2014 WDVCB Annual DinnerThe 2014 Wisconsin Dells Visitor & Convention Bureau Annual Dinner will be held on Sunday, April 27 at Kalahari Waterpark Resort Convention Center. A cocktailreception will begin at 5:00 p.m., dinner at 6:30 p.m., followed by the WDVCB presentation, which highlights 2013 efforts and successes as well as offers a snapshotof what’s to come in 2014.

The price per person for dinner will be just $15 and the dress will be business casual. Once again, the Bureau is sharing the cost of the dinner in an effort toencourage more members to attend. Invitations will be mailed in early April.

If you have questions regarding the upcoming annual dinner, please contact Wendy Fischer at (608) 254-7180, ext. 302 or wendy@wisdells.com.

Bureau Welcomes New StaffBianca JohnsonBianca Johnson is a Wisconsin Dells native and spent much of her time growing up at her family’s motels in the area. After earning adegree at Michigan State University, Bianca was drawn right back into the hotel world when she landed her first job with Hyatt RegencyIndianapolis as a Convention Services Manager. Bianca’s work in tourism, hospitality, conventions, and marketing includes owning andoperating pause, a coffee, beer, and wine house in Wisconsin Dells, from 2008 to 2009. Having spent the last three years as the TourismPromotions Director for the Sauk Prairie Riverway, we are excited to have her join the team at the Wisconsin Dells Visitor & ConventionBureau as the Communication & Public Relations Specialist.

Anne PhillipsAnne Phillips brings a wealth of customer service and destination marketing experience to the new Visitor Services Manager position, andwe are so excited to have her join the team. Originally from Marinette, Anne began her career as the Program Manager for Main StreetWaupaca, a nationally recognized community revitalization program. Anne worked with community businesses, property owners, citygovernment and the chamber to plan events, retail promotions, parades and more. She then moved to Vail, Colorado, continuing her workin destination marketing. After spending time in California, Anne returned to Wisconsin and has spent the past three years as the ClubManager at Anytime Fitness in Baraboo. That position solidified the fact that Anne loves working with people and has fun helping them.Outside of work, you’ll find Anne enjoying family and the outdoors, working out, running, hiking, or training for her second Tough Mudder.

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Wisconsin Dells' Annual Vacation Guide®

A Real Page Turner for Dells VacationersThe 2014 Vacation Guide is 140 pages of beautiful color photos, snazzy stories and handy dandy lists. The guide starts off with a run-down on what’s new for 2014,but it doesn’t stop there. Whether it be a savory new restaurant, a thrilling new ride, or a wild new slide, the Vacation Guide is chock full of the latest and greatestthings to come to the Dells area. If you wish to have additional quantities of the Vacation Guide for your property, please contact Amanda Rinaldi at (608) 254-7180,ext. 304 or amanda@wisdells.com.

Top Spring Break Destination Nomination from 10Best & USA Today“The Waterpark Capital of the World!®” has been nominated in the 10Best Readers’ Choice Travel Awards Best Spring Break Destination contest. Wisconsin Dells hasfour weeks to rise to #1, and, with your help, we can do it! A person can vote once a day for the run of the contest, which ends Monday, March 17th at 11:59am EDT.

The top ten winners will be announced on 10Best.com on Wednesday, March 19th, with a follow up mention on USA Today.

You will see a series of announcements on our Twitter feed and Facebook page. We hope you will help us spread the word by sharing the information on your socialmedia sites to help us get as many votes as possible. The link to the voting is: www.10best.com/awards/travel/best-spring-break-destination/

10Best is a division of USA Today Travel and provides its users with original, unbiased, and experiential travel content for destinations in the US and around theworld. 10Best’s content enables a traveler to cut through the online clutter by focusing on top ten lists.

Social Speak

Google Plus – Part 2 of 3This is the second in a three-part piece about Google Plus and how it affects your social media efforts.

Last time we talked a little bit about what Google Plus (G+) is. Similar to Facebook it may seem like it might be extraneous and ancillary. But there’s more to it thanthat.

Google, unarguably the dominant search engine on the planet, runs G+. Any information you put into G+, like your age, likes, location, favorite movies and pizzatoppings goes into the ever-growing Google Search Engine. That’s right. By having a public profile in G+ you make yourself easier to find online. So what? Well, G+,like Facebook, has Pages that you can “like” and “follow.” So, set up your personal profile and next time, if you haven’t already guessed, we’ll get right down to brasstacks.

Current Brochures

Do you have a new brochure? If so, be sure to drop off a supply at one of the Information Centers (Downtown or Lake Delton) to ensure that we are displaying themost up-to-date information on your business.

If you have any questions, please contact our Visitor Services Department at (608) 254-7180, ext. 350 or info@wisdells.com.

Current Bureau LiteratureAt this time, the following Bureau marketing collateral is available to member businesses:

2014 Wisconsin Dells Vacation Guide®2014 Attraction & Lodging Price Guide2014 Automotion Brochure2013 – 2014 Festivals & Events Brochure2014 Meetings & Conventions/Group Activities Planning GuideSplash on Safety Card (with and without lifeguards)Water Safety Public Service Announcement (PSA’s)Sun Safety Public Service Announcement (PSA’s)

If you would like a quantity to share with your guests, please contact Amanda Rinaldi at (608) 254-7180, ext. 304 or amanda@wisdells.com.

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Bureau Gearing Up For New Gift Card ProgramThe WDVCB is in the process of transitioning from the Valutec gift card program to a program administered by Store Financial. All Wisconsin Dells/Lake DeltonWDVCB member businesses who come into contact with visitors will be receiving a solicitation from the WDVCB encouraging participation. Some of the highlightsof the new program include:

The new gift cards are pre-paid, private label cards.The gift cards process as a credit or bankcard on a business’ register. There are no software or equipment changes necessary to current Point of Sale (POS)systems.The only requirements for participation are that the business can accept credit transactions utilizing the VISA or MasterCard® payment networks and thatthey authorize all transaction requests.

In order to smoothly transition from one program to the other the Bureau will no longer be selling Valutec gift cards as of March 1, 2014. Visitors may pre-order giftcards which will be issued by the new program and the Bureau expects that the new gift cards will be on sale beginning May 1, 2014.

General questions regarding the program or how to participate should be directed to Tammy Stephan at tammy@wisdells.com or (608) 254-7180, ext. 348.

Meeting UpdateClick here (member log-in required) to read minutes from past Bureau meetings and to view the schedule of upcoming Bureau meetings under the Meetings &Minutes section.

Membership UpdateOur warmest welcome goes out to our new 2014 WDVCB members:

Bekah Kate’s (Kitchen, Kids & Home) (Shopping)Dells Cab Company (Visitor Services)Fairfield Hills Golf Course & Driving Range (Attraction)Mr. G’s Chicken Shack (Restaurant)River Valley Bank (Associate)Salon M and Spa (Visitor Services)

Mark Your CalendarSolicitiation Deadlines

March 14, 2014 (Friday) - 2014 Gift Card Program

The following marketing opportunities and programs are ongoing and members can sign up for them at any time:

Employment Opportunity Guidewisdells.comGift Card ProgramClassic Wisconsin DellsCalendar of Events ListingsLeisure Inquiry LeadsPackages & Deals Web Site Incentive

Click here (member log-in required) to view all solicitations/programs.

Meetings

March 12, 2014 (Wednesday) – Accommodation Division Meeting from 9 – 10 a.m.March 18, 2014 (Tuesday) – Festivals Board of Directors Meeting from 3 – 4 p.m.March 18, 2014 (Tuesday) – Board of Directors Meeting from 4 – 5 p.m.April 1, 2014 (Tuesday) – Marketing Committee Meeting from 9 – 10:30 a.m.April 2, 2014 (Wednesday) – Campground Division Meeting from 10 – 11 a.m.April 27, 2014 (Sunday) – WDVCB Annual Dinner Meeting, cocktails @ 5 p.m., dinner @ 6:30 p.m. – Kalahari Waterpark Resort Convention Center

All meetings are held in the WDVCB Board Room, 115 La Crosse Street, unless otherwise noted.

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February Events RecapThe Religious Conference Management Association held its annual conference February 4-7, 2014 in Sacramento, CA. Over 300 meeting & event planners were inattendance. The WDVCB exhibited at the event and conducted 6 one-on-one appointments.

On February 12, 2014 the WDVCB participated in Destinations Showcase in Washington, DC. The event, which is produced by Destination Marketing Association,brings together meeting planners from the greater DC area and destination marketing organizations from across the country. There were more than 600 meeting &event planners in attendance.

For more information on tradeshows and events please contact Tifani Jones at (608) 254-7180, ext. 345 or tifani@wisdells.com.

Upcoming Tradeshows & EventsMeeting Professionals Int’l – Mid America (Columbus, OH) – March 2-4, 2014Meeting Professionals Int’l – WI Chapter (Appleton, WI) – March 20, 2014National Association of Sports Commissions (Oklahoma City, OK) – March 31-April 3, 2014WI Society of Association Executives (Green Bay, WI) – April 7, 2014Independent Planners Education Conference (San Antonio, TX) – April 14-17, 2014

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Upcoming March EventsClick here to view upcoming February events.

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