SCVB Goes "Beyond the Beaches"
The Sarasota Convention & Visitors Bureau (SCVB) is proud to report that the Tourist Development Tax (TDT) collected in December 2007 and January 2008 was the highest Sarasota County has ever seen! The TDT is a 4% charge on the revenue from rentals of six months or less. These high numbers coincide with the SCVB’s brand new advertising campaign that features the tagline, “Beyond the Beaches.”
This new campaign showcases the diversity of experiences offered to Sarasota visitors, beyond a typical beach vacation. A new series of print ads, banner ads, brochures, fliers and an upgraded website have been used to launch the new campaign, which was developed by Ronin Advertising Group, based in Miami, Florida.
Print and online advertisements started to run in December of 2007 and were designed to increase brand awareness and drive visitation among key target segments, including families, affluent travelers and couples, as well as mature and active travelers. Based on market potential and database analysis, the campaign targets key in-state markets such as Orlando, Tampa and Miami, followed by regional markets like Cincinnati, New York City, Cleveland, Atlanta, Chicago and Boston.
The “Beyond the Beaches” campaign offers a series of new creative treatments, showcasing many of Sarasota’s cultural, ecological, culinary and eclectic attractions, emphasizing that many people initially come to Sarasota because of the world class beaches, but find so much more when exploring the destination.
Web Site www.sarasotafl.org: The key web site metrics from October – December 2007, have increased from the same time period in 2006.
• Total Sessions – up 4.79%
• Sessions per Day – up 4.82%
• Total Pageviews – up 37.48%
• Pageviews per Day – up 37.51%
• Pageviews per Session – up 31.16%
• Length of Session – down 3.72
