Dear TPID Participants:
Just a few days back, we gathered for the annual TPID board retreat, with an eye toward Visit San Antonio’s strategic plan and marketing initiatives. I came away even more optimistic about the future, as we continue to recover from more than 18 months of dealing with unprecedented turmoil.
Through its impressive “Sí San Antonio” campaign that is focused at this point on the regional and local traveler, Visit San Antonio is being proactive in letting potential visitors know that our destination is safe and accommodating. In addition, it is incentivizing them to come to our city through great discount promotions with more than 150 partners, including many of you.
You’ll note that Visit San Antonio is being markedly aggressive today thanks in large part to the decision a year ago to retreat on spending marketing dollars during the height of the pandemic, instead concentrating those funds toward this all-important summer travel period. There are signs that those efforts are paying off:
According to Smith Travel Research, our year-over-year hotel numbers for June were up significantly from May – and competitive with the pre-pandemic month of June 2019. For instance, we climbed from 60.8 percent occupancy in May to 69.3 percent in June. Significantly, the average daily rate for rooms in June was $119.79, representing a 5.8 percent rise from the rate in June 2019.
Anecdotally, many of you have shared that the visitor traffic at your sites, and the per-capita spending, has been robust and welcome. Our convention leads continue to pick up for the future, and we are still celebrating the superb news that the Texas High School Coaches Association Coaching School and Conference, held at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center last month, drew a record attendance of 14,130.
At the board retreat, the TPID Hotel Incentive Program for fiscal year 2022 was renewed. Currently, with funding still available, we ask that you please continue to submit applications for up to $50,000 per participating SATPID property. And for FY22, which begins Oct. 1, the board has approved increasing this amount up to $75,000 per participating SATPID hotel. Taking part is easy: Go to our SATPID.com website and click on “Application” at the top of the page.
Another thing that stood out from our recent board retreat: Marc Anderson, the recently named President & CEO of Visit San Antonio, brings an exciting vision and energy to his role. He has extensive experience, and his leadership is already paying dividends for that organization. I look forward to you having the chance to meet this dynamic and innovative leader.
On behalf of the TPID board, please know that we are here to work with you, and we welcome your feedback and partnership. I hope you’ll review this content and pass along any thoughts or questions to me or the Visit San Antonio staff.
Sincerely,
Henry Feldman
Chair
TPID Board of Directors
Administration & Finance
FY2021 Service Plan
The San Antonio Tourism Public Improvement District Board adopted revenue budget for FY2021 is $5.48 mil. Through the 1st 9 months of the fiscal year (October 1 2020 through June 30, 2021), assessment projections are on pace with budget. The Service Plan outlines the major budget parameters of the sales and marketing programming planned for FY2021. The SATPID will continue to closely monitor the progress of the industry’s recovery and assessment revenue in order to maximize the planned sales and marketing opportunities.
SATPID FY2021 – Service Plan/Budget (Oct 01, 2020 – Sept 30, 2021)
| Service | % | $ |
| Marketing | 49.5% | $2.71 mil |
| Sales | 40.5% | $2.22 mil |
| Industry Partnerships | 5% | $274K |
| Research and Administration | 3% | $164K |
| Contingency Marketing/Sales Funds | 2% | $110K |
| TOTAL | 100% | $ 5.48 mil |
Proposed FY2022 Service Plan
The San Antonio Tourism Public Improvement District Board recently approved the FY2022 Service Plan (see below) which included an estimated $7.3 million in projected revenue assessments for the District in FY2022. Sometime in the fall of 2021, Visit San Antonio will work with the SATPID and the City of San Antonio to officially approve the Service Plan and renew the District for FY2022. The Service Plan below outlines the major budget parameters of the sales and marketing programming expected in FY2022.
SATPID FY2022 – Proposed Service Plan/Budget (Oct 1, 2021 – Sep 30, 2022)
| Service | % | $ |
| Marketing | 49.5% | $3.61 mil |
| Sales | 40.5% | $2.96 mil |
| Industry Partnerships | 5% | $365K |
| Research and Administration | 3% | $219K |
| Contingency Marketing/Sales Funds | 2% | $146K |
| TOTAL | 100% | $ 7.30 mil |
Industry Data
Below is YTD industry data received from Smith Travel Research (STR) specific to June 2021 vs June 2020, as well as calendar year to date information (Jan-Jun 2021 vs Jan-Jun 2020). In general, much of the industry continues to show positive signs of recovery through June 2021. San Antonio actually was one of the stronger performing destinations when compared to other Texas and National Comp set destinations.
Industry Data — Comp Cities Summary
June 2021
| Occ | % Ch Occ |
ADR | % Ch ADR |
RVPR | % Ch RVPR |
% Ch Rev |
% Ch Rm Sup |
% Ch Demand |
|
| San Antonio | 69.3 | 80.2 | 119.79 | 54.0 | 82.97 | 177.6 | 192.5 | 5.4 | 89.9 |
| Atlanta, GA | 65.7 | 48.5 | 102.83 | 36.9 | 67.53 | 103.3 | 122.1 | 9.3 | 62.3 |
| Austin | 68.8 | 71.2 | 126.88 | 48.1 | 87.30 | 153.5 | 187.1 | 13.2 | 93.8 |
| Charlotte, NC | 60.9 | 53.6 | 96.45 | 28.8 | 58.73 | 97.9 | 120.2 | 11.2 | 70.9 |
| Dallas | 63.6 | 62.3 | 98.51 | 36.5 | 62.67 | 121.5 | 135.5 | 6.3 | 72.6 |
| Denver, CO | 70.8 | 90.3 | 122.28 | 47.9 | 86.61 | 181.5 | 211.6 | 10.7 | 110.7 |
| Fort Worth | 69.2 | 59.0 | 107.91 | 42.7 | 74.62 | 126.9 | 142.2 | 6.7 | 69.8 |
| Houston | 58.2 | 50.0 | 91.49 | 28.1 | 53.28 | 92.1 | 103.6 | 6.0 | 59.0 |
| Indianapolis, IN | 63.1 | 56.7 | 103.22 | 35.0 | 65.17 | 111.6 | 131.5 | 9.4 | 71.5 |
| New Orleans, LA | 55.7 | 88.2 | 117.75 | 41.9 | 65.56 | 167.0 | 240.8 | 27.6 | 140.2 |
| Orlando, FL | 67.8 | 162.4 | 122.25 | 54.2 | 82.89 | 304.6 | 470.0 | 40.9 | 269.7 |
| Phoenix, AZ | 62.3 | 30.5 | 110.78 | 31.6 | 69.04 | 71.7 | 93.0 | 12.4 | 46.7 |
| San Diego, CA | 74.6 | 80.9 | 179.76 | 62.7 | 134.10 | 194.4 | 247.8 | 18.1 | 113.7 |
Calendar-Year-to-Date (January 2021 – June 2021)
| Occ | % Ch Occ |
ADR | % Ch ADR |
RVPR | % Ch RVPR |
% Ch Rev |
% Ch Rm Sup |
% Ch Demand |
|
| San Antonio | 57.0 | 32.5 | 99.87 | 5.4 | 56.89 | 39.6 | 46.3 | 4.8 | 38.8 |
| Atlanta, GA | 57.8 | 22.6 | 91.00 | -3.3 | 52.57 | 18.5 | 25.9 | 6.2 | 30.2 |
| Austin | 59.5 | 29.9 | 110.18 | -5.3 | 65.51 | 23.1 | 38.3 | 12.4 | 46.0 |
| Charlotte, NC | 51.5 | 13.5 | 87.20 | -7.3 | 44.90 | 5.2 | 15.0 | 9.2 | 24.0 |
| Dallas | 56.1 | 23.8 | 88.25 | -6.7 | 49.55 | 15.6 | 22.1 | 5.6 | 30.8 |
| Denver, CO | 52.5 | 22.0 | 96.21 | -6.9 | 50.52 | 13.6 | 22.5 | 7.9 | 31.6 |
| Fort Worth | 60.6 | 25.2 | 93.59 | 1.8 | 56.75 | 27.4 | 39.4 | 9.4 | 37.0 |
| Houston | 53.6 | 22.8 | 84.63 | -3.4 | 45.34 | 18.7 | 23.4 | 4.0 | 27.7 |
| Indianapolis, IN | 51.9 | 28.9 | 93.87 | 2.8 | 48.72 | 32.4 | 42.2 | 7.3 | 38.3 |
| New Orleans, LA | 46.2 | 4.7 | 106.42 | -23.2 | 49.20 | -19.6 | -9.6 | 12.5 | 17.7 |
| Orlando, FL | 53.7 | 6.1 | 109.68 | -12.5 | 58.85 | -7.2 | 7.4 | 15.7 | 22.7 |
| Phoenix, AZ | 61.7 | 15.1 | 125.02 | -7.9 | 77.09 | 5.9 | 13.6 | 7.2 | 23.4 |
| San Diego, CA | 55.0 | 8.5 | 138.65 | 2.9 | 76.29 | 11.6 | 25.5 | 12.4 | 21.9 |
DESTINATION SALES
With the recent increases in COVID-19 variant cases both locally and nationally, Visit San Antonio’s Destination Sales & Experience Teams continue to be focused on: Customer Engagement, Retainment & Business Development, and utilizing SATPID as proactive resource for our destination’s economic recovery. We will leverage SATPID resources to execute a post-pandemic sales and marketing strategy to mitigate lost group business and a return to 2019 business levels by 2024:
- Dramatically increasing business booked within a 36 – 48 month window
- Generate pre-pandemic lead volume levels (+1800 annually)
- Achieve pre-pandemic booked Citywide events (43 consumed annually)
- Launch short-term “Sí San Antonio” group marketing and incentive campaign
- Fill 75% of 50 open need dates through 2024 at the HBGCC
- Achieve pre-pandemic closure ratio (22%)
For FY2022, the SATPID Board of Directors approved a forecasted $2.95M of funding for Sales & Experience initiatives focused on the following recovery efforts: Individual Hotel Incentive Program, Short-Term Hosting Obligations, Short-Term Group Incentive, In-Market Customer Events, New Tradeshow Booth Development and Attendance at Major Industry Tradeshows and Events.
Though the recovery has just begun, we are happy to report that we are starting to see much needed gains in lead volume and events production. We have surpassed our FY2021 annual lead goal of 735 leads through June, having generated 944 leads (128% to goal). In April we began to see a year over year increase in events production, continuing through June for an increase of 280 events booked, same time last year.
The Individual Hotel Incentive Program continues to be a critical resource for capturing short-term group business opportunities with $1M of uncommitted available funds for use by SATPID participating hotels. 2021 FYTD, this program has generated $20.6K group room nights/$3.5M in group room revenue, while delivering an impressive 15 to 1 ROI in Group Rooms Revenue. With funding still available, please continue to submit applications for up to $50K per participating SATPID property. For FY2022 (beginning October 1, 2021) the SATPID Board of Directors has approved increasing this amount up to $75K per participating SATPID hotel!
In addition, we are excited to announce Visit San Antonio has launched the 2021 Sí San Antonio Meetings Incentive Promotion as the city remains open for business and committed to planners’ and visitors’ safety. Qualified groups are able to take advantage of the following incentives to drive short-term opportunities to our destination:
- Between 250-500 total contracted room nights
- $3 per actualized room night
- Between 501-750 total contracted room nights
- $4 per actualized room night
- 751 or greater contracted room nights
- $5 per actualized room night
- Any group contracting the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center for the dates outlined in this promotion will receive a 50% discount on Convention Center rental rates
- All qualifying groups are eligible for Visit San Antonio’s Fly-In On Us Promotion as well, offering a customized visit to experience San Antonio’s offerings
To qualify for the incentives, meetings and events must total 250 or more room nights during a need-time through 2024 and be booked through a Visit San Antonio sales representative with contracts executed by Dec. 31, 2021. For more information on the 2021 Sí San Antonio Meetings Incentive Promotion, including program terms and conditions, please visit Meetings.VisitSanAntonio.com.
MARKETING
Every TPID dollar spent in digital advertising produced a ROI of 15 to 1 in overall traveler city expenditures (YTD as of June 2021).
The Marketing Team launched an all-encompassing, comprehensive Sí San Antonio campaign at the end of May. With more than 75 participating hotels and over 80 restaurants and attractions, the Sí San Antonio summer promotion allowed for visitors to take advantage of discounts when staying at local hotels and heighten their time and experiences in San Antonio. Digital ads, social promotions including both paid and organic efforts, and video ads will continue throughout the summer months. View the :30 Promotional Video. We’ve seen over 2,400 downloads of the Si San Antonio Pass with the top offer redemptions being from: The San Antonio Zoo, The Tower of the Americas, Ripley’s Entertainment, and Natural Bridge Caverns.
An additional component of the Sí San Antonio campaign targeting local residents and utilizing the Ultimate Staycation concept launched simultaneously. View the Local Campaign Video. On top of digital, social and video ads, street and window decals with the QR code to unlock promotions adorned the streets of downtown.
And lastly, brand awareness ads (in both English and Spanish) utilizing the same Sí San Antonio tagline are running on TV/Cable, radio, digital outdoor, digital, and social channels. These ads feature aspirational messaging with accompanying images of well-known attractions as well as lesser-known gems. View Brand Video – English and Brand Video – Spanish.
The new all-digital Visit San Antonio Leisure Guide was launched in June. The guide provides content to both entice visitors to choose San Antonio as a choice destination and assist in planning out how and where to allocate time spent in San Antonio. Promotion for the Visitor’s Guide includes efforts on all Visit San Antonio social channels, real estate on the Visit San Antonio home page, a pop-up on the Visit San Antonio homepage, and rack cards distributed with QR codes to Texas Travel Information Centers throughout the state. View the Visitors Guide.
San Antonio International Airport (SAT) is the first airport in Texas to launch with America’s new airline, Breeze Airways, headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah. Visit San Antonio worked with SAT on the implementation of a media strategy to generate online engagement with travelers who live in the Breeze Airways’ direct flight markets. Tulsa, Oklahoma City, and Fayetteville/Bentonville are the first of eight new routes that began on July 15. An announcement of the remaining five routes is expected in early 2022.
The nationally syndicated “Kidd Kraddick Morning Show” was live from San Antonio on May 14, bringing the popular broadcast and its huge social media spotlight to our city as a premier leisure destination with a media value of $318K. Two hours of the live show was broadcast from the new Prost Haus on the River Walk, with interspersed interviews including Mayor Nirenberg and highlights featuring San Antonio cuisine, Fiesta spirit, culture, outdoor experiences and more. This effort was strategically timed to promote summer family travel and support industry recovery. Seven interviews resulted in almost 40 minutes of air time on the radio and KiddTV, and social media engagements exceeded 46K. In addition, Visit San Antonio ran a trip giveaway contest with the Kidd Kraddick Morning Show resulting in 7,700 entries, 5,300 of which opted in to continue to receive destination information on an ongoing basis.