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Discover Lewis County - Three Tourism Brochures 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: Tourism Brochures 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 a(�discoverlewiscou .com 7. Signature of Representative: . �--rY a 421 8. Project Location (city/town) Lewis County a. Name of Event or Activity: DLC Brochures 9. Statement of Project Goals and Objectives: Discover Lewis County's 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. 10. Project Description: DLC plans to create 3 new tourism brochures and accompanying digital media production. The 3 brochures will include "Waterways of Lewis County," a brochure that tells visitors where they can paddle, canoe, kayak, and soak; "Lewis County guide to ORV trails," a brochure that tells users where they can play on the off- roads of LC; and a revamp and combination of our historic brochures. 11. How does proposed project meet purposes of the Legislation? RCW 67.28.1816 Each of the new brochures will serve a different area of unincorporated Lewis County and will attract new visitors to the county. We have chosen 3 categories that are unique in the type of visitors: waterways, ORV, and historical sites. Each of these brochures enhances a visitors experience to the area by saying, "Please explore our region!" We want to share the beauty and fun of our Lewis County. We have distributed over 37,000 copies of the "Lewis County Trail Guide." Our expected impact is to print 20,000 copies of each, along with a digital component on the website. This content can be linked to by other entities. 12. Anticipated Project Costs: $43,450.00 RECEIVED a. Total County funds awarded for 2020: $35,000 Board of County Commissioners Lewis County Washington DEC 1 8 2019 13. Project Cost Analysis Project Budget Column B Column C Column A Column D Item Use of County Use of Other Total Available Funds Funds Project Funds Personnel (salaries & benefits) $22,200.00 S7,800.00 $30,000.00 Marketing/Promotion Materials $9,000.00 $9,000.00 Direct Sales Activities Minor Equipment $1.950.00 $1,950.00 Travel/Trainings (list below) 1. 2. 3. Contract Services (list below) 1. 2. 3. �• 4. Overhead (building rent, utilities $1 ,850.00 S650.00 $2,500.00 etc.) Project Subtotal: 35,000.00 $8,450.00 $43,450.00 2 14. PROJECT WORK PLAN List the tasks, cost and timeframe, Name individual(s), consultant(s), and organization responsible for the project. Table Ill Discover Lewis County does not use outside consultants to work on our projects. Tasks Timeframe-Dates Estimated Cost Responsible Party/Name ``ter Return completed Project Scope form to: Rieva Lester Lewis County BOCC. Rm. 210 351 NW North Street — 2ny Floor Chehalis, WA 98532 Telephone: 360-740-1419 email: Rieva.Lester a(�lewiscountywa.gov 0 360.740.1120 ,tiso, (7 , ,„,..- Board of County Commissioners TDD 360.740.1480 n Lewis County Courthouse•351 NW North Street •Chehalis,WA 98532-1900 bocc@lewiscountywa.gov �J 1. 1,r/.s/ 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, your application will not move forward. ORGANIZATION / PROJECT INFORMATION Organization name Discover Lewis County/Lewis County Project name Three Tourism Information Brochures _Project coordinator Tamara Hayes Date of project Annual/Ongoing Amount requested from Lewis County $47,500.00 Total project amount $145,455.00 Erik Martin Edna J. Fund Bobby Jackson Gary Stamper Rieva Lester County Manager First District Second District Third District Clerk of the Board I, APPLICANT CONTACT INFORMATION O 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) UBI expiration date Type of organization: ❑ 501(c)3 ❑ 501(c)6 0 Government agency Organization's mission statement or purpose (one or two sentences): DLC's 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: Three Tourism Information Brochures 7 'ft." 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. 'fir 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 plans to create 3 new tourism brochures and accompanying digital media production. The 3 brochures will include "Waterways of Lewis County," a brochure that tells visitors where they can paddle, canoe, kayak, and soak; "Lewis County guide to ORV trails," a brochure that tells users where they can play on the off-roads of LC; and a revamp and combination of our historic brochures. 2. Describe how the project will enhance tourism and result in"heads in beds." DLC has created multiple brochures that are a staple at visitor centers, museum, hotels, and campgrounds. Visitors want to know what they can do in LC and how they can get outside and explore. Our brochures are easy to follow and aimed at giving accessible access points to the adventures that await you. The brochures enhance the tourism experience and result in "heads in beds." 3. List the responsible party/parties. DLC staff will be responsible for the physical and digital products. We plan to partner with other Lewis County groups to help with content for these three brochures. LC has many ORV groups, paddlers& kayakers, the Forest Service, State Parks and the National Park Service. For our history guide, we will continue to work with the Lewis County Historical Museum and the Washington State Archives. '\r PROJECT NAME: Three Tourism Information Brochures 3 4. Describe how the area the project will serve,as well as the project's Y, expected impact. Each of the new brochures will serve a different area of unincorporated Lewis County and will attract new visitors to the county. We have chosen 3 categories that are unique in the type of visitors: waterways, ORV, and historical sites. Each of these brochures enhances a visitors experience to the area by saying, "Please explore our region!" We want to share the beauty and fun of our Lewis County. S. Describe how the project will specifically promote tourism. Two of the largest distributors of our brochures are Thousand Trails Campground and the Packwood Visitor Center. Guests who come to the area are looking for things to do while they are here. These brochures serve to create awareness about activities that make families want to stay and explore the area. 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 our fellow LTAC recipients on our website and in marketing campaigns.We partner with other groups for special projects such as creating rack card content and video campaigns. DLC provides visitor kiosks, sandwich boards, and rack cards to visitor organizations throughout the county. 7. Describe why your project should receive funding. The DLC brochures printed to date have proven to be of value to visitors coming to the area. The first thing I do when I come a new place is look for information on what there is to do. While the digital content is very important, it is so beneficial to have a physical guide in your hands that tells you the history of the community or a new place to use your inflatable paddle board and helps you navigate the new rules of ORV use in our county vs. on national forest land. USE OF HOTEL/MOTEL TAX Please indicate below the types of activities for which the lodging tax monies would be used: ❑TOURISM PROMOTION U OPERATION OF TOURISM-RELATED FACILITY Q MARKETING ONLY U FESTIVAL OR EVENT DESIGNED TO ATTRACT TOURISTS U 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, the creators behind every project. -$32,500 of this requests goes to funding staff and website administrative costs. The measurable outcome is continued production of innovative marketing campaigns. -$12,000 is allocated for printing 30,000 copies of the"Waterways of Lewis County," 30,000 copies of "Lewis County Guide to ORV Trails"and 30,000 copies of the revamped "Lewis County Historical Places and Museums."The measurable outcome will be tracked through a unique URL placed on each brochure.-$3,000 is allocated for travel costs related to research and content production. Each project will need photo &video to enhance our website, print advertising and social media campaigns. The measurable outcome is photos and video content that can be tracked through analytics. PROJECT NAME: Three Tourism Information Brochures 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 sees 68% of visitors from across Washington State, with 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 Analytics 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 — 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 site have come from Canada, Peru and the United Kingdom. This may be a direct result of our United Airlines or Amtrak campaigns, which we ran the summer of 2019. Continued lodging tax support will see visitors from out of state to the website increasing by 5%. PROJECT NAME: Three Tourism Information Brochures 5 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 through to our 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 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 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 an increase in visitors. rsol0' 10. Describe how the project provides short-term or long-term economic benefit for Lewis County. The three-brochure project creates both a short-term and long-term economic benefit for Lewis County. The short-term economic benefit is the introduction of visitors to aspects of Lewis County they may not have known about. Similarly a long-term economic benefit is the awareness of opportunity. The goal of our"Waterways of Lewis County guide" is to introduce visitors to the many opportunities for water activities. A long-term economic benefit could be a new kayak rental store to coming to the area because of increased demand. 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. 4,101 PROJECT NAME: Three Tourism Information Brochures 6 %IS 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 lose list the source, the approximate amount,and the status of funding. Amount Source Confirmed Date available (YES/NO) S 47,500.00 LC LTAC UYes Il No January 2020 S 5,000.00 Chehalis LTAC UYes ®No January 2020 ❑Yes ❑No ❑Yes ❑No UYes No UYes CI No Total income: 52,500 What percentage of your project does your request for Tourism Promotion Dollars represent? 32 % PROJECT NAME: Three Tourism Information Brochures 3 EXPENSE Activity County Other funds Total Personnel $ 30,000.00 $ 30,000.00 Administration $ 2,500.00 S 2,500.00 Marketing/promotion $ 12,000.00 $ 12,000.00 Direct sales activities S 0.00 Minor equipment $ 3,000.00 S 3,000.00 Travel $ 0.00 Contract services $ 0.00 Other activities $ 0.00 Total Cost $ 47,500.00 $ 0.00 $47,500.00 The Lodging Tax Advisory Committee (LTAC) may recommend awarding partial funding. Please indicate your priorities below: Priority 1 Full Funding Request $47,500.00 Priority 2 Minimum Funding Request $35,000.00 Applicant will/can accept no less than this amount $35,000.00 If partial funding is received, how will that affect the project/activity? Please describe: If partial funding is received, Discover Lewis County would eliminate one or more of the brochures. PROJECT TIMELINE/TOURISM SEASON What is your anticipated timeline for accomplishing this activity? The three tourism information brochures would be completed at the end of 2020 and available for distribution in 2021. The website and digital media production will also be completed at the end of 2020. PROJECT NAME: Three Tourism Information Brochures 8 "414.. 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 ■❑ year-round Off-season ❑ Shoulder season ❑ High season U Is it a seasonal activity appropriate to its location? Explain. ACKNOWLEGDGEMENT ilive 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: (Applicant signature) (Print or type applicant's name) klid Three Tourism Information Brochures PROJECT NAME: 9