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1 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW Passing wildland firefighter helps stop Central Point fire that injured one ... Sams Valley man found dead in Lost Creek Lake ... Lithia fountains back on after testing found to be 'faulty' ... Passing wildland firefighter helps stop Central Point fire that injured one ... Sams Valley man found dead in Lost Creek Lake ... Lithia fountains back on after testing found to be 'faulty' ... GUEST OPINION Guest Opinion: Don't wait to rebuild trust in Travel Medford Comment By Mark Dennett MailTribune.com By Mark Dennett Posted Feb. 27, 2016 at 2:00 AM Updated Feb 27, 2016 at 11:44 AM By Mark Dennett Posted Feb. 27, 2016 at 2:00 AM Updated Feb 27, 2016 at 11:44 AM » Social News Is forcing Travel Medford to split from the Medford Chamber a good thing? Is a short-term contract viable, and are tax dollars subsidizing some Chamber overhead? I would like to share some insight into visitor marketing and why we should not wait two years to rebuild trust in who manages visitor marketing funded by transient lodging tax revenue (room tax). It takes a complex team to promote tourism in a global world. This team is led by Travel Oregon (Oregon Tourism Commission). This is a semi-independent agency created when the state passed a 1 percent room tax in 2003. Then come the regional team members such as Travel Southern Oregon and the Central Oregon Visitors Association. These Regional Destination Marketing Organizations (RDMOs) are fully or partially funded by state and local room taxes. Finally, the real boots on the ground are local Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs) such as Travel Medford. Few DMOs get 100 percent of the room tax; most get a fixed percentage. Medford spends the majority of room tax on city services (roads, parks, public safety). In Ashland, their DMO receives no fixed amount and needs to compete with Shakespeare and others each year for funding. There are two realities today that affect visitor marketing. First, it takes a long time and plenty of money to do the job. With revenue from the 1 percent room tax, Travel Oregon has significantly increased its staff and is now involved in many multi-year marketing and development projects benefiting Medford, such as creating Oregon's new Scenic Bikeways and an I-5 Welcome Center in Southern Oregon, which remains unbuilt after a decade of work. It is very difficult for Medford to be an active partner with a two-year contract. Travel Medford needs a much longer agreement (four to six years) if the city wants to maximize its return from state and regional investments. Second, more people are choosing to stay in vacation rentals, farm stays, RV resorts and B&Bs that may not be within city limits collecting room tax. That is why there has been a move toward countywide room taxes. It is also why successful visitor marketing can’t be defined by city limits or Chamber membership. To promote Medford successfully, businesses and attractions far outside of the city need to be promoted. The goal is to make Medford the base camp for extended stays. The real economic benefit of tourism is getting people to stay longer, spreading tourism dollars throughout the community. There are two options for running Travel Medford: 1. The taxing authority runs its own visitor services. If it is a city tax, then it is run as a city department reporting to the city manager. Brookings, Gold Beach and Grants Pass all run successful DMOs. The only potential drawback is that public employees’ administrative and benefit costs can be higher, and city bureaucracy may affect decision-making. 2. The taxing authority contracts out visitor services. The city hires an independent group (for-profit or nonprofit). This is the approach Klamath Falls has taken. Its contractor, Discover Klamath, has done an outstanding job in managing tourism promotion with complete transparency. In smaller cities, contracting with a Chamber of Commerce is still popular. Yes, some tax dollars will go to offset Chamber expenses for running a DMO, but this can be easily limited and controlled with contract language. Whichever direction Medford goes, it should not take two years to resolve this issue if everyone embraces the following principles in a service contract: Transparency — In this 24/7 world of nonstop media attention, businesses that succeed are open and transparent. Being open is a great way to gain people’s trust. Transparency involves accounting for every dollar of the budget and making it clear who is making policy decisions about tourism spending and projects. Flexibility — It is critical that Travel Medford has the freedom to build long-term strategic partnerships and promote any business anywhere without being constrained by Chamber membership or city limits. Ray Kroc, who built McDonald's into the most successful fast-food company in the world, loved to say, “All of us are better than some of us.” Accountability — It is always difficult to measure results beyond growth in room tax revenue and occupancy. That is why market research must be an integral part of any contract. A few years ago, the city of Roseburg and its Chamber faced a similar situation, which was resolved amicably because the Chamber had independent research that reassured the council that visitor funds were being well-managed. Mark Dennett is president of the Dennett Consulting Group, a firm that provides marketing and research services to clients in the Pacific Northwest. Over the past 30 years he has worked with every major DMO in Southern Oregon as the chief marketing strategist for Travel Southern Oregon (formerly known as the Southern Oregon Visitors Association) from 1984 to 2012. By Mark Dennett MailTribune.com By Mark Dennett Posted Feb. 27, 2016 at 2:00 AM Updated Feb 27, 2016 at 11:44 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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