Cal Poly Athletics signed a $25,000 deal with San Luis Obispo’s Tourism Business Improvement District (TBID) to provide visiting athletes with hotel rooms in exchange for advertising.
The deal, which went into effect in July, gives Cal Poly Athletics 525 rooms to house visiting teams during home games and prospective students interested in playing for Cal Poly, as well as a sponsorship for Cal Poly Athletics from TBID. In return, Cal Poly runs advertisements for the tourism industry in San Luis Obispo.
Director of Nelligan Sports Marketing at Cal Poly Athletics Ben Burke said the deal makes finding hotel rooms for visitors much simpler.
In the past, Cal Poly Athletics went to each hotel asking about available space until a suitable one was found. Now, Cal Poly just contacts TBID, which in turn contacts the hotels with the number of rooms needed, and Cal Poly can pick which hotel to house their visitors.
“Instead of negotiating with 15 different hotels one-by-one, we just contact TBID,” Burke said.
Trading advertising for hotel rooms is not new, however. Instead of offering promotion on an individual hotel basis, Cal Poly stadiums will now feature video displays and static billboards to advertise for San Luis Obispo’s tourism in a broader sense.
“We’ve always had the ability to trade with hotels, but it’s just easier now,” Burke said.
Most of that ease comes from TBID streamlining the advertising and hotel-selecting processes, thanks to its employees, who communicate with local hotels, Burke said.
“We just have one wonderful woman in the city who we contact and tell her what we need,” Burke said.
That “wonderful woman” is Brigitte Elke. She directs marketing and advertising for the city of San Luis Obispo, as well as TBID.
Cal Poly approached TBID last year to propose the deal, but it didn’t take effect until the beginning of the fiscal year for the city and school in July, Elke said. Since then, Cal Poly has used 429 of the 525 rooms allowed them in the contract.
In turn, the city of San Luis Obispo has received exposure on electronic and static billboards at stadiums. The deal also allows for promotion in official Cal Poly Athletics newsletters, on the official Cal Poly Athletics website and in radio and television coverage.
“It’s a whole list essentially of benefits that are included, but mainly it’s at the stadiums,” Elke said.
The hotels, in return for housing the athletes, receive compensation from TBID, which can be as much as $100 per room, Elke said.
Though the system has changed for Cal Poly Athletics, it has not greatly changed the way local hotels host visiting athletes, owner and managing partner of the Quality Inn Suites San Luis Obispo George Newland said,
The only difference for Newland is the added intermediary of Elke with TBID.
“It’s different because before we dealt with things more directly,” Newland said.
Still, whenever an athlete or team comes to stay at the Quality Inn Suites, Newland makes a point of getting in touch with Cal Poly Athletics in case the athletes have any special needs or requests.
“If there’s a question or something like that or a special need, then they can talk with me directly,” Newland said.
These special needs often include things like early check ins and early check outs for sports teams. The Quality Inn Suites has a history of dealing with these sports teams, and Newland follows the same guidelines now as he did before the TBID deal.
“The important thing is to have a good relationship and good communication with the coach,” Newland said.