Frampton to Headline Labor Day Weekend Music Festival
Some of music's biggest stars are set to rock Nashville's Riverfront Park this Labor Day weekend! The 2008 Music City J.A.M. (Jazz and More) festival will feature multi-platinum recording artist and guitar legend Peter Frampton, jazz great Kirk Whalum and American Idol finalist Melinda Doolittle. The one-day festival will take place Sunday, Aug. 31 from 2 - 10 p.m.

The Music City J.A.M. is produced by Music City, Inc. in association with the Nashville Convention & Visitors Bureau (NCVB) and Belmont University. Event sponsors include: Ferguson Bath, Kitchen & Lighting Gallery, Now Playing Nashville, Makers Mark, Coca-Cola and Renaissance Nashville Hotel.

The NCVB has created a great Labor Day weekend visitor package around the music festival. The package includes admission to the festival, a special Music City gift, and a minimum of one night in a Nashville hotel.

Tickets are $20 and are available for purchase online at Ticketmaster.com and at all Ticketmaster Outlets including Kroger and Macy's. To charge tickets by phone, call (615) 255-9600.

First Public Hearing Set for Convention Center Design


The NCVB is hard at work selling the city's two new convention facilities with promotions such as sponsoring the pedicabs at ASAE's 2008 Annual Meeting in San Diego.
The first of three public meetings on the proposed new downtown convention center design will take place Thursday, Aug. 14 at 5 p.m. at Tennessee State University's Avon Williams campus building.

The meetings are being held to allow public input in the Music City Center plan along with the master plan for the area south of Broadway where the convention center would be located.

More than 200 businesses took part in the first Music City Center Contractors Fair at the Adventure Science Center on July 29.

The event, sponsored by the Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency, allowed diversity business enterprises -- small businesses, minority-owned businesses and women-owned businesses -- from across the state to meet one-on-one with the construction management, architectural and engineering services firms that will provide design and construction services for the new Nashville convention center.

The contractors fair was the first in a series of initiatives designed to increase participation of minority- and women-owned and small-business enterprises in all aspects of the new convention center project.

Convention Sales
April 08 May 08 June 08 Total
Leads 68 120 83 271
Bookings 15 27 61 103
Room Nights 3,887 79,223 178,267 261,377

Tourism Sales
April 08 May 08 June 08 Total
Leads 58 83 46 187
Room Nights 5,700 18,436 12,801 36,937

Marketing Activity
April 08 May 08 June 08 Total
Unique Visitors to Website 107,755 111,598 149,571 368,924
Articles Generated 110 80 135 325
RMN Booked Online 368 385 463 1,216

Industry Indicators

June's hotel occupancy rate was 69.6 percent,
a decrease of 8.4 percent compared to June 2007.

The 2008 year-to-date occupancy rate is 62.6 percent,
a decrease of 5.9 percent compared to last year.

May hotel occupancy tax collections were $2,142,582,
a decrease of 7.1 percent compared to May 2007.

Year-to-date hotel tax collections were $21,871,013,
an increase of 5.3 percent compared to last year.


Hit of the Month

With the summer winding down, the sun has begun setting earlier. But don't fret, the August Hit of the Month will keep you out of the dark! The Bella Luz Luminette, a handmade nightlight that utilizes a translucent print to project music themed artwork into any room, is 20 percent off this month, as is all lighting at both Visitor Information Center gift shops. Encourage clients and visitors to take advantage of these wonderful savings! This discount may not be combined with any other coupon or special.
The CVB Sales, Marketing & Membership Teams:

Sales

  • The Sales team reached all of its annual goals for the 2007-2008 fiscal year, which includes leads, bookings and room nights in both convention and tourism sales.
  • The Tourism Sales team traveled to TIA's Pow Wow in Las Vegas and to TAP Dance in Anchorage. The team booked 27 appointments and garnered 11 leads in Las Vegas. This was Nashville's first trip to TAP Dance. The team received good feedback and conducted 25 appointments in Anchorage garnering 13 leads.
  • The Convention Sales team traveled to the DSA Annual Conference in Phoenix and to Washington D.C. for the Convene Green Alliance meeting and subsequent sales calls. The team booked appointments with 32 clients and garnered two leads for a total of 10,600 total room nights.

    Marketing

  • The Marketing team created a local and regional advertising campaign featuring a more value-driven message, including special rates and discounts for locals choosing to tour their own city.
  • Marketing staff created new visitor packages for Music City's July 4th weekend, featuring the July 4 Spectacular and the Kenny Chesney concert, and for Labor Day weekend featuring the 2008 Music City J.A.M. festival.
  • The Marketing team coordinated programming and production for the 2008 July 4th Spectacular at Riverfront Park.
    • Membership

    Nashville Backstage Training Session
    August 20
    2 - 3:30 p.m.
    NCVB Boardroom
    A complimentary training program designed to educate NCVB members on what Music City has to offer in regards to attractions, events, tours, restaurants and nightlife.

    Chairman's & President's Lunch
    August 26
    Radius 10 Restaurant
    Benefit for Double Platinum and Hall of Fame members, and Strategic Partners

    Maximize Your Membership
    Use your NCVB membership benefits to grow your business!
    For great information on how to maximize your membership please contact Fatima Thompson, Manager of Member Services at 615-259-4744 or fatima@visitmusiccity.com.

    Training Opportunities for Your Business
    Your NCVB membership offers complimentary trainings programs. This service is provided in hopes of enriching the guest experience through increased knowledge of the city and providing applause-worthy service. This is done by offering three training programs: Nashville Backstage (Nashville Familiarization), All Access (Disability Sensitivity), and Creating Applause (Customer Service). For more information or to schedule a training session at your property you can contact Shannon Largen, Director of Training, at 615-259-4789 or shannon@visitmusiccity.com.

    Membership Invitation
    Membership in the NCVB pays... literally! If you're a member who knows of a business that would benefit from membership in the NCVB, and you get them to sign up, we'll give you a 10 percent discount on your next membership renewal.
    Chris Brown, Vice President of Membership
    615-259-4751 or chris@visitmusiccity.com

    For a complete listing of our new members as well as existing member businesses, visit our online membership section at
    www.visitmusiccity.com/members/newmembers

    Brand Champion

    There's no better way to spend a summer evening in Music City, than by listening to live music outside! Dave & Buster's knows this too well! They partied Music City style throughout the months of June and July, hosting Party on the Patio: Summer Songwriter Series every Tuesday night. The series promoted Nashville singers and songwriters while supporting the city's signature product and reinforcing the brand. For this great show of brandsmanship, Dave & Buster's is our August Brand Champion! Congratulations!