CM-2014-532 - 9/12/2014City of Round Rock
PDUND PDU
rexas Agenda Item Summary
Agenda Number:
Title: Consider executing a Consulting Agreement for Economic Impact Analysis
on two Downtown Events during 2014 by Sarah T. Page Consulting, LLC.
Type: City Manager Item
Governing Body: City Manager Approval
Agenda Date: 9/12/2014
Dept Director: Will Hampton, Communications Director
Cost: $4,999.00
Indexes: General Fund
Attachments:
Department: Administration
Text of Legislative File CM -2014-532
Ciyo{RounJRock Pagel Pnnk on WIM010
raw
CONTRACT APPROVAL FORM FOR CITY MANAGER ACTION
Required for Submission of Specific City Manager Items
Department Name: MMnesason Project Name: E wmk Impaa Melpis Agreemea
Project idgr/Resouree: NAZI Hampton ContractofNendar: Sash T. Pape
x�City Manager Approval
CMA Wording
Conskler esecusng a Consulting Agreement for Economic ImPaC[Analysls on two Downtown Events dudrp 2014 by Sereh T.
Page Consulting, LLC.
Approval ��/�i�
X❑Employee EE Bowden v — —Hate August 27, 2014
SARAHT.
CONSULTINGII LL
CONTRACT FOR SERVICES
1. Sarah T. Page Consulting, LLC will contract with the City of Round Rock (Client) to provide a
package consisting of economic impact analyses and consumer research on the 2014 Chalk
Walk, Dia de los Muertos, and Music on Main events.
2. The Client agrees to pay Sarah T. Page Consulting, LLC for the performance of the services. The
fee is $4,999.
3. Sarah T. Page Consulting, LLC will submit a final invoice following submission of the findings on
each event. Payment is due within 30 calendar days of the receipt of the invoice.
4. Any additional expenses not specifically mentioned in this proposal will not be billed unless
agreed to by both the Client and Sarah T. Page Consulting, LLC in writing as a contract
addendum.
5. Either party may terminate this contract with advance written notice. If this contract is
cancelled by the City of Round Rock within the 30 day period immediately prior to each event, a
cancellation fee of 25 percent will be charged.
Accepted and agreed to on this Aday of 2014.
By:
Title:
Sarah T. Page Consulting, LLC
bO-k�l PO-�
Sarah Page,
Principal
Date: August 26, 2014
�j.
eM-at��-�3a
DOWNTOWN ROUND ROCK
ECONOMIC IMPACT ANALYSIS & CONSUMER
RESEARCH PACKAGE
SARAH T.
CONSULTING, LL
Sarah T. Page Consulting, LLC is submitting this proposal to provide a package of economic
impact analyses and consumer research studies on downtown events during 2014. The
studies will provide the City of Round Rock with valuable data on consumer spending and
their preferences so that effective marketing and budgeting decisions can be made. A menu
of potential services is included for your consideration. We look forward to the opportunity
to work with you.
Sm�ft
DOWNTOWN ROUND ROCK
ECONOMIC IMPACT ANALYSIS
& CONSUMER RESEARCH
OVERVIEW
Downtown Round Rock (Client) has requested a
package of economic impact analyses and consumer
research studies on downtown events held during
2014.
Sarah T. Page Consulting, LLC uses IMPLAN software to
calculate the impacts on festivals and events.
IMPLAN's model is based on the local economy in the
county where the event is held. SurveyMonkey would
be used for the consumer studies that do not involve
visitor spending.
The economic impact analyses will provide data on
the direct and indirect impacts on the local economy
as a result of attendee spending. Detailed
information will be included on how the spending
impacted the lodging, restaurant, and retail sectors of
the economy, as well as the number of full time
equivalents (FTEs) that were created due to spending
during the event.
In addition to the economic impact information, these
studies can provide important market research that
can help guide future marketing campaigns for these
events. The data will show specifically where
attendees to the major events are coming from and
how they found out about them. This will help refine
and target advertising efforts and make any ad buys
more effective.
The consumer research studies will provide data on
preferences for downtown events that can make
existing events more appealing or provide direction
for potential new events or downtown offerings. The
specific services are described in detail in the
following pages.
"I would like to hake the time to
express my gratitude and
commendation to Sarah Page .
Jar her exceBer M
professionalism ormknowledge
in the Economic ImpactAndiysls
industry. Even though our event.
was the first of many, she was
able to help our team
understand the importance of
event spending and the impact
of those dollars cycling into our.
community"
Kristin Brown
City of Round Rock Special:
Events Coordinator
"Burnet County Commissioners
were so impressed with the
Economic ImpactA004TIt Sarah
Page assisted aur local event
coordinators with in M10, that
they opted to request an EA _
from event coordinators In the
future. Event applicants who
indicated they'd execute an EIA
for their event got higher
consideration for funding
because the EIA helps justify the
county's efforts to appropriately
award hotel occupancy tax."
Teri Freitag
Tourism Director/P10
Burnet County, Texas
PROPOSAL
Products
This proposal includes economic impact analyses on two large downtown events — Chalk Walk
in October and Dia de los Muertos in November. A possible third event is the Rock'N Lights
Holiday Light Tour. This would involve a partnership between Downtown Round Rock and the
Parks and Recreation Department to determine the economic impact of the event, and to
gauge awareness of downtown and its offerings. Pricing on this event is not included in this
proposal, but could easily be provided at a later date.
The second component of this proposal includes consumer research on two downtown events
that have a more local draw — Music on Main (Thursday evenings in April and May) and Movies
in the Park in August. The goal of these studies is to determine local attendee preferences
regarding Music on Main and Movies in the Park, and to identify preferences and motivators
that could be used to improve other downtown events (or even create new ones). The studies
can also identify preferences on business-related preferences such as business type, hours of
operation, consumer shopping habits, and more.
Planning
Prior to conducting each of the studies, Sarah T. Page Consulting, LLC will need to meet with
Downtown Round Rock staff to discuss the questionnaire, surveying plan, sample size, and the
use of either volunteers or contracted staff to do the surveying. This meeting should last
approximately 1 hour and should be conducted in person.
In addition to the on-site meetings, Sarah T. Page Consulting, LLC will be available for follow-up
discussions with the Client via phone and email, as well as meeting in person if deemed
necessary by the Client.
Final Deliverable
The final deliverable for the economic impact analyses will be a written document that details
the impacts on the local economy due to attendee spending. The reports will include tables
and graphs as well as narrative description. Mapping can be included for an additional fee.
Mapping not only details where the attendees travel from, it is valuable because it can prove
the effectiveness of geo-targeted marketing and advertising. It also can provide insight on
potential regions where marketing might be expanded. A written report detailing the findings
of each consumer research study will also be provided.
Expected Results
The economic impact analysis will provide the Client with current data based on actual
attendee spending. This information can be used in a variety of ways by the Client and by
entities that provide funding. This data can be used for the following:
•' Demonstrate the importance of tourism and community development to elected
officials and to the general public
Target future marketing efforts
Validate hotel occupancy tax investments
Help attract sponsors
Prove ROI
Demonstrate good stewardship of public funds
Pave the way for future expansion of the event
Helps get local partners and businesses more invested by showing them how they
benefit
The consumer research studies will provide data on their likes and dislikes of current events,
perceptions of downtown Round Rock, suggestions for improvements on current downtown
events, ideas for new downtown events and activities, and more.
Equipment
Sarah T. Page Consulting, LLC can provide the following equipment:
Tablet computers for data entry (4)
Printed surveys
Clipboards
+ IMPLAN software
SurveyMonkey
** The Client should provide the volunteers or contracted staff with something that identifies
them as being affiliated with the event. A hat or visor, t -shirt, a pin or badge, or other items are
acceptable options. This identifies them immediately as having an official capacity and greatly
improves survey response.
Survey Options
Both the economic impact analyses and the consumer research studies present a couple of
different options for executing the survey. They are described below:
Paper questionnaires and surveying the attendees at the event
Tablet computer questionnaires and surveying the attendees at the event
A combination of paper and tablet computer surveying of attendees at the event
Collecting E-mail addresses only at the event and surveying with SurveyMonkey post -
event
If E-mail surveys are used, there are three considerations to be aware of.
Since the survey is executed after the event, the results can be more accurate.
Attendees will be recalling their spending rather than projecting it.
E-mail surveys tend to have lower response rates. Therefore, we will need to over -
sample at the event to ensure an adequate response rate to the questionnaire.
A prize drawing can dramatically increase the likelihood of attendee participation in the
questionnaire.
EXPENSES AND FEES
The fee and budget items for the economic impact analysis package are described below:
Chalk Walk EIA—October
Questionnaire development and
development of surveying plan
Recruitment and training of
volunteers or contracted staff
On-site surveying of event
attendees
Data entry and detailed written
analysis
Purchase of IMPLAN model for
Williamson County
GIS Mapping
SUBTOTAL
Dia de los Muertos EIA -
2 weeks Included
2 weeks Included
3 days (includes both events) Included
2 weeks (post -event) Included
n/a Included
n/a $400
$2,499
November
Includes all budget items from $2,100
above with the exception of
IMPLAN purchase
GIS Mapping $400
The fee and budget item descriptions for the consumer research package are described below:
Questionnaire development and
development of surveying plan
Recruitment and training of
volunteers or contracted staff
On-site surveying of event
attendees
Data entry and detailed written
analysis
Purchase of monthly
SurveyMonkey subscription (2
months)
SUBTOTAL
2 weeks
2 weeks
9 Thursdays (April & May)
2 weeks (post -event)
n/a
$1,750
Included
Included
Included
Included
Included
$1,750 *
Movies in the Park - August
Includes all budget items from $1,500 •*
above (1 month SurveyMonkey
subscription)
•• Includes only 1 day of
surveying
SUBTOTAL $1,500
TOTAL $3,250
Fees: The following are the fee structures for each proposed service:
* Complete economic impact analysis package for two events with mapping: the fee is
$4,999
* Complete consumer research study package for two events: the fee is $3,250
Terms: The Client will pay the total fee for each individual event upon delivery of the final
report to Sarah T. Page Consulting, LLC. Sarah Page will submit a final invoice upon completion
of each event report. Payment for the invoiced amount is due within 15 calendar days of the
receipt of the invoice. All expenses and fees are included in this proposal.
If other expenses arise, Sarah T. Page Consulting, LLC will notify the Client as soon as reasonably
possible. Any additional expenses not specifically mentioned in this proposal will not be billed
unless agreed to by both the Client and Sarah T. Page Consulting, LLC in writing as a contract
addendum.
The Client will also be responsible to issue applicable tax documentation, such as an IRS Form
1099 to Sarah T. Page Consulting, LLC for income earned. Sarah T. Page Consulting, LLC will
provide appropriate W-9 tax documentation including taxpayer ID number upon execution of
the contract.
QUALIFICATIONS
Sarah Page has worked in tourism and economic development for over 23 years. As Principal of
Sarah T. Page Consulting, LLC, Sarah provides custom social media training, social media
marketing assistance, and economic impact analyses on festivals and events. Social media
training ranges from one-on-one instruction to keynote presentations. Social media assistance
includes account audits, strategy development, and promotions. The festival/event economic
impact analyses help quantify the event's success and prove ROI to elected officials. Sarah is a
frequent speaker at regional, state, and national conferences on various tourism and social
media topics. Sarah has provided programs and services to local CVBs, chambers of commerce,
economic development entities, downtown organizations, non -profits, associations, local
governments, and small businesses.
Sarah's professional career has included positions with the Texas Department of
Transportation, the Texas Department of Economic Development (now housed within the
Governor's Office of Economic Development and Tourism), and the Lower Colorado River
Authority (LCRA).
In her work for LCRA, Sarah created and implemented the highly successful social media
outreach strategy for the Colorado River Trail, an 11 -county tourism region in Texas. Her
marketing efforts for the Colorado River Trail were nominated three years in a row for the
Austin American -Statesman's Social Media Awards.
Sarah got her start in 1990 with a degree in Tourism from Texas A&M University. She is very
active in tourism and economic development efforts, and has served on several boards and
commissions including the Board of Directors for the Texas Brazos Trail Region, the City of
Round Rock's Tourism Commission, the City of Round Rock's Historic Preservation Commission,
and currently Texas Downtown Association Board of Directors.
Sarah is a frequent speaker at regional and state conferences, and at those with national
affiliations. Recent out of state conferences include the Michigan Association of Convention
and Visitor Bureaus — MACVB (2013), the Social Media Tourism Symposium — SoMeT (2011,
2012), and City -County Communications & Marketing Association — 3CMA (2011). Recent in-
state speaking engagements have included the Texas Downtown Association's annual
conference (2013), Governor's Small Business Forum (April and October, 2013), Texas
xwR'nnc
Association of Convention and Visitor Bureaus — TACVB (2012), and dozens of other regional
seminars and workshops.
As a native Texan, Sarah is very involved in statewide tourism and economic development
organizations. She is currently a member of the Texas Downtown Association (TDA), the Texas
Travel Industry Association (TTIA), Texas Association of Convention and Visitor Bureaus
(TACVB), the International Festivals and Events Association (IFEA), and the Association of
Chamber of Commerce Executives (ACCE). Sarah is also active in the Solo PR Pro association
which is a resource to professionals in the public relations and marketing industries. Sarah
holds several certifications including Professional Community and Economic Developer (PCED)
from the Community Development Council, Tourism Marketing Professional (TMP) from the
Southeast Tourism Society's Marketing College, and Certified Tourism Executive (CTE) from the
Texas Travel Industry Association's Travel and Tourism College.
Her work over the years has involved tourism, economic development, marketing, and social
media but one thing has remained constant - her passion for helping people. Sarah has worked
extensively with small and rural communities - and the businesses and organizations within
them - and is devoted to helping them achieve their goals.
CONTRACT
Upon acceptance of this proposal, Sarah T. Page Consulting, LLC will send a contract for services
that outlines the scope of work and associated fees. Separate contracts can be issued for each
package of studies.