Minutes - 04/28/2022 - Hotel Convention and Visitors CommitteeCALL TO ORDER
The April 28, 2022 meeting of the Hotel, Convention and Visitors Committee was called to order
in the Upper Level Conference Room of the Butler Government Center at 10:05am by
Committee Chairperson Lee Hoener.
ROLL CALL
PRESENT: Cynthia Ivey, Residence Inn; Robert Brand, Hyatt Lodge; Lee Hoener, The Drake;
Dick Turner, LeMeridien; Nathan Karsten, Marriott and David Carlin, Oak Brook Chamber;
Resident Ifttikharu Abbasy
ABSENT: Tim Geiges, Oakbrook Center; Nicole Patterson, Hyatt House; Brian Gilmore,
Doubletree and Resident Tarique Junejo
ALSO IN ATTENDANCE: Greg Summers, Village Manager; Connie Reid, Executive Assistant;
Michael Manzo, Trustee; Beth Marchetti, Director DCVB; Noonie Aguilar, DCVB, Jim Pheta
and Scot Jonlich from Oak Brook Magazine
PUBLIC COMMENTS
There were no public comments
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
A.October 14, 2021 Meeting Minutes
Motion to approve minutes made by Iftikharu Abbasy seconded by Lee Hoener, no objections.
Minutes approved.
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
B.Ratification of Release of Funds to the DuPage Convention and Visitors Bureau
2021 Fourth Quarter 25% of 1% of Hotel Tax Receipts - $23,225.50
Motion to ratify fourth quarter 2021 funds made by Iftikharu Abbasy seconded by Dick Turner.
No one opposed.
OTHER BUSINESS
C.DCVB Update
Beth Marchetti begins by explaining what she believes is the reason why the marketing invoices
have been paid through the DCVB. She states that before she was the director the Village had a
reduction in work force, leaving them shorthanded. The DCVB started processing the invoices as
MINUTES OF THE APRIL 28, 2022 MEETING
OF THE OAK BROOK HOTEL, CONVENTION
AND VISITORS COMMITTEE OF THE
VILLAGE OF OAK BROOK APPROVED AS
WRITTEN ON AUGUST 25, 2022
a courtesy to the Village. The Village would make one payment to the DCVB. She further
clarifies that DCVB only receives the 25% of the 1%, the other payments to them are just a pass
through. Beth then says that this is a fresh start and a great opportunity for the Village to go out
for RFP for a marketing firm and obtain what the committee wants to do and all work together.
She then shows a video highlighting the ways that DCVB markets Oak Brook and the
surrounding areas which pushes people to Oak Brook. And that the DCVB should be looked at
as an investment not an expense, Beth then expands upon the partnerships they have with other
entities and how that benefits the Village. She goes on to say that it is important for the CVBs to
united and have a unified voice. She continues by explaining how the grant money from the state
works and the benefit they receive from that. Continuing she touches upon the different booking
agents that the CVB works with and the advantages to those. She drives home the idea that a
singular voice is paramount. Ms. Marchetti expounds upon their marketing campaign and
branding exercise which includes DuPage County being among the healthiest destinations in
Illinois the perfect combination of sophistication and small town charm and separating from
Chicago and lastly the finest dining, shopping and entertainment. Beth Marchetti then shares the
Oak Brook specific information regarding what is coming up. Noonie Aguilar shares the
upcoming sporting events and the lead sources that DCVB utilizes. Conversation shifts to the
benefits of having a CVB being able to go to the big trade shows and utilize the larger search
options that the local hotels do not have access to or the bandwidth to be able to take advantage
of. Conversation ensues regarding travel trends. Beth circles back to explain the grant program
that the DCVB offers to the individual hotels, the trade shows, the travel data, trends and leads
that she is able to share. She shows the economic impact reports that the DCVB is able to run,
the promotional assistance they provide and the heat maps they can run. She ends by saying that
she is hopeful that the relationship between the DCVB and the Village of Oak Brook will
continue and thrive. Beth Marchetti explains that if the Village pulls out of the DCVB the dues
from the hotels and other entities would increase immensely.
D. Review of Hotel Marketing Campaign RFP Responses
Village Manager Summers passes out the marketing RFP. He explains that there are two
scenarios, one with the Village staying with the DCVB and one without. He further states that
the RFP was sent to 12 firms and the Village received only one response, Point B chose not to
respond. Lee Hoener states that all of the hotels have voiced their preference to stay with the
DCVB. Manager Summers concurs by saying that he has received many letters stating that
sentiment. He continues saying that ultimately it is a Board decision as to how to spend the hotel
tax dollars but it is important to have the Hotel Committee’s feedback. It is verified that there is
a consensus of the group to stay with the DCVB.
E. Oak Brook Polo
Dan O’Leary is not at the meeting but he provided a handout that is given out. Lee Hoener states,
on behalf of Oak Brook Polo, that Oak Brook Polo is looking for a partnership with the hotels
and is looking for some of the hotel tax marketing dollars to promote that. Manager Summers
shares that the Village has recently purchased a new tracking software called Placer.AI which
can track where and what the people who go to polo matches do. Dick Turner asks for Budget
information so that they can make a more informed decision. Mr. Summers explains that the
figures are in the RFP, it shows two budget amounts, one, staying with the CVB and one
without, the figure with is $165,000, but changes every year depending on tax collection.
F. Oak Brook Magazine – Jim Pehta
Conversation ensues regarding the lack of benefit the hotels would see from the magazine. Jim
Pehta begins their presentation by saying that if a company wants to market the hotels of Oak
Brook they need to begin by marketing Oak Brook, giving visitors a reason to come. He
continues by saying that one of the strengths of Oak Brook is the vision of Paul Butler, which
includes Oakbrook Center. He touches upon the asset of having the vast number of restaurants
that Oak Brook does. He moves on to the weaknesses, one being that the different entities don’t
work together. Mr. Pehta says there is an opportunity to use Oak Brook as a brand. He believes
that all of Oak Brook could benefit from branding. “Oh! Oak Brook” is his recommendation. He
continues with his idea of unifying all aspects of Oak Brook and sharing that it is the 60th
anniversary of Oakbrook Center and they will be featured on the next Oak Brook Magazine
which will be printed and digital. Mr. Pehta shifts to talk about Naperville and the convention
and visitors bureau that they have saying that they represent all of Naperville and not just the
hotels. He states that Oak Brook can beat them. Scot Jonlich starts by saying that Oak Brook
Magazine will be contracting with a local artist to do a water color of Oakbrook Center for the
cover of the magazine, which they will then donate to one of the local charities. He continues by
sharing the concepts that they are planning for the Oak Brook Magazine and the advertising
opportunities for each of the hotels in the magazine. He begins a conversation regarding having a
web presence and the different URLs that are available and the different options for redirecting
or reinventing. Conversation shifts to the Bridal Expo and marketing opportunities associated
with that and the benefit of sending things out in print. Scot Jonlich shares that the Village of
Oak Brook currently has promised a payment of $40,000 to Oak Brook Magazine for the
distribution of 6 issues to all Oak Brook residents and commercial properties. It is clarified that
the $40,000 does come out of the hotel tax fund. Questions are asked about the digital presence
and the outreach to other areas, adding that it is nice that all of the residents of Oak Brook get the
magazine but the hotels want to reach people out of the Oak Brook area to get them to come to
Oak Brook. Dan briefly explains their digital marketing plan and how they would reach that
market, possible ads from Yelp and Google. He continues by saying that they will customize the
digital advertising to target whomever the hotels want them to. They will plan on doing whatever
the committee wants them to and briefly touch upon the television advertising on Comcast, and
their ability to easily shift advertising funds between different media. Conversation ensues
regarding how the digital advertising would work and the costs involved. They shift to talking
about visitor and data tracking. Trustee Manzo states that he wants to see the marking to be for
the Village and for the hotels and likes the idea of highlighting each individual hotel in the issues
of Oak Brook Magazine. A lively conversation ensues regarding market share, where they want
to pull customers from, the benefit of being in close proximity to the airports and the necessity of
branding.
Village Manager Summers states that there is already a consensus from the committee to stay
with the DCVB, he asks the committee what their thoughts are regarding going with Oak Brook
Magazine for their marketing. The consensus is that there are more questions to be asked and
they would like to see other options.
ADJOURNMENT
Motion to adjourn made by Lee Hoener seconded by Mike Manzo, no objections. Meeting
adjourned at 12:10pm.
ATTEST:
__________________________________ ________________________________
Connie Reid Date:
Executive Assistant
Village of Oak Brook