Of SuMMEr

MAY 2010
Table of Contents
Members Only
New Members
Briefings from Brent
The Big Sell
Convention & Visitor Services
The Scoop
Milwaukee in the Media
Get on the Bus
Members Covered
Marketing Minute
News & Notes
MAY
20
VISIT Milwaukee 101
VISIT Milwaukee
9am-11am
RSVP: [email protected]
JUNE
3
Member Mixer
Molly Cool’s Seafood Tavern
5pm-7pm
Invitations will be sent out in mid May
9
“Social Media for Hospitality
Businesses” Educational Seminar
Luncheon
The Grohmann Museum, MSOE
Noon-1:30pm
Invitations will be sent out in May
2
2
3
3
3
4
4
5
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648 N. Plankinton Ave. #425
Milwaukee, WI 53203
414.273.3950
www.visitmilwaukee.org
Making the most
of summer
Milwaukeeans look forward to summer here. They make the
most of it. It means weekends filled with an abundance of
B y Paul Upchurch,
major festivals and events, warmer weather to take advantage
President & CEO
of activities in our award-winning parks and along our
414.287.4233
enviable lakefront, and chances to cheer the home team to
[email protected]
victory at Miller Park. Many of the same reasons that make
this a great place to live bring visitors here as well. It’s a busy
time for VISIT Milwaukee and its members. It’s also a prime
opportunity for us to support the events that make us stand out from other destinations. We want to make
the most of an impressive lineup that includes everything from
Summerfest and the Milwaukee Air & Water Show to Wisconsin
State Fair and Tosa Tonight – as well as all the rich ethnic
festivals in between.
UPdates
That support includes rolling out new tools to help members
successfully promote their businesses and events to visitors
– by making the most of their memberships. Social media is
an integral part of our marketing strategy and our presence
on Facebook and Twitter is growing steadily. These platforms
offer us innovative ways to share membership information
and reach out to target audiences. We’ll unveil a completely
redesigned and upgraded web site in June, and our Explore
More program will offer extra ways to capitalize on the benefits
of membership.
In addition to leisure visitors, we also welcome more convention
attendees during the summer months than any other season.
It’s the result of strategic planning and travel throughout the
year that maximizes every opportunity to bring meetings to
Milwaukee. We hosted several FAMs where our membership
stepped forward to help us pull out all the stops. Warm
greetings, first-rate meeting venues and personal tours were
among the ready hospitality that greeted meeting planners
from across the nation - and made the most out of their time
here.
We couldn’t do what we do without the support and
commitment of our members, who help us make the most of
Milwaukee. With your partnership, we’re looking forward to a
busy summer welcoming visitors here who are eager to do the same.
Membership notes
Hopefully by now, you should have received a notice from us that VISIT Milwaukee’s Annual Meeting is being
rescheduled to a date later this summer. As soon as we have a new date, we’ll send out a communication to all of
you.
Members Only
B y Todd O’Leary,
Director of Membership
414.287.4252
[email protected]
I also want to take this opportunity to communicate a new VISIT Milwaukee policy that affects all of our members.
As you know, VISIT Milwaukee sends a letter to members one month prior to your membership anniversary date.
The purpose is to let you know that your new invoice will arrive the next month. The following month, on your
anniversary date, we mail your invoice. Last fall, our membership committee approved the use of 30-60-90 day
notices for past-due members.
Now, at 30 days past due, we send a letter, reminding members about their dues payment. We also send a similar
letter at 60 days past-due. At 90 days past-due, we now suspend all membership benefits, including listings,
events, leads, access to the members-only section, etc. If we still haven’t received payment at 120 days, we must cancel your membership.
We know that money continues to be tight for many of us – VISIT Milwaukee included. We are happy to work with our members on payment options, but
we need to hear from you. As always, if you have any questions about your membership, please contact me!
VISIT Milwaukee welcomes the new members below. If you have any leads on
businesses that should become a VISIT Milwaukee member, please contact me!
Welcome
New Members!
By Fran Jackson,
Membership Sales Manager
414.287.4248
[email protected]
Bavarian Soccer Club
700 W. Lexington Blvd.
Glendale, WI 53217
414-225-7126
www.bavariansoccerclub.org
Andrea Davi
[email protected]
Schwanke-Kasten Jewelers
763 N. Broadway
Milwaukee, WI 53202
414-271-1242
www.schwanke-kasten.com
Joanne Dixon
[email protected]
Dryhootch of America, Inc.
1030 E. Brady Street
Milwaukee, WI 53202
414-614-0651
www.dryhootch.org
Allison Kitzerow
[email protected]
7 Mile Fair
2720 W. 7 Mile Road
Caledonia, WI 53108
262-835-2177
www.7mikefair.com
Steven Pockat
[email protected]
Maggiano’s Little Italy
2500 N. Mayfair Road
Wauwatosa, WI 53226
414-978-1000
www.maggianos.com
Angela Duchac
[email protected]
Crabby Charters
McKinley Marina
1750 N. Lincoln Memorial Drive
Milwaukee, WI 53202
262-538-0056
www.crabbycharters.com
Captain Craig Best
[email protected]
Friends of Reclaiming Our
Heritage, Inc.
5000 W. National Avenue
Milwaukee, WI 53295
888-902-1865
www.forohmilwaukee.org
Laura Rinaldi
[email protected]
KSM Builders
9317 N. 85th Street
Milwaukee, WI 53224
414-688-0825
Kurt Mesterhazy
Port of Call Bistro & Beer Garden
106 W. Well Street
Milwaukee, WI 53203
414-273-7678
www.portofcallmilwaukee.com
Dan Jorgenson
[email protected]
Briefings from Brent
Convention
& Visitor Services By Brent Foerster,
VP of Sales & Marketing
414.287.4226
[email protected]
By Dave Larson,
Director of Convention Services
414.287.4224
[email protected]
VISIT Milwaukee is aggressively marketing
the Greater Milwaukee area through leisure
advertising, social and electronic media. This
promises to be a busy summer in Milwaukee.
Beginning in June, an advertising campaign will be launched in Chicago and its
northern suburbs incorporating texting technology to promote summer events.
We have developed an advertising campaign with the Chicago Transit Authority
(CTA). Digital signage and posters will be placed on the exterior of busses and
interior advertising placed in rail cars. This approach will allow us to change
our message throughout the 10-week campaign featuring festivals, events and
attractions. Special offers will be available by texting a unique code. With Chicago
and northern Illinois being a prime target market for Milwaukee visitors, this costeffective program provides a high tech way to target these travelers.
Both print and electronic campaigns are underway in Illinois and Wisconsin
utilizing USA TODAY Regional, BestMidwestTravel.com, Wisconsin Department of
Tourism admail, email and direct mail postcards. In Michigan, we are using print
advertising in Booth Newspapers, a 7-day blitz program with Mlive.com and three
months of Travel E-Deals Newsletter. All campaigns are coordinated closely with
Dave Fantle and the PR Team to ensure we are getting valuable editorial coverage
to support our campaigns.
Leisure travel represents approximately 30% of our tourism business in the
Milwaukee area. Competition for the tourist dollar is fierce and the efforts above
are vital to maintaining a competitive edge and growing this important market.
It’s amazing what a great spring we have been having and that
includes the excitement felt in your VISIT Milwaukee sales team.
We’ve seen planners begin to make decisions and share RFPs much
more aggressively in the first quarter 2010. Signs that we believe
is just the beginning of the return of the market.
2010 continues to be a busy year for Services with great
events in May:
• National Women Infants and Children Association Annual
Convention with 600 attendees, May 3-6.
• Two related events will be in Milwaukee May 8-13.
American Wire Producers will bring 225 people and the
Wire Expo will return with 1,000 attendees.
• American Institute of Conservation of Historic and Artistic
Works Annual Meeting will be here May 9-15 with their
1,000 attendees.
• The Regional Airline Association will be hosting their
Annual Convention with 1,200 attendees, May 21-28.
• C.A World Services World Convention May 27-30 with 1,000
attendees.
• Dominion Ambassadors’ World Summit on Leadership
May 27-30 with 3,000 attendees.
The Big Sell
By Mia Brondyke, Director of Sales
414.287.4259 /
[email protected]
Your VISIT Milwaukee sales team conducted 6 site visits in April
and attended over 9 special customer events ranging from a Three-City Green Tea at Chef Art Smith’s restaurant in
Chicago, PCMA Diversity Event in DC, a Convene Green Alliance Breakfast, to many industry chapter events both right
here in Wisconsin to Kansas City and Washington DC!
I encourage all of you to watch the calendar of sales events that was attached to your February VOICE and call me to join in on any of our initiatives.
I look forward to seeing you all in May at the many events we have going on, from our D.C. sales mission, Dead Seas Scrolls FAM, SGMP and Springtime in
the Park. Until then, stay in touch and Happy Spring In Milwaukee!
All the hub-bub?
It’s all about
When it comes to showing visitors a good time, is there a better place to be in the summer than the
Milwaukee area? From the lakefront festivals and downtown events to nearby communities such as West
Allis who hosts the State Fair or Wauwatosa with its free Tosa Tonight music series, we’re the epicenter for
summer fun!
By Dave Fantle,
Vice President of
Public Relations
414.287.4253
[email protected]
We’re taking that message “on the road” in May to promote Milwaukee summer fun. We’ll be doing TV and
radio appearances in St. Louis and Western Michigan to promote our region as the hub for a family-friendly,
affordable summer vacation. In Michigan we’ll be teaming with the Lake Express high speed ferry to give
away Milwaukee area getaway packages. These are cost-effective measures to tell the Milwaukee story to
desirable leisure markets.
HATS ON to VISIT Milwaukee
VISIT Milwaukee PR put on their hosting hats in April, welcoming both Rough Guides and Go magazine.
Freelance writer Max Grinnell is on assignment with Rough Guides, updating the Milwaukee
section of the U.S.A. guidebook. For those not familiar, Rough Guides is similar to a Fodor’s or
Frommer’s travel guide, and is distributed in the U.S. and the U.K..
Jacqui Detwiler, assistant editor of Go magazine, saw Milwaukee for the first time when she
visited to research a multi-page section that will appear in the July issue of the Air Tran Airways
inflight magazine. VISIT Milwaukee also developed an itinerary focusing on all things German for
Rod O’Connor, a freelancer on assignment with Go.
Milwaukee in the Media
By Jeannine Sherman
Public Relations Manager
414.287.6230
[email protected]
We’ve confirmed a wide variety of writers from across the nation who will be representing
regional and national media outlets for our June Summerfest press trip. We’re hard at work
developing a stellar itinerary to showcase the world’s largest festival and the Midwest’s premier travel destination.
MTWA Writer Pam O’Meara profiles Milwaukee’s natural resources in this great article that appears in the Woodbury Review News.
This is a community newspaper that is seen by more than 15,000 residents in the Minneapolis-St. Paul region. The article is a result of
the fall Midwest Travel Writers Association (MTWA) conference hosted here in Milwaukee.
http://woodburyreviewnews.com/main.asp?SectionID=57&SubSectionID=240&ArticleID=3460
MTWA member Sue Pollack contacted us to include Milwaukee in this roundup of helpful spring cleaning tips from hotels that
appeared in the Detroit News. Click on the lead story headline, then scroll down to see tips from Milwaukee’s own Pfister Hotel. The
Detroit News is a major U.S. daily newspaper with a circulation of more than 167,000.
www.detnews.com/homestyle
Members
Covered
By Maria Strand,
Membership Coordinator
414.287.4259
[email protected]
It’s all in the DETAILS
Master
Convention
Calendar
In the March edition of VOICE, I gave instructions on how to access our Exclusive “Members Only” section of VISIT Milwaukee’s website. In April, we covered the Member Detail area.
This month, I’m going to continue my series on the Members Only section by covering one of the
biggest membership benefits we provide - The Master Convention Calendar.
Once you have logged in to the Members Only Section, select Master Convention Calendar (MCC) from
the Orange “Manage Your Profile” menu at the right of your screen. When there, you will find three
links - the first is a single page document containing 10 tips on how meeting planners recommend
you utilize the MCC; the second is the full calendar running from the current quarter out three years.
The calendar contains convention/meeting name, dates, meeting planner contact information, location of the meeting and hotels that are being utilized during the meeting. The third link contains a list
of conventions/meetings that are new to the calendar for the current quarter (these were all booked
in the previous quarter and this is provided so instead of printing out the entire calendar each quarter, you can pinpoint the newest bookings.) A new MCC is posted by the first Friday in each quarter
The Hearing Loss Association of
America invites you to visit its exhibit hall to
see first-hand the latest technology and services
for people with hearing loss. Just stop by the HLAA
convention registration desk at the Frontier Airlines
Center for a FREE pass during the following times:
Thursday, June 17: 11 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Friday, June 18: 11 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Saturday, June 19: 10 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
If you suspect you or someone you know has a
hearing loss, this is a perfect opportunity to have
your hearing screened; hearing healthcare professionals will be there to provide you with more
information. Sign up for a screening at the HLAA
Booth (#313).
For all the latest news and details about this
convention which also includes an educational
program, a research symposium on hearing aid
research and development, and more, visit
www.hearingloss.org
Also on this page is the “Who’s in Town.” This document is sent out bi-monthly to restaurants and retail members in the downtown area as a companion piece to the MCC. The “Who’s in Town” highlights
some (not all) large/prestigious conventions/meetings for any given month and provides a detailed
snapshot of the group. This piece is meant to be displayed for your employees so they are aware of
“Who’s in Town.”
If you have any questions about the MCC, need your username and password, or have a question
about the Members Only Section in general, please contact me!
Reach over 1,200
Milwaukee-area hospitality
professionals for just $100!
That’s LESS THAN A BUCK to
reach 10 PROs like you!
Contact Todd O’Leary at
[email protected]
or 414.287.4252 for more
info on this awesome
opportunity in VOICE.
it’s A Group Effort
It’s hard to believe that it has been a year since Milwaukee hosted the African American Travel Conference, but we just returned from this year’s AATC in
Niagara, NY. The delegates at the conference still spoke very fondly of their time in Milwaukee last year. If you have not
sent them information on your hotel, restaurant or attractions, the names of the attendees from last year, as well as those
we met with this year, are on the Members Only section of our website. Invite these group leaders to your establishment.
Watch your email for an invitation to the next Explore Milwaukee’s Best meeting. These meetings are a great resource for
learning about the group market and networking with your peers in the Milwaukee area.
VISIT Milwaukee also met with international receptive tour operators in New York this past month. Working in conjunction
with the Great Lakes of North America, a reception was held at Savoy, an organic restaurant, in the SoHo area.
Each participant was asked to bring a gift to present to the tour operators that represented an organic product
from our area. Milwaukee was a huge hit with providing each operator a gift bag that included two bottles of
Get On The Bus!
Lakefront’s ESB Organic Beer and a 1lb. bag of “Worm Power Fertilizer” from Growing Power.
B y Wendy Dobrzynski,
Group Tour Manager
If you would like to learn more about how VISIT Milwaukee is promoting our members to the group tour and
414.287.4222
international markets, please do not hesitate to contact me.
[email protected]
Spreading the Word
With spring in the air, we are working on several publications and media placements that will continue to promote
Milwaukee as a terrific travel destination! Make sure that you are considering using these tools as a way to gain additional
exposure for your business or event. Here are the highlights:
Shop
Milwaukee’s guide to neighborhood retail
2010 Spring/Summer Shopping Guide: Reach new and existing
customers interested in Milwaukee’s trend-setting retail scene!
This publication is printed twice a year with a circulation of
50,000 for each print run. Reserve space today for a ½ page ad at
$625 – that is a CPM of only $12.50! The summer edition is nearly
complete and there is very limited space still available!
Marketing Minute
B y Rachel Oliver,
Director of Marketing
414.287.4250
[email protected]
June, July, August, September Calendar of Events: You can reserve
an entire page in the printed calendar of events to promote your venue or event using exciting colors and
graphics for under $500 per month. The print run is a minimum of 21,000 each month for a CPM of only
$23.81!
In addition, your ad appears on www.visitmilwaukee.org within the monthly calendar. The Calendar of
Events is one of the most popular areas of the Web site. Spread the word about your event! Remember,
frequency of your message is very important, so consider running consecutive ads leading up to your event
or special offer.
Work will be starting very soon on the 2010 Bikers Guide, so please watch your email and future
newsletters for more information! If you are interested in more information about the publications listed
above or want to brainstorm about ways we can work together to promote your events and business,
please contact me. I’d love to hear more about what you have coming up and find creative ways we can work together. One more thing – don’t forget to
email me your ideas for inclusion in our social media campaign. Facebook and Twitter are great tools to help drive business and increase awareness about
the Milwaukee area and all we have to offer!
CONGRATS to members!
Congratulations goes out to the following VISIT Milwaukee members, who were award winners at
Milwaukee Downtown, BID #21’s Annual Meeting:
(1)
(1)Aloft Milwaukee Downtown, winner of the Brick and Mortar Award, for constructing the first
new downtown hotel since 2001 and one of the first catalytic projects in the Park East Corridor.
(2)Hyatt Regency Milwaukee, winner of the CPR Award, for its $19+ million makeover which
revamped Downtown Milwaukee’s second largest hotel from top to bottom.
(3)Milwaukee Holiday Lights Festival Jingle Bus (Wisconsin Coach Lines), winner of the
Showcase Award, for helping to make Downtown Milwaukee a regional attraction during the
holidays by servicing approximately 109 riders per hour.
(4)Cindy Moran, ArtSpin Founder & President, winner of the Downtown Cheerleader Award,
for creating a forum for Milwaukee’s visual and performing arts groups to share ideas, promote
collaboration and communicate the economic impact of the city’s cultural arts.
(2)
(2)
(3)
(4)