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HomeMy WebLinkAbout05. CRC 2019 Event Recap with Survey_Vail BluegrassSurveyed Event Recap: Vail Summer Bluegrass Cultural, Recreational & Community Category September 4, 2019 Vail Summer Bluegrass: June 27, July 3, 10 ,17 Ariel Rosemberg 404.402.0484 vailbluegrass@gmail.com 2 Overall Event Highlights & Successes 3 •NPS came in at 71%, where 81% of respondents identified as promoters. •Offset decrease in CSE funding with an increase in sponsor dollars, plus collected +$2200 in bar revenue (first time since inception). •Successful partnership structure and move into Solaris Plaza as the event’s new (and hopefully) permanent home. •Ongoing dialog with Town and Vail Mountain to enhance sustainable footprint and effective waste management program •+50% of survey respondents identified Vail Bluegrass as all or part of their reason for visiting Town Questions from CSE 4 Attendance Estimate 5 •This was within the ballpark of our estimated attendance. It was taken into strong consideration that although a move to Solaris was being made, there are still elements of re-establishing brand identity as well as educating the public that needed to be achieved. •It would be great for next year to devise a formula for a true attendance estimate. Given the event is free, there is no actual way to know how many people are in the Plaza at a specific time. However, based on the space’s capacity, bar sales, average attendance at band’s shows and time in the series, we should be able to achieve a better and clearer attendance assumption. Visitor Type 6 •This was very much in line with our visitor type strategy. The primary goal for Vail Bluegrass as a free weekday event is to continue driving overnight traffic to Town. Through a handful of lodging promos and strategic partnerships, we were successful in that nearly 50% of survey respondents identified as an overnight visitor. •Vail Bluegrass will continue to build and nurture relationships with lodging partners, as well as likeminded events, to drive awareness, attendance and midweek overnight visitors. The fact that only 2% of respondents were day visitors is great, and strategies can be developed to convert them into overnighters. Overnight Visitor Profile: Overnight Visitors & Seasonal Residents Only Only 7 •Vail Bluegrass had carefully selected lodging partners who have shown a long-standing commitment to the event’s growth and success, and although the event has moved to Solaris, those lodging partners remain in Lionshead. •The two partners we worked with were kind enough to offer discounted nightly rates that were applicable on Vail Bluegrass nights. •Additionally, we tested a social media campaign in partnership with the VVF to drive overnight weeknight visitors during the first week of our series. Overall Visitor Profile 8 •Our target demographic was very much in line with the survey results. The goal was to reach folks from the mid-30s into the 60s with the intention of truly embodying a family vibe. It is no surprise that there is a mix of income as we are a free event, and that attendees are mostly in-state as a large majority of our marketing efforts were geared regionally. •Vail Bluegrass will continue to nurture its existing visitor profile, leveraging it as a key contributor to success. Additionally, we will work with Town, Vail Mountain and similar events to understand who else is visiting and how we can better reach them to further establish the Vail Bluegrass brand. Role/Importance of Event in Intent to Visit Vail 9 •The two primary strategies for driving overnight visitors were strategically aligning with lodging properties to offer discounts and the test of coupling an offer with another weeknight event to productize the free music offerings in town. •There is a huge opportunity to create deeper relationships with other weeknight events to couple ourselves in a true product manner. The goal is always to drive awareness, engagement and overnight guests and by looking deeply at what a product offering might look like, it could greatly shift the amount of people who are at minimum considering Vail as a destination. NPS (Net Promoter Score)/Likelihood to Recommend 10 •The NPS score seems to align well with the overall event experience. It is safe to assume that live music, crowds and beer isn’t necessarily something that everyone enjoys, which answers the question of why 10% of respondents identified as detractors. •For the future however, especially given the move to Solaris, there is opportunity to truly educate through messaging and positioning, signage, additional programming (like yoga) and more. Estimated Return on Investment (ROI) & Attendee Expenditures 11 •Simply put, the move to Solaris was the primary mechanism for encouraging folks to spend in Vail. There is more to select from in terms of shopping and dining, access to Gondola One, the Vail Village Parking Structure and more. •Also given the nature of retail at Solaris itself, there are great opportunities for our attendees to access it all (and they stayed open!). Event Strengths & Weaknesses 12 •This year’s event absolutely exceeded expectations. With the move, it was difficult to tell if the space would resonate, if artists would be comfortable in a more open setting, if patrons would get wet (it didn’t rain, by the way), access to bathrooms, etc. What transpired was tremendous. People expressed gratitude more so than in any previous year, our partners new and old were thrilled with the exposure and we gave Town of Vail the “downtown” event we’d already dreamed of. Plus we got to build our own stage! •For the future, there are opportunities to deeper align with likeminded and/or other weekday events, to pull in Vail Village lodging partners, increase the food offering to patrons, potentially add wellness components so we’re promoting a lifestyle outside of music and beer and to be smarter about waste management and sustainability efforts. Vail Brand Compatibility 13 While Vail Bluegrass wasn’t necessarily designed as an “international” event, it certainly does play in well with Town’s overall goal of creating an international community and offers content that is like nothing on earth. The event is very strategic from a talent buying perspective to ensure content is family friendly, easily consumable and approachable and aligns all marketing and branding efforts closely to those of Town and Vail Mountain. Additionally, the event works closely with likeminded events and only local businesses to ensure the Vail name is at the forefront of all messaging. Community Contribution 14 Community is at the core of all Vail Bluegrass’ efforts; from marketing and communications to business involvement and outreach. Being a free, cultural, weeknight event has 100% been used to generate the sense of community. As indicated by the survey results, patrons come to Vail Bluegrass from around the region and mostly from around the state. A simple, surface-level measurement of success here is the experience people are having. If they’re smiling, enjoying, dancing, drinking beer, socializing with friends, making new ones, bringing their kids and parents and spending money at local businesses, we know that the manifestation of community has been nurtured and is successful. Topline Marketing Efforts 15 •Deep sponsor alignment, where more than half of sponsors had a physical presence in the Solaris space. •The first (of hopefully many) paid social campaigns in partnership with Hot Summer Nights that drove a reach of +15k, +28k impressions and 150 clicks within a 4-day ad spend cycle. The goal was to drive awareness and hotel nights booked through our primary lodging partner. •A successful profit-sharing model between Vail Bluegrass and Solaris, allowing Vail Bluegrass to position Vail Brewing Company as a strategic partner driving +$14k in bar sales over the course of 12 collective hours of content. •Please attach complete marketing plan to end of presentation. Potential for Growth & Sponsorships/Media Exposure 16 •The event can only grow from where we stand today. Given we have a permit for the full day, we’re already exploring ideas to activate the plaza outside of our traditional show hours through yoga/wellness programming, educational workshops and more. And although the process has not yet kicked off, many of the Solaris merchants expressed interest in deeper involvement which would aid in a growth strategy. •From a partner standpoint, we will continue nurturing the existing partner roster we’ve got. One of the primary opportunities for partnership, growth and sustainability is to look at a single-use cup partner. •There are always great dialogs that surround an extension of media and marketing. The event will work closely with Town and Vail Mountain to ensure any visiting media are made aware of the series. We will also (as always) continue to make our artists and partners available for Q&A and interviews. We will look carefully at drive markets outside of the Front Range to ensure the message is being widely spread against similar content at competitive resort destinatons. Sustainability Efforts 17 The topic of sustainability came up often during this summer’s event. Our cups were sponsored by EcoProducts but unfortunately did not meet requirements for recycling (as they are compostable with no true alternative for composting these cups in Vail). Our short-term solution was to implement waste and recycling receptacles by way of Town’s Public Works team and message to our attendees what could and could not be recycled. For the future, we will absolutely look carefully at ways to continue reducing our single-use footprint by partnering with a reusable cup alternative, incentivizing patrons to use those wherever possible (food and/or drink). Patrons are also always encouraged to bring their existing owned reusable products to assist in the overall reduction of waste. The Town of Vail is committed to the stewardship and protection of our unique mountain environment. In consideration of both our local and global impacts and opportunities, our environmental vision is to demonstrate and promote: renewable energy, resource efficiency, ecosystem protection, and community awareness and education. Event Budget 18 * Event producer to attach detailed budget for recap Item $ Total Event Budget:50,000 CSE Funds:45,000 Cash Sponsorship (not CSE):5,000 In-kind Sponsorship:8,500 Marketing Budget:4,200 Profit & Loss:+6500 How did you use the CSE funds? (marketing, operations, staff, venue, etc.) Marketing, operations, staff, talent buying Additional Information/Appendix 19 •Provide detailed budget in the Appendix •Provide final marketing plan in the Appendix •Provide full version of the Survey Dashboard PDF in Appendix •Provide any additional information or marketing materials you think the CSE would benefit from