The Windsor Chamber of Commerce will launch the new year with an
expanded staff and increased marketing funds thanks to approval of
its annual budget at the Dec. 5 Town Council meeting.
The Town Council approved a budget of $103,500 for an 18 month
period beginning January 1 that will cover two part time positions
at the Chamber. Each position will cost a total of $51,750 or
$34,500 annually including salary, administrative costs and
additional fees such as workers comp.
After signing a recent agreement with the Business Improvement
District, the Chamber will also receive the BID assessment fees
totaling approximately $26,000. The Chamber will take $4,000 of the
assessment fees to cover administrative costs and put the remaining
$22,000 to marketing efforts.
Chamber Executive Director Hal Beck said the administration
costs break down to $50 per BID member and BID members who are also
Chamber members will receive a $50 credit on their chamber
membership as a way to encourage full BID participation in the
Chamber.
In brief comments to the Council Beck said the Chamber was
committed to raising an additional $22,000 to which would be
combined with the BID assessments to help market the entire Town
with an ongoing co-ordinated advertising and marketing effort to
brand Windsor as a premier shopping, dining and services
destination for targeted markets within Sonoma County.
Beck said the Chamber will reevaluate how it spends funds,
shifting the focus from creating events to capitalizing on
potential customers. Events that have traditionally been funded by
Chamber or BID dollars, such as portions of the Windsor Day Parade
and Easter Egg Hunt, will be required to find new sponsorship as
the Chamber will transition its funds to promotion of events. “The
BID has done events but that won’t come out of assessments any
more,” he said. “It will come from select merchants and as far as
using BID or chamber marketing money, probably not. We will do the
marketing side of it, do the advertising and promotional work for
it. We will put our money there to drive people to it rather than
paying for booth and band.”
Council member Sam Salmon said he was initially concerned as to
the need for expanding hours at the visitor center but said he
appreciated the quantity of work that went into the proposal. “A
lot of thought went into this and its the best chance at supporting
the business community,” he said.
Windsor’s visitor center has handled between 60 and 70 visitors
per month but Beck said that figure jumped to more than 100 in
October and is expected to stay high thanks to an increase in
marketing.
Much of that marketing will be done by a new marketing
specialist hired by the Chamber. Beck said he hoped to find an
exciting marketing professional who would make an impact selling
Windsor to outsiders. Those outsiders are likely to come from
increased tourism as the number of hotel rooms within Windsor’s
economic sphere of influence is about to double with construction
of new hotels. Increased visitors can also be expected as a result
of the success in air travel at Charles M. Schulz airport.
The second part time position will oversee the visitor’s center
and Beck said he had already hired Janice Sexton to fill the
position. Sexton started last week and will help coordinate the
center’s growing number of volunteers, maintain organization within
the center and help liaison with visitors.
