RECAP REPORT DECEMBER 2013

Transcription

1 RECAP REPORT DECEMBER 2013

2 TABLE OF CONTENTS SUPERSTORM SANDY AND THE STATE S RESPONSE STRONGER THAN THE STORM 2013 SUMMER IN REVIEW IMPACTS OF THE #STTS CAMPAIGN CONCLUSION 2

3 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This summer was unlike any other. Many parts of the New Jersey Shore were simply unable to welcome their traditional summer visitors as they focused on rebuilding their communities. Despite the unprecedented damage caused by Superstorm Sandy, a June washout and dire predictions about the shore s tourism economy, New Jersey s 2013 summer vacation season exceeded expectations. Publicly available and objective third party data on beach passes, transit activity, hotel taxes, hotel occupancy rates and employment illustrate that despite the challenges of the storm and recovery - the tourism industry was not only able to overcome low expectations - it was able to grow and expand in several areas. HOTEL TAX RECEIPTS Tax receipts are a direct measure of economic activity. Municipal and state hotel tax receipts were the second highest total in the last five years for the four shore counties (Monmouth, Ocean, Atlantic and Cape May) combined. Although June was the wettest ever recorded in the state, overall 2013 receipts were down only 4% from 2012, the highest year for tourism tax receipts on record. 1 HOSPITALITY EMPLOYMENT For the three metropolitan statistical areas that make up the shore, August hospitality and leisure employment were very close to 2012 levels or increased compared to 2012, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The anticipated loss of an estimated 11,000 tourism-related jobs in the third quarter 2 due to the storm did not materialize. HOTEL OCCUPANCY The Jersey Shore summer season finished on par or better than some competing summer destinations. Data provided by STR Analytics indicates the shore matched Cape Cod s hotel occupancy for the second two-thirds of the summer season and beat out the Delaware Shore and Nassau and Suffolk county hotels in increased occupancy from 2012 and was down less than 1% year over year. 3 BEACH PASS SUMMARY Despite significant damage from the storm, overall beach pass revenue in 2013 decreased only slightly (-3%) when compared to the previous four-year average. Beach pass revenue in particular was reflective of the various states of recovery along the shore with some towns realizing solid gains (Asbury Park, Long Branch) and others seeing significant drop offs (Toms River, Mantoloking). 4 MWW, agency of record for the Stronger than the Storm campaign authored this report MWW GROUP, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT DECEMBER 2013

4 01 SUPERSTORM SANDY AND THE STATE S RESPONSE 4

5 STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT Superstorm Sandy threatened a sizable portion of the state s economy. The state s tourism industry directly supports 318,500 jobs in New Jersey and sustains more than 500,000 jobs. These jobs represent 10% of total employment. In 2012, the tourism sector generated $34.7 billion of the state s total GDP, or 7.0% of the entire state economy. The four shore counties alone account for fully half of New Jersey s tourism economy. Including indirect and induced impacts, tourism in New Jersey generated $4.5 billion in state and local taxes and $5.1 billion in Federal taxes in All of this was in jeopardy following Sandy. Coupled with the magnitude of the storm and its resulting damage was the problem of misperceptions about its true impact on the state. While many communities up and down the shore suffered significant damage, many others were largely spared or able to quickly recover. Nevertheless, in the wake of Sandy, media coverage of the storm and its aftermath was unrelenting in its focus on the destruction resulting from the storm with little coverage of recovery efforts and those communities that were back in business. That needed to change. Recent history from other disasters of comparable size and impact Hurricane Katrina and the BP oil spill clearly illustrate that changing the lingering perceptions needed to happen immediately. As New Jersey began to rebuild, its leaders in government, tourism and economic policy at the highest levels were determined not to let images of destruction impact the state. Likewise, all shore communities shared two common goals to quickly recover and, just as importantly, change misperceptions that the shore was closed for the upcoming 2013 tourist season because of storm damage MWW GROUP, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT DECEMBER 2013

6 FROM THIS NEED WAS BORN THE STRONGER THAN THE STORM (#STTS) CAMPAIGN. The $25 million public awareness campaign was funded through a federal Community Development Block Grant. The overarching goal of the campaign was simple: to demonstrate that the shore was open for business and still a terrific destination for families to take their summer vacations. 6

7 STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT Elements of the campaign included: ADVERTISING An aggressive TV campaign was developed and aired in key markets. While the New Jersey, New York and Philadelphia areas were the primary focus, spots appeared in outlets throughout the Eastern Seaboard, including Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Boston and Eastern Canada. In addition, billboard advertising appeared in key commuter locations around New York City and in Times Square. Digital advertising appeared on popular sites with our target audiences, including NJ.com, Yahoo!, ESPN and many others. Radio spots were created and aired throughout New Jersey and surrounding locales. WEBSITE StrongerThanTheStorm.com was launched to serve as a one stop shop for all things related to the campaign and, just as importantly, Jersey Shore tourism and recovery. The website received 390,000 visits, and 105,000 online fans. The site includes a calendar of events, news from the shore, photo gallery, visitor guide with tourism planning resources, business and homeowner assistance programs, and other assets to help promote the Jersey Shore MWW GROUP, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT DECEMBER 2013

8 COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT A core element of the STTS campaign was to activate a number of events up and down the Jersey Shore that would attract tourists and media coverage to help reinforce the message that the Jersey Shore is Open for Business. The campaign executed and supported 43 events in a 12 week period with over 334,000 event attendees. Related activities included a Guinness Record-breaking ribbon cutting ceremony on Memorial Day Weekend with the Governor at Seaside Heights and on NBC s Today Show, Kites & Castles events in eight municipalities, a Tug of War contest in Seaside Park, Boats & Boards in Toms River, and the New Jersey Soundoff Contest in Asbury Park. STTS also worked side by side with the region s Destination Marketing Organizations, Chambers of Commerce and local event organizers to support and promote their events. 8

9 STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT SOCIAL MEDIA In addition to the website, the campaign established online real estate on a number of other sites to help promote the shore. These included Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Vine, Tumblr and YouTube. Twitter in particular, was very strong with 217 million impressions. FACEBOOK 98,057 Likes TWITTER 6,616 Followers INSTAGRAM 726 Followers YOUTUBE 253 Subscribers 21,186 views on last video of Zombie Walk Time Lapse 27 videos total Highest viewed video is the official commercial with 83,304 views MWW GROUP, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT DECEMBER 2013

10 DESTINATION MARKETING ORGANIZATION TOOLKITS Customized digital assets that included localized STTS logos for use on signs, hats, t-shirts, etc. were created and posted to the STTS website for downloading by municipal officials. 2,588 was downloaded from the site. MEDIA RELATIONS Launching on Memorial Day weekend the STTS campaign engaged in a rigorous, proactive media campaign to help spread the word that the shore was open for business. The campaign had 1.25 billion total media impressions as well as 1,746 total media placements. Broadcast and print outlets, at the local, regional, national and even international levels, were targeted for related stories. In addition to highlighting STTS events, campaign resources were used to promote local events to help drive tourist traffic and media coverage. 10

11 STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT 02 STRONGER THAN THE STORM 2013 SUMMER IN REVIEW MWW GROUP, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT DECEMBER 2013

12 Before the Stronger than the Storm campaign officially launched May 25 th, 2013 the outlook for the summer tourism season was uncertain. Pre-season predictions from Rutgers University estimated the state s tourism industry would have losses of $950 million in the third quarter alone. 6 12

13 STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT The challenges at the time of launch were significant: New Jersey residents themselves began the season with an overall negative perception of the state of the shore. More than 50% stated they did not believe the shore would be back to normal for at least another three years. 7 15,600 summer rental properties reported suffering severe or major damage which represents approximately 1.5 million potential lost accommodation nights along the Shore for the peak tourism season. 8 About 30% of New Jersey residents who had previously taken shore vacations of at least 4 days in previous summers were planning to cut back on their visits to the shore. 9 In addition to the concerns and issues leading into the summer, New Jersey also experienced the wettest June since record keeping began in 1895 which further dampened potential tourism activity and threatened recovery even more MWW GROUP, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT DECEMBER 2013

14 By the end of the summer, a review of publicly available and independent third party data revealed the post-sandy 2013 summer vacation season was much stronger than expected. While beach pass revenue numbers were mixed and slightly down overall, leisure and hospitality employment numbers and hotel occupancy numbers for the shore were the highest and second highest in the last five years, respectively. 14

15 STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT No single measure tells the complete story of the impacts, losses and recovery of the shore. But a comprehensive review of the tourism industry s condition can be constructed by looking at several key indicators: hospitality employment, hotel occupancy, hotel tax receipts, beach pass sales and transit ridership. Hospitality employment is an unambiguous bottom-line indicator of the health of the tourism industry, and employment numbers for August 2013 were well ahead of expectations. Hotel occupancy is a more complex issue. Broadly speaking, there are three types of vacation housing available hotels, bed & breakfast/inns and rental homes. While all exist in the four shore counties, certain forms tend to be more prominent in one county versus another. Overall, the hotel sector fared well compared to alternative eastern seaboard summer destinations in Hotel tax receipts provide additional insight. As a general rule, hotels have more resources and were repaired and reopened more quickly than many single family vacation homes. For example, counties like Monmouth, Cape May and Atlantic, who have more hotel rentals, were up and running. Ocean County relies on a larger stock of home rentals than hotels. Consequently, Ocean County experienced a greater loss in this sector. Another influence of the storm was seen in the sales of beach passes for the 2013 season. Some of the hardest hit communities were again located in Ocean County, and beach pass revenues dropped compared to previous years. However, some communities such as Asbury Park and Avalon saw growth even above and beyond their record 2012 beach pass sales. Areas serviced by the major shore public transit alternatives all saw a boost in arrivals compared to The Coast and Atlantic City rail lines on NJ Transit experienced ridership increases from the July 4th holiday through to Labor Day, while all four major bus lines serving the shore also saw an aggregate increase in ridership over their 2012 figures. 11 In summary, the 2013 summer season differed from the 2012 season on many levels. While shifts in destination choices, length of stay and accommodations were apparent, the changes were more concentrated on where to stay, when to go and how long to visit the shore, as opposed to not going at all or visiting a competing destination. In that regard, the New Jersey Shore clearly held its own MWW GROUP, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT DECEMBER 2013

16 NEW JERSEY SHORE TOURISM METRICS BEACH PASS SALES (as of Labor Day 2013) HOTEL OCCUPANCY (June - August) HOTEL REVENUE PER AVAILABLE ROOM (June - August) HOTEL TAX RECEIPTS (June - August) HOSPITALITY EMPLOYMENT (in thousands) 2009 $20,963, % ,787, $22,593, % ,742, $23,569, % ,967, $24,852, % ,236, $22,309, % ,673, SOURCE: Municipal administrators, clerks and mayors STR Analytics STR Analytics State of New Jersey, Department of Treasury Division of Taxation Total leisure and hospitality employment for Atlantic City, Ocean City and Edison metropolitan areas in August of each year. Retrieved from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. 16

17 STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT HOSPITALITY EMPLOYMENT Our analysis of the state of the shore begins with employment and hotel tax data as more than other available data types, they are most directly reflective of the economy. The latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics clearly demonstrates that the anticipated loss of 11,000 tourism related jobs in the third quarter of 2013 was not realized. 2 In fact, August hospitality and leisure employment has gone up for two of the three metropolitan statistical areas that make up the shore and for the shore overall MWW GROUP, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT DECEMBER 2013

18 LEISURE AND HOSPITALITY EMPLOYMENT NEW JERSEY AUGUST 2012 EMPLOYMENT 349,500 AUGUST 2013 EMPLOYMENT 358,000 CHANGE IN EMPLOYMENT +8,500 CHANGE (%) +2.4% Edison, NJ Metropolitan Divison (Includes both Monmouth and Ocean Counties) AUGUST 2012 EMPLOYMENT 103,100 AUGUST 2013 EMPLOYMENT 109,100 CHANGE IN EMPLOYMENT +6,000 CHANGE (%) +5.8% Atlantic County (Atlantic City MSA) AUGUST 2012 EMPLOYMENT 51,600 AUGUST 2013 EMPLOYMENT 52,100 CHANGE IN EMPLOYMENT +500 CHANGE (%) +1.0% Cape May County (Ocean City MSA) AUGUST 2012 EMPLOYMENT 19,800 AUGUST 2013 EMPLOYMENT 19,700 CHANGE IN EMPLOYMENT -100 CHANGE (%) -0.5% Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics (figures updated seasonally) 18

19 STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT HOTEL TAX RECEIPTS Tax receipts are a direct measure of economic activity. In the accommodation sector, municipal and state hotel tax receipts still registered as the second highest total in the last five years for the four shore counties combined. Overall, 2013 receipts were down only 4% from 2012 (which was the highest tourism season on record). 1 The drop was primarily driven by the slow start, inclement weather in June and a more significant drop in receipts for Ocean County compared to the remainder of the shore MWW GROUP, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT DECEMBER 2013

20 CHANGE IN MUNICIPAL AND HOTEL TAX RECEIPTS ALL FOUR COUNTIES % CHANGE V % % CHANGE V. JUNE % % CHANGE V (AVG) +5.5% % CHANGE V. JUNE (AVG) +5.6% % CHANGE V. JULY % % CHANGE V. JULY (AVG) +4.3% % CHANGE V. AUGUST % % CHANGE V. AUGUST (AVG) +6.7% Monmouth County % CHANGE V % % CHANGE V (AVG) +3.5% Ocean County % CHANGE V % % CHANGE V (AVG) -6.1% Atlantic County % CHANGE V % % CHANGE V (AVG) +10.5% Cape May County % CHANGE V % % CHANGE V (AVG) +8.4% Source: State of New Jersey, Department of Treasury, Division of Taxation 20

21 STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT HOTEL OCCUPANCY Hotel occupancy data further illustrates that after a slow beginning to the summer the New Jersey Shore rebounded as a destination. When compared to competing destinations, the Jersey Shore performed strongly over the last two months of the summer vacation season. The shore was able to outperform three other benchmark shore destinations, Delaware, Nassau and Suffolk County, and Cape Cod, for the month of August in terms of increasing its year-over-year occupancy. The summer had such a strong finish that the August spike allowed the shore to perform on par with the benchmark shore destinations when looking at the summer in its entirety MWW GROUP, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT DECEMBER 2013

22 HOTEL OCCUPANCY CHANGES NJ Shore Change in Hotel Occupancy JUNE -7.5% JULY 0.5% AUGUST 4.5% TOTAL SUMMER -0.8% Delaware Shore Change in Hotel Occupancy JUNE -4.3% JULY -1.6% AUGUST 0.3% TOTAL SUMMER -1.9% Nassau and Suffolk County Shores Change in Hotel Occupancy JUNE 2.1% JULY -3.2% AUGUST -1.1% TOTAL SUMMER -0.7% Cape Cod Change in Hotel Occupancy JUNE -4.9% JULY 0.4% AUGUST 2.3% TOTAL SUMMER -0.7% NJ Shore vs. Benchmarked Average Change in Hotel Occupancy JUNE -5.1% JULY 2.0% AUGUST 4.0% TOTAL SUMMER 0.3% Source: STR Analytics 22

23 STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT BEACH PASSES Beach pass data for each of the past five years was collected from nineteen communities representing the entire length of the shore. Overall, beach pass revenue was down just slightly (-3.0%) compared to average revenue collected across the entire shore for each of the previous four years. The year-over-year revenue numbers across the shore were reflective of the changing patterns of shore visitation happening during the summer with some towns realizing significant gains while others suffered significant losses MWW GROUP, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT DECEMBER 2013

24 BEACH PASS DATA ALL LOCATIONS AVG REVENUE 2013 REVENUE $22,995,034 $22,309,375 % CHANGE -3.0% Location Avg. Revenue 2013 Revenue % Change Sea Bright $363,581 $260, % Long Branch $1,311,178 $1,706,696 Asbury Park $846,188 $1,088,453 Belmar $2,898,683 $2,776,532 Manasquan $1,705,041 $1,369,567 Mantoloking $54,517 $28,380 Lavallette $838,054 $697,578 Toms River $654,964 $154,073 Seaside Heights $1,613,330 $1,317,943 Seaside Park $1,618,271 $1,416,170 Barnegat Light $228,416 $209,310 Long Beach $1,618,969 $1,569,000 Beach Haven $432,443 $417,660 Ventnor City $203,808 $199,685 Ocean City $3,630,430 $3,901,500 Sea Isle City $1,174,956 $1,329,475 Avalon $1,152,096 $1,190,518 Stone Harbor $687,110 $699,230 Cape May $1,962,999 $1,976, % +28.6% -4.2% -19.7% -47.9% -16.8% -76.5% -18.3% -12.5% -8.4% -3.1% -3.4% -2.0% +7.5% +13.2% +3.3% +1.8% +0.7% Source: Data collected directly from each community via the mayor s office, borough clerks and administrators 24

25 STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT TRANSIT The Stronger than the Storm campaign had a singular mandate to encourage visits to the New Jersey Shore. A direct measure of the campaign s impact is available in transit ridership data for both rail and bus lines. These options traditionally serve an important market segment by providing access to the shore for visitors from feeder markets in New York City, Philadelphia and Northern New Jersey. Despite the same slow start to the summer experienced across other measures, the summer as a whole realized an uptick in transit ridership across all of the primary shore routes. The year-over-year increase in transit ridership is a direct indicator of the campaign s success in activating this important segment of shore vistors MWW GROUP, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT DECEMBER 2013

26 TRANSIT RIDERSHIP NJ TRANSIT TOTAL July 4th through Labor Day v % CHANGE +2.5% Coast Line (Long Brand Branch through Bay Head) % CHANGE +2.1% Atlantic City Line % CHANGE +3.8% Shore Bus Lines (137, 319, 551, 316) % CHANGE +2.1% Source: NJ Transit 26

27 STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT 03 IMPACTS OF THE #STTS CAMPAIGN MWW GROUP, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT DECEMBER 2013

28 After a June washout, the New Jersey Shore roared back, showing that it is indeed Stronger than the Storm. The STTS campaign was designed with one singular purpose: to convince residents of the New Jersey, New York and Philadelphia metro areas and beyond to visit the shore that summer. Employment, hotel, transit and beach pass data all come together to tell a unified story: that despite prominent media coverage of Superstorm Sandy s devastating impact, we were able to restore people s pride in the shore and conjure up positive memories associated with years past. We understood that this campaign wasn t just about the shore being open for business. The real story was that the shore is an integral part of our lives and communities, and that only by coming together could we begin to repair it in a meaningful way. 28

29 STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT We are proud of what we were able to accomplish in one summer. Campaign highlights compiled by MWW from May 1st through December 18, 2013 include: 43 EVENTS IN COMMUNITIES ACROSS THE SHORE OVER 334,000 PEOPLE IN ATTENDANCE 16,320 PIECES OF COLLATERAL DISTRIBUTED 390,000 WEBSITE VISITS MWW GROUP, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT DECEMBER 2013

30 1,746 TOTAL MEDIA PLACEMENTS IN BROADCAST, PRINT AND ONLINE OUTLETS 105,000 ONLINE FANS 1.25 BILLION TOTAL MEDIA IMPRESSIONS 217 MILLION TWITTER IMPRESSIONS 30

31 STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT 04 CONCLUSION MWW GROUP, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT DECEMBER 2013

32 In the end, STTS is part of the story of New Jersey, its resilience and determination to overcome the impacts of a natural disaster. It is about using new and traditional communication tools to correct misconceptions, and celebrate the enormous effort of its citizens to rebuild, reopen and recreate all that makes the Jersey Shore such a special place. MWW, agency of record for the STTS campaign compiled this data. 32

33 STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT NOTES AND SOURCES 1. State of New Jersey, Department of Treasury, Division of Taxation (October 2013) hotelcounty.shtml 2. Economic and Statistics Administration. United States Department of Commerce (October 2013). Economic Impact of Hurricane Sandy: Potential Economic Activity Lost and Gained in New Jersey and New York. Retrieved from and employment data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. 3. Data provided by STR Analytics. Based on occupancy and daily rate data collected directly from hotels within two miles of the New Jersey shoreline by STR. A complete list of participating hotels is available on upon request. 4. Information provided by town mayors, borough clerks and administrators. 5. Tourism Economics, The Economic Impact of Tourism in New Jersey: Tourism Satellite Account, Calendar Year Retrieved from MWW GROUP, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED STRONGER THAN THE STORM RECAP REPORT DECEMBER 2013

34 6. Mantell, N., Seneca, J., Lahr, M. & Irving, W. (January 2013). The Economic and Fiscal Impacts of Hurricane Sandy in New Jersey: A Macroeconomic Analysis. Retrieved from 7. Quinnipiac University Poll (January 23, 2013). Retrieved from new-jersey/release-detail?releaseid=1833. See Q Star-Ledger. Jersey Shore Summer Rentals Took a Hit Months After Hurricane Sandy. (October 2013) Retrieved from (1.5 million estimated accommodation nights is calculated by assuming 96 rental nights are available per property from Memorial day to Labor Day). 9. Rutgers-Eagleton Poll (February 2013). Retrieved from Office of the New Jersey State Climatologist. Record Wet: June 2013 Summary and Mid-Year. (July 2013). Retrieved from climate.rutgers.edu/stateclim/?section=menu&%20target=june Data provided by New Jersey Transit. 12. Data provided by STR Analytics (comparative hotels were included if they were within 2 miles of the coast for the New Jersey, Delaware, Nassau county and Suffolk county shorelines. The entirety of Cape Cod was used as the final benchmark). 34

35 Video Content Digital Media Out of Home Paid Media: Awareness CAMPAIGN ROAD MAP Media Relations Earned Media Beach Sculpture Ribbon Cutting Owned Media and Events Cape May Search results are color-coded, and presented in a visual mosaic. The Yelp powered search tool allows users Search by location, activity, cuisine, and to find the perfect Shore destination. event dates. Home Page Ho Page all al allows llows lows yyou ou to t view i tth the he revi he revitalization rev italiz li ation i proces process sh happ happening appening i throug through h h news posts posts, t, and learn which Jersey Shore point is right for your trip or vacation. Each Shore destination has it s own landing/search page. Boats & Boards Jersey Shore Soundoff doff Ocean City Longport Wildwood Avalon Sea Isle City DMO Activation Kit: E-Newsletter Mobile Website Atlantic City Beach Haven Ship Bottom Surf City Loveladies Barnegat Light Island Beach State Park Bay Head Lavallette Seaside Heights Long Branch Deal Asbury Park Bradley Beach Belmar Sea Girt Manasquan Point Pleasant Seabright Sandy Hook Social channels drive further Awareness, Activation, Engagement & Advocacy Kites & Castles strongerthanthestorm.com informational hub: Awareness, Activation, Engagement g g & Advocacyy Tug Of War Social channels drive Awareness, Activation, Engagement Throwdown with Bobby Flay Media, PR and social encourage advocacy by having visitors post images and videos that are attached to the hashtag #STTS #(town name) to various social feeds that in turn post Tweets, images, and videos generated from the Shore encourage friends and followers to repost the content and visit the Jersey Shore or strongerthanthestorm.com Social: Awareness and Advocacy NHL Draft Fan Fest PRESENTED BY

36 FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: Scott Oliva Communications Coordinator New Jersey Economic Development Authority (609)