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'My Fort Myers' campaign connects
on an emotional level
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In light of the challenges with Hurricane Ian, the VCB has developed a four-stage, marketing recovery campaign.
The initial phase was communicated primarily via social media in the months immediately following the storm, sharing messages of hope and resilience, as well as prioritizing “What’s Open” in the destination.
The second phase, which is underway now, focuses on encouraging visitors to return by tapping into the strong feelings our area invokes. Personal testimonials from residents, loyalists and business owners will speak to treasured experiences and the emotional connections they have with our islands, beaches and neighborhoods.
We’re calling this campaign “My Fort Myers” and we've built out a landing page on LeeVCB.com to see some examples of the supporting creative (also, see examples above).
The goal is to show that the destination is bouncing back and while things may not be ‘normal’ just yet, there is still an opportunity to have an enjoyable experience while supporting our community. The timing on additional phases is based on the progress of recovery, market conditions and visitor sentiment.
Additionally, given that several hotels with meeting space are open, there is an ongoing emphasis placed on keeping and growing group/meetings business to the area.
We're also excited to see spring training return at the end of February. Fans of the Boston Red Sox and Minnesota Twins get a chance to see their teams in action under the Florida sun. It's always a great way to melt away that winter chill from up north.
Have a great month and thank you for all you do.
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Captiva Cruises
on Captiva Island
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If you're an Industry Partner and you would like to be considered a VCB monthly Partner Spotlight, please contact Miriam Dotson, VCB communications manager, at mdotson@leegov.com
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Road to Recovery: Wahoo Willie's on Fort Myers Beach
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VCB's Co-op Advertising Program returns
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As part of our recovery efforts, the Co-op Program celebrated its formal reintroduction in January. Programs will continue to phase in through April 2023.
Questions about Co-op? Please contact Joshua Lambert at jlambert@mmgy.com.
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Updates from the Performance Dashboard
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The VCB's Industry Insights Dashboard provides our partners with the latest Lee County-specific travel data. Partners can use this information to make informed marketing decisions, resource planning, revenue forecasting and more.
Current insights:
- The top out-of-state origin markets for December were Chicago, New York, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Detroit and Boston. We saw a 35.6% decrease in the total number of visitors for December 2022 when compared to December 2021. Source: Arrivalist
- From November to December, we saw a 65% increase in 2023 hotel demand. Source: TripAdvisor
- The average lead time for hotel bookings in December was 50.3 days, which was a slight increase of 1.8% over December 2021. Source: Sojern
- Overall, there was a 103% increase in destination website pageviews and site interaction for December when compared to November. Source: Google Analytics
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Registration open for Guests First's virtual classes
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Domestic sales activities
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Rotating photos include:
- (Photos 1-2) PCMA (Professional Convention Management Association) New England Holiday Client Event, Dec. 5-7: Betsy Bush, VCB, promoted the destination at the networking event in Boston. About 150 area planners attended.
- (Photos 3-4) Destination Reps Holiday Client Event & Meeting, Dec. 6-8: Jerry Terp, VCB, attended this client event and meeting in Chicago, enabling him to network with 51 Chicago-area planners.
- (Photo 5) Capitol CVB Reps Client Holiday Event, Dec. 14: Betsy Bush, VCB, helped plan and networked at this well-attended meeting planner event in Washington, D.C.
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International sales activities
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Rotating photos include:
- (Photo 1) SITE Canada Holiday Party, Toronto, Nov. 30: Jeanette Faria and Lana Lubon, both with Canada VCB team; and Shalene Dudley, owner of Latitute Concierge Travels, attended a holiday networking event with meeting planners.
- (Photos 2-4) Eurowings Discover Roadshow to Munich, Stuttgart, Mainz, Dusseldorf and Bonn, Germany, Jan. 16-20: Over 250 travel agents and tour operators attended evening trade fairs to hear the latest updates on Eurowings Discover flight information as well as learn about our destination's recovery updates from the Global Communications Experts (GCE) team, including (photo 3) Gabriele Kuminek, GCE, in Stuttgart and (photo 4) Nadia Bourgault, GCE, in Bonn.
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On the air in Germany
Last month German radio host Eike Knall visited the destination and conducted interviews for his travel segments on Antenne Frankfurt. Thank you to Luminary Hotel & Co. for hosting the event.
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Rotating photos include:
- (Photo 1) VCB Executive Director Tamara Pigott and Eike Knall
- (Photo 2) Rob Wells, TDC vice chair and owner of Tarpon Lodge and Cabbage Key, chats with Knall.
- (Photo 3) VCB Deputy Director Pamela Johnson, Pigott and Knall
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Shellcast the podcast features Manatee Park
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Shellcast, the VCB's award-winning podcast is available on YouTube and wherever you listen to podcasts.
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Out and about with Visitor Services Tourism Ambassadors
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On Jan. 25, the VCB's Tourism Ambassadors took a guided tour at Koreshan State Park in Estero to learn about the historic site that was once home to a religious sect founded in 1893 by Dr. Cyrus R. Teed. Familiarization trips throughout Lee County give the ambassadors the opportunity to learn about the destination and help answer questions from visitors at Southwest Florida International Airport (RSW).
We thank all of our partners for hosting our Tourism Ambassadors.
Rotating photos include:
- (Photo 1) Tourism Ambassadors at Koreshan State Park
- (Photo 2 compilation) Don D. and Cindy D.; Vera O.; Connie B and Judy M.
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On Jan. 18, the Tourism Ambassadors visited Sun Harvest Citrus and Lee County Sports Complex / Hammond Stadium. The took a guided tour of the juice operations, packing house and store. At Hammond Stadium, they toured Minnesota Twins' home for spring training.
Rotating photos include:
- (Photo 1) Hilary W. and Evelyn M. at Hammond Stadium
- (Photo 2) Tourism Ambassadors at Hammond Stadium
- (Photos 3-4) Tourism Ambassadors at Sun Harvest Citrus
- (Photo 5) Maryann D. sampling fresh juice at Sun Harvest Citrus
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The Tourism Ambassadors enjoyed a tour and complimentary breakfast at the Homewood Suites Bonita Springs. Following their tour of the hotel, they visited the Wonder Gardens for a guided tour of the botanical garden and refuge for birds and reptiles.
Rotating photos include:
- (Photo1) Volunteers with Karina at Homewood Suites Bonita Springs
- (Photo 2) Volunteers with Ashley at the Wonder Gardens
- (Photos 3-4) Jim Lewin takes photos of birds and Jim Jackson at Wonder Gardens
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Topping Off Celebration, Margaritaville Beach Resort
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The Margaritaville Beach Resort Topping Off Ceremony on Jan. 20 gave VCB Executive Director Tamara Pigott the opportunity to present Fort Myers Beach Mayor Dan Allers with a framed print of the 2023 ArtFest festival poster by Ellen Negley.
Rotating photos include:
- (Photo 1) Fort Myers Beach Mayor Dan Allers and VCB Executive Director Tamara Pigott
- (Photo 2) Lee County Commissioner Ray Sandelli
- (Photos 3-5) Event signage, the resort under construction and Fort Myers Beach
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2201 Second Street, Suite 600
Fort Myers, Florida 33901
Toll Free 800.237.6444 | Local 239.338.3500
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