SPORTS EVENTS IN THE US The National Association of Sports Commissions 2015 study on the magnitude of the sports travel industry: $9.45 billion industry Annual growth rate of 6.5% 23.9 million sport visitors per year 50% of sports events are in cities with <250,000 population
SPORTS WILLIAMSBURG MISSION Mission: Establish our destination as a top 5, year-round sports destination within Virginia. Goals: Grow the economic impact of sports each year by 5% Continue to manage strong repeat sports events Promote our sports destination to influential events holders Build our reputation for high quality events in both youth and adult sports
HISTORY OF SPORTS WILLIAMSBURG First marketed Greater Williamsburg as a Sports Destination in 2010. Formed Sports Williamsburg Committee gathered venue information, created website, and marketing. Joined Sports Virginia building relationships with other cities, representing Virginia as a sports destination. Attend major industry tradeshows such as National Association of Sports Commissions, TEAMS, and Connect Sports.
SPORTS WILLIAMSBURG COMMITTEE Chair, Brian Fuller, York County Parks and Recreation Lisa Pacheco, Alliance Director of Sports Development Large committee + operating committee, all types of businesses: Retailers Hospitals Sports Venues Engineer Firm Lodging Partners Restaurants Parks & Recreation Event Organizers Food Supply Company EDAs College of William & Mary Working groups Facilities/Venues, Marketing/Publicity, Volunteer/Vendor Recruitment and Hospitality/Events
KEY PARTNERSHIPS Partnerships are crucial to SUCCESS Parks and Recreation maintain the most contact with the client during their event. City/County Economic Development Authorities help in negotiating rental fees and bid fees for their jurisdiction. Police/Fire create race routes, emergency plans, and safety of athletes and citizens. VDOT has final route approval for roads and any road closings or route detours. Our major attractions provide complimentary or discounted tickets to athletes to drive additional ticket sales.
SPORTS GRANTS Sports Marketing Grants are allocated through an application process Must be received FOUR (4) months prior to event Focus of grant is marketing of event and destination, not to offset fees or event expenses Committee that reviews applications includes three members of EDAs along with one at-large member and Alliance SVP of Tourism Returning events will be supported, if they illustrate how funding will be used to grow economic impact for the destination Sports Williamsburg logo must be used on all promotional materials In 2017, we will have a $100,000 grant budget Application can be found online at visitwilliamsburg.com/sports Please contact Lisa Pacheco for any further questions
ECONOMIC IMPACT OF SPORTS Sportsimpacts conducted on-site research and reviewed data on sports for 2014 & 2015 to develop an economic impact forecast for our region Measured new money which is spent by visitors in our area and is retained in our area Economic impact for 2014 events estimated at $8M - $10M in total revenues Economic impact for 2015 events projected at $9M - $12M Tax revenues estimated at $790k - $1.3M
2016 ACHIEVEMENTS Hosted nearly 50 different groups from across the United States. Groups brought in over 46,000 room nights Estimated Economic Impact of $8-12 million dollars We hosted a sports event every month of the year in 2016 Greater Williamsburg is officially on the Sports map!
SPORTS WILLIAMSBURG IS Repeat Business: Rev3 Capital Lacrosse Virginia Legacy Soccer National Softball Association Increased number of events in: Baseball Volleyball Golf 5K s and Running Events EXPANDING
EXCITEMENT BUILDING FOR 2017 Rev3 Triathlon will be returning for 5 th year on July 8 th & 9 th. Including a new free kids race! 428 preregistrations as of January, 120% increase from 2016. National Softball Association Girls Class A Fastpitch World Series returns July 16 th -23 rd 150 elite teams, ages 10-23 competing from U.S & Canada
NEW CYCLING EVENT FOR 2017 Pro cycling race from August 24-27 Greater Williamsburg will be the start for the 4 day event Huge opportunity to establish us with pro cycling Major TV coverage Thousands of racers, teams, spectators Estimated direct economic impact of >$3.5 million
PROMOTE YOUR BUSINESS Welcome incoming groups with signs and reader boards Sponsorship opportunities Participate in events that you can sponsor!
MARKET YOUR BUSINESS Get Social! Interact with SW on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter Create event-based Social campaigns Take part in Sports Williamsburg s Value Card Program Value Card Discounts to our Visitors Any Business is eligible to participate
HOW YOU CAN GET INVOLVED Share information and communicate ideas & leads You are our greatest asset Be proactive Encourage local youth sports to host tournaments Spectate! Visit sportswilliamsburg.com and view our sports calendar for events Most are FREE! Bring friends and family and show hometown spirit!
JOIN THE LOCAL ORGANIZING COMMITTEE VOLUNTEER!!!! WE ARE IN NEED OF 400 VOLUNTEERS FOR 2017!!!
CURRENT MODEL: YOUTH SPORTS
PLAN TO GROW SPORTS WILLIAMSBURG Increased marketing promotion to make the consideration list and raise visibility of Sports Williamsburg Target sport event managers and coaches Add more adult sports on top of youth sports Increased sales development at conferences, trade shows Diversify with more types of sports: golf, cycling, fishing Offer more coordination with lodging, retail and dining Create LOC to activate volunteers
FUTURE MODEL: YOUTH + ADULTS
SPORTS WILLIAMSBURG POSITIONING Unique Selling Proposition (USP) Greater Williamsburg not only offers quality sports venues, a variety of reasonably priced lodging accommodations, a wide variety of food options and great shopping, but we have unique tourism attractions from historical sites & museums, a national park and amusement parks, that other destinations can not match.
SPORTS MARKETING PLAN 2017 2017 Action Plan Grow existing events and new events with partners Build more content on Sports Williamsburg website Refresh marketing brochures and materials Develop and share a comprehensive Sports Calendar for 2017 2020 for all to access Conduct and publish a complete Sports Facility Inventory Create a searchable venue database for event holders Link to Sports Virginia
SPORTS MARKETING PLAN 2018 2018 Action Plan Grow and expand events to be multi-day or regional Identify and bid for large rotational events at the national governing body and state levels Secure additional funding to expand the grant program Update Sports Facility Inventory Update comprehensive Sports Calendar for 2018 2020 Set new goals such as # of new events, # of retained events, new milestone for room nights