2026 Petoskey Area Tourism Partner Open House Presentation by PetoskeyArea

2026 TOURISM PARTNER OPEN HOUSE

June 3, 2026

AGENDA

Welcome & Introductions

About the Petoskey Area Visitors Bureau

Tourism Metrics & Economic Impacts

New Brand Identity & Brand Campaign

Introductions

2025 -2026 BOARD MEMBERS

Judy Booth // Boyne Resorts

Board Chair

Keith Stark // Northern Michigan Escapes

Board Vice-Chair

Craig Stolzenfels // Bay Harbor Village Hotel

Board Treasurer

Mary Beth Bennett // Terrace Inn

Board Secretary

Kamron Bijeh-Apple // Otis Harbor Springs

Daniel DeWindt // Trout Creek Condominiums

Erin Ernst // Boyne Resorts

Mark Fischer // Odawa Hotel

Marjaree Forbes // Michigan Vacation Destinations

Emily Jensen // Cotton Collection Northern Michigan

PAVB EX -OFFICIOS

Nikki Devitt // Petoskey Regional Chamber of Commerce

Bonnie Custer // Harbor Springs Area Chamber of Commerce

Jenny Clasman // Boyne Area Chamber of Commerce

PAVB STAFF

Jim Powell // Executive Director

Sarah Wiese // Marketing & Communications Director

Ellen Hillier // Digital & Content Manager

Mary Chris Hotchkiss // Group Sales Director

Anne Kurburski // Office Administrator

About Us: Petoskey Area Visitors Bureau

ORGANIZATION BACKGROUND

• Primary Destination Marketing Organization (DMO) for this region:

o Petoskey

o Harbor Springs

o Bay Harbor

o Boyne City & Boyne Falls

o Alanson

o Bay View

• Established in 1985 – PA59 Community Convention & Tourism Marketing Act

• Private non-profit 501(c)6 – governed by members & board of directors

• Funding provided by hospitality member assessments (5%)

ASSESSMENT REGION

MEMBER PROPERTIES

Apple Tree Inn - Sure Stay Collection

Bay Harbor Vacation Rentals

Bay Inn of Petoskey

Bay View Inn

Baymont Inn & Suites by Wyndham

Best Western Harbor Springs

Boyne City Motel

Boyne Mountain Resort

Boyne Vue Motel

City Express Petoskey-Harbor Springs

Colonial Inn

Crooked River Lodge

Crooked Tree Cottages

Days Inn by Wyndham

Hampton Inn & Suites of Petoskey

The Highlands at Harbor Springs

Holiday Inn Express & Suites Valley View – IHG

Home2 Suites

Hotel Perry

Inn at Bay Harbor

Lakeside Cottages

Northern Michigan Escapes

Odawa Hotel

OTIS Harbor Springs

Quality Inn by Choice Hotels

Super 8 by Wyndham

Terrace Inn

Trout Creek Condominiums

Village Suites Bay Harbor

Water Street Inn

PAVB MISSION

Build awareness, opinion, and consideration of the Petoskey Area as a premier year-round, overnight destination by using a combination of paid, earned, owned, and shared media.

We strive to provide leisure and business travelers with honest, credible, and complete information about the region, which includes Petoskey, Harbor Springs, Boyne City & Boyne Falls, Bay Harbor, Alanson and Bay View.

ORGANIZATION GOALS

• Effectively utilize financial resources provided by our members to promote the Petoskey Area as premier, year-round, overnight destination to both leisure and business (group/conference) travelers.

• Enhance the guest experience by providing easy access to unbiased knowledge of the region, including in-depth information on accommodations, amenities, and activities offered by our members and stakeholders.

• Provide access to accurate and current tourism metrics for the region, including visitor demographic, visitation data (occupancy/visitor nights), hospitality inventory and economic impact.

• Proactively engage with stakeholders, municipalities, and residents in the region regarding the mission and goals of the organization to provide a better understanding of the Bureau’s role in promoting visitation to the region.

PROMOTIONAL GOALS

• Increase unaided awareness, positive opinion and qualified consideration of the Petoskey Area as Michigan’s only true year-round, overnight destination for both leisure travelers and group meetings market.

• In addition to maintaining and maximizing visitation during peak periods, drive off peak visitation to the region and encourage guests to increase length of stay and number of annual trips to the region.

• Proactively drive positive earned media coverage of the region for our members and community stakeholders.

• Continue to refine the destination brand to better represent the entire region and create a halo effect.

PROMOTIONAL TACTICS

PAID MEDIA

OWNED MEDIA SHARED MEDIA EARNED MEDIA DIRECT SALES

PROMOTIONAL TACTICS : PAID MEDIA – TV & VIDEO

• Broadcast TV – Saginaw/Flint, Grand Rapids & Lansing

• Connected TV – Streaming services like Hulu

• Online Video - YouTube

PROMOTIONAL TACTICS : PAID MEDIA - DIGITAL

• Digital Display

• Paid Search – Google search

• Paid Social – Facebook, Instagram, TikTok

• Streaming Audio – Podcasts

PROMOTIONAL TACTICS : PAID MEDIA - TRADITIONAL

• Out-of-Home (OOH) – Billboards

• Print

PROMOTIONAL TACTICS : OWNED MEDIA

Petoskey Area Website, Blog, Live Webcam, & App

PROMOTIONAL TACTICS : SHARED MEDIA

Petoskey Area Visitors Bureau

Followers: 108K

Petoskey Area

Followers: 30K

Petoskey Area Visitors Bureau

Followers: 2.5K

PetoskeyArea

Subscribers: 700

Petoskey Area Visitors Bureau

Followers: 450

PROMOTIONAL TACTICS : EARNED MEDIA

• Media Kit – go-to resource for journalists to get factual information about the Petoskey Area

• Media Hub – image & video library available for journalism permissions

• SATW Membership – Society of American Travel Writers

• Agency Partnership – GO PR

o 6-month trial to support campaign launch, bringing 5 journalists to the region for themed trips

PROMOTIONAL

TACTICS : DIRECT SALES

• Mary Chris Hotchkiss, Group Sales Director, is a Destination Expert

• Individual Sales Calls & Meetings

• National & Regional Trade Shows

• Hosting Individual & Group Sales

FAM Trips

• Paid Media Campaign

o Digital Display

o Paid Search

o Paid Social o Print

EVENT UNDERWRITING GRANTS

• 40 local & regional non-profits

• 65+ annual events / activations

• Provided $115,000+ in local grant funding

Live Music:

• Stroll the Streets

• Street Musique

• Charlotte Ross Lee Concerts in the Park

• Bayside Concert Series

Tourism Metrics

ESTIMATED LODGING OCCUPANCY –

ANNUAL

Source: Smith Travel Research Report – DMO Destination Report 2025 CY

ESTIMATED LODGING OCCUPANCY – MONTHLY

Source: Smith Travel Research Report – DMO Destination Report 2025 CY

OVERNIGHT VISITOR ORIGIN

Source: Arrivalist Trip Insights Dashboard 2025 CY

OVERNIGHT VISITOR ORIGIN

Source: Arrivalist Trip Insights Dashboard 2025 CY

AVERAGE NIGHT STAY

April – May

In State Out of State

June – August

September – October

November – March

Source: Arrivalist Trip Insights Dashboard 2025 CY

Economic Impacts

VISITOR SPEND : EMMET & CHARLEVOIX COUNTIES

Source: 2024 Tourism Economics Report

$159.1M

TOURISM -SUPPORTED EMPLOYMENT – DIRECT

Source: 2024 Tourism Economics Report

STATE & LOCAL TAXES GENERATED BY TOURISM

EMMET COUNTY $58.9M

CHARLEVOIX COUNTY $57.0M

$115.9M

Source: 2024 Tourism Economics Report Represents a $4,221 annual savings per household.

New Brand Identity & Brand Campaign

BRAND DEVELOPMENT PROCESS

BRAND POSITIONING STATEMENT

For travelers who want experiences that are equal parts indulgence and fulfilling, the Petoskey Area is an easy getaway that rejuvenates your soul with a unique blend of natural beauty and eclectic communities.

Unlike anywhere else in Michigan, the Petoskey Area is the only true four-season destination offering visitors year-round splendor, enrichment and indulgence.

Brand Identity

BRAND IDENTITY INSPIRATION

• Reflect Area's Natural Beauty

• Four-Season Destination

• Unique & Distinct Iconology

• Contemporary Design

• Consistent with Surroundings

• T-Shirt & Sticker Worthy

THE PETOSKEY AREA CHARM

Our Charm is inspired by our area’s most recognizable icon and keepsake: the Petoskey Stone. We’ve harnessed its natural and distinctive hex pattern as the core of our visual identity system. As a simple and powerful expression of the brand, the Charm serves to instill an emotional and memorable association between the timeless stone and Petoskey Area guests.

The Petoskey Stone is unique to Michigan, especially the Petoskey Area. It’s an object of natural beauty and ancient regional history. The Charm was designed to evoke that sense of time and wonder – its organic forms are a calm and grounding connection to place, while its symmetry evokes the timelessness of nature.

NEW LOGO IN USE

Brand Campaign

BRAND CAMPAIGN INSPIRATION

• Qualitative Study Comments

• Embrace “Magician” Archetype

• Reflect the Area’s Natural Beauty

• Four-Season Destination

• Represent our Region & Communities

• Destination Differentiation

CREATIVE CAMPAIGN BRIEF:

RECALIBRATE YOUR INNER COMPASS

• As you arrive in the region, the rolling hills, spectacular views of the bay, and the scent of the pines envelopes you – but there’s a more profound feeling that takes hold. It’s the slow exhale of a breath you didn’t know you were holding, and the burdens of the modern world being lifted off your shoulders.

• Like a siren’s call to the soul, it feels like a homecoming, even if you’ve never set foot here before.

• The Petoskey Area transcends its position on the map; it embodies a quiet promise – an idealism of simple times. Where peace lingers in nature's stillness and sunsets unfold like timeless conversations with old friends hesitant to part.

• In this place, life dances in rhythm with the seasons. Whispers of stories ride the wind through rusting leaves, shimmer across the lake’s surface, and crackle from bonfires beneath a canopy of stars. Time slows here; the frenetic pace of the world quiets, allowing everything to fall back into harmony.

• The Petoskey Area is a sanctuary for cherished moments, where life’s demands soften and remind you that the magic of living arises not from pursuing the next big thing but from discovering peace in the present.

• When the city’s clamor grows overwhelming and the weight of the world presses in, the Petoskey Area stands for a tranquil refuge for your soul, as it has for generations – an invitation to return, to reconnect, and to recalibrate your inner compass.