1) Provide a description of the entity and the Mission Statement.
State the entity’s tax status/legal identity and when it was initiated.
What is the personnel makeup of your office; specifically how many are employees, how many are
contractors and what are their duties? What is the full time equivalent (FTE) of each: ¼ , ½, ¾ or full
time? Unless previously provided to the resort tax office, please include a copy of the Articles of
Incorporation. (200 words max)
Visit Big Sky, Inc. (VBS) is the official destination marketing organization for the Greater Big Sky Area, including
the Big Sky Resort Area District, plus that area which extends twenty miles to the north and twenty miles to the
south from the intersection of US-191 and MT Hwy 64. Established in February 2013 as a 501(c)(6) nonprofit
mutual benefit organization, VBS is a public-private partnership representing Montana Lodging Facility Use Tax
dollars, Big Sky Resort Area District funds and private business investment for tourism promotion.
The mission of VBS is to promote economic development in the Greater Big Sky Area through (tourism)
marketing promotion. VBS accomplishes this through:
• branding and marketing the world-class mountain resort destination of Big Sky, Montana, as a yearround regional, national and international visitor destination,
• supporting the development and growth of the tourism industry in Big Sky with an eye toward delivering
an outstanding visitor experience, and increasing tourism-related revenues and jobs which increases
Resort Tax collections,
• raising public awareness of the positive impact of tourism on the economic vitality of Big Sky and
Montana, and
• preserving the uniqueness and character of the Big Sky community.
The Chief Executive Officer of the Big Sky Chamber of Commerce / Convention and Visitor Bureau is designated
as the administrator of VBS programs.
2) Provide a complete description of the project(s). Include the project(s) purpose, goals and objectives.
For each project provide a budget number and measurable objectives, i.e. how you will do something
and in what timeframe. The information provided here should be specific regarding what the entity is
requesting to be funded by resort tax. If requesting funds for operations, identify the categories and
assign a dollar amount (salaries, software, etc.) If permits are required, please specify what permits are
required and what projects they apply to. If requesting funds for a study (feasibility, etc.), a minimum of
two bids are required. Also provide the RFP submitted for the study. Funding for a study will only be
considered if the proposal has measurable outcomes. Please be succinct.
BACKGROUND
Tourism in Montana is the second largest contributor to the state's economy behind agricultural production, and
the #1 driving force behind Big Sky's economy.
Tourism promotion and its resulting visitation lead to tourism spending in our local community, directly
contributing to Resort Tax collections and Montana State Lodging Tax collections. Tourists pay excise taxes on
gasoline, alcohol and other goods while indirectly contributing to income, property and corporate taxes by
supporting local jobs. In short, tourism benefits Big Sky residents and all Montanans.
Moving forward, key performance indicators of VBS’ success are increased tourism related revenues generated
as identified by collections of Montana State Lodging Taxes, Big Sky Area Resort District tax collections, the
number of visitors to the Big Sky and Greater Yellowstone Welcome Center, and the number of users of the “Big
Sky on the Go” mobile app. In addition, with our DestiMetrics marketing research services, we are also able to
capture lodging metrics such as paid occupancy rates, Average Daily Rate (ADR), and Revenue Per Available
Room (RevPAR) on a monthly, quarterly and annual basis. This data can then be compared year over year to
identify trends, challenges and opportunities, as well as to aggregate data from the other seventeen participating
mountain resort destinations to have a better understanding of our competition.
Tourism is a fiercely competitive, global industry. With the advent of social media, destinations all over the world
have become known to travelers, and are battling for their attention, visitation and tourism-related spending. In
2017-2018 Application for Resort Tax Funds | Page 2
addition, the mountain ski resort industry is seeing significant consolidation activity which has resulted in
increased competition to lure both domestic and international destination skier families. Due to these factors, it is
imperative that we continue to market Big Sky in an efficient manner with our relatively limited budget.
Year over year from 2015 to 2016, Big Sky's Montana Lodging Tax revenues have increased by 11%, Big
Sky Resort Area District Tax collections have also increased. With the direct correlation of VBS spend on tourism
promotion and increased tax revenues, we respectfully seek a 5% increase in funding over last year’s requested
funds for the organization to continue to drive community growth as well as for infrastructure and planning to
facilitate it.
PROJECT I:
INTEGRATED, MULTI-CHANNEL MARKETING CAMPAIGN - $586,200
A. YEAR-ROUND CONSUMER MARKETING CAMPAIGN ($575,200)
In 2016, Montana played host to over 12 million non-resident travelers who spent more than $3.5 billion while
they were here, directly supported 38,300 jobs statewide, and generated $194 million in state and local taxes per
preliminary findings from the Institute for Tourism and Recreation Research (ITRR). Gallatin County specifically
hosted 4.8 million non-resident visitors who spent $668 million.
In managing the continued growth in Montana's tourism industry, the Montana Office of Tourism and Business
Development (MOTBD) is guided by the following three high-level strategic goals as outlined in their Strategic
Plan 2013-2017.
• Improved Economic Benefits for tourism stakeholders which results in a stronger, more sustainable economy
for all of Montana
• Preservation of Assets and Quality of Life, protecting that which we Montanans love and value most about
our state, and
• Improved Visitor Experience to better understand, meet, and exceed visitors needs to encourage repeat
visitation and invaluable word-of-mouth marketing
Visit Big Sky, as a part of the tourism industry ecosystem in Montana, also adheres to these high-level strategic
goals as it delivers on its mission to drive visitation to Big Sky. In October 2016, the MOTBD issued report
findings from a "Montana Destination Brand Research Study" conducted by Destination Analysts. This
comprehensive and invaluable report will help to inform VBS as it formulates marketing strategies moving
forward.
To orchestrate its year-round, consumer marketing campaign, VBS currently works with FuseIdeas, a full-service
creative agency, as its Agency of Record. New creative was developed for the winter 2016-17 campaign to put a
stronger focus on seasonal winter activities available in Big Sky and less on the proximity to Yellowstone
National Park (YNP). This positioning is a stronger driver of visitor traffic in the summer season. The new tagline
utilizing the “Boundless” concept was introduced and will be carried forward to the summer campaign to ensure
brand consistency. VBS is currently awaiting performance results from the winter campaign. The summer
campaign will launch in early May and incorporate Big Sky as a gateway community to YNP.
Big Sky’s High Profile Visitor Demographic: Adults age 24-64, Median Household Income $75,000+, College
educated
Interests: Outdoor adventure, national park tours, fly fishing, mountain biking/hiking, backpacking, whitewater
rafting
Geographic targets:
· Drive markets including MT, WA, ID, ND, SD, MN, WY, OR, CO
· Key fly markets including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle, Chicago, Minneapolis, New York, Denver,
Dallas-Ft. Worth
· Out of Home (OOH) market: Salt Lake City and a year-round billboard on US-191 in Montana
Earned (public relations), owned (visitbigskymt.com, e-newsletters, social media channels, Official Visitors Guide
(OVG)/Official Map), paid (print, digital, social, OOH) and influenced (social media influencers) media channels
will be utilized in executing the year-round campaign.
2017-2018 Application for Resort Tax Funds | Page 3
GOAL: To promote Big Sky as a world-class, year-round, premier mountain resort destination to regional,
national and international visitors.
OBJECTIVE: To drive qualified web traffic to visitbigskymt.com and to increase resort/hotel bookings and
tourism spending at local Big Sky businesses to enhance the visitor experience in the Greater Big Sky Area.
B. GUEST SERVICES APP AND KIOSKS ($11,000)
In March 2016, VBS launched the Big Sky, Montana On the Go app in addition to having purchased two
innovative, interactive touchscreen kiosks which are currently located in the 24-hour lobby of the Big Sky and
Greater Yellowstone Welcome Center, and in West Yellowstone. The MobiManage Marketing
Platform running these media channels allows VBS to leverage these technologies to ensure that real-time
information about the Big Sky Resort Area is getting into the hands of current visitors, potential visitors in
nearby West Yellowstone, as well as Big Sky residents. Since its recent launch, 1,718 users have
downloaded the app to enhance their Big Sky experience. They also receive push notifications about current
events and promotions, geo-targeted messaging and search results, as well as important safety updates
when needed from emergency service providers. Local retailers, restaurants, tour operators and other Big
Sky community non-profits enjoy the ability to advertise their products, services and events in real-time to
generate tourism-related activity and spending through this technological platform. Expenses associated with
this project involve routine maintenance and adding new features to the app and kiosks.
Goal: To provide the ultimate visitor experience to our guests and to maximize their tourism-related spend while
in the Greater Big Sky Area destination.
Objective: To increase visitor engagement with our destination through relevant, direct marketing
communication, resulting in increased spending and longer stays in Big Sky to the benefit of our local businesses
and non-profit organizations.
PROJECT II:
MARKET RESEARCH AND MARKETING SUPPORT - $78,800
A. DestiMetrics – DIGITAL DATA PLATFORM ($21,800)
DestiMetrics is the leading supplier of lodging metrics and market intelligence for the North American
mountain travel industry, providing “what you ought to know” about destination-wide metrics, lodging
performance, benchmarking and resort intelligence. VBS utilizes DestiMetrics’ foundational product,
Reservation Activity Outlook, tracks past and present reservation activity, and sets the stage for measuring
performance in the destination. These detailed reports gauge occupancy, Average Daily Rate (ADR) and
Revenue Per Available Room (RevPAR) at the destination-level.
GOAL: To provide the Big Sky Resort Area’s tourism stakeholders with an informed overview of lodging
performance in real-time throughout the year by involving as many participating lodging partners as possible.
OBJECTIVE: To better manage the visitor experience in times of peak capacity while also to proactively
address low periods in an effort to maximize revenues and tax collections. This analysis also helps to manage
staffing levels not only at hotels, but at restaurants and other tourism-related businesses. Currently Big Sky has
7-8 lodging properties participating in the DestiMetrics research program, representing up to 661 units or about
50% of room capacity (over 1,300 units). VBS will continue to recruit non-participating and forthcoming hotel
properties so as to have the most complete and accurate detail of the marketplace upon which to base decisions.
B. DESIGN SERVICES ($10,000)
In conjunction with the year-round, consumer marketing campaign, there are design fee expenses for
development of the advertising creative. FuseIdeas, creates concepts for the campaign and executes those
concepts in the various media channels including print, digital, social, and OOH. HTML formatting, animation,
vendor trafficking, social media copywriting, image sourcing, etc. are part of this scope of work.
C. WEBSITE UPDATES ($7,500)
VBS has decided that it is strategic to combine the biggestskiinginamerica.com and visitbigskymt.com
websites. An RFP has been issued, with an expected selection date of a web-development agency by midJune. To complete this work, VBS will utilize Big Sky Convention and Visitor Bureau (CVB) state-allocated
2017-2018 Application for Resort Tax Funds | Page 4
funds. However, although VBS will begin the process of creating a new website, we still need to maintain the
existing site in the meantime which is especially important with the summer marketing campaign currently
underway. All creative will send consumers to visitbigskymt.com.
D. ADMINISTRATION ($39,500)
In order for VBS to effectively manage the many projects detailed herein, and “move the needle” in this
community rather than just tread water, we have a significant need for additional marketing and
administrative support. VBS (and by extension the Big Sky Community and Resort Tax collections) would
benefit from the hiring of a Marketing Coordinator to assist with the workload. Additional expenses include
legal and accounting (tax preparation) services.
Marketing Coordinator ($36,500)
Legal and Accounting ($3,000)
PROJECT III: TOURISM MASTER PLAN - $45,000
We are fortunate for the growth that the community is seeing, and we, like everyone, need to choose how to
react to and guide growth in visitation. As 2016 came to a close, here is what we observed.
• Visitation in YNP set a new visitation record with a total of 4,257,177 million visits which represents a 4%
increase over 2015 and a 21% increase over 2014. Over 40% of the total visitation came into Yellowstone
through the park’s west entrance, which also saw the greatest percentage increase in visits among the park’s
five entrance gates, up more than 21% from 2014. Traffic count on US 191 was over 1 million vehicles.
• Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport (BZN) handled over 1.1 million passengers. This is up 8.4% from
2015 and sets a passenger record for the seventh consecutive year of record breaking passenger traffic.
BZN now handles 52% more passengers than it did in 2010 and accounts for 29% of all air travelers
traveling to and from Montana. BZN is the eighth busiest airport in the seven state Northwest Region of the
country, and the 114th busiest airport in the nation in terms of passengers.
• Boyne Resorts announced its Big Sky 2025 plan committing to making more than $150 million in
improvements over the next decade that will transform Big Sky Resort and all that surrounds its iconic Lone
Peak.
• Additionally, the resort communities of Yellowstone Club, Moonlight Basin, Spanish Peaks, as well as the
Town Center are continuing the respective build-out of their planned community developments.
VBS is requesting funds to complete a Tourism Master Plan to prepare and manage for this growth that is
coming in the tourism sector with additional visitors on a year-round basis.
The DestinationNEXT assessment done for and in collaboration with the Big Sky community in 2016 provided
VBS with details about our destination’s strengths, and community support and engagement. This study will be a
useful tool for us to use in the Tourism Master planning process.
GOAL: To formulate a Tourism Master Plan,* essentially a 5-year Strategic Plan for VBS, tourism industry
stakeholders, and the Big Sky Resort Area District community that embodies the vision and goals for the
destination, and answers the following questions:
Situational Analysis
• What are the current economic and tourism conditions in the Big Sky Resort Area community?
• What opportunities and challenges are we facing?
Tourism Development
• What business objectives related to tourism do we expect to achieve?
• How will our community achieve these objectives? What type of tourism products will we need? What type of
visitor are we hoping to attract?
• Who are our visitors now? Why should they visit our community rather than another community?
• How will we communicate our tourism products to potential visitors?
• What tourism products do we have that are of interest to visitors?
• What do we need to do to make our tourism products of greater interest to visitors?
2017-2018 Application for Resort Tax Funds | Page 5
•
•
•
What type of growth does our community want to achieve? In the short term? Over the longer term?
Who will do what, when?
How are we going to measure our progress so we can learn from the experience?
*Source: http://www.destinationbc.ca/Resources/Tourism-Planning-Resources.aspx
OBJECTIVE: To hire an agency to assist VBS in crafting a Tourism Master Plan to provide direction to the
organization in its role as the steward of the largest economic driver in Big Sky. The Tourism Master Plan will be
a dynamic document to be updated annually thus allowing VBS to be nimble in this industry in constant
disruption and ever-changing political and socio-economic conditions.
PROJECT IV:
MONTANA GOVERNOR’S CONFERENCE ON TOURISM AND RECREATION - $5,000
The Montana Governor’s Conference on Tourism and Recreation is the annual gathering of Montana’s tourism
and recreation industry. The 2018 conference will be held in Big Sky from April 15-17. VBS wishes to sponsor the
Welcome Reception on the opening night of the conference.
GOAL: To showcase the Big Sky Resort Community as a welcoming and collaborative tourism stakeholder to
the Montana Office of Tourism and Business Development, the Tourism Regions/CVBs, and other private
tourism-related businesses in attendance and the promote the Big Sky Resort Area destination as the premier,
world-class mountain resort in Montana.
OBJECTIVE: To convert all conference attendees into Big Sky ambassadors, sharing word-of-mouth with
everyone about the experience they had in Big Sky.
3) Is the project within the resort tax district? (25 words max)
Yes
Please note: Not every project will fulfill questions #4 through #8. Applications will not be rated on the
ability to fulfill multiple questions.
Does the entity and/or project…
4) Benefit the community at large including residents, visitors and tax collectors/the business
community? (50 words max)
Yes. VBS markets Big Sky as a tourist destination and manages the visitor experience which generates
revenue and jobs for local businesses, which then increases resort tax collections. The Big Sky Resort Area
District Tax Board then appropriates these monies back into our local community to benefit our residents.
5) Promote tourism development, help make Big Sky a world class resort community and increase the
visitor experience and/or increaseresort tax revenue? (50 words max)
Yes. VBS’s mandate is to drive visitation and enhance visitor experience. This generates economic
development through tourism-related visitor spend which increases resort tax collections. Careful
reinvestment of resort tax funds in tourism promotion facilitates a continual increase in revenue to then fund
local infrastructure, projects, and services for our community.
6) Support, improve or maintain critical infrastructure, public health, safety and/or welfare in the world
class community? (50 words max)
Yes. Tourism drives economic development – just look at the increase of air route options out of Bozeman
Yellowstone International Airport and the addition of Big Sky Medical Center to our community. Further,
forthcoming infrastructure improvements (i.e. traffic light, pedestrian tunnel) are being made possible by Resort
Tax collections from mostly visitor spending.
2017-2018 Application for Resort Tax Funds | Page 6
7) Involve collaboration among entities in the community to meet common goals? (100 words max)
Yes. VBS is a public-private partnership born out of the need to collectively market Big Sky, Montana, as a
year-round, world-class mountain resort community. It brings together Montana state lodging tax monies
from the Big Sky CVB, Big Sky Resort Area District funding and private investment from businesses both
big and small – all in the name of tourism promotion. As a gateway community to YNP, collaboration with
our fellow Gallatin Canyon Corridor stakeholders including the communities of West Yellowstone,
Bozeman, and Belgrade, BZN, MSU-Bozeman, Yellowstone Country and the State are instrumental to VBS’
success.
8) Fill a community need not currently or adequately being satisfied? (50 words max)
Yes. 2016 Resort Tax collections have increased over the past five years, which can be at least partially
attributed to the consumer marketing investment by VBS (and the Resort Tax). Resulting visitation and tourismrelated spending in the market directly increase Resort Tax collections.
9) What is your entity most proud of accomplishing? (100 words max)
At Visit Big Sky, we are most proud to be leading and managing the marketing and advertising for such a unique,
authentic, and treasured Montana community as Big Sky. Our full-time and part-time residents are what make us
special, and our geology and geography in the Yellowstone ecosystem speaks to our sense of place and attracts
visitors in both summer and winter. While there is work to do to continue to share our community with the world,
we are fortunate to have a solid foundation on which to advance community development and tax collections
through investment in tourism marketing.
Provide the following financial documents:
10) Copy of the entity’s complete operating budget for the period 07/01/17 through 06/30/18.
If your fiscal year does not coincide with this time period, please provide complete budgets for the
entity’s fiscal year that covers the aforementioned time period. For example, if the entity’s fiscal year
corresponds with a calendar year, provide two budgets 1) 01/01/2017 through 12/31/2017 and 2)
01/01/2018 through 12/31/2018.
11) Organization’s Profit and Loss Report, Budget vs. Actual Report and Balance Sheet from your
previous completed fiscal year.
12) Organization’s Profit and Loss Report, Budget vs. Actual Report and Balance Sheet from your
current fiscal year to date.
13) For applicants with mill levy authority please provide the following:
a. A map of your district’s boundaries
b. The current taxable value of your district
c. If applicable, the current mill levy rate
d. Using the information above, provide a detailed budgetary breakdown of the potential tax burden per
$100,000 value, for property owners within your district if mill levy authority would be used to fund this
project rather than resort tax funds.
2017-2018 Application for Resort Tax Funds | Page 7
TOTAL ORGANIZATIONAL BUDGET FOR THE YEAR $
1,053,000
(Include all organization projects and programs, not only those requesting Resort Tax funding. This number should
match the organization’s Revenue from Profit and Loss Report)
PRINCIPLE
Revenue
ITEM
AMOUNT
Request from Resort Tax
$715,000
PERCENTAGE
67.9
%
Other Public Grants
Private Donor Contributions
%
(not including In-kind)
Fundraising Events
%
Revenue Other*
Sub Total Revenue
$338,000
32.1
$1,053,000
%
Private Donor Contributions In-kind
Total Revenue
%
$1,053,000
100% (the
revenue line
items above
should total)
Personnel:
_______ # of FTE Paid Personnel
_______ # of FTE Contract Personnel
%
Expenses
Do not include volunteer time
(in the amount column include the total
expense including salary, benefits and
payroll taxes)
Operations
Programming
$83,100
7.8%
$969,900
92.2%
Expenses Other**
%
Total Expenses
Capital
Expenditures
Income
$1,053,000
100% (the
expenses line
items above
should total)
Total Capital Expenditures
%
Net Income
%
*Revenue Other: Montana State Lodging Facility Use Tax collections
**Expenses Other:
Clarifications you’d like to provide regarding the information on this page:
2017-2018 Application for Resort Tax Funds | Page 8
RESERVES:
Capital,
Programming
and/or Operating
On Hand Restricted**
On Hand Unrestricted** (estimated CVB)
Goal (if currently no reserves)
$85,000
vary
**Purpose of Restricted and Unrestricted Capital Reserves: the estimated CVB funds are a carryover from
previous years to be used for a complete revision to the CVB website. The RFP process has been started and the
project is scheduled to begin in July 2017.
2017-2018 Application for Resort Tax Funds | Page 9
TOTAL CASH FLOW 3-YEAR REQUIREMENT
(Include all organization projects and programs, not only those requesting Resort Tax funding)
This Current
Application’s
Request from
Resort Tax
ITEM
2019
2020
Total Cash Flow
3-Yr Requirement
Personnel: Paid and/or Contract
(include salary, benefits and
payroll taxes; do not include
volunteer time)
Total # of FTE Personnel
Operations
Programming
NA
$83,100
$93,900
$106,000
$969,900
$1,095,800
$1,215,000
$3,280,700
$1,053,000
$1,189,700
$1,321,000
$3,563,700
$715,000
$822,000
$945,000
$2,482,700
$283,000
Capital Expenditures
Other*
Total
RESORT TAX REQUEST
Describe financial increases and decreases and the projects for which resort tax funds may be
requested.
2019: For 2019, work resulting from the Tourism Master Plan undertaken in 2018 will require the
funding
of
new
projects.
In
addition,
integration
of
the
visitbigskymt.com
and
biggestskiinginamerica.com websites, and the redesign of the single visitbigskymt.com site will have
begun in 2018, but carry forward into 2019. Based on the status of the Big Sky and Greater
Yellowstone Welcome Center property, VBS will look to resume work on a Gateway entranceway for
the Big Sky community to announce arrival at our world-class, mountain resort destination.
2020: In 2020, VBS will continue to expand our national footprint with a multi-channel, year-round
advertising campaign targeting current feeder markets and new or expanded existing air routes
working with BZN. Again, conclusions drawn from the Tourism Master Plan, to be reviewed annually,
will result in work on the visitor experience, including how to eliminate pain points in the visitor’s
journey and also to address new programming needed.
*Other Description
2017-2018 Application for Resort Tax Funds | Page 10