Visit Jacksonville Marketing Plan
Dear Tourism Industry Partner,
We are excited to share with you are 2012 - 2013 vision.
Our mission is to market the region as a preferred destination for visitors, resulting in the increased sales of room nights producing higher bed tax revenues, significant economic impact and employment opportunities for the estimated 43,000
hospitality employees in our community today. The Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce lists the hospitality tourism industry as one of the top industries for job growth in Jacksonville’s future job market. Visit Jacksonville is dedicated to selling Jacksonville & the Beaches as an ideal meeting, convention, sports event and leisure destination on a state, regional, national and international platform, while striving to create an unforgettable experience for every visitor.
Our primary objective is to champion the economic growth of the tourism industry in Northeast Florida, while establishing tourism as an integral component of the overall economic development plan and uniting the community in a shared vision
for the future transformation of our city and the tourism industry.
In alignment with the objectives established by the TDC, Visit Jacksonville will continue to work toward the fulfillment of the following goals:
- Increase and expand meetings, convention and leisure travel to Jacksonville & the Beaches
- Strategically increase the brand awareness of the City of Jacksonville
- Create the “Jacksonville experience” by utilizing Jacksonville’s unique attributes of waterways and beaches, the country’s largest outdoor urban park system and our city’s passion for sports and special events
- Expand the promotion of Jacksonville in targeted niche markets highlighting the unique characteristics of the destination, generating additional awareness and visitor business opportunities, including:
– Sports and special events – Arts and culture
– Medical tourism – History and heritage
– Nature-based tourism – International visitors
– Cruise ship passengers
- Advocate the development of a new convention center facility
- Heighten local awareness of the positive economic impact and increased residential quality of life generated by the tourism industry
- Facilitate the active investment and participation of all local tourism-related businesses in the promotion of Jacksonville as a premiere travel destination
Serving as Jacksonville’s marketing and sales champion for the hospitality and tourism industry for the past 18 years, the product that Visit Jacksonville sells is the intangible experience of our destination. Our product is what our city, its residents
and the hospitality and tourism industry delivers.
It is through the passion, determination and talent of the 22 full-time team members who choose to use their collective 330-plus years of hospitality experience to strengthen our mission and directly generate billions of dollars in economic
development for Jacksonville and Northeast Florida. The Visit Jacksonville team’s belief in the mission and vision of Jacksonville as a premier destination results in an impressive employee retention rate, with the average length of employment
at Visit Jacksonville being five years.
During a season of leadership transitions throughout the past two years, Visit Jacksonville’s team has remained intact. After engaging a national executive search firm specializing in the hospitality and tourism industry, Visit Jacksonville’s
Executive Committee has identified the final candidate and will execute contract negotiations upon completion of being awarded the RFP. This more than qualified professional is well respected in the industry due to the experience and proven track record as a senior sales and marketing leader in various hotels and major industry corporations, as well as president and CEO of multiple destination marketing organizations. Major accomplishments as president and CEO of the DMO at which he currently serves include convention center expansion development, strategic hotel development, creation of a sports commission as an LLC of the CVB and establishment of national sales staff in both Washington, D.C. , and Chicago,
substantially increasing room-night production and production accountability and building destination brand awareness through a collaborative community process. This is the right person at the right time
for leading the inspirational vision for Jacksonville as an established national and international visitor destination.
Kerri Stewart
Interim President, Visit Jacksonville