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HomeMy WebLinkAbout4. 2013 CSE Strategic Plan Working Doc 09-03-2013 Town of Vail: Commission on Special Events (CSE) STRATEGIC PLAN 2013-2017 Adopted Month, day, year This plan may be accessed at www.vailgov.com Mission Statement: The Vail Commission on Special Events is accountable to deliver an annual Special Events Plan which ensures world class events that are fully aligned with Vail’s brand. The CSE will effectively and efficiently allocate available budget behind this objective. The Events Plan will deliver measureable results in terms of specific goals: economic impact, optimization of the event calendar, positive community experience and integration, as well as positive guest-centric results that lead to future loyalty. Purpose: The purpose of the Commission on Special Events Strategic Plan is to establish guidelines which will assist the CSE in developing and supporting a calendar of events that accomplish the following objectives: 1. Align events with the Vail Brand 2. Drive Positive Economic Impact - occupancy Town of Vail: CSE Strategic Plan Page 2 of 12 Adopted Month/Day/2013 - sales tax - group business 3. Generate funding leverage 4. Attract destination guests who book overnight rooms; in-state, out of state and international 5. Achieve an optimal event calendar 6. Achieve a superior community and guest experience It is intended that this document be revisited and revised as the community evolves and action steps are completed. Process: In 2013, the CSE contracted with MKT Vail (Adam Sutner) to assist in the development of a multi-year strategic planning guide. This plan incorporates the result of that process with the Functions of the CSE as described in the Town of Vail Code Section 3-6-7. The document was reviewed by the following entities: • Town of Vail Event Review Committee (ERC) DATE • Vail Economic Advisory Council (VEAC) September 10, 2013 • Vail Local Marketing District Advisory Council (VLMDAC) DATE • Vail Town Council DATE Adopted on Month, day, year by the Vail Commission on Special Events Commission on Special Events Members: Jenn Bruno, Chairman Sonny Kerstiens, Vice-Chairman Bobby Bank Amy Cassidy Dave Chapin Barry Davis Rayla Kundolf Economic Development Office: Kelli McDonald, Economic Development Manager Sybill Navas, Special Events Coordinator Town of Vail: CSE Strategic Plan Page 3 of 12 Adopted Month/Day/2013 Clare Hefferren, Marketing-Event Liaison Consultant to the CSE and the VLMDAC Background: In 2002, the Vail Town Council approved legislation that created the Commission on Special Events (CSE) in its current form. This ordinance reorganized the existing CSE and set several broad objectives: 1. Stimulating the local economy a. Increase lodging and sales tax collections b. Increase number of visitors c. Insure that visitors have a high rate of intent to return 2. Create a sense of community in Vail and increase the quality of experience for both guests and residents 3. To establish a single point of contact for events administration 4. To provide street entertainment and special events that reflect the high quality image of Vail and contribute to vitality, economic viability and fun throughout the year 3-6-7: FUNCTIONS OF THE CSE: The CSE shall support the town council's goals and objectives and align its mission with the town council's marketing direction. The functions and/or duties of CSE shall include, but are not limited to: hiring and overseeing a director and/or staff, as well as event producers and/or promoters; creating, funding and seeking special events for the town of Vail; evaluating event applications and event success; submitting an annual budget for operations and events; coordinating the community calendar for special events; seeking out additional funding for special events through sponsorships and donations; evaluating and executing contracts for special events; and all other functions as directed by the town council. Qualifying cultural events shall be exempt from the purview and funding of the CSE. However, coordination and timing of qualifying cultural events shall be considered by the CSE and included in the CSE master calendar. (Ord. 30(2004) § 7) Givens: The Commission on Special Events (CSE) strategy assumes several givens: • Special events contribute to guest satisfaction, increased spending and sense of community. • Event funding decisions will be made in alignment with Town of Vail: CSE Strategic Plan Page 4 of 12 Adopted Month/Day/2013 the strategies supported by the Vail Local Marketing District. • Cooperation and communication with other community organizations are essential to the success of the CSE’s program. • Events that receive funding from the CSE must be compatible with the Vail Brand and be of a quality commensurate with Vail’s image as a world-class resort. • The use of measurable criteria in event selection, funding and evaluation is critical to ensuring progress. • A single point of contact is required to support special event producers. The CSE is part of the Town of Vail’s Economic Development Office and relies on the Town Council to provide: • Policy Direction • Consistent Special Events Funding • Proactive Development of Appropriate Special Event Venues • Town of Vail Staff support for Special Events as required Every significant event destination allocates resources to the administration, ongoing support and recruiting of special events. Research has proven that Special Events generate additional sales tax revenues in the Town of Vail. The CSE recommends that some percentage of these increased revenues should be used not only to help underwrite the costs of administration, but also for research, evaluation and further event development or recruitment. Strategic Fundamentals: The CSE will encourage and recruit independent event organizers to produce events in Vail by acting in a supporting role to provide seed funding for the development of new events, as well as for those on-going events that are contributing to the economic vitality of the community. Events that apply for CSE funding are evaluated by how well they can deliver results based on the following weighted criteria: Criteria Rating Does The Event Have Potential To: Increase Room Nights 0-20 Increase Sales & Lodging Revenue 0-10 Drive Group Business 0-5 Town of Vail: CSE Strategic Plan Page 5 of 12 Adopted Month/Day/2013 Brand Fit Does the event support the key brand message of world-class outdoor recreation, culture and well-being and 0-10 does it bring it to life experientially on its key dimensions: 1) Physical vitality 2) Cultural vitality 3) Emotional vitality (additional weight will potentially be given to those events that begin to articulate Vail's strategic objective of developing the notion of Health & Well-being) Timing How well does it help to achieve an optimal 0-5 calendar of events? (Maximizing high traffic periods (Fri-Sun) and optimizing off peak opportunities (Mon-Thurs) against occupancy opportunity and Town of Vail available assets, both human and capital) Demo Fit Does it help optimize the visitor mix 0-10 by improving the % of Destination, Front Range Overnight and Mexico/Latin American guests, while retaining Front Range day guests.and laying the foundation for Vail to be more relevant with a younger demographic. Growth Does it have the potential to continuously deliver fresh content, keeping the year-round Vail brand dynamic 0-10 - Leveraged media exposure and sponsorship support 0-10 Producer Qualifications Expertise, local knowledge, and financial resources to sustain the event in a manner compatible with the Vail brand 0-10 Marketing Strength How effectively will it be marketed 0-10 It continues to be the job of the CSE to weed out events not performing as expected while continuing to encourage the development of new events that support the Vail brand. Additionally, in keeping with the public trust and economic realities, every event investment will be held to a high level of accountability. A post- event recap will be expected from each event receiving public funding and will be publicly reviewed by the CSE. Progress will be evaluated by addressing these basic questions: Town of Vail: CSE Strategic Plan Page 6 of 12 Adopted Month/Day/2013 • Did each event investment increase Vail’s economic performance? • Are event investments being fully leveraged to increase both revenue and marketing reach? • Are we consistently achieving more impact with public resources? • Do these events contribute to a strong sense of community and better quality of life? Categories of Special Events: Do we want to keep this section??? Special Events are as diverse as the people that they attract. Different types of events contribute to the community in different ways, and the CSE must remain cognizant that all special events do not serve the same purpose in the community. While recognizing that some events “overlap” into more than one category, in order to facilitate the comparison of the contributions that varying events bring to the community the CSE has developed the following categories of Special Events:  Iconic Events: 1. Take place over a period of several days, or even weeks 2. Attract destination visitors from outside the region, and provide strong stimulus for the lodging, restaurant and retail community 3. Nationally or internationally recognized competitions or cultural events that contribute to Vail’s image as a world-class destination 4. Leverage community contributions with major sponsorships 5. Require a large number of volunteers and significant community support Examples: World Alpine Ski Championships, GoPro Mountain Games, BRAVO! Vail Music Festival, Vail International Dance Festival, Vail Jazz Festival, Burton US Open Snowboard Championships Role of the CSE: Review, evaluate economic impacts and potential, facilitate and recommend  Participatory Events: 1. Attract destination guests for the duration of the event 2. Provide benefit to the lodging and restaurant community 3. Turnkey: the Town’s role is that of a host site 4. Capitalize on infrastructure that might otherwise be under-utilized Town of Vail: CSE Strategic Plan Page 7 of 12 Adopted Month/Day/2013 Examples: GoPro Mountain Games, Kick-It 3vs3 Soccer, Vail Lacrosse Shootout, Vail Challenge Cup Soccer, Keen Vail Kids Adventure Race, Spring Back to Vail, Snow Daze Role of the CSE: Partner with the community, recruit, evaluate economic impacts and potential, provide sponsorship and/or site fees where necessary, facilitate, review  Ambient Events: 1. Contribute to higher Net Promoter Score (NPS) by providing entertainment, activities and street vitality for guests who are already here, or who might come into town for an afternoon or an evening 2. Attract visitors from within the region or the Front Range 3. Help to keep people in town for longer than they might otherwise stay 4. Contribute to Vail’s image as a place where there is always something fun to do Examples: Oktoberfest, Vail Farmers’ Market, Lionshead Friday Afternoon Club, Vail Arts Festival, Colorado Grand, Vail Automotive Classic, Vail Holidaze Role of the CSE: Communicate and partner with the business community, develop concepts, encourage sponsorship development, provide funding where necessary, evaluate economic contributions, review  Community Events: 1. Create a venue to celebrate major holidays and important community events, and to preserve the heritage and traditions of our community 2. Provide for a better quality of life for residents: i.e. make people happy 3. Bring “neighbors” (Summit County, down-valley) into town 4. Do not have a strong ability to attract major sponsors and/or do not provide opportunity for additional revenue sources to the event producer or measurable economic contributions to the Town of Vail Examples: Vail America Days, Vail Holidaze, Trick-or-Treat Trot, Lionshead Easter Egg Hunt Town of Vail: CSE Strategic Plan Page 8 of 12 Adopted Month/Day/2013 Role of the CSE: Facilitate, work with community organizations, contract for event production where necessary, evaluate and review The CSE will:  Provide a balanced, year round calendar of events appealing to residents and guests of diverse interests by: o Attracting and developing events that will enhance and contribute to Vail’s world-class reputation o Attracting guests by dedicating resources to recruit and develop new events o Attracting and supporting participant events for guests and residents o Actively encourage “activation” of events to create an expanded presence throughout the community and stimulate the participation of the merchants, restaurants and bars, and lodges o Encourage producers of special events to provide free entertainment as part of their events, e.g. musicians from BRAVO!, interactive dance experiences with the Vail International Dance Festival artists, kids activity zones, etc. o Develop community events that will enhance the experience of Vail’s guests and residents, as well as become effective marketing tools. Examples include Vail America Days, Oktoberfest, Vail Holidaze, Trick- or-Treat Trot, Lionshead Easter Egg Hunt, etc.  Work cooperatively with event producers to ensure that there will be adequate funding and resources to sustain those events that support the CSE’s criteria into the future and continue to bring the brand to life in exciting and unexpected ways.  Assess and evaluate events to ensure that the community benefits are commensurate with the investment of public funds by: o Following objective event selection, funding and evaluation criteria o Developing critical success measurements: In coordination with the Vail Local Marketing District (VLMD) and appropriate research vendors, tools will be developed to regularly measure the following criteria:  Economic indicators a. Increased sales tax collections b. Increased lodging tax collections c. Improved occupancy rates d. Impact from direct event spending e. Quantifiable marketing benefits f. Net Promoter Score (NPS) Town of Vail: CSE Strategic Plan Page 9 of 12 Adopted Month/Day/2013  Contributions to sense of community: a. Does the event improve the quality of experience for guests and residents? b. Does it pull down-valley residents into Vail? c. Does it make people happy? o Communicating with the local business community, the Vail Chamber and Business Association (VCBA), the Vail Valley Partnership (VVP) and the Vail Recreation District (VRD) to ensure that the events funded by the CSE have a positive impact on the local economy o Ensuring that event investments are closely coordinated with the economic needs of the community as recommended by the Vail Economic Advisory Council (VEAC) and with the broader marketing objectives identified by the VLMD o Maintaining biannual meetings with the VLMDAC and the VEAC and continue to work cooperatively to align the special events and marketing programs.  Encourage a culture within the Town of Vail that welcomes special events and provides a “can do” attitude of cooperation between Town of Vail Departments, Event Promoters and local businesses  Advocate for the development and improvement of venues and facilities for Special Events within the Town of Vail  Maintain coordination and communication between the Town of Vail’s Event Review Committee (ERC), the Vail Recreation District (VRD), Vail Resorts and the CSE  Develop a refined program for the allocation of in-kind services to support Special Events Remove this one?  “Green Events:” Encourage environmentally sustainable practices for all Town of Vail events  Provide complete and accurate information with regard to the calendar of special events in response to the needs of prospective guests, event promoters, Town of Vail staff, concierges, residents and guests  Maintain a “single point of contact” for Special Events  Continue to prove to the Town Council that special events are a revenue provider for the Town, not an expense, and that events can deliver substantial sales and lodging tax revenues while simultaneously making Vail a more vibrant place to live, work and play Following content was copied from the Strategic Document submitted by MKT Marketing 2013 Strategic Successes: • More optimal calendar management aligned with opportunity • Invest in strategy; separate strategy from execution and spend meeting time and resources further upstream • Improve quality and reduce quantity • Razor focus on performance against objectives • Process improvement - better real time evaluation and management - investment in quality of marketing - event content alignment with brand - strategically drive recruitment process Opportunities: Year One: 2013-2014 • Lionshead – under represented, construction finished • Holidaze without VR • VR winter strategy; aligning on off-peak periods - Thanksgiving? - Return of Carnivail? • Explore how to help Producers drive sponsorship • King of the Mountain & AVP development - Continue KOTM expanded programming - New athletes; need to get out in front to pre-empt scheduling - AVP has sent buying signal for Invitational Tournament in Vail - Timing open to discussion; July/August, or post Labor Day - Cost • Return of SoulFest or not? • Culinary Branding Opportunity; VLMDAC initiated but what does it look like at the event level • Survivor returns or not • July 4th – Wednesday; how does this relate to Festival scenario Into the Future: 2014-2015-2016 • Vail Summer Brand – The Health & Well-being initiative will be a year further down the road: - VVMC vision – to be aligned with the VLMDAC - Health & Well-being ‘Virtual Village’ - Potential for dedicated event a la Telluride Workout Weekend http://telluridewow.com/ • Further development of VR’s Epic Discovery; ziplines, aerial adventure courses, summer tubing, larger climbing wall, canopy tours - potential for modest on mountain event to help launch • VR winter strategy; continue alignment with off-peak periods - Thanksgiving - Return of Carnivail • Explore how to help Producers drive sponsorship • King of the Mountain & AVP development - Continue KOTM expanded programming - New athletes; need to get out in front to pre-empt scheduling - AVP has sent buying signal for Invitational Tournament in Vail - Timing open to discussion; July/August, or post Labor Day - Cost • Return of SoulFest or not • Culinary Branding Opportunity; VLMDAC initiated but what does it look like the event level • Survivor returns or not • July 4th – Wednesday; how does this relate to Festival scenario • Lionshead – under represented, construction finished Year 5: 2017 and Beyond • Post 2015 Alpine World Championships - in both 1989 and 1999 International attendance grew significantly - think about laying the groundwork to capitalize - aligned with VLMDAC; Mexico, Brazil, et. al. - Opportunities aligned with a greater International sensibility; UROC, bike racing, • The Hiking research insight remains - we have lots of disparate event with hiking aspects, but nothing dedicated - Aspen backcountry marathon gaining momentum - leverage mountain cleanup day - European style hiking infrastructure - hiking partnership • Where will EPIC Discovery be in 3-4 years time - 3.0MM west bound drivers on I-70 each summer • Continued growth of technology - wayfinding - orienteering - can we seek out a technology partner; e.g. Apple • Health & Well-being - by this time Vail should have an ‘iconic’ event and attendant supporting events - opportunity to begin developing now - Incentivize a partner long term to develop opportunities; Nike, Adidas, or related brands - Continued growth of yoga, tai chi, and related disciplines • Family event development - Cirque du Soleil (also Int’l appeal) - EPIC Discovery off the mountain • VR is looking at Chair 26 as a dedicated ‘family adventure area’ - could Golden Peak base area take on a similar role with the right partner - a kind of summer family adventure zone; environmental, human powered, thoughtful, with a Health & Well-being accent • Strategic Automotive - sustainability and emerging green technologies - whenever Tesla are here they are maxed out - could Vail and/or a partner seek out an opinion-leading high strategic value event partnership, with or apart from an existing auto partner • Comedy – if an earlier test event proved successful, by this time Vail could be host of the mountain’s premier Comedy festival