Conversations
Ric Luber, President and CEO of the Midlands Authority for Conventions Sports and Tourism
MidlandsBiz:
What is your education and background?
Ric Luber:
I attended Ohio State University and earned a Bachelor's degree in marketing. During my undergrad, I worked for the Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) in Columbus, Ohio. After earning a law degree and practicing for a couple of years, I was asked to come back to the CVB as a Vice President. Since then, my career has almost entirely involved working in the tourism industry. I ran the CVB in Rochester, New York for seven years, and after heading up the CVB in Austin, Texas for five years, I retired.
I received a call about the opportunity to run the CVB here in Columbia, South Carolina. This city held a special allure for me. I had been marketing similar regions all my life – state capital, centrally located within the state, a major university, rivers and easy access to perimeter water. I thought it was a great opportunity so four years ago, I took the job.
MidlandsBiz:
What are some of the takeaways from a law degree?
Ric Luber:
Each of the three entities that exist under the umbrella of the Midlands Authority for Conventions Sports and Tourism – the Convention Center, the Convention Bureau, and the Sports Council – has frequent direct dealings with government and hardly a day goes by without a contract landing on my desk. A law degree comes in very handy.
I loved practicing law, but I always felt I was dealing with someone else's problems. In this job, it's more about economic development and I appreciate the opportunity to see the tangible results of our efforts.
MidlandsBiz:
What is your job title?
Ric Luber:
I am the President and CEO. I report to a nine person board comprised of members from Lexington and Richland Counties as well as the City of Columbia. Each governmental entity is a funding partner.
MidlandsBiz:
What is the best use of your time as President and CEO?
Ric Luber:
The best use of my time is to do a lot of local networking, to serve on boards, and be at the table when decisions are made that impact this region. Everything that we do to improve the look and feel of the city makes it easier for us to bring people here. When Main Street is beautiful, it positively impacts our overall product, for example.
MidlandsBiz:
Describe in more detail how you are funded.
Ric Luber:
The money that comes to the Authority is derived from the tax dollars that are paid by visitors. It's a virtuous cycle. The more successful we are at bringing in visitors to this region, the more revenue that we will generate, the more we will be able to further promote the region to attract even more visitors. Local tax dollars are not involved in our funding.
The 2% accommodations tax that visitors pay is earmarked specifically for tourism marketing in the state. As well, this region also imposes a 3% tourism development tax.
MidlandsBiz:
What is the business structure of the Midlands Authority?
Ric Luber:
The organizational structure of the Midlands Authority is one of the reasons that I was drawn to this job. Each of the three entities- the Columbia Metropolitan Convention & Visitors Bureau, the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center and the Columbia Regional Sports Council - operates as a separately run business. Each has its own leadership, funding, budget, and goals, but share in common the following functions: human resources, marketing and communications, and finance. It is a very efficient structure that saves us money and prevents the tourism turf wars that you might see in other communities. At the Midlands Authority, we are all at the table together working towards a common mission. Our business structure has been written about and studied and is now considered industry standard.
MidlandsBiz:
What are you most proud of?
Ric Luber:
Our strength is our staff. In order to market and promote a region effectively, you need the right people in the right positions. We run a tight ship where everybody is challenged in their roles and we expect results. Meetings don't just come here on their own. You have to have good sales people who can establish relationships and tie-ins to the local community.
We also have an amazing group of talented young people on staff who have embraced social media as a way to promote the city and our new brand. We now have close to 40,000 Facebook fans and 15,000 Twitter followers and our marketing efforts have drawn consistent national attention. Our Twitter account, @columbiasc, ranks #30 of the Top 50 Online Travel Influencers in the country and places us amongst other top ranking corporate travel influencers such as @orbitz, @lonelyplanet, @PalmsLasVegas, @SouthwestAir and @Delta. Since October 2008, @columbiasc has also consistently ranked in the top 10 of nearly 500 tourism accounts on Twitter. What they have achieved in terms of online marketing never ceases to amaze me!
MidlandsBiz:
A couple of years back, we rebranded the city - Famously Hot, Surprisingly Cool. Assess the new campaign in terms of its effectiveness.
Ric Luber:
The project was led here locally by the marketing company, ADCO. They coordinated an extensive process that involved getting input, debate and feedback from all of our partners. There are always going to be naysayers, but the key is to move forward confidently and proactively use the new brand to develop a sense of pride and respect for our community.
The best way to sell people on this region is to get them here! The new branding, Famously Hot, Surprisingly Cool, has been a key factor in getting people here! You need to experience this incredible city to truly understand all that it has to offer. Anybody can make a presentation at an office in New York and paint a pretty picture, but once we get people here, the city sells itself. Despite the down economy, our numbers are up in all key areas and we are making progress at getting buy-in from the local community.
MidlandsBiz:
What are some of the biggest challenges that we face as a region?
Ric Luber:
One challenge is debunking the perception amongst the local population that Columbia is not a tourist city. Tourism is a $1 billion a year local industry that employs over 65,000 people in this region. It is big business! EdVenture, the Riverbanks Zoo, The Colonial Life arena, the football stadium, the Convention Center, these are just a few of the attractions that play a powerful role in attracting visitors to this city.
Another challenge is capacity. The Convention Center is a huge success and has proven to be a great draw. But if we are to continue to grow as a destination market, we need to address both the size of the Convention Center and the number of sleeping rooms. At 24,000 square feet, the Convention Center is not big enough to accommodate some of the groups that have looked into Columbia as a meeting location. The convention center in Austin, Texas is ten times the size of this building.
Austin's convention center also offers an attached hotel with 834 rooms. The largest hotel in the Columbia region has 300 rooms. Overall, in Columbia, we have 12,000 sleeping rooms. Austin, Texas has 30,000 rooms and Columbus, Ohio has 28,000. Both are similarly sized cities.
The last challenge is financial. Austin operates on an annual $7M a year budget. Ours is $1.3M a year. We are proud that we do more with less, but at some point you have recognize the benefits that tourism brings to this region and back it up with a bigger marketing effort.
MidlandsBiz:
What are the opportunities for Columbia to build on its tourism base?
Ric Luber:
Well, out of challenges come opportunities. If we continue to create a positive perception of this City and this region, tourism has the opportunity to grow well beyond a $1 Billion a year industry. We need to work to bring in travel writers and knock on doors in Washington and tell our story. The perception nationally is never going to change unless you are out there marketing. If we do that right, we will continue to build on the very positive momentum that we have created.
We offer the only downtown convention center in South Carolina. Visitors can easily access 56 excellent restaurants all within walking distance of our front doors. There are many other state capitals and communities around the country, as well as cities within this state that would love to have the product and amenities that we offer here in Columbia, South Carolina.
We see ourselves as a key partner in the long-term economic development of this city. There are obviously direct implications when someone visits your town and holds a convention. Visitors stay in our hotels, eat at our restaurants etc. There are also indirect benefits. Recently, the Convention Center hosted an ultrasound conference that attracted people from all over the world. Ultrasound technology is a burgeoning area of research at the University of South Carolina's School of Medicine. The attendees of this conference may return to live and work in Columbia as a faculty member or practitioner. The same holds true for other conferences. Attendees might someday return as students, or as an employee at one of our local hospitals, for example. Once they experience Columbia, they are more likely to return.
I have long felt that unique marketing opportunities exist for this region, and for South Carolina overall. When people in other areas of the country think of the South, South Carolina is top of mind. We are a Southern destination with graciousness that can't be matched. The opportunities are endless.
