It’s certainly true that all that glitters is not gold, as many prospectors learned during California’s gold rush days. But these days, even with the gloomy economy, there is one speck of glitter that’s still gold in the Golden State -- tourism. That’s the message Caroline Beteta, president and CEO of the California Travel and Tourism Commission (CTTC) and chairperson of the U.S. Travel Association, delivered during her keynote address at the annual California Travel Industry Association (CalTIA) conference in Newport Beach last month.
With about 338 million domestic visitor stays and 13.4 million international visitors in 2008, California is the No. 1 travel destination by state in the U.S. in terms of economic impact and total travel volume, according to CTTC data. And despite California’s $26 billion (and growing) budget deficit, the state’s tourism budget remains at $50 million, largely because of the California Tourism Marketing Act, which CalTIA created in 1995 to decrease the tourism industry’s dependence on the state and to give it more control over its own destiny.
Back then, the CTTC’s predecessor, the California Office of Tourism, had a budget of about $7.5 million. California ranked in the 30s in terms tourism marketing spending, behind states like Iowa and Michigan, according to Gary Sherwin, president and CEO of the Newport Beach Conference and Visitors Bureau, who introduced Beteta at the conference. “Every year we had to fight for our continued survival,” he said. “If nothing had changed in all those years, I dare say we would probably be out of business, certainly this year if not before, given the challenges we’ve had with Sacramento.” Today, California is among the top five states in tourism marketing spending, he said.
In addition, the budget, which was unpredictable when funded by the state legislature, is now more stable, according to Beteta. That stability has allowed the CTTC to focus on bringing new markets to California, primarily long-haul domestic and international travelers, and creating top-of-mind awareness about the state with branding initiatives. In turn, most of the marketing efforts of CVBs, attractions, hotels and other local organizations take place in California or in the Western U.S.
Beteta said the pillars of California’s brand are “embedded in the California attitude; this unique, entrepreneurial and very positive spirit we have; and yes, the desirable and rather eclectic, hedonistic lifestyle that’s the perception that people have. It’s punctuated by the icons of our attractions, our scenic beauty and, of course, our celebrities.”
To that end, the CTTC’s year-round campaign includes national cable TV commercials using its “Find Yourself Here” slogan in three spots with themes of food and wine, winter and snow, and recreation posing as work that include celebrities and end with a tag line delivered by California’s own celebrity governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger. Other efforts include web-based, co-op and print marketing, as well as international trade missions led by Schwarzenegger and media events in Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York City.
Beteta said there was a 74 percent recall on the TV spots, with potential visitors tripling their intent to travel to California if they’ve seen all three commercials during a cycle. In addition, return on investment has been worth the expense: For every dollar spent on marketing and promotion, the state is seeing about $263 in visitor spending and $17 in tax revenue.
Going forward, the CTTC is launching interactive, web-based programs. For example, it is rolling out an online travel planner throughout the year, allowing CVBs, attractions and other tourism businesses to upload their own content. It also has contracted with Sapient as its online agency of record to drive traffic to VisitCalifornia.com and its other consumer-facing websites. Sapient will be involved in interactive media planning and strategizing, online creative development and delivery, website evaluation and recommendations, email marketing and database management, online media buying, strategic partnerships and promotions, and reporting and evaluating all online campaigns.
A new campaign launching in July called California High Fives “embodies the abundance theme in terms of the brand and value proposition, but also gives us opportunities to talk about actual products,” Beteta said. The program features “best-of” lists, like the best Mexican restaurants in Southern California and the best public golf courses. In addition, the CTTC is currently rolling out 12-month travel portal sponsorships. According to Beteta, 75 percent of customers are using sites like Travelocity, Virtual Tourist and Hotels.com for booking travel. “We’ll have a 20 percent share of micro-content, paid sponsorship, banner advertising, travel tools and co-op opportunities within these sites for next year,” she said. “This is the new frontier, if you will, in terms of what we’re trying to do on behalf of the industry.”
The CTTC also is focusing its efforts on international travelers. Besides the trade missions, it is opening more offices (it opened offices in South Korea and China this past year), participating in international trade shows (225 per year), hosting more than 150 Tier-1 media and sponsoring major events like the Amgen Tour of California, a bicycle race from Sacramento to San Diego that draws competitive cyclists from around the world. In addition, the CTTC is turning to television marketing. For example, last year, in partnership with BBC World, it ran six 30-minute programs that were broadcast globally as editorial, featuring the state’s natural heritage, technology, energy, the ocean, wine and food, and architecture.
The CTTC’s sustainable efforts include a Sustainable Tourism Symposium slated for Oct. 1 in Monterey and an International Summit with directors and staff from the CTTC’s international offices on Jan. 10, 2010. In addition, the CTTC added two welcome centers (in Truckee and Tulare) for a total of 14, which Beteta said deliver increased length of stay. CTTC also operates a new mobile welcome center.
“Pre 9/11, we had an incredible share of the international market,” Beteta said, referring specifically to the overseas international market, which doesn’t include Mexico and Canada. Since then, the U.S. share of that market has been shrinking. The number of overseas visitors to California decreased from 6.4 million in 2000 to 5.2 million in 2007, according to CTTC data. “What does it mean for California?” Beteta said. “If we could reach pre-9/11 numbers, we’d generate an additional 18,000 leisure and hospitality jobs each year.”
That goal isn’t too far fetched, despite the downturn in consumer confidence that’s driving travel trends, Beteta said. The difference is that booking and travel patterns are shifting. “People still view travel as a right,” she said, “and what we’re experiencing now are trips that are closer to home and closer booking periods.” For more information about California, visit www.visitcalifornia.com.
Mimi Kmet
Executive Editor-Western U.S.
TravelPulse.com