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Destination BC Bulletin 30: COVID-19
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Mt Cartier seen from the top of Revelstoke Mountain Resort
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A Message from Richard Porges, Interim President and CEO
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I hope everyone was able to enjoy a quiet but pleasant holiday season and start to the new year. On our last industry call, held December 17, 2020, we heard from Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport, Neilane Mayhew, and Assistant Deputy Minister for Labour, Danine Leduc, who discussed upcoming provincial supports for the tourism industry. Since then, on December 22, 2020, the Province announced $105 million in a dedicated funding stream to quickly support BC’s tourism sector, responding to the Tourism Task Force recommendations delivered last month. Of this, $100 million will be delivered through the existing Small and Medium-Sized Business Recovery Grant program, and the application process for that program has since been simplified and the criteria streamlined. Businesses are now eligible for up to $45,000, where previously the program was capped at $40,000. An additional $5 million will go directly to Indigenous Tourism BC to administer relief grant funding for Indigenous tourism businesses.
While there are promising signs of what’s to come this year, including the January 12 announcement of the Federal Government securing another 20 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, and confirming that by September, Canada should have enough vaccine to immunize every Canadian who wants to be vaccinated, we can’t ease off on our efforts just yet. In BC, the rolling 7-day average of cases is declining slightly, but the curve has not been bent back enough to ease the current restrictions. Last week, Dr. Henry announced an extension of the existing restrictions which includes discouraging all non-essential travel into, out of and within BC, until February 5, 2021. While not unexpected, we all know that these restrictions continue to have devastating impacts to our industry.
We are continuing our efforts in encouraging consumers to support local and visit businesses and attractions in the communities where they live. We will share more on the latest plans during our January 28th industry call. You can email [email protected] to sign up for the call. In the meantime, we are here for you. Please continue to engage with us, and don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions.
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BC Government Commits $105 Million to Tourism Sector
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The Government of British Columbia responded to the recommendations of the Tourism Task Force by creating a dedicated relief funding stream to quickly support people and businesses in BC’s tourism sector. Within days of receiving the final report, the Province acted on the task force’s recommendations by committing $100 million in dedicated relief funding for the tourism sector. In addition, the Province is also allocating $5 million to Indigenous Tourism BC to administer relief grant funding targeted for Indigenous businesses. The $100-million dedicated relief funding for the tourism sector will be delivered through the existing Small and Medium-Sized Business Recovery Grant program.
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BC Government Expands Criteria for Small and Medium-Sized Business Recovery Grant
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The BC Government has expanded the criteria for the Small and Medium-Sized Business Recovery Grant, including a maximum top-up amount of $15,000 for tourism businesses. Businesses in operation for at least 18 months are now eligible, as well as sole proprietors.
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Messaging Guidance for BC’s Tourism Industry
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BC tourism businesses can refer to the Messaging Guidance for January 8-February 5 related to the latest Provincial Health Orders and Recommendations. The document includes messaging and a FAQ. This messaging will be updated as soon as new information is available from the Provincial Heath Officer.
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Stay local and support local businesses with just your immediate household or bubble.
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Welcome to the four new Tourism Committee Members. Photo: Powder King Mountain Resort .
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Tourism Marketing Committee Welcomes Four New Members
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The Tourism Marketing Committee is pleased to welcome four new members: Ian Jenkins, Director of Marketing and Accommodation at SilverStar Mountain Resort; Trevor Campbell, Manager, Air Service Development and Partnerships at Vancouver Airport Authority; Elaine Xu, Vice-President of Travel Trade & Promotion at Dufry North America; and Royce Chwin, President & CEO of Tourism Vancouver. Many thanks to outgoing committee members Dustin Patara, Sìne Scott, and Michael J. Ballingal for their time and dedication to BC’s tourism industry.
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Guides are a new way to share and consume content on Instagram, allowing users to follow a curated flow of posts with commentary.
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Stay Local, Support Local Influencer Guides
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In December, Destination BC teamed up with 13 influencers in larger urban centres across British Columbia to showcase their best tips on how to stay local and support local businesses over the holidays and beyond. Their real-time Instagram stories not only showcased their favourite local businesses, but also outlined the health and safety precautions businesses are taking to keep customers safe. We amplified their stories to our 555,000+ followers on Instagram, and also utilized the new Instagram Guide tool to create helpful lists featuring their local recommendations. To date, the Instagram stories featured on the influencers’ channels and our channel have earned 2.5 million impressions.
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The interactive maps feature has been available on the main HelloBC website since Summer 2020.
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New Interactive Maps Feature on German and Mexican HelloBC.com Websites
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The HelloBC.com consumer website interactive maps feature, which provides geographic context to existing website content, supporting travel ideas, business listings, road trips, accommodation and locations, has been added to the German and Mexican HelloBC.com sites. German and Mexican consumers can navigate to them by visiting the maps page or clicking the maps icon at the top right navigation on any page.
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Melissa joined Destination BC in 2017.
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Destination BC’s Melissa Arnott Joins Indigenous Tourism BC
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Melissa Arnott, Destination BC's Digital Marketing Specialist, has accepted a unique secondment to Indigenous Tourism BC for one year in the role of Corporate Development and Marketing Specialist. Melissa will be responsible for Indigenous relations, communications and experience development, as well as liaising with Destination BC on the Invest in Iconics strategy. Melissa is Anishinaabe from Batchewana First Nations, and is passionate about connecting with her roots and her community.
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Meltwater said that the "#exploreBClater campaign highlighted... engaging content, while also presenting HelloBC as a socially responsible brand."
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Destination BC’s #exploreBClater Campaign Recognized by Meltwater
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Meltwater, the global marketing organization recognized as a specialist in online media intelligence, has named the #exploreBClater campaign as one of the best social media marketing campaigns of 2020. In their November blog, they included Destiantion BC, among other notable companies such as Zoom, Dove, and Apple.
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The documentary, produced by Angelika Sigl and Karl Teuschl, uses footage captured between 2009-2011, and is the second documentary produced by the pair on the Great Bear Rainforest.
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Great Bear Rainforest Documentary Broadcast in Germany and France
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Der Wächter der Geisterbären, or the Watchman of the Spirit Bear, is a documentary on the Great Bear Rainforest and the Spirit Bear that aired on German and French public access channel ARTE on December 26, 2020 and January 5, 2021. The documentary showcases BC’s Great Bear Rainforest and stunning local wildlife.
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Government of Canada Introduces Mandatory COVID-19 Pre-Departure Testing
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Effective midnight on January 7, 2021, proof of a negative COVID-19 test result must be presented to the airline prior to boarding a flight to Canada. The test must be performed using one of two types of COVID-19 tests – either a molecular polymerase chain reaction (PCR) or Loop-mediated Isothermal Amplification (LAMP) – and must be taken within 72 hours of the traveller’s scheduled departure to Canada.
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This report summarize the various research findings from Destination BC, suppliers, other tourism agencies, and associations.
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COVID-19 Research Roundup: Week 27
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Read our latest Research Roundup report, which provides relevant research and articles each week related to the travel and tourism industry and COVID-19.
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Our Learning Centre provides access to resources and tools, best practices, workshops, and training programs for BC’s tourism industry.
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Cut Through Digital Analytics to Get to the Numbers That Matter Most
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Is your advertising spending getting the results you want? Digital marketing tools can help you determine how to best focus your efforts.
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Tools like Google Analytics and Facebook Insights can assist your digital marketing.
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Do you know who the visitors to your website are?
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Using Google Analytics to Understand Your Audience
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In order to market in meaningful and compelling ways, you need to know your audience–who they are, how they want to engage with you, and what they respond to. Gathering this data helps inform important marketing decisions, such as what type of content to create, where you should advertise, and what audiences to target for future marketing or advertising efforts.
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If you want to engage someone planning a trip to BC, don’t give them a sales pitch: tell them a story. Learn about the power of story.
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Stories are effective, as they inspire and engage people in ways that conventional marketing and advertising do not.
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Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada Announces New Board of Directors Following Virtual AGM
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The Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada (ITAC) announced the successful delivery of its Annual General Meeting, held virtually December 15, and four new members to the Board of Directors.
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ITAC successfully delivered its AGM virtually via Webcast Canada for the first time ever.
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Consider what lessons can we learn from 2020, and which of our COVID-19 pivots are likely to stick around in this upcoming webinar.
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Small Business BC January 29 Webinar: Small Business Trends for 2021
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As our valued partner, Small Business BC is offering free access to their January 29th webinar, Small Business Trends for 2021, to BC tourism businesses with the code TRENDS2021. The webinar will cover emerging products, services, and opportunities, continually evolving consumer behaviours, and more.
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Destination BC COVID-19 Communications
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Here's how to stay connected on the latest from Destination BC:
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If you have questions that can't be answered through the various resources on our website and official channels, please send them to [email protected] and we will work to address them.
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