2014 ANNUAL REPORT

Visit Cheyenne is the official tourism promotion organization for Laramie County. It is governed by the Laramie County Tourism Joint Powers Board, which includes members appointed by Laramie County (3), the City of Cheyenne (3), Pine Bluffs (1), Burns (1), and Albin (1).

The Laramie County lodging tax is the primary funding source for Visit Cheyenne. The tax is paid by visitors who stay in Laramie County lodging establishments. Laramie County residents do not pay the tax unless they stay in local lodging. Laramie County voters f irst approved the tax in 1987 and have renewed it every time it has been up for a vote since. In 2014, voters renewed the tax with 76% of the vote.

Visit Cheyenne promotes and develops the Cheyenne area through paid advertising, visitor guides and websites, social media, public relations, convention and bus tour solicitation, trolley operation, and the operation of two visitor centers.

MissionVisit Cheyenne provides leadership in developing, promoting, and protecting the Cheyenne area’s travel industry. Visit Cheyenne strives to attract visitors to the Cheyenne area by capitalizing on Cheyenne’s legendary history and image, thereby increasing visitor spending in the county.

Expenditures - Fiscal Year 2014

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President & CEODarren Rudloff

Director of Operations Jill Pope

Director of Convention SalesJim Walter

Convention Services & Sales ManagerLisa Maney

Digital Marketing CoordinatorLisa Kindel

Customer Service SpecialistLaura Levi

Full Time Staff

Visit Cheyenne Overview

Did You Know? If the travel industry were a single business, it would rank as the county’s third largest employer behind F.E. Warren Air Force Base and the State of Wyoming.

Cheyenne’s 2014 lodging occupancy rate of 65% means that approximately 1,600 hotel rooms are booked every single night of the year.

Laramie County travel spending grew 7.3% in 2013, double the state’s growth rate of 3.6%.

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Where Our Visitors Come From

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Total 2013 Cheyenne Visitation

Source: Longwoods International

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Source: Smith Travel Research

Source: Dean Runyan Associates

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Laramie County Travel Spending by Business Sector, 2013

Visit Cheyenne Research Data

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Overnight Visitor Profile

Source: Smith Travel Research

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Cheyenne Lodging Occupancy Rates, 2014

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Cheyenne Lodging Customer Mix

Source: Visit Cheyenne, 2013 Lodging Survey

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Top Activities on a Cheyenne Trip

Visitors pay Laramie County and Wyoming taxes that support local schools, roads and other services. Visitors pay 9.1% of the sales tax collected in Laramie County.

Laramie County has the 2nd highest level of traveler spending among all Wyoming counties, behind only Teton County.

Without the tax contribution of tourists, each Laramie County household would pay an additional $451 in taxes to maintain existing government services.

Visitors to Cheyenne Frontier Days™ spend approximately $25 million in Laramie County each year.

More than three-quarters (78%) of Frontier Days attendees travel from outside of Laramie County to attend.

Colorado 23%Wyoming 16%

California 5%

Washington 5%

Utah 4%

Texas 4%

Idaho 2%

Montana 2%

Nebraska 2%

Illinois 2%

New Jersey 2%

Ohio 2%

Pennsylvania 2%

Virginia 2%

Data for Cheyenne overnight visitors. Source: Longwoods International

Sources: Smith Travel Research; Dean Runyan Associates; Cheyenne Frontier Days™

Laramie County voters

overwhelmingly renewed the county

lodging tax with more than 76% of the vote

in November.

Visit Cheyenne ran several summer promotions including TV ads in surrounding states, regional radio ads featuring

local festivals, and a direct mail promotion to 6,000 previous Cheyenne visitors.

Visit Cheyenne managed a strong social media effort, providing updates on Laramie County attractions, events, and other news through Facebook (49,000 fans), Twitter (4,250 followers), Pinterest and LinkedIn.

Visit Cheyenne commissioned new Visitor Profile research by Longwoods International that estimated Cheyenne’s 2013 visitation at 1.75 million overnight visitors and 2.18 million day visitors.

Visit Cheyenne public relations efforts led to an estimated $510,390 in media value for stories published in FY 2014, including in the Denver Post, AAA magazine, Chicago Parent, and the Atlanta Journal Constitution.

Visit Cheyenne promoted Cheyenne to 10 Denver area travel writers in a two-day media mission and hosted

10 more travel writers in Laramie County throughout the year. In all, Visit Cheyenne responded to inquiries for photos and information from both national/international media (110 contacts, +57%) and local media (67 contact, +24%).

Visitor Services

Visit Cheyenne operated year-round visitor centers in Pine Bluffs and the Cheyenne Depot.

Visit Cheyenne operated 3 Cheyenne Street Railway trolleys, providing summer historic tours with an updated script, Halloween and Christmas specialty tours, and transportation for conventions. A total of 19,758 passengers (+16%) rode the trolleys in 2014, an all-time high.

Visit Cheyenne provided a coupon program at no cost to participating hospitality businesses, available via a coupon book and Visit Cheyenne’s website.

Visit Cheyenne produced monthly and daily Calendars of Events for hoteliers and their guests.

Visitors took and shared 2,635 Cheyenne-themed electronic photo postcards in 2014 on Visit Cheyenne’s photo kiosk in the Depot lobby.

Leisure Travel Marketing & Public Relations

Visit Cheyenne advertised in numerous publications and websites (often in partnership with Cheyenne Frontier Days™ or the Wyoming Office of Tourism) and responded to 54,029 resulting travel inquiries in 2014 (+32% from 2013).

Visit Cheyenne produced and distributed 6 promotional brochures: Cheyenne Area Visitor Guide, Cheyenne Museum Passport, Tracking Trains in Cheyenne, These Boots are Made for Talking, Cheyenne Adventure, and the Pine Bluffs Visitor Guide.

Visit Cheyenne created a new promotional push to highlight outdoor recreation in the Medicine Bow National Forest and Curt Gowdy State Park areas. The campaign included a brochure (Cheyenne Adventure Within Reach), website (Cheyenneoutdoors.org), and Denver-area publicity efforts.

Visit Cheyenne once again ran a major internet advertising campaign targeting consumers within approximately 500 miles of Laramie County. The campaign

resulted in more than 2.3 million internet impressions and 12,945 clicks to Visit Cheyenne’s website.

Visit Cheyenne advertised in group tour publications and promoted the area at 4 group tour trade shows.

Visit Cheyenne’s website hosted 467,440 user sessions in 2014 (+13% from 2013). Visit Cheyenne added a new hotel booking engine on its website that sells hotel rooms without

commissions being charged to local hotels.

Visit Cheyenne helped develop mobile websites configured for smartphones and tablets for several local museums. The mobile

websites build on the cell phone audio tours that Visit Cheyenne and the museums developed several years ago.

Visit Cheyenne ran an integrated winter marketing campaign aimed at creating weekend overnight stays, using radio advertising, social media, billboards, and targeted e-mails.

Visit Cheyenne provided marketing grants to the New Year’s Eve Ball Drop, Depot Summer Events, 17th Street Arts Festival, Frontier Days Hall of Fame Ceremony, Sherman Hill Model Railroad Show, Cheyenne

International Film Festival, Cheyenne Fast Film Making Contest, Art Design & Dine, Historic Governors’

Mansion’s Tinsel Through Time event, American Legion Memorial Day Baseball Tournament, Showdown in Cheyenne shooting contest, Cowboy Tough Race at Curt Gowdy State Park, the Cheyenne Gunslingers, and to Laramie County, Albin, Pine Bluffs, Burns, and Cheyenne.

Visit Cheyenne 2014 Activities

A Meetings Express Victory for Laramie County

Hmm… maybe our association could hold

its annual meeting in

Cheyenne.

Yes, Visit Cheyenne can help! Tell me more about your group

and its needs so I can get some bids.

Let’s see, our hotels have the meeting

space and our trolleys can transport attendees…

WOW!• A successful meeting in Cheyenne

• An economic boost to Laramie County

• Prizes for me

Proud Member and PartnerCheyenne LEADs

Greater Cheyenne Chamber of Commerce

Greater Cheyenne Foundation

Wyoming Office of Tourism

Wyoming Travel Industry Coalition

National Tour Association

American Bus Association

Wyoming Society of Association Executives

Society of Governmental Meeting Professionals

Meeting Planners International

Professional Convention Managers Association

Destination Marketing Association International

SM

Visit Cheyenne has earned DMAI’s highest professional visitor bureau accreditation.

Union Pacific

brought another Big Boy steam engine

to Cheyenne and plans to restore it to working

condition in the UP Steam Shop over the next

several years.

Two new

hotels opened in Cheyenne, another

started construction, and two more

were announced in 2014.

Community & Industry Efforts

Visit Cheyenne worked with the City of Cheyenne and WY Department of Transportation to create a “quiet zone” for the Southwest Drive train crossing near many of Cheyenne’s hotels. The project, completed in the fall, immediately reduced noise and consumer complaints.

Visit Cheyenne coordinated the installation of three Pedestrian Information Kiosks that help direct visitors to major attractions, restaurants, and shops. Partners included the Cheyenne DDA, City of Cheyenne, and Wyoming Office of Tourism.

Visit Cheyenne provided its annual hospitality trolley tours to hotel staff so they are better prepared to recommend the Trolley and area attractions to hotel guests.

Convention Marketing & Services

Visit Cheyenne provided 54 bids (+74%) for new convention business to lodging partners. Winning bids represented an estimated 8,091 room nights (+146%) and $3.0 million in estimated economic impact.

Visit Cheyenne aggressively promoted its new Meetings Express program that rewards local residents who suggest meetings that could be held in the area. So far, the program has resulted in 67 meeting leads and 6 new conventions with a total economic impact of more than $300,000.

Visit Cheyenne assisted 109 conventions with brochures, coupons, planning, and registration help (-22% from 2013).

After announcing a move of its 2014 Fall Forum to another city, the Wyoming Business Alliance realized that Little America’s facilities and Visit Cheyenne’s convention

services could not be beat. So the Business Alliance moved the event back to Cheyenne, successfully held the event, and recommitted for 2015.

Visit Cheyenne added several more phone charging stations to its convention services arsenal which already includes online registration, onsite registration assistance, a registration desk, a photo kiosk, a mobile meeting website, convention materials, and welcome receptions.

“Visit Cheyenne’s services, especially their online registration system, allowed Align to quickly and efficiently ramp up our efforts to host the

WEDA Winter Economic Development Conference. Their knowledge of the local meeting landscape was a resource that provided added value to our

staff and made hosting the meeting in Cheyenne extremely easy.”

Mona Pearl, Align

Kudos… Visit Cheyenne’s Darren Rudloff was named to the Travel Foundation Board of Destination Marketing Association International, the international association

for visitor bureaus.

Visit Cheyenne’s Jill Pope published Haunted Warren Air Force Base, her second book of local ghost stories.

Visit Cheyenne’s Laura Levi earned the Outrider certification for visitor center staff through the Wyoming Office of Tourism.

Visit Cheyenne Board Members in 2014 Scott French Little America Hotel & Resort

Wendy Volk Number One Properties

Barry Sims Retired, Taco John’s

Mark Anderson Burns Insurance

Sonja Fornstrom Town of Pine Bluffs

Lisa Murphy Laramie County Community College

Jim Osterfoss Nagle Warren Mansion B&B

Amiee Reese Old West Museum

René Baker Pine Bluffs Town Hall

Judy Johnstone Burns Mayor

Rick Keslar Wyoming Department of Transportation, Cheyenne Frontier Days

Jim Brown (ex officio) Cheyenne City Council

Troy Thompson (ex officio) Laramie County Commissioner

VISIT CHEYENNE The Convention & Visitors Bureau

121 W 15th St, Suite 202 Cheyenne, Wyoming 82001

307-778-3133 800-426-5009

WWW.CHEYENNE.ORG

Pine Bluffs Visitors CenterI-80 at Pine Bluffs Exit 401 Pine Bluffs, Wyoming 82082

307-245-3695 307-245-3746

Help Promote Cheyenne!• Invite your friends and relatives to visit.

• Ride the Cheyenne Street Railway Trolley.

• Host a meeting or retreat in Cheyenne for organizations of which you are a member.

• Subscribe to our e-newsletter at www.cheyenne.org.

• Help spread good news about the area:

Facebook.com/VisitCheyenne

Twitter: @CheyenneWY

Linkedin.com/company/Visit-Cheyenne

Pinterest.com/VisitCheyenne