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Visitor bureau outlines AI-ready, digital-focused FY26-27 plan as ATAX fund shows $517,000 available
Summary
The Visitor & Convention Bureau presented its FY26-27 marketing plan emphasizing digital, SEO and AI-readiness and geofencing analytics after staff reported the ATAX fund balance at just over $517,000; the committee voted to recommend the bureau's plan as submitted.
Christie Pinsky, chair of the Accommodation Tax Advisory Committee, opened the May 19 meeting and asked staff to report the quarter's finances. Shannon, a committee staff member, said collections for the quarter ending March 31 were "just shy of $190,000," and after carryover and lapsed-grant adjustments the committee had "just over $517,000 available for distribution."
Ariana Pernice, who oversees the Visitor & Convention Bureau for the Hilton Head Island–Bluffton Chamber of Commerce, presented the bureau's FY26-27 plan and a year-in-review of metrics. Pernice said the bureau produced 30,000 printed vacation planners and fulfilled 27,505, reported roughly 325,000 page views on the destination website and about 38,000 referrals to local businesses, and described social-channel growth to about 64,000 total followers. "We need to be technically impeccable. We need to be the authority or build digital credibility, and we need to be AI ready on all of our content," Pernice said, emphasizing a shift to digital and new measurement approaches.
Pernice also described new KPIs the bureau will track as part of search-engine and AI changes — including AI citations and API calls — and discussed use of geofencing tools such as Placer AI to measure whether events draw visitors or mostly locals. She said the bureau continues to work with the College of Charleston on visitor profiles and the economic-impact report that quantifies tourism's effect for Southern Beaufort County.
After the presentation a committee member moved to recommend the Visitor & Convention Bureau's plan as presented; the motion was seconded and approved by voice vote. The committee now has the financial capacity to consider several grant requests submitted this quarter (six applications requesting just over $155,000), with the bureau's digital-focused plan scheduled to guide how ATAX funds support destination promotion.
