CALIFORNIA RESTAURANT MONTH 2017Presented by Visit CaliforniaDESTINATION REGISTRATION INFORMATION

Visit California understands the incredible value of culinary tourism and its impact on destinations like yours. That’s why California’s marketing program continues to include culinary as a core experience pillar, backed by an arsenal of targeted content, paid media campaigns and partnerships.

Created in 2011, California Restaurant Month (CRM) is the statewide promotional event providing a robust platform that shines a global spotlight on our diverse culinary riches. Whether you’ve participated in California Restaurant Month from its inception or are considering participating for the first time, Visit California knows visitors are looking for one-of-a-kind culinary experiences and is ready to show the world what your destination has to offer.

CULINARY TOURISM

“As the top U.S. destination for culinary travel and one of the leading agricultural

producers in the country, there is a vast array of culinary experiences to be found in

California. There’s no better time to visit than during January’s California Restaurant

Month, when this special program treats visitors to offers they won’t see any other

time of the year.”

—Caroline Beteta, Visit California President & CEO

• 28 participating destinations

• Since January 2011, CRM has driven 124 million

incremental U.S. earned media impressions valued

at $11.8 million.

• The CRM paid media program generated almost

30 million impressions, sourced from display,

foundational, custom placements and social media

programs.

• Eater.com’s custom Heat Map received excellent

engagement, garnering over 2x benchmark results

for both CTR and page views. Users spent an average

of 10 minutes on the site – 3x the amount consumers

spend on other Eater Heat Maps.

• Paid Social Media campaign ran in the US on both

Facebook and Twitter, generating more than 9

million impressions and over 101,000 engagements.

• “Recipe of the Day” spotlighted restaurant each day

of the month representing the variety of California’s

culinary experiences. Recipes will be featured in

an e-book, which will be distributed through Visit

California’s owned channels this year.

• Guest California Dream Eater initiative brought digital

influencers to participating restaurants and spurred

user-generated content.

• Year-over-year growth in print placements and 70%

increase in online impressions due to “Top Chef”

messaging and broader promotional angles.

• Aggressive usage of Visit California channels

including social media, dedicated California

Restaurant Month web presence within visitcalifornia.

com, and custom e-newsletter creative.

2016 SUCCESSES

“We launched our first Berkeley Restaurant Week three years ago because of

the promotional framework provided by Visit California and California Restau-

rant Month. We believe the 2014 program was our tipping point year. Participat-

ing local restaurants tell us that the initiative drove new business, and we saw

a measurable spike in website visits and social media engagement. California

Restaurant Month exemplifies how off-gateway destinations like Berkeley can

reach greater audiences by going in with Visit California.”

—Dan Marengo, Visit Berkeley

WHY BE INVOLVED?Because of the estimated 20+ million paid digital impressions and anticipated 4+ million social media impressions this year’s program is expected to generate in support of California Restaurant Month.Because culinary-minded travelers will have direct access to your program through the campaign webpage.Because there is no cost to be involved.Because participants have access to a Restaurant Week Best Practices webinar.

NO CURRENT CULINARY PROMOTION?Visit California can help you design a turn-key promotion and arm you with the tools and best practices to drive valuable dollars into your restaurant community while providing you with a powerful destination marketing tool.

EXISTING CULINARY PROMOTION AT DIFFERENT TIME OF THE YEAR? Let Visit California help you create programming in January that doesn’t infringe on your existing culinary promotion and that allows you to capitalize on this valuable program, as many other participating destinations have done. This can include food festivals and special programming during the month of January such as a series of themed culinary experiences with brewers, wineries, or even slow food or pop up dinners.

VISIT CALIFORNIAPlanned Program Support

• Dedicated California Restaurant Month content on visitcalifornia.com featuring programming taking place across the state, including promotional copy outlining programs and offers and reciprocal links to destination websitess.

• Paid digital advertising campaign with Food&Wine.comand RGM Group, a luxury network in partnership with OpenTable.

• Targeted PR outreach to national and regional media

encouraging consumers to read about the special offers going on across the state; as well as coordinating PR efforts with participating Destinations.

• Extensive social media efforts, including organic and promoted content through Visit California, California Dream Eater and Instagram influencers to activate foodie audiences and build awareness of California as a culinary destination.

• A California Restaurant Month Tool Kit to assist Destinations in their efforts to develop, promote and manage their own successful Restaurant Week events.

• A Restaurant Month Webinar offering recruiting tips,

marketing samples and best practices.

• A dedicated California Restaurant Month consultant to

advise and guide Destination partners.

• A revitalized culinary campaign that goes beyond the

traditional restaurant week programing, offering a bigger marketing platform for the state’s culinary travel experiences.

"As a new CRM program participant in 2014, "Dine Out Escondido!"

was a huge success in drawing attention and business to 25 of our

best restaurants. We truly enjoyed working with the CRM team …

they were instrumental in supporting our inaugural year by providing

great tools, enthusiastic responsiveness and follow up. This program

was also a great way to bring our restaurateurs together!”

—Katherine Zimmer, Visit Escondido

Before CRM• Register your Restaurant Week/Month program by Nov. 4, 2016.

• Produce culinary programing in January including themed menus fo-

cused on seasonality, local fare or pricing; culinary experiences such as

winemaker or slow food dinners; and food festivals and related ancil-

lary programming.

• Provide program details for inclusion on official CRM site.

• Supply Visit California with photos of at least 3 of your culinary offer-

ings from participating partners, and one video.

• Include CRM in your program’s marketing and PR efforts.

• Feature the official CRM logo on your event website.

During CRM• Work with Visit California’s marketing and PR teamson

CRM media and promotional opportunities.

• Ensure that your participating culinary partners are

aware of CRM and supply them with FAQ to inform staff.

• Work with participating restaurants to create

systems for measurement and tracking results of

program (using Visit California-generated tools

if necessary).

After CRM• Complete Visit California’s post-event survey sharing

insights and feedback on CRM as well as a recap

of your program’s successes and challenges.

TO REGISTERClick here to complete the online registration form.

QUESTIONSFor more information, contact Carrie Kommers at restaurantmonth@visitcalifornia.com

HOW IT WORKS