Igniting global passion for visiting Kansas City
WHO WE ARE
Visit KC is an economic development organization dedicated to tourism. Our mission is to ignite global passion for visiting Kansas City. We do this through sales and marketing efforts to attract visitors and conventions to Kansas City.
STRUCTURE
Visit KC is a nonprofit, 501(c)6 organization contracted by the City of Kansas City, Missouri. Formerly the Kansas City Convention & Visitors Association, we began doing business as Visit KC in 2014.
PEOPLE
Visit KC is supported by a full-time staff of 45+ and directed by a board of 30 civic and business leaders. The organization is comprised of four teams in the areas of convention sales, destination services, marketing/communications and finance/administration.
“The Visit KC team was nothing short of fantastic. Other cities could learn from them in ensuring open, honest and proactive communication and coordination.”
– U.S. Department of Energy, Senior Event Manager
BUDGET & FUNDING
Visit KC has an annual operating budget of $10.8 million. We receive public funding from the hotel lodging tax in Kansas City, Missouri, and private funding from more than 800 member businesses in the region.
WHAT WE DO
SELL KANSAS CITY
Destination branding to position Kansas City as a vibrant, creative community
Convention sales efforts to attract conventions, meetings and sporting events to Kansas City
Integrated marketing campaigns to drive visitors to Kansas City through advertising, PR and social media
Home to the KC Film Office, representing the region’s film community
MEETINGS HELD IN KC (2016)
334,083 Attendees
325,874 Room Nights
$246 million in Economic Impact
WELCOME & CONNECT TRAVELERS
Assist with the successful execution of almost 300 meetings and conventions each year
Creation of maps, guides, content and other visitor resources to help guests discover all there is to do in Kansas City
FOR EVERY $1 VISIT KC SPENDS ON ADVERTISING, WE GENERATE $93 IN VISITOR SPENDING.
PROMOTE LOCAL BUSINESSES
Drive business to local hotels, attractions, restaurants of more than 800 businesses involved in the local hospitality community
SUPPORT LOCAL EVENTS
Organize and support major events like KC Restaurant Week, the Big 12 Men’s Basketball Championship and Downtown Dazzle, to name a few
WHY IT’S IMPORTANT
According to a recent study, cities with a strong visitor economy tend to grow faster than their peers. In fact, a 10% increase in a destination’s visitor-related employment relative to the U.S. average tends to be followed by a 1.5% rise in broader employment in the community.
TOURISM ECONOMIC IMPACT
Tourism generates $5.1 billion in economic impact for the region annually, including indirect and induced impact. Moreover, taxes paid by visitors save the average Kansas City household $525 in taxes annually.
LOCAL JOBS
1 in 19 jobs in the region are sustained by tourism either directly or indirectly. This amounts to 46,621 jobs and $1.6 billion in wages.
VISITORS
Kansas City and its surrounding region host 24 million visitors each year. Of these, 48% of visitors (or 11.4 million) stay overnight.
Sources: Tourism Economics, Longwoods International, U.S. Travel Association, 2014
2016 KEY ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Achieved 101% of Visit KC's room-night production goal, generating 362,305 room nights for future years with an economic impact of $268 million.
Assisted with the successful execution of 279 meetings in Kansas City, including 22 citywides.
Executed a $1 million destination advertising campaign that generated 164,000 incremental hotel room nights and $60.6 million in incremental visitor spending.
Generated more than 600 articles about Kansas City through public relations, accumulating an estimated 181 million earned media impressions.
Increased visitor engagement by 293% via the Visitor Information Center, phone calls, community booths and webchats.
Coordinated 13,716 reservations through convention housing, generating more than $111,000 in revenue.
