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Ellensburg's goal is to support a healthy econorny throLrgh increased tourism. The city will grow <br />tourism by refining and enhancing its leisure tourism nrarketing and by reaching new audiences <br />through sports and nreetings tourism. <br />Ellensburg Tourism Plan Executive Summary <br />Over the next five years, Ellensburg will: <br />Develop a stronger branding position that is true to the community's nature and attractive to <br />visitors. Produce new advertising and marketing creative that supports this position. <br />Establish baselines and specific goals to measure its tourism effort. Expand reportingto include <br />economic impact indicators and regular visitor surveys, as well as current analytics. <br />Grow the tourism program to include sports and meetings as well as leisure tourism. Engage in <br />significant outreach to gain sports and meeting bookings. Set and track goals. <br />lmprove its online presence through a new website. Work to increase positive mentions on third- <br />pady online travel sites. <br />Create a robustsocial media programthat reaches new audiences through travel influencer <br />blogs, posts and social media takeovers. Make Ellensburg more socially "shareable." <br />lmprove the experience at chamber and downtown visitor information centers, including a digital <br />information board downtown. Deploy a mobile visitor center at freeway interchanges and off-site <br />locations. <br />Focus advertising efforts on audience profiles and markets most likelyto produce resuhs- <br />western Washington adults seeking reasonably-priced escapes. Test new digital advertising <br />opportunities including those.targeting sports and meeting event planners. <br />Support the tourism effort with funding that permits staffing sports and meetings tourism <br />outreach and that allows marketing budget growth in keeping with Lodging and Sales Tax <br />revenue growth. <br />Partner with other organizations to promote significant tourism opportunities. <br />City of Ellensburg <br />Five-Year Tourism Strategic Plan <br />1. <br />2. <br />3. <br />4. <br />5. <br />6. <br />8. <br />9 <br />4 <br />Research shows <br />/ Ellensburg is conflicted about its image as a <br />rodeo town, college town or events town, <br />Visitors aren't sure what to think. <br />/ the greatest number of visitors surveyed were <br />45 years old and older and come from King <br />qounty. They're "comfortable," but not <br />wealthy. <br />r' Most visitors surveyed come for events. They <br />like the downtown and local beer, wine and <br />spirits. lf under 45, they rank outdoor <br />recreation as a strong attraction. They're likely <br />to return 1-2 times a year. <br />Opportunity knocks <br />/ Ellensburg offers a crowd-free, small-town <br />escape close to a large urban area. <br />/ lts central affordable location makes it <br />attractive for meetings and events. <br />/ lts historic downtown offers authentic, unique <br />experiences. <br />/ lt has u nderutilized, quality sports facilities. <br />/ lts natural environment provides rich assets for <br />leisure and sports tourism. <br />2019