:
1.The Quality of the Town of Vail’s Services
2.Effectiveness of Communications
3.How Policies & Programs Focused on Events, Housing, Transit, Parking, etc. Impact Local
Businesses
3
METHODOLOGY
To gauge sentiments of local businesses, RRC
was engaged to create and administer a
survey of Vail businesses. The questions were
100% online and promoted via:
•Postcards mailed to all business licensees in
Vail (615)
•Personal delivery of additional cards to local
businesses by senior Town staff
•Additional telephone outreach by the VCBA
The survey was open from February 1 through
March 18 and a total of 67 were completed
online for a response rate of 11%.
Total
Surveys
Completed
67
4
BUSINESS INFORMATION
TYPE OF BUSINESS RESPONDENTS
Predictably, most respondents are in the tourism industry with nearly three quarters in the retail,
restaurant or lodging sectors.
6
NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES
Most respondents are small businesses: two-thirds had 10 or fewer employees.
7
LOCATION OF BUSINESS
Six in 10 respondents were in Vail Village. Overall, most respondents (nearly 80%) were
located either in Vail Village or Lionshead.
8
CUSTOMER SERVICE FROM THE TOWN
OVERALL SERVICE FROM TOWN STAFF
Satisfaction with overall services received from the Town of Vail is quite positive. Sixty percent of
respondents are “Generally” or “Very Satisfied” while just 9% report they are dissatisfied.
10
SATISFACTION WITH CUSTOMER SERVICE
Looking at specifics, respondents were quite positive on their experience obtaining business and liquor licenses as well as remitting
sales tax. Parking attendants and Front Desk staff also rated highly along with interaction with police and fire personnel. Building
permits and plan review are the biggest pain point in dealing with the Town.
Percent Responding:
1 & 2 3 4 & 5
Obtaining liquor permits Avg. 4.3 n=21
Obtaining business licenses and remitting sales tax Avg. 4.2 n=58
Scheduling fire inspections Avg. 3.7 n=40
Parking hosts and booth attendant helpfulness Avg. 4.0 n=46
Front desk/reception Avg. 3.9 n=40
Calling upon Fire, Police or Code Enforcement(for non-emergency services)Avg. 3.7 n=51
Finding out information from the Town(website, televised meetings, direct contact with staff)Avg. 3.6 n=60
Purchasing parking passes Avg. 3.1 n=43
Obtaining plan review and/or building permits Avg. 2.6 n=34 32%
52%33%
50%31%
25%48%
33%39%
38%25%
33%29%
27%28%
5%
5%
18%
7%
10%
18%
18%
30%
50%
10%
14%
10%
22%
28%
20%
27%
35%
35%
86%
81%
73%
72%
63%
63%
55%
35%
15%
The Town wants to understand “how we’re doing” when it comes to servicing your needs as a Vail business. How would you rate thelevel of service related to the following?
Source: RRC
11
COMMUNICATION & ENGAGEMENT
SOURCES OF TOWN INFORMATION
Nearly two thirds of respondents still rely on the Vail Daily as their primary source of information for what is happening
at the Town. Other common sources include E-News and the Town’s website.
13
STAFF RESPONSE & COMMUNICATION
Businesspeople are
generally happy with the
timeliness and quality of
service they receive from
Town staff.
However, they tend to feel
the Town is not as
transparent with
information as it could be
when dealing with local
businesses.
Percent Responding:
1 & 2 3 4 & 5
How well does staff respond back to you
(timeliness, knowledge, problem solving)?Avg. 3.5 n=54
How easy is it to reach staff at the Town to help with
a question/problem?Avg. 3.3 n=56
How effective are these methods at getting
important information to you?Avg. 3.3 n=62
How transparent do you think the Town is with
information to the business community?Avg. 3.0 n=59
17%
20%
18%
22%
26%26%
23%25%
16%19%
17%
22%
29%
18%
34%
26%
23%
47%
36%
52%
48%
35%
31%
How well would you rate the Town on the following?
Source: RRC
14
QUALITY OF COMMUNICATION FOR EVENTS
Businesses are split on how well the Town communicates on potential event impacts. 56% say Town staff
does a good to excellent job and 44% rate communication as fair or poor.
15
SPECIAL EVENTS
SUPPORT FOR SPECIAL EVENT FUNDING
By a wide margin, respondents are in favor of the Town investing in special events in Vail.
17
EVENT IMPACTS ON BUSINESS
Two thirds of respondents say there are specific events in Vail that benefit their businesses. GoPro
Mountain Games, sports camps/tournaments and concerts were mentioned.
18
EVENT IMPACTS ON BUSINESS
Businesses are split on whether some events have a negative impact on their operations or revenue.
Examples of negative events include those that occur on Meadow Drive and any that result in tents
blocking visibility of stores.
19
MARKETING
VLMD AWARENESS
While most businesses are aware of the VLMD, there is still a significant number (37%) who are not
familiar with the Marketing District.
21
AWARENESS OF DISCOVERVAIL.COM
There is much stronger awareness of the online marketing efforts done via DiscoverVail.com.
22
EASE OF USING MARKETING RESOURCES
Of those who are or have utilized the website and VLMD resources, 55% of respondents are either
neutral or positive on the ease of using them. Just 10% find them difficult to use.
23
RATING DISCOVERVAIL.COM
There is generally positive feedback on the website with 38% rating it good or excellent and just 5%
saying it does a poor job of representing Vail.
24
SAFETY & SECURITY
RATING PUBLIC SAFETY IN VAIL
Vail’s public safety ratings would be the envy of most communities. 85% agree that the Town provides a
safe and secure environment and just 9% disagree.
26
EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS
Nearly two thirds say the Town does a good or excellent job of communicating emergency situations that
affect businesses. Just 4% say emergency communication is poor.
27
COMMUNITY VISION & COLLABORATION
TOWN OF VAIL VISION
Nearly half of respondents agree that the Town of Vail provides a visionary role for the future while about
a third are neutral and 21% disagree.
29
TOWN COLLABORATION WITH BUSINESS
Results are mixed on the how businesses view collaboration efforts by the Town. A plurality of 39% rate
the efforts as “average” and about a quarter say they are good or excellent. However, nearly a quarter
rate collaboration as “poor.”
30
AWARENESS OF ENGAGEVAIL.COM
Over two thirds of business respondents are not aware of EngageVail.com. Clearly there is more
promotion needed for the online outreach effort.
31
EMPLOYEE SERVICES
USING EMPLOYEE PROGRAMS
At least a quarter of employees use either the PRIMA Vail employee engagement program or the
employee training development opportunities offered by the Vail Valley Partnership.
33
PRIMA VAIL IMPACTS
PRIMA Vail has boosted employees’ abilities to engage with customers and coworkers for nearly two
thirds of respondents.
34
TRANSPORTATION & PARKING
BUS SERVICE IN VAIL
Most employers are happy with Vail’s bus routes and schedules. Nearly two thirds say they are adequate
and just 17% said they are not.
36
PARKING RATES AND PASSES IN VAIL
Results are mixed for parking impacts on both customers and employees. About half say that parking
challenges impact customers negatively while half say they have zero or a positive impact. Results are
slightly more negative when considering impacts on employees.
Given that parking is a pain point in virtually all busy resort towns, these numbers are relatively
positive.
37
HOUSING
EMPLOYEE HOUSING INVESTMENTS
Roughly a third of businesses have invested in housing for their workers. Most of that investment
occurred in the Town of Vail.
39
FUTURE EMPLOYEE HOUSING INVESTMENTS
About a quarter of respondents plan to invest in employee housing in the next three years and an equal
number are unsure.
40
USE OF TOWN HOUSING PROGRAMS
Of those planning to invest, the majority would take advantage of a program offered by Town of Vail.
41
KNOWLEDGE OF HOUSING PROGRAMS
Three quarters of respondents say they are either somewhat or very informed on the Town’s housing
programs. Just 18% say they are not at all informed.
42
PARTICIPATION IN HOUSING PROGRAMS
35% of respondents say that either their business or their employees (or both) have participated in a
housing program offered by the Town of Vail.
43
EASE OF USING HOUSING PROGRAMS
Sentiments on the ease of using a housing program are somewhat mixed but net positive. Nearly 40%
rate them as “Easy” and 25% say they are difficult.
44
ENVIRONMENTAL & LOADING PROGRAMS
LOADING & DELIVERY PROGRAM
Overall, the Loading & Delivery program has been successful with about half of respondents rating it
“Very Successful” for reducing vehicle numbers, improving guest experience and vendor
performance. The highest negative sentiment regards timeliness. A third of respondents say delays are
an issue.
46
ENVIRONMENTAL PROGRAMS
Businesses are very aware of the recycling and E-bike programs and less informed on composting.
47
KEY FINDINGS
Respondents are predominantly from the tourism sector. Retailers were the largest
group, followed by restaurants and lodging businesses.
KEY FINDINGS
Two thirds of respondents are small businesses with 10 or fewer employees and are
mostly located in Vail Village (61%) or Lionshead (17%).
Overall, business managers and owners are happy with the service they receive from
the Town. 60% say they are generally or very satisfied. Just 9% report they are
dissatisfied.
49
When asked about specific services provided by the Town staff, most rated very
highly. The process for obtaining liquor permits and business licenses along with
remitting sales tax all seem to work quite smoothly. Interactions with parking
attendants and front desk staff also rated highly.
KEY FINDINGS
Just one area rated below average. The process for obtaining building permits and
plan reviews is clearly a pain point for businesses in Vail. The next lowest rated
service provided by the Town was purchasing parking passes.
The choice for staying up to date with what is happening with the Town government is still
the newspaper. Vail Daily was the top choice of nearly two thirds of respondents with the
Town of Vail E-News and Vail.gov website also being common sources of information.
50
Businesses recognize the importance of special events and support the Town of Vail’s
funding to encourage them. 71% favor investing to support events in Vail. Two thirds
of respondents say there are specific events that benefit their business.
KEY FINDINGS
The Vail Local Marketing District (VLMD) is not familiar to 37% of respondents. The
District may benefit from additional outreach and promotion among local businesses.
DiscoverVail.com is known to 81% of respondents and is familiar to virtually all of
those with a tourism focus.
Vail is seen as a safe community with the Police, Fire, and Public Works Departments
being highly trusted. 85% of respondents say they agree or strongly agree that Vail is
safe and secure for their business and their customers.
51
Overall, the business community thinks the Town of Vail provides a vision for the
future. Nearly half agree that the Town plays a “Visionary Role” with just 21% of
respondents disagreeing.
KEY FINDINGS
Respondents are somewhat split on how effectively the Town collaborates with
businesses. About a third of respondents rate business collaboration as fair or poor
while a quarter say it is good or excellent. In addition, most businesspeople are not
aware of EngageVail.com.
PRIMA Vail appears to be an effective program for boosting customer service in Vail.
A quarter of respondents report their employees are involved with PRIMA Vail and
the large majority feel it is positively impacting how workers engage with the public.
52
Businesses are concerned about employee housing. Over one third have invested in
housing assistance for their staff either in the town or outside of Vail and 27% plan to
invest in housing in the future, with most planning to utilize Town programs.
KEY FINDINGS
On transportation topics, businesses are positive on bus service and mostly satisfied
with bus routes and schedules. Regarding parking, they are evenly split on whether it
creates an issue for customers but are more negative when considering impacts on
employees. Note that parking is a major issue in virtually all resort towns.
Overall, the Loading & Delivery program receives positive marks for reducing
vehicles in the pedestrian zone and for enhancing the guest experience in Vail
Village. The biggest challenge appears to be how the program impacts the timeliness
of deliveries.
53
RRC ASSOCIATES
4770 Baseline Road, Suite 355
Boulder, CO 80303
rrcassociates.com
(303) 449-6558
THANK YOU!