Maine Tourism Advisory Committee Funding Resources & CenTRO Workplan

CenTRO Management Philosophies Complement Maine’s Existing Tourism Assets While Addressing Unmet Industry Need Maine’s Tourism assets –Maine Office of Tourism –Marketing Research Supplier: Longwoods International –Advertising Agency: Warren Kremer Paino –Nancy Marshall Communications Address Important Unaddressed Need –Systematic Approach to New Product* Development –Systematic Monitoring of Product* Quality –Economic Impact of Tourism by Region by Season –Understanding the Value of Tourism Jobs –Assist Tourism Strategic Planning –Assist Local Tourism Economic Development *Product = Tourist Experience

Current Projects by Issues Addressed State & National Resources for Maine Tourism Industry –Industry Web Site Higher Education for Tourism –Tourism Certificate Economic Impact of Tourism in Maine –Property Tax Contribution of the Hospitality Industry (4.58) –Statewide Hospitality Inventory –Overnight Guest Survey (4.75) Supporting Tourism Entrepreneurs –Tourism Risk Management Seminars Tourism Forecasting Tools –Short term forecasting model –Annual Outlook Conference (4.92) November 10, 2006 Tourism Labor Supply & Compensation –Employment and Workforce Profile (4.42) Measuring Tourism Experience/Service Quality –Pilot Test: Customer Satisfaction Tracking Program (4.42) Tourism R&D –An Investigation of the Market for a Maine North Woods Ecotourism Resort Average agreement rating (5 pt scale) regarding value to Maine tourism (MaineTAC )

Class A Deliverables A-1. A-1.Establish offerings at UMS campuses and outreach centers to improve and enhance higher education opportunities in tourism-related programs. Tourism Certificate at Hutchinson Center in Belfast A-2. A-2.Establish a Web site that allows Maine’s tourism businesses to access existing tourism business resources from Maine, the northeast and nationally for business planning and marketing. DONE A-3. A-3.Identify additional analyses that can be conducted using the Longwoods’ data to support Maine’s tourism industry. IN PROCESS

Class A Deliverables (cont.) A-3. A-3.Evaluate existing state and national data sources to identify how CenTRO can provide improved reporting and additional analyses for tourism planning and marketing SF A-4 A-4.Conduct a comprehensive inventory of Maine’s tourism- related businesses and examine differences across tourism regions. SF A-5. A-5.Prepare short term forecasts for seasonal tourist activity based on economic conditions. DONE SF Seeking Funding

Class B Deliverables B-1. B-1.Conduct a tourism market evaluation and segmentation study from the customers’ perspective to enhance tourism planning and marketing efforts by the State, regions, communities and individual businesses. Pilot Test Reported Fall 2005 TAC Meeting B-2. B-2.Survey Maine residents’ attitudes and opinions on tourism within Maine, as well as their interactions with the industry. SF B-3. B-3.Develop short courses to enhance the skills of tourism and hospitality workers in Maine. DUPLICATES COMMERCIALLY AVAILABLE SERVICES, WORK SHOPS ON TOURISM RISK MANAGEMENT IN DEVELOPMENT B-4. B-4.Conduct a market evaluation of the demand for conferences and conventions that would attract 1,000 to 3,000 attendees to Maine. SF SF Seeking Funding

Class C Deliverables C-1. C-1.Establish a program with Maine’s Tourism Office to monitor Maine’s tourism industry on a weekly, monthly and seasonal basis, and develop a reporting system to communicate this information to Maine’s tourism industry through the Web site and semi-annual workshops. SF C-2. C-2.Develop a program in cooperation with the Maine Department of Economic and Community Development to select three Maine communities each year to assess their competitive advantages and weakness for tourism development, and to develop tourism plans as part of their community development strategies. WOULD THIS MAKE MORE SENSE AT THE REGIONAL LEVEL? SF Seeking Funding

Class C Deliverables (Cont.) C-3. C-3.Conduct an analysis of best management practices for identifying and mitigating the impacts of tourism on communities and conduct workshops for local planners and economic developers on tourism-related planning. SF C-4. C-4.Economic impact studies. Conduct economic impact studies of tourism related development at the regional and state level. SF C-5. C-5.Compensation and Employment Practices in the Tourism Industry. Using public data and original surveys identify benchmark compensation levels and employment practices for firms in the tourism industry. PARTLY ADDRESSED BY THE TOURISM LABOR FORCE PROFILE SF Seeking Funding

Unaddressed Areas Eco-Tourism –Who are eco-tourists? –What do they expect? Hospitality Industry –Lodging –Dining Attractions Creative Economy (This is difficult to conceptualize) –To what extent does tourism in Maine attract new residents? Environmental Impact of Tourism in Maine Tourism Indicators Regional Differences in Maine Tourism –What attracts tourists to each region? Who is attracted to visit each region? –What barriers discourage travel to each region? Continuing Evaluation of MTMPP Grants Tourism Attractions –Maine State Parks & Cultural Heritage Sites

Possible Research Projects Regional Tourism Opportunities and Barriers –What uniquely attracts visitors to each region in each season? –What discourages travel to each region in each season? –Qualitative and Quantitative Research Methods Regional Tracking & Evaluation of MTMPP Grant Performance –System is being planned –Cost Estimate in Preparation Tourism R&D: Literature Scanning –What new product ideas are worthy of testing in Maine? Eco-Tourism –Investigate reactions of Maine’s tourism markets to a range of products regarded as eco-tourism resorts and experiences Creative Economy –TBD

Possible Outreach Projects Eco-Tourism Advisory Panel –Panel of Faculty Environmental Researchers –How to avoid environmental impacts Economists –Value for communities, state Business –How to capitalize on the business proposition Parks, Recreation & Tourism –Eco-tourism Product