Andrew Ciccone, IABC Portfolio | 1

Table of Contents

Introduction, Hudson Valley Media Page 1 Hilltop House Bed & Breakfast Background, Objective, Strategy, Timing, Budget 2 Target Audience, Psychographic Profile 3 Media Plan 3, 4

Tactics 4 Metrics 4, 5

Assessment 6

Exhibits 7, 8

INTRODUCTION

Hudson Valley Media

Hudson Valley Media (HVM) is a burgeoning media firm offering market research and integrated marketing strategies that build brand equity. As CEO, my extensive advertising experience with packaged goods is applied to serve clients’ marketing needs. Expertise in research developed from my graduate work is drawn upon to develop sound media strategies. HVM often contracts out independent freelance agents who live and work in the Metro New York area. Mobile technology and global market forces are re-shaping traditional boundaries. As the barriers are broken, demographics are changing. Transparency and social integration are impacting how organizations communicate internally and externally. Hudson Valley Media emphasizes the value of research, strategic media planning and smart tactics to help meet and exceed client goals. Social media, print, video, podcasts, traditional media and a multitude of channels are utilized to develop targeted, optimized, memorable campaigns, exciting events and lasting relationships with stakeholders. Expectations must be clearly defined, campaigns constantly monitored and measured. We listen to what people are saying, we respond quickly to internal and external crises. We do not react.

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HILLTOP HOUSE BED & BREAKFAST

Background Hilltop House Bed & Breakfast is a true historic inn that has been in operation for over thirty years, located in the Berkshires. The inn is situated in the Harlem Valley atop a hill, thus the name. This rambling asymmetrical shingle style home was built in 1909. The bed and breakfast was sold in late November 2009 to West and Sandy Johnson who moved up to the country from Brooklyn. Sandy runs the bed and breakfast and makes all business decisions. Sandy relies on my marketing expertise and trusts my professional assessments on media. I have an excellent working relationship with my client, it’s an absolute pleasure to help Sandy realize her business goals.

Critical Points

• The immediacy and ease of booking online is a feature that many competitors in the bed and breakfast category do not offer. Online reservation systems are radically changing the way people plan their vacations.

• Hotel bookings over the past few years continue to increase through the internet. And now mobile bookings are beginning to take off as consumer’s embrace the internet, social media and ecommerce mobile technologies. Source: Benson, P. (April 4,2011) . Reservation System: Latest Trends in Reservation Systems. http://www.hotel-

industry.co.uk/2011/04/reservation-system/

• The internet a critical medium for the travel industry. ComScore Research predicts one third of global travel will be booked online by 2012. Source: Kooistra, T. (June 10, 2011). Travel Analytics: comScore Tips and Tricks to maximize online customer value.

comScore 2011, eCommerce eTravel Report. • Hilltop House rates are comparable with nearby hotels and inn, therefore the bed and

breakfast does not advertise price promotions. Incentives are offered on a case-by-case basis given any week’s room vacancies and profitability goals.

• The prior owners did not aggressively market the inn, this created an opportunity to define and improve the market strategy.

Objective Dramatically improve bookings year round positioning Hilltop House as a five star inn located in the Hudson Valley.

Strategy Generate bookings online capitalizing on consumers embracing online reservations and the growing acceptance of making purchases over the internet. Traditional media is integrated into the media plan on an opportunistic basis.

Timing The hospitality industry generates significant revenue from holidays and special occasions. Ongoing seasonal promotions are an important element of the overall market strategy. Late fourth and early first quarter are historically slow months for the bed and breakfast. In order to attain year round bookings, additional market support is needed to improve business.

Budget Hilltop House room rates vary from $175 to $275 with five rooms available year round. In order to deliver value the annual marketing budget is $10,000 for a three year campaign. This budget is appropriate and will be phased down as the occupancy becomes self sustaining.

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Target Audience 1. Proprietary data indicates that rooms are booked predominantly by the women. The target

audience is W25-54 with a HH Income of $250,000+. The Metro Tri-State Region and New England area are the primary geo-targets.

Source: HubSpot, Facebook and TripAdvisor Analytics.

18 - 24 25 - 34 35 - 44 45 - 54 55+% % % % %

Male - 9.1 3.6 8.2 7.3 28%Female 6.4 15.0 12.0 23.0 12.0 68%

Gender & Age Breakdown

2. A secondary audience of W25-40 with a college degree or higher are targeted given the

market potential of romantic getaways. The median age for first marriages is 28 for men and 26 for women. Most marriages are susceptible to divorce within the first five years. About half of all marriages last. Of those that fail, marriages last on average eight years. The median age of those who remarry are in their mid-thirties. Source: (May, 2011). Number, Timing, and Duration of Marriages and Divorces: 2009 Household Economic Studies.

US Census. http://www.census.gov/prod/2011pubs/p70-125.pdf.

Psychographic Profile Hilltop House is located 10 miles from Sharon, Connecticut and 20 miles from Great Barrington. People who frequent this area are interested in activities that involve horseback riding, equestrian events and outdoor gaming. Guests at the inn typically vacation without their children. Brand Loyalty is achieved by a rewards program targeted at frequent visitors to the valley who may also be business travelers.

Media Plan An integrated campaign using social media, direct mail, email marketing, SEO and link building drive marketing efforts. Traditional media is used opportunistically given budget constraints based on profitability. The social media plan is comprised of blogs, micro-blogging and link building to drive awareness and sales. A new website with an online reservation system (1) and a Facebook Business Page were developed to support the social media campaign. The website, Facebook page, marketing materials and event promotions all needed to actionable by the time renovations to the inn where completed. SEO optimization and link building play an important role in providing prominent visibility for online searches for accommodations and planned vacations. To improve the website’s page ranking:

• Additional domain names were acquired to improve the overall online presence. • Keywords researched and integrated into the website. • Third party reservation agents are used to aide in booking rooms during the slow months of

the season.

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Content created from the (blog page) is micro-blogged via social media sites (Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn) to generate:

• new fans; • build relationships (cross promotions); • and convert leads into reservations.

Pages and links to local business are constantly developed to build relationships with businesses that support tourism and hospitality. Ongoing special events planned for maximum exposure with the business community and media. A brochures and rack card were designed for events, marketing promotions and offered at local support services.

Tactics A grand opening gala was staged after the renovations had been completed in early May of 2010. The event was developed to generate awareness within the local business community, travel industry insiders and the media.

o Grand Opening May, 2010 Direct Mail Post Card (2), Press Release (3), eBlast, Brochure (4), Social Media.

Several “free download” incentives are integrated into the website to capture leads. o The Outdoor Guide (5) provides details on summer outdoor activities nearby Hilltop House. o Hilltop’s Winter Guide (5) lists many snow sport destinations in the area.

Optimized blog pages were added to build relationships with like minded businesses. o The Berkshires blog (5) creates content about events and local businesses that are destinations

near the inn. o A Intimate Getaway (6) page lists several settings and support services for those interested in

having a romantic weekend or wedding. o Support services such as a private massage therapist (6) and a makeup artist have links and

pages on the Intimate Getaway page to cross promote their offerings. Joint mixer with local Chamber of Commerce April, 2011 Social Media, Chamber Newsletter, eBlast, Brochure. Print ad campaign in April, May and June 2011 in Resident Magazine (7). The publication is distributed in Manhattan with editorial devoted to travel and profiles of successful New Yorker’s. The target audience is affluent and considered appropriate for Hilltop House. Opportunities that are consistent with the inn’s strategy are evaluated based on profitability and media value.

Metrics Customer engagement and campaign effectiveness are evaluated based on data from HubSpot, Facebook and TripAdvisor. Insights from inquires and reviews are applied to ongoing promotional efforts from the data obtained from the reservation system and website analytics. Industry trends are continually evaluated as are innovative ways of marketing.

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Hilltop House Bed & Breakfast Guests Booked Versus Year Ago

2010 2011 Index

January - 13 -February - 17 -March - 2 -April 3 34 1133May 10 47 470June 24 53 220.8July 21 65 309.5August 22 53 240.9September 20 22 *October 49 17 *November 10 -December 4

Insights & Next Steps The website redesign and launch of Hilltop’s marketing plan did not begin until May 2010. Actual stays have increased significantly from the 2010, as has reservations from the prior owners. Cross promotional programs are being developed to increase fall and winter business. Facebook is being used to build Hilltop’s fan base by promoting a free stays with other local destinations. Valuable leads will be obtained from these promotions.

Proximity Reviews Rating(miles) (#) (%)

Hilltop House - 34 97Starbuck Inn 9.5 41 92Cornwall Inn 10.9 13 75

TripAdvisor Area Bed & Breakfast Reviews

TripAdvisor Insights & Next Steps There are three other bed and breakfasts within a 30 mile radius, however given their limited sample size the data was not reported. Directionally the guest reviews about Hilltop House thus far are excellent. Ongoing promotions target these leads for repeat visits marketing loyalty incentives.

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Assessment Several articles have been written as a result of the ongoing public relations efforts: • Daniels, L. The Lost Art of the Bed & Breakfast Resurfaces in Upstate New York. Westchester

Herald, August 14, 2010. (8) • Leba, J., Levine, D., Olear, G., Sparling, P. Peace and quiet: Hiding out in northeastern Dutchess

County. Hudson Valley Magazine | Fall Getaways 2010. August 17, 2010. (9) • Cline, E. The Five-Point Weekend Escape Plan-. New York Magazine | Travel. October 1, 2010. (10) The value of the stories written about Hilltop House can be measured based on circulation and readers per copy. No correlation to sales was identified, but there is certainly indirect media value.

Realistically, other variables must be considered: • The placement and importance of the article placement. • Additional or incremental sales directly attributed to the stories.

The print campaign with Resident Magazine was a disappointment. Hilltop House queries all guests how they heard about the inn. There have been no reservations attributed to the ads that ran from the three months of advertising. The editorial adjacencies and placement in the publication were favorable. The editorial staff at the magazine felt the bed and breakfast ad was interesting and consistent with their readership. The magazine’s production depart failed to remedy a typo found in the first insertion prior to going to print. An additional insertion ran to compensate for the error. Ad recall was nonexistent, consequently the contract was not renewed.

Hilltop House’s strategy is sound, threats and opportunities continue to be assessed. The first year has been very successful, reservations continue to improve from the year prior. SEO, blogging and link building powered by social media continue to drive sales.

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Exhibits

(1) Hilltop House Bed & Breakfast Website, http://hilltophousebb.com The primary objective of the website is to convey a clean open air feeling. The blue header is sky-like with an Edwardian style font for an old world feel. Ease of navigation was also a goal. The tabs are whenever appropriate keywords to help with page ranking. Pages link back to each other to move the potential guest to book a room with our online reservation system. A mobile site was also created, mobile marketing is projected to be embraced rapidly over the next few years.

(2) Tulip Post Card The simplicity of the design was create a visual that would be placed on a mantle or refrigerator as a reminder of the grand opening.. Hilltop House uses “pure and simple” as a tagline which is subtly messaged in the tulip visual for this post card. A spring poem was also used to conger thoughts of spring. The direct mailing went out to prior guests who have stayed at the inn as well as the greater Dutchess County community and media. The mailings were sent out three weeks prior to the event followed by an email, then reminders sent out via social media over Facebook.

(3) Hilltop House Grand Opening Press Release The release’s primary goal was to generate awareness about recent renovations to the inn and that it is “private, intimate and elegant”. The release was distributed primarily to the travel magazines and local newspapers in Dutchess County.

(4) Hilltop House Bed & Breakfast, Three-fold Brochure The brochure aides in ongoing marketing promotions and is distributed at nearby local attractions to generate awareness and reservations. Local destinations, select photos of the interior and a brief narrative of the inn congers the feeling of a historic, romantic bed and breakfast.

(5) Berkshires, Blog Page http://www.hilltophousebb.com/berkshires-/ Blogs are micro-blogged, posted and shared via social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook. Fans and page ranking are the primary goal. Cross promotional partners and articles are picked up from the additional exposure from blogging.

(6) Hilltop House Intimate Getaway Page http://www.hilltophousebb.com/our-blog/special-packages/intimate-getaway-/ Romantic getaways is an area that Hilltop House plans on generating significant revenue from. This past summer we participated in a wedding event at a local winery to network with support services for weddings. As a result a cross promotional page was developed with a local massage therapist and makeup artist to attract this market.

(7) Resident Magazine, NYC (Print and Digital Media Campaign) http://resident.com/ Occasionally I present media opportunities to clients that I feel are on strategy and deliver real value. This magazine’s editorial has considerable travel features, perfect to reach our target audience based in the Metro New York area.

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Several articles were written as a result of ongoing publicity effort for Hilltop House Bed & Breakfast:

(8) The Lost Art of the Bed & Breakfast Resurfaces in Upstate New York, (8/14/2010). Westchester Herald.

http://whytmedia.typepad.com/westchester_herald/2010/08/the-lost-art-of-the-bed-breakfast-revival-resurfaces-in-upstate-new-york-by-lee-daniels.html#more%C3%A2%E2%82%AC%C2%8F

(9) Peace and quiet, Hiding out in northeastern Dutchess County. (September, 2010). Hudson Valley Magazine

http://www.hvmag.com/Hudson-Valley-Magazine/September-2010/Fall-Getaways-2010/index.php?cparticle=5&siarticle=4#artanc

(10) The Five Point Weekend Escape Plan. (October 1, 2010) New York Magazine | Travel. http://nymag.com/travel/weekends/poughkeepsie/