Recap of Recent TMD Regional Meetings

Last month, the Tourism Marketing District (TMD) conducted its bi-annual TMD Regional Meetings virtually with General Managers and Directors of Sales & Marketing from TMD hotels in all five regions of the City of Los Angeles.TMD Chairman Javier Cano, General Manager of the JW Marriott and The Ritz Carlton L.A. LIVE, kicked off the presentation by providing an overview of the TMD’s Calendar Year 2020 budget, which is estimated at $16 million and required to be spent in the following manner: 71% Marketing, 20% Sales, 5% Reserves, 3% Administrative and 1% City Fee. He also welcomed continuous feedback and engagement from TMD members to inform recovery strategy.Director of Tourism Insights Chelsea Benitez shared updated lodging metrics for TMD Hotels through May 2021 and provided key data metrics for each of the five L.A. regions. She also shared sentiment data from Destination Analysts that showed a positive trend of people excited to travel again. See more in the lodging metrics below.CMO Don Skeoch detailed marketing recovery plans, highlighting the “Your Comeback Starts Here” campaign. Thanks to the TMD Reserve Funds and additional funds allocated by the City of Los Angeles, this will be the first time Los Angeles Tourism will be a national advertiser with a July launch to build demand as quickly as possible. Don also outlined the media spend as well as the domestic and international calendar.SVP of Hotel Sales Bryan Churchill offered an overview of the current state of meetings and events, highlighting tools L.A. Tourism has leveraged including Sharecare VERIFIED and Clear Health Pass. The continued focus of the Sales team is to protect and retain as much future business as possible. Bryan also shared a list of upcoming Industry Trade Shows and Conferences, which include partnership opportunities. Contact Bryan at bchurchill@latourism.org to learn more.As a reminder, TMD meetings are an opportunity to provide feedback and input on the programming efforts conducted by Los Angeles Tourism to improve business at your TMD hotel. We encourage you to attend these meetings and share your valuable feedback!To receive a copy of your region’s meeting presentation please contact Gina Reed, TMD Project Manager, at greed@latourism.org Also, if you are interested in hosting a regional meeting in December please let Gina know.