02/10/2010

Contact: Lyndsay Rossman at (904) 421-9153 or lrossman@visitjacksonville.com  

 

Bright Spots Shine for Local Tourism Despite the Economy
Update on Visit Jacksonville and Tourism Industry Happenings for the Destination

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (Feb. 10, 2010) - Despite a rough economy and downward trend in global tourism, Visit Jacksonville is being creative in targeting leisure and business visitors to experience the destination.  By utilizing new media outlets to promote the city, receiving recognition for creative achievement and developing new content and initiatives to increase bookings, Jacksonville is staying competitive to generate tourism business and revenue.  Here are a few items to note:

Television Exposure - In addition to the current print coverage in travel magazines, daily newspapers and lifestyle publications, Visit Jacksonville has been taking the destination's message to the air waves.  With millions of viewers watching, Jacksonville has gotten some extreme exposure in the last few months.

• On the day of the Jacksonville Jaguars vs. New England Patriots game in December, Jacksonville's film history, beaches and attractions were the subject of the Boston children's program, Totally Patriots which airs during football season on Boston's WSBK TV38.  The audience reach was 20,000.
• On Feb. 12, Visit Jacksonville will be featured on Lifetime Channel's The Balancing Act, a women's lifestyle program airing Monday-Friday at 7:30 a.m.  Research shows that women are the main decision maker when planning vacations and the reach will be 8 million per episode.  The program will also air on Feb. 16 and March 19.
• On March 28, Versus Network's program City Limits Fishing with Mike Iaconnelli will highlight Jacksonville's great fishing spots as well as air a segment on local food in Jacksonville's urban areas.  The spot will feature Juliette's Bistro and Omni Jacksonville Hotel and will reach 1.5 million.

HSMAI Adrian Awards - Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International (HSMAI), the worldwide organization of sales and marketing professionals representing hospitality, travel and tourism, has awarded Visit Jacksonville with four prestigious Adrian Awards for the second year in a row.  The Adrian Awards honor creative brilliance and best practices in hospitality, travel and tourism-related marketing.

Visit Jacksonville received two silver awards for the organization's Escape Artist (formerly Endless Jacksonville Club) e-mail series and the organization's Web site search marketing strategy.  Two bronze awards were won for the "Meet in Jacksonville" e-mail campaign and the "Play Action Jax" sweepstakes and game for the chance to win Jaguars tickets.

Events Calendar Site - As part of a directive from the Duval County Tourist Development Council (TDC), Visit Jacksonville today launched a new Calendar of Events page on VisitJacksonville.com geared toward visitors and residents looking for things to do in the city.  The splashy and informative site, which is powered by the events on Jacksonville.com, offers special event information, similar activities based on interest, maps and a booking engine.  The site is more vibrant and easier to maneuver than the previous calendar site.  A Web site geared toward sports meeting planners will be live in March.

Cash for Contracts Update - Competition for visitors and meetings is tight.  To stand out from the other destinations, Visit Jacksonville is offering a $5 rebate per room night for group business booked by Sept. 30, 2010, or when the funds are depleted through an incentive program called "Cash for Contracts."  To encourage more business during the city's value season (July-December 2010 and 2011), the offer has been increased to $10 per room night through "Double Your Dollars" for groups that sign a contract by March 31, 2010, for meetings during those dates.  Signed contracts must have 50 room nights or more to qualify.

Since the inception of the program in September 2009, Visit Jacksonville's Sales Team has booked nearly 30 meetings generating over 35,300 room nights.  "Cash for Contracts" will impact Jacksonville's tourism business in the short-term with 66 percent of booked groups meeting in 2010.  The $350,000 in funding is a result of a TDC grant for $875,000 toward increasing business and leisure demand for Jacksonville.

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Visit Jacksonville is the marketing organization contracted by the Duval County Tourist Development Council (TDC) to champion the growth of business and leisure tourism in Northeast Florida.  Along with its nearly 400 tourism partners, Visit Jacksonville stimulates economic impact, quality of life and recognition for the Northeast Florida region.  For a closer look at all there is to see and do in Jacksonville, go to www.visitjacksonville.com.