Around Town – October 2010

(Editor’s Note: Here’s a collection of newsworthy items from our industry members and South Florida community. HSMAInsider, Julie Wernick)

Scoop, the HSMAI-South Florida Chapter’s online blog, has just celebrated its third anniversary. Congrats!

Southeast Florida:

Sam Nazarian, founder/CEO of Los Angeles-based SBE, plans a $65 million redevelopment of the (closed) Ritz Plaza Hotel at 1701 Collins Ave. It will reopen in spring 2012 as a boutique hotel called the SLS South Beach, with 142 rooms.

In Fort Lauderdale, B Hotels & Resorts is refurbishing the former Holiday Inn-Sunrise, along the ocean at Sunrise Boulevard, into a 240-room and suite hotel. The Fort Lauderdale hotel, which is expected to open in December, will be the first one for the company.

A new 3.4 million square foot rental car facility opened at MIA in July. It houses 16 rental car companies that were previously scattered around the airport.

The Fontainebleau Miami Beach ranked first in the South Florida Business Journal’s list of largest area hotels. The hotel has 1,504 guest rooms. Other hotels in the top five included: The Boca Raton Resort, The Westin Diplomat (Hollywood), Loews Miami Beach, and the Eden Roc (Miami Beach).

According to Smith Travel Research, for the week ended Oct. 2, occupancy in Miami-Dade County rose to 62.4 percent from 54.4 percent in the prior-year period. Occupancy in Broward County rose to 57.2 percent from 53.4 percent. Occupancy in Palm Beach County rose to 50.7 percent from 45.6 percent. Occupancy across the U.S. rose to 61.2 percent from 55.7 percent.

For the week ending September 18, 2010, occupancy rose last week for South Florida hotels, according to Smith Travel Research. Occupancy in Miami-Dade County rose to 62 percent from 54.9 percent in the prior-year period. Occupancy in Broward County rose to 54.2 percent from 51.1 percent. Occupancy in Palm Beach County rose to 44.1 percent from 42.3 percent. This compares to occupancy rates in the US which rose to 63.5 percent from 59.5 percent.

The Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau reported that development taxes increased 11.8 percent in July, to $3.28 million from $2.93 million.

RCL, the world’s second-largest cruise company, reported that revenue for the 3rd quarter improved from1.8 to $2.1 billion.

Palm Beach County hotels have had 10 straight months of occupancy growth and the county leads Florida in percentage of occupancy growth – 11 percent – according to CVB President Jorge Pesquera.

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection awarded a $750,000 grant to Port Everglades to cut diesel emissions as part of a federal program. Broward County, which operates the port, is also contributing $510,000. The idea is to reduce emissions from diesel engines which will result in healthier air at the port and surrounding communities.

The Village at Gulfstream Park has announced the arrival of Symphony in Lights, a spectacular, dancing light show choreographed to the holiday music of Trans-Siberian Orchestra. More than 250,000 LED lights will be affixed to buildings and trees in The Village at Gulfstream Park’s Champions Plaza. Beginning Saturday, November 20th, the blinking, twinkling computer-animated extravaganza will run through December 31st.

Southwest Florida:

Three Paradise Coast Resorts made the Conde Nast Traveler 2010 Reader's Choice Top 100 list for Mainland U.S. Large Resorts: The Ritz-Carlton, Naples beach resort is number 14; The Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort, Naples, is number 18; and the Marco Island Marriott Beach Resort is number 70 on the list.

Naples Grande Beach Resort - The Waldorf Astoria Collection, has been named as the #8 tennis resort in the country by Tennis magazine in an article on The Top 50 Tennis Resorts in the U.S

The Naples, Marco Island, Everglades Convention and Visitors Bureau took home two top Henry Awards and was a finalist in an additional four award categories at the annual Flagler Awards, honoring the best in Florida tourism marketing. The CVB won Henry awards in the Mixed Media Campaign and Television categories.

The Ritz-Carlton, Naples is celebrating its upcoming silver 25th anniversary this coming December. The hotel has made plans for a special anniversary celebration concert featuring John Tesh.

The Naples Beach Hotel & Golf Club has received the prestigious "Pinnacle Award" from Successful Meetings magazine. This marks the seventh consecutive year the resort has captured Successful Meetings' coveted "Pinnacle Award," considered one of the most prestigious awards in the meetings industry and is given only to those hotels and resorts that represent the highest standards of excellence.
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To submit items for future editions, send to jwfranklin1@gmail.comBest, Julie Wernick, HSMAInsider

The Great VISIT FLORIDA Beach Walk – November 6, 2010

(Editor’s Note: This information was sent from VISIT FLORIDA asking everyone to spread the word. Check with your local CVB to see what your area is doing.
Best, HSMAInsider, Julie Wernick.)

VISIT FLORIDA®, the official tourism marketing corporation for the state of Florida, will host the Great VISIT FLORIDA Beach Walk on Saturday, November 6th.

You can find out more at this site: VISITFLORIDA.com/beachwalk.
After a summer of weather and oil scares, it’s time to show the world that Florida’s beaches are as wonderful as ever! Join beach-lovers across the state for this one-day, mile-by-mile beach walk, which will cover all of Florida’s 825 miles of beautiful beaches.

What can you do to get involved?
1) Learn more at VISITFLORIDA.com/BeachWalk
2) Sign up as a volunteer to walk the beach
3) Spread the word to others by inviting friends, family, colleagues and guests
4) If your location is beach-side, offer it as a hub for volunteers to gather before or after their walk – or even host a beach party of your own on Beach Walk Day.

So, grab your camera, put on your walking shoes and join your local community for the world’s biggest beach rally, Saturday, November 6th!

Greater Fort Lauderdale CVB Presented their 2011 Marketing Plan – Part 3

(Editor’s Note: This is the third part of the report – the press release issued by the GFLCVB regarding the marketing plan. Best, Julie Wernick, HSMAInsider.)

GREATER FORT LAUDERDALE, October 8, 2010 -- The Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau (GFLCVB) unveiled details of its strategic 2011 marketing plan. Targeting a broad range of consumer and trade audiences, the plan utilizes a full arsenal of tools already proven to be highly effective ranging from creative advertising and public relations to innovative use of social networking to a variety of promotions targeting specific geographic and demographic markets.

The 2011 plan is designed to support meetings & conventions groups, multicultural, sports development, tourism and cultural tourism sales, GLBT marketing and the Greater Fort Lauderdale/Broward Film Commission, which, in April, was transitioned to the GFLCVB in order to maximize efforts to promote the destination as an ideal locale for the film and television industry.

The 2011 marketing plan emphasizes affordable luxury and authenticity reflecting GFL's carefree, water-centric personality. The $3.5 million advertising campaign, encouraging visitors to "find their sunny" through a digital platform embedded in the print advertising and throughout new collateral including the Playbook, Greater Fort Lauderdale's re-invented Vacation Planner for 2011. The plan also focuses more intensely on the mobile world with a mobi site, "Mild to Wild," dedicated to the GLBT market, as well as Blackberry, Droid and iPad-friendly versions of Sunny.org; and continues to play a leadership role in social media communities like Twitter, Facebook, Foursquare, YouTube and Black Planet.

Highlighted initiatives include:
The use of scan tags, a small graphic square resembling a colorful bar code, on all print advertising prompts readers to download a mobile app at http://gettag.mobi, and allows them to scan the tag with their smartphone and instantly view exclusive Greater Fort Lauderdale videos that illustrate how readers can "find their Sunny" via experiences throughout the destination.

Strategic advertising in the DLR train stations in the UK during World Travel Market, one of the largest, most attended International tourism trade shows will be integrated with a text message call to action and a grand prize including a Greater Fort Lauderdale branded Flip Video camcorder.

Continue annual winter blitz in New York City with the highly impactful outdoor NY Times Square Billboard campaign showcasing the warmth of Greater Fort Lauderdale's Blue Wave Beaches and annual 78 degree temps, as well as the Beachmobile making another run throughout Manhattan. Also, new this year, a New York Times advertising campaign including iAds on the New York Times app on iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad with banner ads expanding into full-screen once activated by readers.

The always popular Beachmobile will also tour Toronto during the well-attended Santa Claus Parade and Chicago during a holiday trade show.

Innovative advertising in new arenas including on iPad, as well as Pandora with a LauderTunes Playlist.

Participating in a VISIT FLORIDA/American Express Florida Travel & Life 30-minute television and web episode.

Expansion of the bridal and weddings marketing including a dedicated webpage, GFLCVB wedding specialist to assist brides with information and booking destination weddings, as well as a social media presence with tips on Facebook for couples considering a destination wedding in Greater Fort Lauderdale.

Greater Fort Lauderdale launches its 2011 marketing plans from a position of strength, optimistic about the future. Year-end statistics for 2009 indicate that the destination exceeded both national and Florida averages for hotel occupancies and average daily hotel rates (ADR). Year to date bed tax collections (Jan-June, 2010) are up 7.7%. Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport, which serviced over 21 million passengers in 2009, recorded its 11th consecutive month of positive growth in total passenger traffic this past July. International traffic was up 11% over July last year. In addition, FLL has been ranked 7th among the top US airports and first in the state of Florida. And, Port Everglades continues on its course to become the world's busiest cruise embarkation port. By the end of this year, it will be home to the two largest ships in the world as well as several other major additions to the North American cruise fleet.

Greater Fort Lauderdale CVB Presented their 2011 Marketing Plan – Part 2

(Editor’s Note: This is the second part of the report; Part 3 to come. Best, Julie Wernick, HSMAInsider.)

On the back of the program (and menu) for the presentation by the Greater Fort Lauderdale CVB, there was a list of “to do” items. Here are some of the key ones, in shortened form.

Save the Dates:

--Tuesday, November 9th: The 2010 Broward County Sports Hall of Fame;
--December 2nd: The 2010 Sunsational Service Courtesy Awards.

Nominate:

--Before October 18th, vote for Fort Lauderdale as the “Best US Destination” on TripOutGayTravel.com/awards.
--Vote for front line employees who go above and beyond for a Sunsational Courtesy award at sunny.org/nominate

Send In Info:

--The CVB is promoting special hotel, attraction, and restaurant offers on LauderDeals as well as pre and post offers on Cruise and Play. Send package info to: jflippen@broward.org

--Holiday specials and events should be sent to jtaylor@broward.org

Keep up with Social Media Outlets:

--Become a Facebook fan; post pictures, make comments, etc. http://faceboook.com/VisitLauderdale

--Download the free app to your Smartphone for a Mobile Tag (i4’s can use http://gettag.mobi; older 3’s can go to your app store and search for mobile tags and choose a free one from Microsoft, e.g.) You will be seeing more and more of these Mobile Tags in The CVB’s ads and in various print media.

--Make sure your business is listed on Foursquare which can be used to engage your mobile customers. Update descriptions (and see if your venue is listed) by going to http://foursquare.com/businesses. The CVB has a presence at foursquare.com/users/VisitLauderdale with consumer tips, etc.

--Update your info at the sunny.org/listing online site. Log onto the CVB’s Partner Extranet and edit your Meeting Planners Guide and Visitors Guide info. Hoteliers can follow the step-by-step guide at sunny.org/hotelpartnerlogin

Greater Fort Lauderdale CVB Presented their 2011 Marketing Plan – Part 1

At a luncheon on October 7th at the Broward County Convention Center, the CVB provided information about next year’s marketing plan. Instead of the usual speeches, a panel of CVB staff, and representatives from their PR and Advertising agencies answered a series of questions. First, we were welcomed by Carlos Molinet, filling in for Nicki Grossman, President. The panel was moderated by Wil Shriner, who in a funny and comical way provided topical comments, adding to (what many attendees said) was the best format and luncheon program given by the CVB in quite a few years.

The panel included: John Webb, Sr. VP; Alfredo Gonzalez, VP Tourism & International Business; Albert Tucker, VP Multicultural Business Development; Christine Tascione, VP Convention & Group Sales; Virginia Sheridan, President, M Silver Associates; and Lisa Hoffman, Group Account Director, Starmark International.

As always, different items will stand out to different people as what is important to you, your hotel, and/or your company. Here are some selected remarks made by the panel:

Regarding the various markets:
In general, the meetings market will be focused on Associations; The theme: “meetings with a view” will be the key line. In addition to their primary markets they will be developing new (2nd/3rd) markets during their sales missions; a new area will be destination weddings including milestone celebrations.
Historically, the sports market has been good for our area and they are now seeing some “come back”.
The multicultural market is all about developing relationships. The focus will be on reunions, group business, and Caribbean growth.
In the International market, it’s generally easier for visitors to get here (new Scandinavian service coming soon); our product is excellent with luxury hotels that appeal to this market. Canadian business has been improving and additional flights have been added. In addition, local promotions like the “Travel like a VIP”, “Spa Chic”, and Dine Out programs were created to tap into the local/in-state Florida markets. The growth of the cruise market is one of the key events due to the new ships in Port Everglades (and new this fall).They are working with the airlines to expand their midweek service so hotels can be filled pre-cruise.

On the Public Relations side, they are working to support the actions of the marketing people. For the focus for 2011, they have 3 big platforms: Destination Transformation – new hotels; The Amount of Things to Do – very large number; big variety; and Value & Convenience – No hassle; easy to get here; easy to get around. It’s affordable; low fees for expenditures (compared to other locations). Regarding the markets – Meetings: Selling the Convention Center; our service culture; great vendor support; Sunsational service; Convenient Airport; Geographically: New York is still the number one geographic pull and the center for media is there; The message? We were, are, and will be free of oil.
Canada is coming back due to the exchange rate; they will be targeting the younger generation in Canada. This year the Film Commission is now in the CVB offices.

The CVB was a pioneer (and is now a leader) in the social marketing area: On FB, Twitter, Flickr, the Beach webcams, etc.
On the Advertising side, it was noted that technology has changed our industry and is changing so quickly. It is important to be able to bring the destination to people instantly. Scan tags and Four Square are being used more frequently and more effectively. Facebook is allowing for two way conversations. They are working on cooperative advertising using mobile ads on iphone apps. The film commission theme: Blue Boulevards to Concrete Jungles. The GLBT theme: “Mild to Wild”; The consumer campaign theme: “Find Your Sunny”.

Editor’s Note: The next blog post will include some of their “things to do”. Part 3 will be their press release with market plan highlights.
Best, Julie Wernick, HSMAInsider

September 15, 2010 HSMAI-South Florida Meeting Recap

“Table of Eight” – Our occasional column with comments about Chapter events.

What a nice turn out for the Chapter’s breakfast meeting at the Hilton – Fort Lauderdale Marina on SE 17th Street. In attendance, in addition to our members and colleagues, there were members of MPI and GMIC. Karen Smith, Meetings Media, was the moderator of a Meeting Planners Panel that included: Dahlton Bennington, Business Meeting Services, SFM Group (formerly Spherion); Katherine Manfredi, Sr. Director of Events, Strategic Event Management; Victoria Ascione, Director, Corporate Meetings & Events, Bacardi; and Joost de Meyer, Owner, First Incentive Travel.

As always, there will be different things that people will remember from a presentation that may apply to their specific hotel/company. But here are a few key points from my notes.

In general the panel discussed issues facing meeting planners, what was on their minds, and what questions the attendees might have to assist them in working with meeting planners. It was noted that in the last 2 years, the meetings industry has really banded together to recognize the value of the industry. Meetings are responsible for creating $240 billion dollars in spending and 1 million American jobs.

What is the future of the meetings industry? Is business back? Are people starting to book?
It seems inbound international meetings are facing a tough year due to the European economy (the value of the Euro; Visa problems, etc.); However, outbound incentive travel is beginning to grow, although stays are mainly within the US or closer to the US (Caribbean). People seem to be booking – it’s growing, it’s coming back, but still lean and more last minute (shorter lead times, i.e. 3 – 6 months out) with lower budgets. It was suggested that hoteliers focus their marketing efforts during a company’s Quarter ends before their budgets expire or are used up for that time period.

What are the trends?
Hotels have less sales people for meeting planners to work with. It’s even more important for hotel websites to have the information planners need to work with, such as: function sheets, property maps, meeting room specs, photos they can copy and download, green initiatives, etc. In addition, BEO’s should be very specific so that anyone of any level can understand them and that it’s all written down on paper. Hoteliers need to show that they understand their customers and their expectations. Suggestion: Get input from a meeting professionals advisory panel – have them do a critique on the design of your website.

How important are “green” meetings? Hotels will have a competitive edge if they are green and provide this information to planners (even if they don’t ask for it). There are ways to do this with little or no cost. It is increasingly important to guests and meeting attendees. It was suggested that there be a part of an hotelier’s website that list this information so that it can be copied and pasted into a meeting program.

How important is CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility)? Giving back/doing good?
This trend is becoming an increasingly important part of meetings -- making for great team building and satisfaction. This is also a great chance for hotels to put these plans together in advance and offer them as optional CSR programs to a meeting planner. Hotel partners can even become involved in the activity, increasing their visibility in their own community for good deeds, using this as information in press releases.

What is the value of a face to face meeting? It has been shown that corporate meetings drive sales performance. They are strategic motivators for sales. A recent survey stated that a company would lose 17% of its profits if it eliminated business travel. $39 billion dollars in tax revenue (for the federal government) comes from business travel. MPI has some great stats on the value of meetings. Incentive meetings have been studied as well. They’ve looked at incentive programs financially from year to year in relation to revenue. They’ve assessed the impact of retaining staff, the cost of training, and re-training; reviewed the value of incentive programs to hotels and to a destination dollar wise, and to all the side companies that benefit. Hoteliers should make sure to do some sort of “feed back form” after every event and meeting to gather facts and figures.

Best, Julie Wernick, HSMAInsider

PS Just a reminder to send in your industry news/updates for the “Around Town” Column for the chapter’s blog to jwfranklin1@gmail.com.