AN N UAL REPORT2018

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The North Little Rock Advertising & Promotion Commission (North Little Rock A&P) oversees the North Little Rock Convention & Visitors Bureau (NLRCVB) and is responsible for advertising and promotion tax collections in North Little Rock. NLRCVB functions as the sales, promotion and marketing arm of the North Little Rock A&P.

Primary Functions

These functions are accomplished by working directly with the local community and the city’s tourism facilities - the hotels, restaurants, attractions, special events and festivals. In addition, outside sales and marketing efforts reach new and repeat visitors.

Part-time: Hank Godwin, William Jackson and Brenda Tate

2018 North Little Rock A&P Commission

Mayor Joe A. Smith, City of North Little RockTom W. Roy III, Wyndham Riverfront, Chairman

Melanie Hoggard, Moe’s Southwest Grill, Vice ChairmanMelody Williford, American Pie Pizza, Secretary/Treasurer

Manoj Patel, Hampton Inn McCain, CommissionerCharlie Hight, North Little Rock City Council Member

Maurice Taylor, North Little Rock City Council Member

About

• To make a positive difference in the economy.• To market the community.• To work as a tourism industry coordinator.• To represent the tourism industry.• To build community pride.

A & P Tax

The 90th Arkansas General Assembly passed Act 1102 which took effect on July 22, 2015. The Act exempts individual businesses’ A&P tax records from being released under the Freedom of Information Act of 1967. In 2016, North Little Rock A&P assumed the responsibility of A&P tax collections. North Little Rock requires lodging and foodservice businesses to have an A&P tax permit in order to operate. There is no charge for the permit. The number of permits fluctuates as businesses open and close.

The charts below reflect TOTAL A&P tax collections, not the amount used to fund NLRCVB.

There are thirty-four North Little Rock hotels and motels and three RV parks, all of which collect a lodging tax. In 2018, the lodging tax increased from 3 to 3.5 percent, 2.5 percent of which funds NLRCVB and one percent funds North Little Rock Parks & Recreation Department. North Little Rock A&P collected $1,135,189. In 2018, North Little Rock A&P successfully worked with AirBnB to begin remitting A&P taxes on behalf of their North Little Rock hosts.A three-percent North Little Rock A&P tax is collected on all prepared food by more than 300 restaurants, food trucks,

caterers and other prepared food providers. The majority of the tax is passed through to North Little Rock Parks & Recreation Department. North Little Rock A&P collected $6,124,836 in foodservice taxes in 2018.

Bob MajorPresident & CEO

Stephanie Slagle, TMP Communications Manager

Robin PowellTax Revenue Manager

Karen Trevino, CTIS, CCTPVice President & COO

Erica GossSales Manager

Janis AlexanderAdministrative Specialist

Scott Sudduth, CMPVice President of Sales &

Marketing

Shannon Harris, TMPGuest Services Manager

Sheila BullerwellDowntown Riverside RV

Park Manager

Mission:To promote North Little Rock as a positive tourism and hospitality experience thus enhancing economic

growth and quality of life for its citizens and visitors.

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Impact of Tourism

The tourism industry is a significant economic driver for the city of North Little Rock: in 2017, more than 1.6 million million visitors spent $487.6 million in North Little Rock. Tourism employs 3,445 North Little Rock locals and produces $92.2 million in payroll.

Every year, visitors save each North Little Rock household: $314.49 in county taxes$700.49 in state taxes

Sports

Sports continues to be a strong market for North Little Rock. Burns Park, with its numerous facilities for a variety of sports (baseball, tennis, softball, soccer, disc golf, golf, etc.), averages 70 sporting events annually. 2018 had a few more cancellations due to inclement weather but North Little Rock impressively hosted 31,635 athletes.

Events

Besides being a fun outing for locals, events are great attractors for out-of-town visitors who also eat at local restaurants and stay in North Little Rock lodging properties. In 2018, NLRCVB assisted with planning and promoting the first annual Arkansas Italian Food & Culture Festival, bringing 7,500 to North Little Rock.

Attractions

When visitors come to North Little Rock, they are looking for dining, shopping and unique local experiences.

13,863

Dickey-Stephens Park

fans & event attendees

Arkansas Inland Maritime Museum

visitors

McCain Mall

shopping trips

350,000+ 9 Million20,796

389,891

*Source: Arkansas Department of Parks & Tourism. North Little Rock is approximately 25 percent of Pulaski County total.

Downtown Riverside RV Park

NLRCVB manages Downtown Riverside RV Park, which offers campers a unique experience: RV camping within minutes of dining and entertainment and spectacular views of the Arkansas River. In 2018, the park hosted 6,244 RVs. RVers visited from all 50 states and 14 countries, staying an average 2.5 days. The park also won a Prism Award from the Public Relations Society of America Arkansas Chapter for its new website. The park celebrated 10 years and overall economic impact of $15.87 million.

Visitors Information Center

Located in Burns Park, the center operated daily year-round except for Thanksgiving and Christmas, providing restaurant, attraction and lodging information to 9,954 travelers.

98 percent of visitors were from the United States, half of which were from Arkansas. The chart below indicates the top five states, excluding Arkansas.

Last year staff assisted 154 international visitors from 21 countries. Staff also distributed 19,393 welcome bags to individuals and groups.

NLRCVB Goal: To make a positive difference in the economy.

54 $6.75 Million20,760

Sports Events Out-of-Town Participants Sports Economic Impact

Visitor Origin 2018(Visitors Information Center only)

Verizon Arena

attendees

Argenta Arts District

event attendees

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North Little Rock Destination Assessment

In 2018, NLRCVB invested in a year-long research project with a third-party company, Gray Research Solutions.The process included interviewing visitors and surveying lodging properties to understand who is visiting North Little Rock and why. The results have provided strategic direction for NLRCVB, identifying opportunities for tourism development and potential markets for selling North Little Rock as a destination.

Sales

In 2018, the sales team continued to work with North Little Rock lodging partners to bring more visitors to North Little Rock from a variety of markets such as meetings and bus tours. NLRCVB held monthly meetings with North Little Rock hotel directors of sales. Meetings were held at various locations throughout the Central Arkansas area to familiarize directors with attractions and important industry contacts.

Direct Mail

NLRCVB distributed thousands of brochures about North Little Rock and its attractions and restaurants to sporting events, motorcoach tours, conventions and meetings, reunions, leisure travelers, community groups, state welcome centers, advertising leads, local attractions and lodging properties. Last year, NLRCVB distributed 25,187 copies of its new annual publication, the North Little Rock Destination Guide. A downloadable version with interactive links to lodging, attraction and foodservice partner websites is also available on NorthLittleRock.org for added convenience.

Brochures Distributed

Email Marketing

NLRCVB also successfully used email marketing to reach niche markets, resulting in several bookings for North Little Rock lodging properties for 2018 and future years. NLRCVB distributes a monthly e-newsletter with timely and interesting content for visitors, including upcoming events, spotlights on locals and businesses and giveaways. The newsletter has an impressive average 39-percent open rate and 23-percent click-to-open rate.

Website & Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

NLRCVB began to plan and develop a new website. Behind the scenes, NLRCVB proactively updated North Little Rock restaurant, hotel and attraction listings on the Arkansas Department of Parks & Tourism website to improve SEO and referral website traffic for partners.

Sales & Marketing

74,148

Paid & Earned Media

In 2018, NLRCVB continued to promote North Little Rock as a tourism destination. North Little Rock maintained a presence in 36 online, print and broadcast outlets that reached millions of potential visitors in a variety of markets, including leisure, groups, RV and sports. NLRCVB also engaged with its 17,000 social media followers with content about attractions, events, restaurants and lodging in North Little Rock.

North Little Rock in the spotlight in 2018

Earned Media Hits Paid & Earned Reach Earned Media AVE*

217 Million217 $129,026

*Ad Value Equivalency is calculated using Meltwater’s formula: reach/unique visitor figure x .025 (standard error, assuming that 2.5% of any given audience will view a particular article on average) x .37 (37 cents is the dollar value for each visitor)

NLRCVB Goals: To market the community.

To work as a tourism industry coordinator.

Most Underrated City in ArkansasThrillist Travel

Guy Fieri visits Flyway Brewing and North BarFood Network’s Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives

Public Park of the Year - Burns ParkTennis Industry Magazine “Champions of Tennis”

#2 Best Attraction in Arkansas - The Old MillUSAToday’s 10Best Reader’s Choice Awards

Historic Attraction - The Old MillTripSavvy Editor’s Choice Awards

Antiquities filmed in North Little Rock

Hampton Inn McCain recognized as one of top six Hampton Inns in the Americas

Argenta Plaza Groundbreaking

Cookie Desai (Best Western JFK) wins Heroic Hospitality Stars Award for Voting Member of the Year

Best Park in Arkansas - Burns ParkArkansas Times’ Reader’s Choice Awards

USS Hoga opens for tours at Arkansas Inland Maritime Museum

Riverfront Steakhouse named best steakhouse in ArkansasThe Daily Meal

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North Little Rock A&P Commission/North Little Rock Convention & Visitors BureauPO Box 5511, North Little Rock, AR 72119

(501) 758-1424www.NorthLittleRock.org

2018 Team Highlights

• Bob Major received the Dan Baker Award from Skal International USA’s Arkansas Chapter.• Karen Trevino was recognized as a breast cancer survivor with a banner on the Broadway Bridge during October

(Breast Cancer Awareness Month).• NLRCVB staff assisted North Little Rock Mayor Joe Smith with hosting 50 city leaders from all over the state of

Arkansas during their annual Arkansas Municipal League Planning Meeting. The officials and their spouses were impressed with the hospitality in North Little Rock.

• Scott Sudduth volunteered after hours with the nonprofit Our House, offering hospitality training to those in need of employment.

• Stephanie Slagle was nominated for Heart of the House during Arkansas Hospitality Association’s Stars of the Industry and earned the Travel Marketing Professional (TMP) certification from Southeast Tourism Society Marketing College.

• Scott and Stephanie spoke to community organizations to educate locals about the tourism industry.• Robin Powell gave several group tours of The Old Mill, sharing the history behind the North Little Rock icon.• Erica Goss completed Dale Carnegie Sales Advantage training and won the Sales Champion Award.• Shannon Harris helped coordinate the successful first annual Arkansas Italian Food & Culture Festival in North

Shore Riverwalk with 7,000 attendees.

CommunityNLRCVB Goals:

To build community pride.To represent the tourism industry.