Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Tourism Economic Development topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Visit Grove City updates council on tourism strategy, new booking tool and 2024 performance
Summary
Visit Grove City presented its strategic plan, reported a 6.5% increase in occupancy for 2024, previewed a new booking engine, and described trade-show leads and local partnerships intended to bring group visits to Grove City.
Representatives of Visit Grove City briefed council on the bureau’s strategic plan, marketing activities and recent performance metrics, and described a new booking tool the organization has contracted to deploy on its website.
Bev Babbert, board president of Visit Grove City, and executive director Amanda Davis told council the bureau’s mission is to attract visitors and support local businesses. The bureau highlighted several tactics it used in 2024–25: targeted trade-show attendance, partnership visits with travel influencers, and hosting the Ohio Association of Convention and Visitors Bureaus educational conference. The presentation said Visit Grove City’s occupancy rate rose 6.5% in 2024 while average daily rate fell slightly.
Amanda Davis described results from the Heartland Travel Showcase in Toledo, noting that staff met with 27 tour operators and generated 11 leads for group tours projected for 2027–28. The presentation also described a partnership that produced more than 313,000 impressions and 29,000 engagements from a visit by travel content creator Brandy Gleason that included stops at eight local businesses.
Visit Grove City told council it had refined its RFP process for group leads and contracted with a company called Ripe to install a booking engine on the Visit Grove City website. The bureau said the booking engine transacts directly with local hotels and motels so room tax is calculated on retail rates rather than wholesale rates found on third-party channels. Staff said it is too early to report measurable results from the booking tool but that they plan future benchmarking.
Visit Grove City said it will continue reporting to council in May and September to show the bureau’s local economic impact. The bureau also described several local events — including a curated “Americana” tour and the digital pizza-trek product — used to market Grove City.
