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Visit Littleton staff report big digital gains, cite capacity limits and ask arts board for partnerships
Summary
City communications director Jessica Bixman and Visit Littleton senior events and marketing manager Alexandra Venthal told the Arts and Culture Board that recent targeted marketing and a Colorado Office of Tourism grant produced significant online engagement and increased followers, but staff capacity limits are constraining further growth.
Jessica Bixman, Littleton City director of communications, and Alexandra Venthal, the city's senior events and marketing manager who runs Visit Littleton, told the Littleton City Arts and Culture Board on Oct. 9 that a mix of targeted digital marketing, partnerships and a state grant produced a sharp rise in visibility for Visit Littleton but left the program short-handed.
The presentation centered on metrics, recent partnerships and next-year priorities. Bixman and Venthal said Visit Littleton's Instagram account grew from a few hundred followers to roughly 3,200 after a sustained program of organic reels, paid boosts and coordinated weekly planning with local event managers. Venthal said the campaign produced an above-benchmark click-through rate of 1.02 and more than 442,000 engagements across grant-funded tactics; she described one organic reel that reached about 2,700 views and attracted mostly nonfollowers.
Why it matters: Visit Littleton uses lodge-related (lodgers) tax funds and a municipal structure to promote local events, restaurants and hotels. Board members and staff said increased visibility can translate into more hotel stays and local spending, which in turn supports future lodging-tax revenue and arts funding.
Key details and supporting material
- Grant and state marketing: Venthal said Visit Littleton secured support from the Colorado Office of Tourism that gave the city access to the state's marketing ad agency and programs. Venthal described a small financial outlay (she cited about $12,000) plus in-kind placement in state emails and a printed 'field guide' to welcome centers; she said the state placements produced strong open and engagement rates. (Exact grant mechanics and total state program budgets were described by staff during the presentation.)
- Web and SEO costs: Bixman told the board that maintaining Visit Littleton's site and paid search/SEO are substantial line items in the lodgers-tax budget. She cited a recurring hosting fee (approximately $87.50 per month) and said combined site, maintenance and SEO support approaches roughly $50,000 per year when design, hosting and paid search are included.
- Local partnerships and promotions: Staff described cross-promotion with downtown businesses, hotels (two Marriott properties, WoodSpring and others), AdventHealth and event partners (Criterion bicycle race, Harvest Festival, Town Hall Art Center). Venthal said partnerships enabled hotel room blocks, targeted paid reels for events such as Littleton Restaurant Week and new lodging listings on statewide tourism pages.
- Programs and events: Venthal highlighted several recent and planned promotions including a dinosaur exhibit that drove exceptional short-term foot traffic, farmer's market promotion, paid reels for restaurant week and a partners meeting set for Oct. 30 to align city stakeholders around consistent visitor messaging.
- Capacity constraints and staffing: Both Bixman and Venthal emphasized staff limits. Venthal said she is effectively a team of one for events and marketing, spending roughly 80% of her time on events, and asked the board for help supplying content, introductions to grantees and volunteer or intern support. Bixman noted the council recently approved two communications positions (a community engagement manager and a communications strategist) but said Visit Littleton remains a lean operation compared with typical DMOs (destination marketing organizations) that have sales, sponsorship and event teams.
Selected quotes
- "We had an impressive click-through rate of 1.02 above industry benchmarks and delivered over 442,000 engagements across all tactics," Alexandra Venthal, senior events and marketing manager, said of the state-funded campaign.
- "Half of the lodgers-tax grant goes just to supporting the website," Jessica Bixman, director of communications, said, adding that web and SEO work is a substantial ongoing cost.
Board requests and next steps
Board members asked how they could help. Venthal and Bixman requested a board point person to supply content (photos, video, event details), introductions to grant recipients so Visit Littleton can provide free marketing, and help developing an internship/content pipeline with local colleges. Staff also said they'd like board input on a proposed welcome magazine, targeted mailers and the 02/5150 campaign theme for next winter.
Ending
Bixman and Venthal characterized the program's recent gains as evidence that targeted, partnership-driven marketing can increase visibility and patronage for local businesses and events, but said sustaining and scaling that work will require additional staff, clearer handoffs with event managers and stronger collaboration across city departments and community partners.
