Georgia tourism monthly e-newsletter, Oct. 2011

October 2011 Issue
In This Issue:
PRESS RELEASE: CELEBRATE HALLOWEEN ALL ACROSS GEORGIA 2012 PLACES IN PERIL: 10 PLACES THAT NEED YOUR HELP GDEcD SALES TEAM UPDATE GDEcD RESEARCH UPDATE GDEcD VISITOR INFORMATION CENTER UPDATE 5TH ANNUAL GRACE AWARDS FESTIVAL ASSOCIATION HIRES NEW DIRECTOR GEORGIA AQUARIUM WINS MARKETING AWARD DUNWOODY'S "SMART" BRAND RECEIVES NATIONAL RECOGNITION MORRIS MUSEUM OF ART WINS FIVE SEMC AWARDS GEORGIA NEWS: HARTSFIELD-JACKSON LAUNCHES WEBSITE ON INTERNATIONAL TERMINAL GEORGIA NEWS: HOTEL MANAGEMENT COMPANY DAVIDSON MOVING TO ATLANTA INDUSTRY NEWS: U.S. TRAVEL PLAN TO CREATE 1.3 MILLION JOBS INDUSTRY NEWS: U.S. TRAVEL - "POWER OF TRAVEL" PROMOTION TOOLKIT INDUSTRY NEWS: GBTA PREDICTS CAUTIOUS GROWTH IN 2012 BUSINESS TRAVEL SPENDING INDUSTRY NEWS: 4 TOOLS FOR CONDUCTING KEYWORD RESEARCH ON YOUTUBE

...................................................................................................................................................................... PRESS RELEASE: CELEBRATE HALLOWEEN ALL ACROSS GEORGIA
With Halloween just around the corner, Georgia is the perfect place for spine-chilling thrills, family-friendly fun or a much-needed getaway. Cities and small towns throughout Georgia deliver the spirit of Halloween with events and attractions that will leave you wide-eyed and "horrified." For the full Georgia Tourism press release, click here.
...................................................................................................................................................................... 2012 PLACES IN PERIL: 10 PLACES THAT NEED YOUR HELP
The Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation announced its 2012 list of ten Places in Peril in the state on October 25. Sites on the list include: Rutherford Hall on the University of Georgia campus in Athens; Orange Hall in St. Marys; W.W. Law House in Savannah; historic railroad buildings of Atlanta; Historic Liberty Street in Milledgeville; Randolph County Courthouse in Cuthbert; Mt. Zion Church in Sparta; Crown Mill Store in Dalton; Secondary Industrial High School in Columbus; and Chattahoochee Park Pavilion in Gainesville. Click here for more information.
...................................................................................................................................................................... GDEcD SALES TEAM UPDATE
Kevin Langston and Joseph Walker participated in the Travel South Italy Mission that included the TTG Rimini Travel Show, Tour Operator trainings in Milan, and a presentation of the Southern states at an event in Rome. Georgia Tourism met with more than 30 tour operators while in Italy. Statistics show that Italian travel to Georgia is up 20 percent.
Nija Torrence will attend the Ontario Motorcoach Association Conference (OMCA) and marketplace from November 6 to 9 in Windsor, Canada. The OMCA Marketplace is the premier event in Canada for North American packaged travel. Buyers and sellers will meet face to face during the pre-scheduled appointments.
Jonathan Boisjolie will attend World Travel Market from November 7 to 10 in London, England. Staged annually in London, World Travel Market, the leading global event for the travel industry, is a vibrant, must attend, four-day business-to-business event presenting a diverse range of destinations and industry sectors to UK and International travel professionals. It is a unique opportunity for the whole global travel trade to meet, network, negotiate and conduct business. By attending World Travel Market, participants efficiently, effectively and productively gain immediate competitive advantage for their business and stay abreast with the latest developments in the travel industry.
The sales team is participating in a Travel South Sales Mission to Orlando, Florida to meet with key receptive operators from November 29 to December 4. These receptive operators provide U.S. and Georgia travel products to international tour operators around the world.
Georgia Tourism attended the AARP Life@50+ Expo from September 22 to 24, 2011 in Los Angeles, California, and collected 996 leads. The leads were sent to the Regional Tourism Reps on October 3. Total attendance at the Expo was 17,651. The 2012 Life@50+ Expo will be held in New Orleans September 20 - 22, 2012.
Georgia Tourism will once again be participating a sponsor for the National Tour Association (NTA) Annual Convention (December 5 to 9, 2011) and the American Bus Association (ABA) Annual Marketplace (January 6 to 10, 2012). As part of our sponsorships we will have a booth on the marketplace floor that will allow maximum exposure to all attendees and provide us a better opportunity to sell Georgia. We are changing our level of participation this year for ABA and will be the show bag sponsor - as such we will offer co-sponsorship to our

partners. Pam Kruseck and Nija Torrence will be attending. Co-sponsorship information for both NTA and ABA was sent out to the Regional Reps on August 16, 2011 - for additional co-sponsorship information, please contact Pam Kruseck via email at pkruseck@georgia.org.
Georgia Tourism hosted a booth at the Georgia National Fair in Perry from October 6 to 16, 2011. The state-sponsored fair celebrates youth, agriculture and heritage. The annual Georgia National Fair has been designated as a "Top 50 Fair in North America" by Amusement Business magazine.
Georgia Tourism will participate in the Rejuvenate Marketplace in San Jose, California from November 7 to 9, 2011. Rejuvenate Marketplace is an educational conference designed specifically for meeting planners who organize meetings and conferences for faith-based organizations. The three-day event includes a reverse trade show with one-on-one appointments between planners and suppliers; an all-day planner boot camp for both novices and professional planners; several general sessions; and two days of sessions covering basic planning topics, business skills and strategy, technology tools and social media, and program innovations. Pam Kruseck will attend. Co-op information was sent to the Regional Tourism Reps on August 26. For additional co-sponsorship information, please contact Pam Kruseck via email at pkruseck@georgia.org.
Georgia Tourism will attend the Tennessee Motorcoach Operators Association Annual Convention from January 22 to 26, 2012 in Lexington, Kentucky. The Annual Meeting will include appointment sessions with members of each Association, educational seminars and networking opportunities. For additional co-op information, please contact Pam Kruseck via email at pkruseck@georgia.org.
...................................................................................................................................................................... GDEcD RESEARCH UPDATE
Georgia Hotel Trending Data
September 2011 * Hotel/motel occupancy increased 2.8 percent statewide * Room Rates (ADR) in Georgia were up 2 percent from last September * Statewide, RevPAR was 4.9 percent * Georgia room revenues increased 4.6 percent * Room Demand increased 2.6 percent in the state * Room Supply was down - 0.2 percent
Year-to-date * Hotel/motel occupancy is up 4.7 percent statewide through August 2011 * Room Rates (ADR) in Georgia are up 0.7 percent * Statewide, RevPAR is up 5.4 percent * Georgia room revenues are up 5.4 percent * Room Demand is up 4.7 percent in the state * Room Supply is flat in the state

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GDEcD VISITOR INFORMATION CENTER UPDATE
In September 2011, the Visitor Information Centers (VIC) had 552,020 visitors. They also hosted 257 partner promotions during September. In addition, they made 1,513 hotel reservations totaling $109,875 in revenue. Partners are encouraged to get out to one of our 11 VICs to host a promotion anytime throughout the year. For more information on this and other ways you can get involved with the VIC program, contact Tiffany Marlin at tmarlin@georgia.org.
...................................................................................................................................................................... 5TH ANNUAL GRACE AWARDS
The Georgia Restaurant Association Crystal of Excellence (GRACE) Awards recognizes and pays tribute to the leaders who have made outstanding contributions to Georgia's restaurant industry. On Sunday, November 13 at the Loews Hotel Atlanta, the finalists and winners are honored, including Ted Turner, winner of the 2011 Lifetime Achievement Award. The GRACE Awards Gala features a commitment to being Local, Sustainable & Green by using environmentally-sensitive printing, green event planning, sustainable decor, and locally-sourced food & beverage. For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit www.garestaurants.org/GRACE.
...................................................................................................................................................................... FESTIVAL ASSOCIATION HIRES NEW DIRECTOR
Southeast Festivals and Events Association (SFEA) hired Wendy Thomas as its new Executive Director. She starts November 1 and will administer the operations and growth of the 150-member organization. Thomas comes to SFEA from Stone Mountain Park, where she was special events manager. For more information about the Southeast Festivals and Events Association, click here.
...................................................................................................................................................................... GEORGIA AQUARIUM WINS MARKETING AWARD
The Georgia Aquarium won an award for its marketing from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. The award recognized the aquarium's "Where Imaginations Go to Play" campaign, which sought to rebrand the aquarium as a place that inspires imagination and fun in children and everyone who is a "child at heart." The campaign focused on new and returning animals, new experiences and new activities. For the complete 11Alive.com article, click here.

...................................................................................................................................................................... DUNWOODY'S "SMART" BRAND RECEIVES NATIONAL RECOGNITION
The City of Dunwoody received one of the governmental marketing industry's most prestigious awards, the City-County Communications and Marketing Association's (3CMA) 2011 Savvy Award. The Savvy is the association's top award, recognizing outstanding local government achievement in communications, public-sector marketing and citizen-government relationships. More than 560 city and county governments nationwide entered the competition geared to honor the most effective programs in local government. The Savvy was presented to Edie Damann, Marketing and PR Manager, for the City's work on its new brand, launched in 2010. For more information, visit www.dunwoodyga. gov.
...................................................................................................................................................................... MORRIS MUSEUM OF ART WINS FIVE SEMC AWARDS
The Morris Museum of Art won five awards in the 2011 Southeastern Museum Conference (SEMC) Publications Competition-a Gold Award in the Newsletter & Calendar of Events category, for the quarterly newsletter; a Gold Award in the Brochure & Rack Card category, for the "Art of Belonging" membership solicitation piece; and three awards in the poster category, including a Gold Award for the Philip Morsberger poster, Silver Award for the "Southern Soul & Song" Steel Drivers poster (designed by Wierhouse for the concert series), and Honorable Mention for the "Southern Soul & Song" Ralph Stanley poster (also designed by Wierhouse for the concert series). Click here for more information about the Morris Museum of Art.
...................................................................................................................................................................... GEORGIA NEWS: HARTSFIELD-JACKSON LAUNCHES WEBSITE ON INTERNATIONAL TERMINAL
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport has launched a website about its new international terminal, which will open next spring. The website, http://www.atlanta-airport.com/internationalterminal, gives information about the 1.2 million-square-foot terminal that will open a second entrance to the airport and add 12 gates on a new Concourse F. Click here for the complete Atlanta Journal-Constitution article.

.................................................................................................................. GEORGIA NEWS: HOTEL MANAGEMENT COMPANY DAVIDSON MOVING TO ATLANTA
Davidson Hotel & Resorts, which manages 49 hotels including the Hyatt, Westin and Sheraton brands, is moving its headquarters to the Perimeter area from Memphis. John Belden, Davidson president and chief executive officer, said Atlanta is the fourth largest hotel/hospitality market in the country and will help Davidson "optimize our visibility and accessibility with investors and property owners." Between 25 and 30 Davidson employees will move with the company if able to, said Cyndi Norwood, Davidson's manager of corporate marketing, communication and promotion. Accounting, risk management, payroll and portions of IT will remain in Memphis. The move is expected to take place summer 2012. For the complete Atlanta Journal-Constitution article, click here.
................................................................................................................ INDUSTRY NEWS: U.S. TRAVEL PLAN TO CREATE 1.3 MILLION JOBS
Increasing travel to the United States is the most effective form of economic stimulus-supporting communities, injecting billions into the U.S. economy and creating millions of new Americanjobs. Recapturing America's historic share of worldwide overseas travel would create up to 1.3 million U.S. jobs by 2020 compared with 2010 and produce $859 billion in cumulative additional economic output. U.S. Travel has conducted the first comprehensive review of the negative impact that inefficient and unpredictable U.S. visitor visa and entry processes have on U.S. jobs, economic growth and exports. Click here for the full press release.
................................................................................................................ INDUSTRY NEWS: U.S. TRAVEL - "POWER OF TRAVEL" PROMOTION TOOLKIT
With reductions and even elimination of an entire state tourism office, U.S. Travel wants to help you get your budgets back. Let's make the case for why travel matters - an ongoing effort for all of us, particularly during these tough economic times. U.S. Travel has packaged valuable ammunition to help you fight the good fight and inform your elected officials on why travel and tourism is important and how it supports vital public services. Click here for more information.
................................................................................................................ INDUSTRY NEWS: GBTA PREDICTS CAUTIOUS GROWTH IN 2012 BUSINESS TRAVEL SPENDING
Business travel will continue to grow next year, but it could slow because of uncertainty over the stagnant economy, according to the latest Business Travel Quarterly Outlook-United States from the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA), sponsored by Visa. U.S. business travel spending could slow next year. This year was a year of resurgence, with business travel spend expected to grow 6.9 percent compared to 2010, hitting $250.2 billion. However, troubles in the economy are fostering more of a wait-and-see approach among corporations heading into next year, leading to a forecast of 4.3 percent growth to $260.9 billion in business travel spend for 2012. For the complete article, click here.

................................................................................................................ INDUSTRY NEWS: 4 TOOLS FOR CONDUCTING KEYWORD RESEARCH ON YOUTUBE
Using videos is increasingly one of the fastest and most popular ways to connect with your audience online, with about 71 percent of online adults using online video-sharing sites. It is no surprise that YouTube is the largest. According to comScore, it now draws about 40 percent of all online video visits. It's even challenging Google as the second-largest search engine in the U.S. For marketers, the goal of researching keywords for YouTube and online video marketing is to determine three things: how users are searching; which search queries are more popular and relevant and the best ways to get your content found. For those of you engaging in video marketing, researching YouTube with keyword research will also provide you with innovative ways to direct and manage your campaigns as well as learn more about user intent and behavior. Click here for four specific tools you can use.
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