Fiscal year 2009 to 2010 was the first year the Carlsbad Convention and Visitors Bureau began doing business as Visit Carlsbad and with a new executive director and a smaller but very engaged board of directors. FY2010 saw major shift in marketing strategy for Visit Carlsbad and its stakeholders. In previous years the majority of adverting dollars were spent on traditional advertising such as print. Working with the interactive advertising agency Mindgruve, Visit Carlsbad continued on a course built firmly on a new dynamic Web site and interactive marketing. This Included pay-per-click advertising, online display advertising, social media, and email marketing.
To fulfill the group-meetings obligation, Visit Carlsbad contracted with the San Diego North Convention and Visitors Bureau (SDNCVB) to provide sales support to the DMO. SDNCVB met the established sales goals and generated an estimated $661,050 in room-night revenue for Carlsbad hotels.
Interactive marketing
FY2010 continued the same marketing strategy for Visit Carlsbad that was started in FY2009. Instead of spending advertising dollars on traditional advertising such as print and large co-op programs, Visit Carlsbad along with Mindgruve, developed a new dynamic Web site and interactive marketing campaign that drove traffic from Carlsbad's drive markets of Los Angeles and Riverside Counties, Inland Empire area, Arizona, and Nevada to the site. The tactics used to drive this traffic were pay-per-click advertising, online display advertising, social media, and email marketing.
To support the new Web site Mindgruve developed an advertising strategy based on pay-per-click, display advertising, and email marketing and launched the campaign at the end of February 2010. The campaign will continue into FY2011. The fiscal year ended June 30, 2010 and the results of the new Web site and campaign accomplished what was set forth in the program of work. Year-over-year comparisons showed page views increased by 83 percent, unique visitor traffic increased by 48 percent, pages/visits increased by 21 percent, bounce rate decreased by 19 percent, and average time on site increased by 20 percent.
Print advertising and special promotions
During FY2010 Visit Carlsbad anchored smaller co-op advertising programs with its hotel stakeholders in magazines and visitor guides. This helped to introduce the destination's new branding to the traveling public as well as generating traffic to the new Web site by way of special deals and offers.
It also allowed hotel properties to advertise in publications that are not typically in their budgets. Publications included were Sunset Magazine, Budget Travel's online deals alerts, the Unofficial Base Guide for Camp Pendleton, the San Diego Visitor Planning Guide, and the California Visitors Guide.
Visit Carlsbad also advertised the destination in O Magazine in summer 2009 and fall 2009 for a girlfriends' weekend getaway promotion that included an online component and email blast. Because of the popularity of the magazine and Web site, the advertising resulted in 5,521 leads to Visit Carlsbad requesting visitor guides.
Email marketing promoting special offers and events is another tool used to generate traffic to the Web site, develop opportunities and partnerships, and continue on-going communications with fans on Visit Carlsbad's Facebook page. Mindgruve sent out six email communication blasts to our opt-in database (currently at 20,455 opt-in subscribers) throughout the year promoting upcoming events, hotel specials, and sweepstakes. One such event was the LPGA Kia Classic golf tournament held at the La Costa Resort & Spa in March 2010. The sweepstake was for a two-night stay at a Carlsbad hotel and tickets to the tournament including the final match. The result was 882 entries with 577 signing up for the Visit Carlsbad newsletter
Public Relations
Public Relations efforts resulted in regional and national unpaid media coverage with articles appearing in Arizona Republic, Orange County Register, San Francisco Chronicle, Wall Street Journal newspapers and their associated travel websites. Magazine stories appeared in Women's World, AAA Westways, and OC Family. A number of travel journalist's websites and online magazines i.e. SIRKTV and Go World Travel also posted Carlsbad updates and stories.
Public Relations hosted six travel writers, targeted a number of journalists with personalized one-on-one telephone calls and emails. Visit Carlsbad also participates in the ongoing California Travel and Tourism Commission's Media Outreach and attended a CTTC hosted media event in the Bay Area in the fall of 2009.
Distribution of the Visit Carlsbad lure brochure (75,000) and visitor guide (75,000) was much more concentrated compared to FY2009. This is due to a lower fulfillment budget as well as a strategy that focused primarily on digital advertising and Carlsbad's drive markets. The lure brochure was distributed to 1,036 sites throughout Southern California while the visitor guide reached travelers by way of five California Welcome Centers, San Diego visitor centers
Distribution of the visitor guides and lure brochure were provided by long-time industry partner Certified Folder Display Services, Incorporated.
To fulfill the group-meetings obligation, Visit Carlsbad contracted with the San Diego North Convention and Visitors Bureau (SDNCVB) to provide sales support to the DMO. SDNCVB met the established sales goals and generated an estimated $661,050 in room-night revenue for Carlsbad hotels.
Interactive marketing
FY2010 continued the same marketing strategy for Visit Carlsbad that was started in FY2009. Instead of spending advertising dollars on traditional advertising such as print and large co-op programs, Visit Carlsbad along with Mindgruve, developed a new dynamic Web site and interactive marketing campaign that drove traffic from Carlsbad's drive markets of Los Angeles and Riverside Counties, Inland Empire area, Arizona, and Nevada to the site. The tactics used to drive this traffic were pay-per-click advertising, online display advertising, social media, and email marketing.
To support the new Web site Mindgruve developed an advertising strategy based on pay-per-click, display advertising, and email marketing and launched the campaign at the end of February 2010. The campaign will continue into FY2011. The fiscal year ended June 30, 2010 and the results of the new Web site and campaign accomplished what was set forth in the program of work. Year-over-year comparisons showed page views increased by 83 percent, unique visitor traffic increased by 48 percent, pages/visits increased by 21 percent, bounce rate decreased by 19 percent, and average time on site increased by 20 percent.
Print advertising and special promotions
During FY2010 Visit Carlsbad anchored smaller co-op advertising programs with its hotel stakeholders in magazines and visitor guides. This helped to introduce the destination's new branding to the traveling public as well as generating traffic to the new Web site by way of special deals and offers.
It also allowed hotel properties to advertise in publications that are not typically in their budgets. Publications included were Sunset Magazine, Budget Travel's online deals alerts, the Unofficial Base Guide for Camp Pendleton, the San Diego Visitor Planning Guide, and the California Visitors Guide.
Visit Carlsbad also advertised the destination in O Magazine in summer 2009 and fall 2009 for a girlfriends' weekend getaway promotion that included an online component and email blast. Because of the popularity of the magazine and Web site, the advertising resulted in 5,521 leads to Visit Carlsbad requesting visitor guides.
Email marketing promoting special offers and events is another tool used to generate traffic to the Web site, develop opportunities and partnerships, and continue on-going communications with fans on Visit Carlsbad's Facebook page. Mindgruve sent out six email communication blasts to our opt-in database (currently at 20,455 opt-in subscribers) throughout the year promoting upcoming events, hotel specials, and sweepstakes. One such event was the LPGA Kia Classic golf tournament held at the La Costa Resort & Spa in March 2010. The sweepstake was for a two-night stay at a Carlsbad hotel and tickets to the tournament including the final match. The result was 882 entries with 577 signing up for the Visit Carlsbad newsletter
Public Relations
Public Relations efforts resulted in regional and national unpaid media coverage with articles appearing in Arizona Republic, Orange County Register, San Francisco Chronicle, Wall Street Journal newspapers and their associated travel websites. Magazine stories appeared in Women's World, AAA Westways, and OC Family. A number of travel journalist's websites and online magazines i.e. SIRKTV and Go World Travel also posted Carlsbad updates and stories.
Public Relations hosted six travel writers, targeted a number of journalists with personalized one-on-one telephone calls and emails. Visit Carlsbad also participates in the ongoing California Travel and Tourism Commission's Media Outreach and attended a CTTC hosted media event in the Bay Area in the fall of 2009.
Distribution of the Visit Carlsbad lure brochure (75,000) and visitor guide (75,000) was much more concentrated compared to FY2009. This is due to a lower fulfillment budget as well as a strategy that focused primarily on digital advertising and Carlsbad's drive markets. The lure brochure was distributed to 1,036 sites throughout Southern California while the visitor guide reached travelers by way of five California Welcome Centers, San Diego visitor centers
Distribution of the visitor guides and lure brochure were provided by long-time industry partner Certified Folder Display Services, Incorporated.