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Discover Lewis County - Online Printing & Marketing Program Lewis County — 2020 Lodging Tax - Project Scope Due to a discrepancy between the original funding request and the amount to be awarded, the following project information will need to be updated as that change in funding may have affected the original Project Scope. Please do not change the format of this document and be brief in your explanations to fit the space provided. PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS DOCUMENT WILL BE TIED TO THE AGREEMENTS AND WILL BE USED TO VERIFY PROJECT EXPENDITURES. Project Submission Form 1. Project Name: DLC Online Printing and Mtg. 2. Date Submitted: 10/3/19 3. Contact Person / Title: Tamara Hayes/ Director 4. Mailing Address: 1909 South Gold Street, Centralia, WA 98531 5. Telephone No.: 360-740-2656 6. E-mail: Tamara@Discoverlewiscounl•m 7. Signature of Representative: c- A 8. Project Location (city/town) Lewis ounty a. Name of Event or Activity: Year-long promotion of the county 9. Statement of Project Goals and Objectives: Discover Lewis County (DLC) purpose is to promote events, adventure %ow opportunities, historical sites, cultural institutions, scenic road trips, lodging and more for our centrally located county. We want visitors to come, play and stay in Lewis County. 10. Project Description: DLC is requesting marketing funds to continue our ongoing promotion of Lewis County, especially the unincorporated areas, to a nationwide audience. DLC will focus on the following marketing channels to promote county-wide events and activities: the DLC website, online advertising, social media campaigns, regional and national print media, radio & podcast promotion, & innovative content sharing. 11. How does proposed project meet purposes of the Legislation? RCW 67.28.1816 DLC creates compelling marketing content with the purpose of enhancing tourism to Lewis County and resulting in "heads in beds." DLC serves the entirety of Lewis County by providing consistency in our tourism efforts as a recognizable and trustworthy brand. We are Lewis County's hub for all there is to do and see. 12. Anticipated Project Costs: $63,000 RECEIVED a. Total County funds awarded for 2020: $50,000 Board of County Commissoners Lewis County Atishington LEG 182� 9 r.r 13. Project Cost Analysis • Project Budget Column A Column B Column C Column D Item Use of County Use of Other Total Available Funds Funds Project Funds Personnel (salaries & benefits) $18,000 $12,000 30,0000.00 Marketing/Promotion Materials $30,500 $30,500.00 Direct Sales Activities Minor Equipment Travel/Trainings (list below) 1. 2. 3. Contract Services (list below) 1. 2. 3. 4. Overhead (building rent, utilities etc.) Administration $1,500.00 $1,000.00 $2,500.00 Project Subtotal: $50,000.00 $13,0000 $63,000.00 2 14. PROJECT WORK PLAN List the tasks, cost and timeframe, Name individual(s), consultant(s), and organization responsible for the project. Table III Discover Lewis County does not use outside consultants for projects. Tasks Timeframe-Dates Estimated Cost Responsible Party/Name Return completed Project Scope form to: Rieva Lester Lewis County BOCC. Rm. 210 351 NW North Street — 2nd Floor Chehalis. WA 98532 Telephone: 360-740-1419 email: Rieva.Lesterlewiscountywa.gov 3 0 3607401120 Board of County Commissioners TDD 360..740.1480 Lewis County Courthouse •351 NWNorthStreet •Chehalis,WA 98531.1900 bocc@lewiscountywa. .gov LEWIS COUNTY \ nJ I. /.Y J./ LEWIS COUNTY LODGING TAX APPLICATION for budget year 2020 DEADLINE IS 3 P.M.THURSDAY,OCTOBER 3, 2019 Applications for Lewis County lodging tax funds(for budget year 2020) are due by 3 p.m. Thursday, October 3, 2019. Applications must be submitted via email to tourismpromotion@lewiscountywa.gov. Please include your organization's name in the subject line. Applications received after the deadline will not be considered. Please note that the applicant is responsible for confirming timely delivery. Also,please pay particular attention to the contact information you provide. If your contact information is not up to date and we cannot reach you, otire your application will not move forward. ORGANIZATION / PROJECT INFORMATION Organization name Discover Lewis County/Lewis County Project name Online & Print Marketing Program Project coordinator Tamara Hayes Date of project Annual/Ongoing Amount requested from Lewis County $82,500.00 Total project amount $145.455.00 4 iiioi Erik Martin Edna J. Fund Bobby Jackson Gary Stamper Rieva Lester County Manager First District Second District Third District Clerk of the Board APPLICANT CONTACT INFORMATION Name Tamara Hayes Street address 2555 North National Avenue City,state, zip code Chehalis, WA 98532 Mailing address (if different from street address) Current home phone Current work phone 360-740-2656 Current cell phone 415-378-7666 Current email address Tamara@DiscoverLewisCounty.com Agency Tax ID Number 91-6001351 Organization Unified Business Identifier (UBI) UB1 expiration date Type of organization: ❑ 501(c)3 ❑ 501(c)6 0 Government agency Organization's mission statement or purpose (one or two sentences): *ad Discover Lewis County(DLC) purpose is to promote events, adventure opportunities, historical sites, cultural institutions, scenic road trips, lodging and more for our centrally located county. We want visitors to come, play and stay in Lewis County. Year the organization was founded: 2015 Has your organization received Lewis County lodging tax funding in the past? DYes UNo Ifyou answered "yes,"please answer the following two questions: When did your organization receive Lewis County lodging tax funding? 2019 How much did your organization / project receive? $44,200.00 PROJECT NAME: Online&Print Marketing Program lkope REQUIRED INFORMATION Each applicant must attach the following to their application: Financial documents: Each applicant must attach their most current business financial statement,which must include a balance sheet,an income statement,the organization's operating budget for 2019,the organization's projected budget for 2020, and a"financial review" (details follow).All required financial information must be complete and must balance, and the financial must meet the following guidelines: Each organization that receives funding from the county's tourism fund must provide a financial review completed by an independent certified public accountant(CPA) within the past five years. County tourism tax money cannot be used to pay for financial reviews or audits. Nonprofit determination: Nonprofit organizations must submit proof from the United State Internal Revenue Service of their current tax-exempt status. Personnel list: Each applicant must submit the title and name of all employees,including contracted positions,as well as the title and name of all members of the organization's board of directors (or other governing body).The list identifying the current board of directors (or other governing body) must identify the principal officers and must include the name,phone number,mailing address and email address for each. PROJECT DESCRIPTION Please provide a detailed description of the proposed project/activity.Your description must include the following: 1. Describe how the project promotes tourism in all of Lewis County's unincorporated areas. DLC is requesting marketing funds to continue our ongoing promotion of Lewis County, especially the unincorporated areas, to a nationwide audience. DLC will focus on the following marketing channels to promote countywide events and activities: the DLC website, online advertising, social media campaigns, regional and national print media, radio & podcast promotion, & innovative content sharing. 2. Describe how the project will enhance tourism and result in "heads in beds." DLC creates compelling marketing content with the purpose of enhancing tourism to Lewis County and resulting in "heads in beds." In 2018, marketing efforts resulted in 119,000 visitors to the DLC website and over 30,000 followers on Facebook. In addition, we promoted DLC in Hemispheres Magazine/United Airlines with a circulation of 500,000 & a reach of 11.6 million. 3. List the responsible party/ parties. DLC staff are responsible for content creation. We partner with other tourism organizations on special projects, such as rack card and video campaign content. Marketing funds are primarily used to promote Lewis County events to a national audience. We use the DLC website and social media channels to share Lewis County events under the unified branding of DLC. Nov PROJECT NAME: Online&Print Marketing Program 3 4. Describe how the area the project will serve,as well as the project's , id expected impact. DLC serves the entirety of Lewis County by providing consistency in our tourism efforts as a recognizable and trustworthy brand. We are Lewis County's hub for all there is to do and see. A new DLC website is set to launch in early 2020, offering enhanced mapping and search abilities. Visitors who are looking to attend an event in Morton will easily search for places to stay, eat, and hike in the area. p 5. Describe how the project will specifically promote tourism. The sole purpose of DLC is to specifically promote tourism to Lewis County. This project will continue that purpose. DLC will focus on the following marketing channels to promote countywide tourism to events and other activities: the DLC website, online advertising, social media campaigns, regional and national print media, radio & podcast promotion, & innovative content sharing. 6. Describe how you have collaborated with other entities throughout Lewis County to promote tourism. DLC collaborates both directly and indirectly with most tourism entities throughout Lewis County. We promote the fellow LTAC recipients on our website and in marketing campaigns. We partner with other groups for special projects, such as rack card content and video campaigns. DLC provides visitor kiosks, sandwich boards, and rack cards to visitor organizations throughout the county. El 7. Describe why your project should receive funding. DLC is a year-round effort to promote Lewis County, increasing income by promoting tourism. We focus on serving our unincorporated areas resulting in "heads in bed." DLC has created a unified and recognizable brand that successfully drives traffic to our website where visitors can find out what there is to see and do in Lewis County. In order to continue our successes, a strong online and print marketing budget is critical. USE OF HOTEL/MOTEL TAX Please indicate below the types of activities for which the lodging tax monies would be used: 0 TOURISM PROMOTION ❑ OPERATION OF TOURISM-RELATED FACILITY Q MARKETING ONLY LI FESTIVAL OR EVENT DESIGNED TO ATTRACT TOURISTS LI DIRECTIONAL SIGNAGE 8. Describe the expected results (measurable outcomes) of your project,with the dollar amount for each outcome. DLC is asking for support to fund our staff who are the creators behind every project we take on. —$32,500 of this requests goes to funding staff and website administrative costs. DLC does not ask for operational costs such as rent, heat, & lighting. These costs are covered by our relationship with the Southwest Washington Fairgrounds. The measurable outcome is continued production of innovative marketing campaigns. —$50,000 of this requests is directly for online and print marketing campaigns. These funds are used to fund social media campaigns, magazine ads, radio ads, podcast ads, print ads and more. In addition, the funds are used to print rack cards to distribute throughout the county and beyond that share the adventures that await in Lewis County. Measurable outcomes are likes, click through rates, &site visits. PROJECT NAME: Online&Print Marketing Program '4010 9. Please provide attendance information regarding each of the following: A. Overall attendance a. Total number of attendees predicted to attend: See analytics b. Describe how receiving lodging tax dollars would increase that number Discover Lewis County had 119,000 users to our website in 2018. For 2020,we predict active users on the website to reach 150,000. The Discover Lewis County Facebook page has grown 20% over the last year, with over 30,000 followers. DLC Instagram has grown by 66% in the last year. DLC continues to advertise in movie theaters in Eastern Washington, Idaho, & Oregon. The DLC American Movie Network quarterly campaign had over 285,002 impressions delivered, resulting in 525 total clicks, this is a cumulative click-through-rate of.18%. Industry average is 0.09%, and DLC content is two times the industry average! Lodging tax dollars are critical to continuing a robust marketing campaign that drives visitors to our website. B. Participants traveling fifty(50) miles or more a. Projected number of attendees who will travel fifty(50) miles or more one way from their home or business to attend: see analytics b. Describe how receiving lodging tax dollars would increase that number The Discover Lewis County website see 68% of visitors from across Washington State, 32%from Seattle and another 13% coming from the Lacey/Olympia area. Throughout all of our paid marketing campaigns, we aim to reach an audience outside of the 50-mile radius. Lodging tax dollars have granted Discover Lewis County the flexibility to test new marketing `r channels and reach a diverse audience. A continuation of this type of innovative marketing will help to expand lodging tax dollars collected throughout unincorporated Lewis County. C. Participants traveling from another state or country a. Projected number of participants who will travel from another country or state to attend: See anaylitics below b. Describe how receiving lodging tax dollars would increase that number The DLC website and marketing campaigns reach travelers from across the country and around the world. 10% of visitors to the website come from Oregon, with most coming from our targeted areas of Portland, Medford, Beaverton and Bend. 5% of visitors come from California --and again they are predominately coming from our targeted areas: San Francisco Bay Area and Los Angeles. In 2019, DLC launched a video marketing campaign on YouTube. The campaign is a 30-second video promoting the winter wonderland of the White Pass area to YouTube viewers in the San Diego and Palm Springs areas. The analytics show that we have seen 57,000 Impressions and 361 links in the first two months. International visitors to out site have come from Canada, Peru and the United Kingdom. This may be a direct result of our United Airlines and Amtrak campaigns, which we ran in the summer of 2019. Continued lodging tax support will see visitors from out of state to the website increasing by 5%. 160 PROJECT NAME: Online&Print Marketing Program D. Participants staying overnight in paid accommodations a. Projected number of participants who will stay overnight in paid accommodations: see analytics b. Describe how receiving lodging tax dollars would increase that number The DLC website has 10% of visitors click directly to lodging pages. The lodging pages grant visitors an opportunity to learn about RV hook-ups, camping, hotels, motels, cabins, AirBnB, inns, resorts and lodges throughout Lewis County. Lodging tax dollars allow Discover Lewis County to continue to be a year-round informational hub for what to do and see and where to stay in Lewis County. For 2020, we hope to increase searches of our lodging pages with a new enhanced search functionality by 5%. E. Participants staying overnight in unpaid accommodations a. Projected number of participants who will stay overnight in unpaid accommodations: see analytics b. Describe how receiving lodging tax dollars would increase that number Discover Lewis County is confident that it is driving traffic to our website and other tourism information websites throughout Lewis County. Website traffic has increased annually by 10% and social media participation on Facebook by 20% in 2019. Discover Lewis County is clear that our year-round marketing activities are helping to increase in attendance to events, museums, lodging, parks and more throughout this county. Lodging tax dollars allow Discover Lewis County to continue to be an informational hub for what to do and see and where to stay in Lewis County, resulting in a increase in visitors. 10. Describe how the project provides short-term or long-term economic benefit for Lewis County. Visitors to the Seattle International Airport are greeted with a DLC ad in the baggage claim, viewers of films in three states see our ads before their movie, and guests on United Airlines and Amtrak are encouraged to learn more about Lewis County while traveling. These are just some of our 2019 projects. DLC's short-term economic benefit is promoting events and being a hub for tourism information. Our long-term economic benefit is by becoming a recognizable brand that guides you to where you can find the information to plan your family vacation to Lewis County. 11. Explain what plans exist to allow this project to become self-sustaining. Include any plans for ticket sales, event sponsors,and other cost-recovery models. Discover Lewis County pursues every opportunity for grants and other funding models. We use these funds to support our marketing budget and reach new audiences. In 2019, we received additional grant funding from Centralia Lodging Tax, the Port of Seattle Tourism Marketing Support Program, and the Port of Seattle Spotlight Program. For 2020, we hope to seek additional private and public partnerships to assist with growing our marketing opportunities. PROJECT NAME: Online&Print Marketing Program 6 file SOCIAL MEDIA All social media will be reviewed. Please provide the following information: Website address DiscoverLewisCounty.com Facebook user name Facebook.com/DiscoverLewisCounty Instagram Instagram.com/discoverlewiscounty Twitter account name Any other social media platforms your organization uses to promote tourism YouTube - Discover Lewis County BUDGET INCOME If you are anticipating receiving partial funding for this activity from another source, please *low list the source,the approximate amount,and the status of funding. Amount Source Confirmed Date available (YES/NO) $ 12,000.00 Centralia LTAC ❑Yes UlNo January 2020 $ 82,500.00 LC LTAC ❑Yes ®No January 2020 ❑Yes ❑No ❑Yes UNo ❑Yes CI No ❑Yes No Total income: 94,500 What percentage of your project does your request for Tourism Promotion Dollars represent? 56 VO 1 PROJECT NAME: Online&Print Marketing Program •.J EXPENSE Activity County Other funds Total Personnel $ 30,000.00 $ 30,000.00 Administration $ 2,500.00 $2,500.00 Marketing/promotion $ 50,000.00 $ 50,000.00 Direct sales activities $ 0.00 Minor equipment $ 0.00 Travel $ 0.00 Contract services $ 0.00 Other activities $ 0.00 Total Cost $ 82,500.00 $ 0.00 $ 82,500.00 The Lodging Tax Advisory Committee (LTAC) may recommend awarding partial funding. Please indicate your priorities below: Priority 1 Full Funding Request $82,500.00 Priority 2 Minimum Funding Request $60,000.00 141110 Applicant will /can accept no less than this amount $50,000.00 If partial funding is received, how will that affect the project/activity? Please describe: If partial funding is received, it will affect the online and print marketing campaigns. We will need to limit the amount of funds dedicated to promoting area events and reaching broader audiences from across the state. PROJECT TIMELINE/TOURISM SEASON What is your anticipated timeline for accomplishing this activity? In requesting funds to have a dynamic online and print marketing program, we plan to use the funds throughout the entire year to market as many Lewis County events and activities to as large of an audience as we can reach to encourage visitors to come, enjoy, play, and stay in Lewis County. PROJECT NAME: Online&Print Marketing Program 8 *ft,, From the list below,please indicate the season for which your project will enhance tourism (and explain how it will do so). SEASON EXPLANATION DLC promotes all of Lewis County Year-round 0 year-round. Off-season ❑ Shoulder season ❑ High season ❑ Is it a seasonal activity appropriate to its location?Explain. ACKNOWLEGDGEMENT '`r► The applicant hereby certifies and affirms that it does not now, nor will it during the performance of any contract arising from this application, unlawfully discriminate against any employee,applicant for employment, client, customer,or other person who might benefit from said contract, by reason of race, ethnicity, color, religion, age,gender, national origin, or disability; and further certifies and affirms that it will abide by all relevant local, state and federal laws and regulations; That it has read and understands the information contained in this application for funding and is in compliance with the provisions thereof and; That the individual signing below has the authority to certify to these provisions for the applicant organization, and declares that he/she is an authorized official of the applicant organization, is authorized to make this application, is authorized to commit the organization in financial matters, and will assure that any funds received as a result of this application are used for the purposes set forth herein. Certified by: Date: 10-03-19 (Applicant signature) Tamara A. Hayes (Print or type applicant's name) fhillio PROJECT NAME: Online&Print Marketing Program 9