HomeMy WebLinkAbout03. a. EE 2020 Event Recap No Survey Vail SymposiumEvent/Program Recap: Vail Symposium 2020 Summer and Winter Seasons
Education & Enrichment Category
Wednesday December 2nd, 2020
Vail Symposium 2020 Summer and Winter Seasons
Kris Sabel
970-476-0954
ksabel@vailsymposium.org
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Overall Event or Program Highlights & Successes
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•Successfully transitioned from live to online events in March (presented 24 online
events from March to October, 2020)
•(NPS) Winter Season (79.45%); NPS Summer Season (80.12%)
•Increased attendance by 26.4% over previous year for winter season
•97% of winter audience likely to attend in the future; 83% of summer online
attendees likely to attend future online events
•Received funding from CARES Act through the Paycheck Protection Program
($52,400) and The National Endowment for the Humanities ($6,000)
•Continued to engage our donors with post event discussions with our speakers
Program Impact, Testimonials & Observations
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•“I have thoroughly enjoyed and appreciated the skill and thought -provoking programs
provided by Vail Symposium.”
•“The Symposium is an amazing service and resource for our community, I hope that more
locals understand what they can learn from these programs and get involved.”
•”Attending with my friends to improve my mind is what it’s all about.”
•”Vail Symposium is a highlight of our residency in the Valley. Great topics, good timing and
staff is outstanding and accommodating.”
•“I feel you do an excellent job, both in selection of topics, venues and physical
arrangements.”
•“Wonderful. Informative. Enjoyable. A delightful distraction from the challenges we face. “
•“Virtual programs help fill the void until we can do in-person programs.”
•“An interesting diversity of topics, and great presenters.”
Estimated Attendance Results
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•Estimated attendance for our winter, in-person events:
•2080 attendees for 12 programs—an average attendance of 173* this
number excludes our highest (607) and lowest (72) attended program
•26.4% increase in attendance from 2019
•For our online summer programs: 3790 attendees for 23 programs—
average attendance of 165
•Number/percentage of people who came specifically for event/program: The
majority of our audience are local or second homeowners who come to Vail
regularly. Due to the weekly schedule of our programs, I would say the
majority come specifically to our events.
•Number/percentage of people who attended the event last year: 91.72%
Estimated Attendee Profile Results
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•The majority of our audience is comprised of locals or second homeowners. This is our
target audience as our mission is to provide programs for our community members to
enhance the quality of their lives and make our community a more desirable and diverse
place to live
•For our summer programs, we were able to continue to engage our local and down valley
residents even if they were not actually in the valley. For any given program, we had guests
logging in from 12-20 states. For our program on Wolf Reintroduction, we had guests from
33 different towns in Colorado.
•We also heard from past residents of the valley who were excited to reconnect with Vail
and the Symposium through our online programs.
•83% of our audience said they are likely to attend online events for the foreseeable future
and 70% of our audience said they were more likely to attend online events
Estimated Spending Results
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•Estimated average spending per person:
There is an inherent challenge in this question since the majority of
our attendees live in the valley. Their responses to the survey
questions regarding spending are often incomplete, making it
difficult to provide meaningful data. Many attendees have dinner
and drinks and pay for parking when they don’t use the TOV
parking structures. Beyond that, the money they spend in the town
is related to their living in the valley—not our programs.
•The out of town/guest attendees are typically here for a longer
stay/vacation so their spending is not specific to our events. They are
coming to Vail for lodging, skiing, dining, shopping.
•As we transitioned to online events, this information is not applicable.
NPS (Net Promoter Score)
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Attendee Response: How likely is it that you would recommend this event/program to a
friend or colleague?
•For our winter in-person events our NPS is 79.45%
•For our online programs our NPS is 80.12%
Likely to recommeend to a friend 0-10 Total 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
In-person programs winter 158 111 21 13 4 3 4 0 0 2 0 0
Net Promoter Score 100.00% 70.25% 13% 8.23% 2.53% 1.90% 2.53% 0.00% 0.00% 1.27% 0.00% 0.00%
Likely to recommend to a friend 0-10 Total 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
Online programs summer 141 89 24 18 6 2 0 0 0 2 0 0
Net Promoter Score 99.88% 63.12% 17% 12.76% 4.20% 1.40% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 1.40% 0.00% 0.00%
Event Strengths & Weaknesses
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•How did the event/program exceed expectations? As a brand, the Vail
Symposium reputation continues to improve which translates to larger
audiences and increased donor support. With our immediate pivot to online
programs when the pandemic hit, we were not only able to retain our loyal
audience but also expand to reach a wider, more global audience. We received
nothing but positive feedback on our ability to adapt to the new reality.
•What are areas for event/program improvement? As we move into more and
more virtual programs, we will continue to work with our speakers to ensure a
seamless, technical program (which can be challenging with panel discussions).
•How did this year’s event/program compare to last year? We strive to present
the best experts and scholars on timely topics. As an unexpected benefit with
the new online format, we’ve been able to secure higher-profile speakers due to
the length (one hour) of our programming and ease of presenting virtually.
Vail Brand Compatibility
The Premier International Mountain Resort Community
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How did the event /program support the Vail Brand?
•Vail’s brand is based on being the premier international mountain resort
community. By building community through our programs, the Vail Symposium is
elevating the educational offerings available in town for both residents and
visitors. With our virtual programs, even more audience members were
introduced to Vail and the brand.
•As Vail is an international destination, we have a series focused on international
issues, events and topics that allow our guests to learn about these global topics
from experts.
•The Vail Symposium is a unique non-profit: There are no other non-profits like us
in mountain communities. Therefore, we feel we support the brand positioning of
Vail Mountain – ”like nothing on earth.”
Brand Positioning:
Town of Vail: The Premier International Mountain Resort Community
Vail Mountain: Like nothing on earth
Community Contribution
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How did the event/program impact Vail’s sense of community?
•By choosing topics that are of interest and concern to the Vail community,
we provide a place where friends and neighbors can not only learn about
a topic, but also hold discussions with community members both in-
person and virtually.
•Vail Symposium also has a series called “Speaking Locally” which
specifically focuses on topics that are important on a local level. These
have included affordable housing, local economy and conservation.
•Additionally, by partnering with other local organizations like the Vail
Valley Partnership, Walking Mountains Science Center, Vail Health and
B’Nai Vail, Vail Symposium impacts many different social and business
circles in the community.
Topline Marketing Efforts
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What are the top 3 successful marketing tactics, executions or results from your
event/program?
•As our target audiences are locals and second homeowners, we see the most
impact from grassroots and community marketing efforts. Advertising and
editorial coverage in the Vail Daily is an important method of outreach for us, as
is word-of-mouth from program attendees.
•Our email marketing efforts are also impactful: With an email audience of more
than 5,000, our performance averages are consistently above 9.2 and our open
rate is 26% or greater.
•We also continue to grow our social media presence though most of our
audience makes their decisions based on word-of-mouth, email marketing and
news from the Vail Daily.
•Please attach complete marketing plan to end of presentation.
Potential for Growth & Sponsorships/Media Exposure
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•Though we were not looking to make any major changes to how we operate for at
least one to two more years, the COVID-19 pandemic has necessitated changes and
we’ve seen that our audience loyal and vast. With online programming, we’re not
only reuniting with audience members from afar but also cultivating new fans from
around the world.
•We are constantly working to develop and solicit new donors and sponsors to
support our mission. Even in this challenging time, we were able to recruit Alpine
Bank as a new sponsor for our online content as well as receive several grants.
•How will you leverage media exposure and extend the marketing reach next year? As
the topics and speakers that we engage for programming continue to rise in stature,
we will continue to cast a wider net for audiences. The upcoming 50 th Anniversary
will help attract new audiences as well. However, our focus on serving the Vail
community remains our priority.
Sustainability Efforts
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•What measures were taken at your event/program to support the environmentally-
friendly goals of the Town of Vail? We do not generate a large amount of waste at our
programs, except for our pre-reception food and beverage. More than half of our in-
person events are in local hotels, so the plates and glasses are washed instead of being
thrown away.
•What waste reduction methods were used during your event/program? For the waste
we do generate at our pre-receptions, we use recyclable and compostable cups and
plates. We use water stations rather than bottled water and encourage out guest to
bring their water bottles; we do our best to separate trash from recyclables.
•How could you improve on sustainability efforts for next year’s event? Given that the
majority of our programs will be virtual, we can encourage our audiences to practice
sustainability in their homes.
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 Snapshot
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*Event producer to attach detailed budget for recap
Item $
Total Event/Program Budget: 501,241.01
CSE Funds: 32,000
Cash Sponsorship (not CSE): 370,000
In-kind Sponsorship: 91,000
Marketing Budget: 5,192.67
Profit & Loss: 17,513.99
How did you use the CSE funds?
(marketing, operations, staff, venue, etc.)
Operating expenses
including staff
Additional Information/Appendix
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•Provide detailed budget in the Appendix
•Provide final marketing plan in the Appendix
•Provide any additional information or marketing materials you think the CSE would
benefit from