2005-2006 SFCVB Road Map

Established in 1909 as a private not-for-profit membership association, the Bureau is dedicated to strengthening the San Francisco economy by marketing the City as a destination for meetings, conventions, tradeshows and leisure visitors, as well as enhancing the visibility of its members.

With nearly 100 years of experience in promoting San Francisco, the Bureau succeeds by partnering with the community – the City and its businesses and residents. Ultimately we measure our success by our ability to attract visitors to the City. Overnight visitors are a priority, as they generate the greatest return for all segments of the community.

The Bureau connects business to the markets that are most important to our City’s economic health. Member support enables the Bureau to conduct sales missions, execute branding and advertising campaigns, develop cooperative marketing partnerships and produce media coverage. We strive to provide member businesses and civic partners with the tools they need to be successful.

Meeting Planners and Delegates

San Francisco continues to rank among the top destinations in the country for meetings, conventions and tradeshows. The Convention Sales staff aggressively sells the City and Bureau members – valuable resources to groups and their attendees.

Convention Sales maintains close relationships with more than 8,000 national, regional and state association and corporate meeting planners – key customers that bring new and repeat business to San Francisco. Convention Sales staff:

• Produce group sales leads and bookings
• Generate group room nights to fill hotels and feed
  San Francisco businesses

Convention Sales proactively sells the City:

• On sales missions and client events with industry partners
  At industry tradeshows and conventions

2005-2006 Convention Goals
The overall convention sales goal for the year is to produce a total of 920 future bookings and generate 2,045,000 room nights.

Moscone Center is the focal point of the convention sales efforts, which are directed to a broad audience of association and corporate meeting planners. For Moscone Center alone this year, the Convention Sales staff will:

• Produce 105 new bookings, generating 1,500,000 San Francisco hotel room nights
• Produce 240 leads, generating 3,855,000 San Francisco hotel room nights

In addition to events booked at Moscone Center, there are “self-contained” meetings the staff assists in booking at hotels or special event facilities. Regardless of the location, the Bureau plays a pivotal role in the booking process. These additional convention sales efforts will:

• Produce 815 self-contained bookings,
  generating 545,000 San Francisco hotel room nights
• Produce 1,565 self-contained leads,
  generating 1,550,000 San Francisco hotel room nights

Connecting Members to Meetings
The Convention Division creates opportunities for members to reach meeting planners and delegates. Participating members gain valuable exposure. Partner opportunities include:

• Advanced marketing to convention groups coming to San Francisco the following year
• Client sales events and sales missions
• Industry tradeshows: The Motivation Show, International Association for Exhibition Management, American Society of Association Executives, Meeting Professionals International and more
• Business listings and advertising in the SFCVB’s Meeting and Event Planners Guide
• Trade advertising in national publications
• Click here for a full catalog of participation opportunities

Services for Convention Customers
Convention Services staff ensures customer satisfaction by providing the highest level of pre-event and on-site services. Staff assists meeting planners with:

• Member facilities, products and services
• Marketing and promotional materials to help increase convention attendance
• Hotel and off-site venue inspections
• On-site registration and housing assistance and
  other tailored services

Consumers

Consumer marketing programs, promotions and events attract individual leisure and business visitors to San Francisco from all over the world. Cohesive and compelling programs help increase hotel room occupancy and daily use of member services. Primary marketing strategies focus on expanding the San Francisco brand to:

• Visitors within driving distance
• Visitors within a two-hour flight
• Visitors within other identified key markets
• People visiting and staying with friends and relatives (VFR)
• Visitors coming in the off-season (to increase hotel occupancy mid-November through mid-February and on three-day weekends)

Connecting Members to Visitors
Member participation in marketing initiatives drives the success of Bureau marketing objectives. Customizable packages are available to help members reach targeted audiences, and help the Bureau reach our goals – to increase San Francisco hotel room nights.

“Only In San Francisco” is the Bureau’s visitor branding campaign designed to capture and communicate the spirit of the Bay Area and spark increased interest from worldwide visitors.

Starting locally through donated San Francisco media and advertising, the “Only in San Francisco” message will extend beyond the Bay Area virally through the power of our community. Soon, everyone will be saying “Only in San Francisco!”

The branding campaign will be incorporated into all future consumer marketing programs, promotions and advertising, including:

• The newly redesigned www.sfvisitor.org
• Bureau print and electronic media
• Online Sweepstakes
• Exclusive “Only in San Francisco” merchandise
• Promotions such as:
  • Dine-About-Town
  • Visa Preferred Travel
• Cooperative advertising
• Display ads at the Visitor Information Center
• Online vacation and product packages
• Online reservations

E-Marketing
The Bureau’s newly redesigned Web site – www.sfvisitor.org – and an expanded e-marketing plan are the platforms to broadcast “Only in San Francisco” and other consumer marketing programs and events. Communicating key visitor information and call-to-action booking options – while clearly featuring Bureau members under “Plan Your Trip” – the new Web site is more powerful than ever before.

Creating new partnerships with major Web sites and industry partners will help the Bureau increase the site’s recognition and create more e-marketing opportunities.

Visitor Information Center
The Visitor Information Center (VIC), located in Hallidie Plaza, is the primary place for visitors to obtain San Francisco information. More than 400,000 visitors walk through the VIC doors annually, a great audience for members with brochure placement and advertisements.

Publications
Official Bureau publications provide members great opportunities to reach targeted audiences through business listings and advertising.

• The San Francisco Book and San Francisco Visitors Planning Guide are what visitors turn to for San Francisco vacation details
• The Meeting and Event Planner’s Guide is essential for building successful San Francisco events
• The Professional Travel Planner’s Guide is the travel trade’s resource for creating memorable group visits

Research
Bureau research provides key visitor statistics to members, press and city officials through:

• Field Polls
• Focus Groups
• Electronic Surveys
• Tracking Studies

2005-2006 Marketing Goals
Bureau consumer marketing will:

• Increase City hotel occupancy to 75%
• Implement robust online hotel and attractions booking solution and offer competitive rates to consumers; generage increased revenues through booking commissions
• Expand e-marketing programs – a key, cost-effective distribution channel – to reach visitors
• Create new revenue streams through
  sponsorship and partner opportunities

Tour Operators, Travel Agents and Airlines

Tourism sales works with the professional travel trade worldwide to expand tour programming to San Francisco. Staff develops and promotes a wide range of programs, including:

The Bureau partners with San Francisco International Airport (SFO) on all our international activities, including operating a dedicated San Francisco tourism office in Tokyo. Representatives in other international markets work with the travel trade and media on our behalf. Key international markets include:

Connecting Members to the Travel Trade
Tourism staff creates opportunities for members to gain valuable direct exposure to the domestic and international travel trade – tour operators, wholesalers and retail travel agents – who build travel programs to the San Francisco area. Key initiatives include:

• International Tradeshows
• Sales missions
• Domestic Road Shows
• Educational Familiarization Tours (FAMs)
• "Gateway San Francisco" event at the 2006 TIA Pow Wow
• US-based Receptive Operators
• Extensive lead program
• Business listings and advertising opportunities in the Professional Travel Planner’s Guide

Connecting Members to the Arts
San Francisco’s diverse arts and cultural communities are key elements of the visitor experience – and important components of the Tourism staff’s outreach. The Bureau markets broad-ranging arts-focused packages both locally and nationally through:

• Arts and culture trade promotion efforts
• Cooperative marketing campaigns
• Informational services
• VIP Culture Pass – which encourages meeting and travel professionals to explore San Francisco’s arts and culture

2005-2006 Tourism Goals
The Bureau will develop:

• 575 domestic/international group/FIT program leads
• 70 new tour and incentive programs from domestic and international markets
• San Francisco educational familiarization (FAM) tours for 1,200 trade representatives
• 15 partner opportunities at coordinated tradeshows and networking sales events
• Further relationships with airlines and SFO to solicit new service and encourage success of existing routes
• Programs targeting international incentive and congress markets

Travel Writers and Media

Bureau Public Relations serves as the information link between the local, domestic and international news media and San Francisco’s visitor industry. Increasing positive coverage in travel and non-travel publications positions San Francisco as a leading travel and meeting destination.

Public Relations

• Promote editorial coverage in trade and consumer media
  Encourage leisure, business and convention travel to San Francisco
• Increase awareness of the importance of San Francisco’s visitor and convention industry to the region’s economic vitality
• Highlight the SFCVB’s role in keeping the City’s economy healthy
• Disseminate feature and news releases
• Pitch individual journalists with the news angles they want

Connecting Members to Worldwide Audiences
Journalists are constantly in search of new and unusual story ideas and information about San Francisco’s unique features. The Public Relations Division acts as the matchmaker between the media and Bureau members.

2005-2006 Public Relations Goals
The Bureau will:

• Assist 1,600 journalists
• Produce 90 news releases
• Provide high-quality San Francisco editorial and photographic materials

Member Businesses

Founded by San Francisco businesses following the 1906 earthquake, the Bureau has nearly 100 years of experience promoting San Francisco on behalf of its members.

More than 1,700 members represent almost every San Francisco business segment – from airlines to museums; hotels to medical services; tour operators to copy and printing services; food and beverage suppliers to photographers; retailers to universities; meeting and event planners to attractions – and provide visitors reason to return to San Francisco again and again.

Connecting Members to Opportunity
Investment in the Bureau provides members access to marketing and networking opportunities that will enhance their business. The Membership Division helps members realize the full scope of their benefits. Membership staff educate members on ways to reach their target market and build relationships with their visitor industry peers through 45 annual programs:

• 4 Member Business Exchanges
• Annual Luncheon Meeting
• 12 orientation and refresher sessions
• 12 member showcases
• 10 market briefings
• 2 educational seminars, including Visitor Industry Outlook Conference*
• Gala Silent Auction *
• Members-only Macy’s Flower Show Breakfast Reception*
  * Produced by the Membership Division for the SFCVB Education & Research Foundation.

Ongoing Communications
Membership is your resource for industry trends, events and information that can help maximize your investment. Staff helps you stay informed of all the opportunities and benefits that come with membership, through:

• Web and email communication vehicles
• Electronic surveys
• Cablegram quarterly member newsletter
• Cablegram Express weekly update
• Sales and Marketing Road Map
• The Driver’s Digest
• Sales, retention and program marketing tools

2005-2006 Membership Goals
Membership staff will:

• Enhance member satisfaction
• Achieve an 84% member retention rate and 87% dues renewal rate
• Enhance overall member exposure
• Create a Web-based member-to-member discount program
• Recruit 276 new members and a total of $166,000 in new dues
• Increase event sponsorship and in-kind support
• Develop Web site as an easy access, one-stop member resource
• Continue Mining for Members campaign to reward members for sales prospecting
• Regularly report the impact of the Bureau's work to various non-member stakeholders

Supported by Finance and Administration

The foundation of a successful organization is the sound management of its financial resources and administrative operations – and successful management means better service to Bureau members.

The Finance and Administration division supports a dynamic operation with an eye toward the future, both in terms of meeting financial challenges and identifying opportunities for greater performance. To help all Bureau divisions operate efficiently, the Finance and Administration Division provides support services in these areas:

• Financial Management
• Facilities
• Human Resources
• Staff Benefits
• Office Equipment and Services
• Information Technology
• Telecommunications
• Mail Processing
• Inventory Control

2005-2006 Finance Goals

• Prepare and manage the Bureau’s overall annual operating budgets
• Direct the day-to-day financial and accounting functions of the San Francisco Convention & Visitors Bureau and the
  501(c)(3) Education & Research Foundation
• Manage the cash management program to maximize Bureau return on investment

2005-2006 Administration Goals

• Continue to recruit and promote qualified minority candidates
• Increase utilization of women/minority owned businesses as Bureau vendors
• Coordinate the Bureau's internship program with emphasis on minority students