1321 BALTIMORE AVENUE, KANSAS CITY, MO 64105 …news.visitkc.com/_gallery/get_file/?file_id=5e42fb... · • Welcomed more than 650 industry partners to the 2019 Annual Tourism Outlook

1321 BALTIMORE AVENUE, KANSAS CITY, MO 64105 VISITKC.COM • 816-691-3800

Igniting global passion for Kansas City

16 Cities to Visit Before All of Your Friends Catch On

– Condé Nast Traveler

The Best Cities for Summer Travel – Travel + Leisure

10 Best Cities to Buy Your First Home – CNBC

8 Under-the-Radar Destinations to Visit in America’s Heartland

– Lonely Planet

The Best Cities for Remote Workers in the U.S.

– Overheard on Conference Calls

“Anchored by a relaxed hospitality that defi nes the region.”

– Arthur Frommer’s

“This Midwestern metropolis is so underrated it’s silly.” – Thrillist

“A diverse assembly of museums to discover.” – Lonely Planet

“Ripe for discovery.” – Sherman’s Travel

“The City of Fountains is cosmopolitan, yet authentic.” – CNBC

"Kansas City has the ease and accessibility of a town with the

action and attractions of a city.” – New York Magazine

“Your preconceptions are putty in Kansas City’s hands, because,

it turns out, Kansas City is not what you think it is.” – AFAR

WHAT THE WORLD IS SAYING

{ Noteworthy Media Coverage from 2019 }

#HowWeDoKC

ABOUT USWHO WE ARE

HISTORYFormed in 1918 as the hospitality arm of the KC Chamber of Commerce, the Convention and Visitors Bureau of Greater Kansas City became independently incorporated on June 20, 1966, as a not-for-profi t corporation. Now known as Visit KC, the marketing and sales organization is engaged on an annual basis by the City of Kansas City, MO, and is responsible for promoting the region as a top-of-mind travel destination for the leisure travel and convention audiences. FUNDINGVisit KC’s primary source of funding is a tax on hotel/motel occupancy and a business license fee within the incorporated boundaries of Kansas City, MO. The ordinances creating the tax provide that the proceeds are to be used for marketing and operations of Visit KC. The organization’s budget is greatly enhanced by private funds raised through a variety of sources including partnership dues, advertising opportunities and in-kind services.

VISIONVisit KC will serve as a primary catalyst for extraordinary and continuous economic growth of the Kansas City region's convention and visitor industry.

MISSION Ignite global passion for Kansas City.

WHAT WE DO

GENERATE ECONOMIC IMPACT

• A signifi cant driver of economic development for the region through job creation and tourism revenues. • The primary authority for tourism research in Kansas City: a one-stop resource for data communicating the vitality of the hospitality industry.

MARKET & PROMOTE KC

• Destination branding to position Kansas City as a vibrant, creative community.• Convention sales efforts to attract conventions, meetings and sporting events to Kansas City.• Integrated marketing campaigns to drive visitors to KC through advertising, PR and social media.• Home to the KC Film Offi ce, representing the region’s fi lm community.

WELCOME & CONNECT TRAVELERS

• Assist with the successful execution of more than 300 meetings and conventions each year.• The preeminent source for Kansas City maps, guides, content and other visitor resources to help guests discover all there is to do in KC.

PROMOTE LOCAL BUSINESSESDrive traffi c to local hotels, attractions, restaurants and nearly 1,000 businesses involved in the local hospitality community.

SUPPORT LOCAL EVENTSOrganize and support major events like Kansas City Restaurant Week and the Big 12 Basketball Championships, to name a few.

WHY IT’S IMPORTANT

TOURISM ECONOMIC IMPACTTourism generates $5.6 billion in economic impact for the region annually, including indirect and induced impact. Moreover, taxes paid by visitors save the average Kansas City household $550 in taxes each year.

LOCAL JOBSOne in 19 jobs in the region are sustained by tourism either directly or indirectly. That amounts to 48,000 jobs and $1.8 billion in wages.

INFLUX OF VISITORSKansas City hosts 25.2 million visitors each year. Of these, 47% (or 12 million) stay overnight. For more information about KC’s annual visitation, such as demographics and points of origin, go to VisitKC.com/research.

Sources: Tourism Economics, Longwoods International, U.S. Travel Association, 2018

CONVENTION SALES & SERVICES2019 KEY ACCOMPLISHMENTS

• Achieved 100% of Visit KC’s room-night production goal, generating 413 bookings and 452,381 future defi nite room nights. This accounts for more than $325 million in future economic impact. • Assisted with the successful execution of 344 meetings in Kansas City, including 26 citywide conventions. • Fulfi lled 11,909 reservations through convention housing, generating more than $179,000 in revenue. • Attended 29 industry tradeshows across all markets, improving the awareness and visibility of Kansas City’s convention package. • Interacted with 139 clients during three sales missions to the key feeder markets of Washington, D.C., Chicago and Denver. • Enhanced Kansas City’s exposure to the international tour market through operator missions and 125 appointments with receptive operators at four major travel shows. • Hosted 144 clients in the market during three separate KC Experience events, including the ConferenceDirect CDX Conference in May 2019. • Welcomed the 2019 Annual Meeting for Trust for Insuring Educators, attracting 38 association executives from the higher-education fi eld. • Planned and executed 121 individual client site visits—a 26-percent increase over 2018. • Achieved a 96-percent rating for Visit KC’s convention services through client satisfaction surveys.

MEETINGS HELD IN KC 2017 2018 2019

Conventions 275 290 344

Room Nights 376,390 354,113 364,764

Attendance *512,972 366,607 405,562

Economic Impact *$295,651,841 $275,099,523 $269,618,720

*Enhanced by major events such as U.S. Figure Skating and NCAA Championships

CONVENTION SALES ACTIVITY 2017 2018 2019

Meetings Booked 264 295 413

Defi nite Room Nights 381,194 444,763 452,381

Leads Generated 769 847 1,149

Tentative Room Nights 1,775,689 1,566,391 2,237,783

Site Visits 92 96 121

Convention Center Bookings 34 53 47

Convention Center Room Nights 243,659 329,274 298,232

MAJOR BOOKINGS IN 2019

ORGANIZATION/MEETING DATE(S) ROOM NIGHTS

Educational Testing Service June 2024 28,866

USA Volleyball April 2023 24,908

Benevolent And Protective Order Of Elks Of The United States Of America June 2025 18,426

Destination Imagination, Inc. May 2021 16,900

Destination Imagination, Inc. May 2022 16,900

Cerner Corporation October 2020 11,885

United Rentals, Inc. January 2021 10,900

United Rentals, Inc. January 2022 10,900

International Association of Fire Chiefs August 2023 10,625

Big 12 Conference March 2022 10,600

2019 KEY ACCOMPLISHMENTS

• Executed an integrated marketing campaign in partnership with agency of record MMGY, generating an incremental 408,000 room nights and $73 million in economic impact. Reaching nine media markets in seven states, the campaign generated a return on investment of $94 for every dollar spent by Visit KC.• Increased meeting planner interest in KC, amassing more than 30 million impressions in convention marketing through trade advertising, earned media, email marketing, paid search and social media. • Generated nearly 400 articles and stories about Kansas City through public relations—accumulating a record 225 million impressions in publications such as The New York Times, Lonely Planet, AFAR, CNN and more.• Realized signifi cant growth in Visit KC’s social infl uence, securing 382,000 referrals to VisitKC.com and 1.2 million brand engagements through social media. • Assisted 210 new fi lm productions through the KC Film Offi ce—achieving 105% of goal for an estimated economic impact of $10.2 million. • Earned industry honors with a Gold Adrian Award from HSMAI for The New Midwest campaign in collaboration with agency of record MMGY Global.• Secured substantial marketing funds for the destination—$325,000 through the Missouri Division of Tourism matching grant program for fi scal year 2020. • Optimized the organization’s social media advocacy platform, amassing an additional 151,000 impressions for the brand through employees’ personal networks.• Launched the third season of experiential marketing program KC Tap Tour, featuring 23 participating craft breweries, which generated 4.2 million impressions and 207,000 engagements. • Curated and enhanced 137 new content pieces for VisitKC.com, a 15-percent increase year over year in destination storytelling.

MARKETING, COMMUNICATIONS & FILM

ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS 2017 2018 2019

LEISURE

Media Budget $1,121,461 $1,300,000 $1,277,601

Local Media Partner Investment* $613,500 $590,962 $514,162

State of Missouri Investment $382,699 $217,075 $327,499

Paid Media Impressions 170,298,229 165,645,436 171,068,471

Campaign ROI (per media dollar) $85 $99 $94

CONVENTION

Advertising Impressions 20,129,613 29,494,840 25,700,107

*Partner investment less membership dues

INTERACTIVE MARKETING 2017 2018 2019

Web Visits 3,784,244 4,082,033 3,797,741

Page Views 13,596,969 14,095,913 12,331,963

Unique Email Opens 381,724 512,425 553,835

Email Signups 30,845 41,263 40,830

COMMUNICATIONS 2017 2018 2019

MEDIA RELATIONS

Publications Assisted 405 410 352

Earned Media/PR Impressions 205,566,216 207,329,799 225,410,965

SOCIAL MEDIA

Total Followers 366,288 404,772 416,424

Engagements 757,353 1,026,179 1,235,225

FILM OFFICE 2017 2018 2019

Productions Assisted 220 222 210

PARTNERSHIPS & SPECIAL EVENTS2019 KEY ACCOMPLISHMENTS

• Collaborated with a roster of more than 950 active industry partners, including 112 new partnerships and 57 advertisers. • Hosted the 10th Annual Kansas City Restaurant Week, featuring 10 days of special, multi-course menus at 201 area restaurants and raising more than $380,000 for local charities, including featured benefi ciary, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Kansas City. To date, the program has raised $2.6 million for KC causes. • Welcomed more than 650 industry partners to the 2019 Annual Tourism Outlook at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts, featuring keynote speaker Adam Sachs and an experiential reception of KC’s makers and doers. • Achieved 3,450 interactions through the Visitor Information Center, welcoming travelers from 49 states and 39 countries. More than 6,150 referrals were made to partner businesses. • Produced Downtown Dazzle in partnership with the City of Kansas City and the Downtown Council, promoting more than 50 Downtown events and programs and bringing thousands to the area during the holiday season. • Presented the third season of KC Tap Tour, a self-guided experience driving visitation to 23 local breweries for which more than 3,000 guidebooks were sold. • Hosted six Partner 2 Partner networking events with more than 800 attendees. • Continued to enhance Visit KC’s presence at community events, engaging with 9,168 people at 15 unique festivals and events. • Introduced two new educational events for partners—a hotel summit attracting 125 hotel leaders and a social media summit for 40 top partners. • Commemorated National Travel & Tourism Week by recognizing hospitality personnel with ice cream socials.

PARTNERS BY CATEGORY 2017 2018 2019*

Accommodations 119 115 111

Arts and Culture 139 126 152

Attractions 193 189 29

Breweries 19 18 26

Casinos 5 5 4

Convention Services 182 181 95

Dining 194 249 231

Entertainment 74 68 24

Organizations 55 55 33

Shopping 121 124 39

Sports & Recreation 115 115 148

Tours & Sightseeing 41 37 41

Transportation 29 28 26

TOTAL 1,286 1,310 959

*New CRM system launched in 2019, changing how partners were tabulated and categorized.

PARTNER REVENUES 2017 2018 2019

Partnership Dues $325,219 $401,869 $511,989

Hotel Lead Share $425,822 $349,083 $341,108

Web/Collateral Advertising $144,207 $123,106 $137,183

Marketing Campaign Partners $847,993 $799,921 $645,217

TOTAL $1,743,241 $1,673,979 $1,635,497

ACHIEVED DMAP ACCREDITATION RENEWAL THROUGH 2028

ADMINISTRATION& FINANCE2019 KEY ACCOMPLISHMENTS

• Generated more than $9.4 million in tax revenue for the city via Net Convention/ Tourism Tax.• Exceeded fi nancial projections through fi scally responsible management. • Renewed the organization's accreditation through the Destination Marketing Accreditation Program through 2028. • Completed FY 2018 fi nancial audit on-time, garnering no material issues, signifi cant fi ndings or other issues.• Increased interest in Team Visit KC, hiring and welcoming six new employees to the organization including Vice President of Finance/CFO and Senior Vice President of Convention Sales & Services.• Implemented a new team performance evaluation model.• Conducted an RFP for lobbying services, adding Gamble & Schlemeier to the team.• Transitioned part-time positions to temporary associates, utilizing a staffi ng agency for cost savings and effi ciencies. • Converted Visit KC's Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software to iDSS to better serve stakeholders through lead generation and partnership services.

2019 REVENUES

Convention/Tourism Tax $9,408,954

Arena Business Fees $1,389,399

Marketing Campaign Partners $645,217

State Co-op Funding $327,499

Partnership Dues $511,989

Hotel Lead Share $341,108

Convention Services Revenue $236,979

Web/Collateral Advertising $137,183

Promotional Participation Revenue $399,769

Film Offi ce $34,542

Other $152,955

TOTAL REVENUE $13,585,594

TIF Expenditures ($1,094,937)

REVENUE (NET OF TIF) $12,490,657

Operational > 51% • $6,095,321

Destination Marketing Audience > 24% • $2,836,491

Sales Audience > 23% • $2,692,164

Local Audience > 2% • $263,204

Total Expenditures > $11,887,180

2019 EXPENDITURES BY TARGET AUDIENCE

24%

23%

51%

2%

2019 BOARD OF DIRECTORSLeadership

CHAIR / CiCi Rojas, President, Tico Productions & Tico Sports

VICE CHAIR / Cindy Circo, Senior Manager, Evergy

SECRETARY / Jeanette Prenger, President, ECCO Select Corp.

TREASURER / Jim Snow, Complex General Manager, Westin Crown Center/Sheraton KC Hotel

Members

• Vic Allred, President, Jazz, A Louisiana Kitchen• Lee Barnes, Jr., Councilman, 5th District At-Large, City of Kansas City, Missouri• Carla Chavarria, Senior Vice President of Human Resources, AMC Theatres • Dan Fowler, Councilman, 2nd District, City of Kansas City, Missouri• Arzelia Gates, Corporate Secretary, Gates Bar-B-Q Corp.• Belinda Harrison, Attorney at Law, B.L. Harrison Law, LLC• Gloria Jackson-Leathers, Director of Kansas City Civic Engagement, Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation• Bob Kendrick, President, Negro Leagues Baseball Museum• Jenny Kincaid Julian, Owner, Socialworx PR• Steve Klika, Commissioner Third District, Johnson County• David Lopez, General Manager, Manny’s Mexican Restaurant• Riccardo Lucas, President & CEO, N.STRIDE Consulting, LLC• Pat Macdonald, Senior Philanthropic Advisor & Executive, Greater Kansas City Community Foundation• Rachel Merlo, Community Manager, Kansas City, Google• Stacey Paine, President, Crown Center Redevelopment Corp. • Kevin Pistilli (Immediate Past Chair), President, Raphael Hotel Group• Rosemary Salerno, General Manager, The City Market• Troy Schulte, City Manager, City of Kansas City, Missouri

• Angie Stanland, formerly of Cerner Corp. • Jon Stephens, President & CEO, Port KC• Philip Strnad, General Manager, Hilton President Kansas City• Keli Wenzel, President/Managing Partner, O’Neill Marketing & Event Management, Inc.• Randy Wisthoff, Executive Director/ CEO, Kansas City Zoo• Amy Jordan Wooden, President & CEO, AJW Consulting

Ex Offi cio Members

• Pat Klein, Director, Aviation Department, City of Kansas City, Missouri• Kurt Mayo, Executive Director, Hotel & Lodging Association• Oscar McGaskey, Director, Convention & Entertainment Facilities, City of Kansas City, Missouri• Kathy Nelson, President/CEO, Kansas City Sports Commission• Clayton Reid, CEO, MMGY Global• Jeffrey Stewart, Senior Advisor to Chairman & CEO, Loews Hotels & Co.

Executive Committee Ex Offi cio Members

• Bill George, President, KCTG• Troy Stremming, Executive Vice President of Government Relations, Pinnacle Entertainment Inc. • Brenda Tinnen, General Manager & Senior Vice President, AEG- Kansas City, Sprint Center

2019 AWARDS & HONORS

Gold Adrian Award – The New Midwest Campaign, Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International

Top 50 Meeting Destinations in the U.S. – Cvent

Top 50 Convention Destination – ConferenceDirect

Readers’ Choice Award – ConventionSouth

Legacy Award – Meeting Planners International – Kansas City Chapter

Best Midwest CVB (Silver) – Visionary Awards, Prevue Meetings

JASON FULVI – Kansas City’s Power 100, Kansas City Business Journal

TRACI MOON – B2C Marketer of the Year, American Marketing Association Kansas City & ANA Business Marketing

DEREK KLAUS – Centurions Leadership Program Graduate, Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce

KYLE SADEWHITE – Supplier of the Year, Meeting Planners International – Kansas City Chapter

1321 BALTIMORE AVENUE, KANSAS CITY, MO 64105 VISITKC.COM • 816-691-3800

Igniting global passion for Kansas City