2021 Marketing Plan Final

F Y 2 0 2 1 Y E A R - E ND R E P O R T

FY2021 YEAR-END REPORT

When FY2021 began the nation was at the beginning stages of dealing with the effects of COVID-19. While the pandemic was hard hitting for so many, it was the tourism industry that would suffer the largest impact. Travel came to a standstill and all sectors of the tourism economy including hotels, restaurants, and attractions were having to make difficult decisions just to stay in business. Nationwide, unemployment in the tourism industry was twice the next closest industry and the economic loss related to tourism in the US was $500 billion. Cabarrus County saw a loss of 1,500 jobs and $45 million in hotel revenue alone. Since the Cabarrus County Convention and Visitors Bureau is funded mainly by hotel occupancy tax, the organization had to layoff half of the staff, deal with cancellations of group meetings and conventions, and shift marketing efforts away from promoting travel to a stronger emphasis on safety and local advocacy. Total Bureau revenues for year-end FY2021 were $3,753,870, down 35% from FY2019 revenues of $5,765,181. The FY2022 budget has been set at $3,973,563. The Bureau receives 99 percent of its funding through a 6% Occupancy Tax on hotel stays. The Bureau operates on a zero-based budget, and the expenditures will be divided into three major categories: Salary andWage at 33.7%, Administration and Operations at 14.6% and Sales and Marketing at 51.7%. The Bureau’s goal is always to control and lower fixed costs while driving additional budget dollars into sales and marketing which represents the mission and vision of the organization. The Bureau’s budget has pre-allocated expenses with 10% being retained by the County for administrative collection and sports facility devel- opment funding. 33.7% 51.7%

14.6%

In the upcoming year the Bureau will continue to monitor the pandemic and traveler sen- timent in order to make the best decisions on how to sell and market Cabarrus County to provide the greatest impact. Tourism Economics has shared that leisure travel has rebounded to 91% of 2019 levels and it is hopeful that leisure travel will be fully recovered by the end of 2022. Group travel and business travel are still lagging behind at 32% and 45% of 2019 levels respectively and it will take a few years before they are fully recovered. One trend that is cur-

Salary &Wage: 33.7% Administration & Operations: 14.6% Sales & Marketing: 51.7%

rently performing well is short-term rentals. Nationwide, short-term rentals were up 17% in May 2021 compared to the same period in 2019. While Cabarrus County does not have the same level of inventory of short-term rentals as beach or mountain communities, we are seeing some growth in this sector.

Finally, we are excited that a new hotel is currently under construction at the Exit #49/Weddington Blvd, area. The WoodSpring Suites is scheduled to open in March 2022 and will add to Cabarrus County’s lodging offerings.

Sincerely,

Jessica McDonald Accounting Coordinator

John Mills, CDME Executive Vice President

2 0 2 1 - 2 0 2 2 M a r k e t i n g P l a n