Q&A talks about the impact the state’s marketing efforts are having on the tourism industry with Randy Fiveash, director of the Connecticut Office of Tourism.
Q: The state Department of Economic and Community Development (DECD) and its Office of Tourism released new tracking results that demonstrate the state’s $22 million tourism marketing investment over the last 18 months has generated measurable gains in overall tourism spending. How did DECD come to those conclusions? What was the methodology to determine, for example, that the Still Revolutionary message was seen 646 million times?
A: We annually commission third party advertising tracking studies to ensure that we have a direct benchmark to measure the success and effectiveness of our tourism marketing campaigns. In addition, we leverage data from trusted entities like the state Department of Labor, visitation numbers from industry partners, hotel data from Smith Travel Research and industry benchmarks from the likes of Longwoods International to supplement our findings. Of course, we’re mindful of factors that contribute to the growth and success of any industry sector — and certainly for tourism, we have good weather seasons and bad weather seasons that can have an impact on visitation.
That’s why our own marketing studies are so important for us to be able to see how many people we are reaching are actually saying they visited, or plan to visit, as a result of what advertising they saw.
The conservative 646 million estimate is based on the number of times the campaign was seen by our target audience — impressions against our target demographic (people ages 25-54) that were purchased in our key markets.
Q: The survey results claim $219 million was directly linked to the state’s new marketing efforts. Was this new spending? Or did people who were surveyed attribute previously planned trips to the new campaign?
A: The $219 million is an estimate of all claimed spending by people who said they saw the 2012 and 2013 advertising campaigns and as a result visited Connecticut. It does not include any future spending.
Q: The CT Tourism Advisory Council says $11.5 billion in Connecticut economic activity was derived from travel and tourism activities and that 6 percent of the state’s jobs derive from tourism. Is the state spending enough to promote tourism?
A: In two years, we’ve put Connecticut back on the New England map.
While there are many states we cannot outspend, which we know does affect awareness, the tourism marketing budget is larger than we have had in previous years and our research shows we are moving the needle on visitation and job growth in this sector.
We’ve proven that with increased spend we can make a difference in increased economic impact to Connecticut and more jobs for Connecticut families.
Q: How much of that $11.5 billion is derived from in-state tourism? That figure also includes spending on 4,000 community festivals, fairs, concerts, and special events. How much of that spending was affected by the Still Revolutionary campaign?
A: Because Connecticut tourism is such a unique blend of visitors traveling within and from out of state, it is difficult to track in-state tourism spending separately from out of state.
We’re not able to break down the percent of spend of attendees to festivals and special events based on those that saw that campaign but what we do know is that when the campaign is in market, visitation and tourism spending increases.
Q: What new initiatives is the state undertaking to make CT more attractive to tourists? It must be especially difficult considering the state’s position between New York and Boston.
A: It’s a positive that we are in the backyard of two of the most dynamic markets in the country — so we can be the playground of both of those cities. Our new spring/summer campaign focuses on what differentiates Connecticut from its neighbors and why it’s truly the best place to getaway this spring/summer or really, anytime of year. The campaign launched April 24 and will run through August.
