The El Dorado Food Festival is scheduled to kick off next month and the response from local restaurants has been “tremendous”, members of the El Dorado Advertising and Promotion Commission recently learned.
During a specially-called meeting Aug. 6, Dan Hale, of the Diamond Agency, the A&P commission’s advertising agency of record, provided commissioners with an update of the food festival (EFF), a nine-week promotion that will be held in September and October.
The goal of the EFF is to support local restaurants by helping to boost sales and raise awareness about the food industry in El Dorado — which along with other industries has been affected by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
The festival will also showcase the variety of dining options available in the city.
The Diamond Agency presented the idea to the A&P commission in June and after hearing the pitch, commissioners approved a funding request of $5,987 to launch the food festival.
Hale told commissioners then that the Diamond Agency had received several requests to help local businesses with promotional campaigns to pull in customers for re-openings following temporary closures or a drop in sales due to COVID-19.
Hale said that after meeting with local businesses, the Diamond Agency learned that local eateries, in particular, could use a helping hand in driving customers back to their dining rooms when they fully reopen.
He explained the promotional campaign for the EFF will include radio and billboard advertising and 10,000 coupon booklets offering $380,000 worth of discounts from local restaurants.
Half of the booklets will be distributed to the Arkansas Welcome Center in an effort to catch out-of-town visitors.
At the end of the EFF, a $500 grand prize will be awarded to a diner who uses at least one of the coupons, Hale said.
On Aug. 6, Hale said a $50 MUSA gas card will be given away during weekly social media contests during the nine-week EFF period.
“We had tremendous response on seeking restaurant participation into the El Dorado Food Festival. The (fall edition of the El Dorado Insider) will be out Aug. 15. Five thousand coupon booklets will be included in the Insider and there is an additional 5,000 to be distributed,” Hale told A&P commissioners. “I think the key is a grassroots campaign of making sure we support our local restaurants.”
During the A&P meeting in June, Commissioner Sanjay Patel, who owns a local hotel, asked if the campaign could include hotels and motels, which are also a part of the hospitality industry and are facing economic hardships because of the pandemic.
Hale said Aug. 6 that visits with local lodging properties determined that the EFF promotional campaign “was not a good fit for them.”
Owners and managers of local properties said the El Dorado Visitors’ Info Guide, a companion piece to the El Dorado Insider, “has probably been the most helpful thing that we have done for them,” Hale said.
The Visitor’s Info Guide is a quick-reference booklet that highlights lodging accommodations, restaurants, local festivals, live shows and more.
With feedback from lodging properties, Hale said the Diamond Agency is considering retooling the Guide.
“We’re going to look at redesigning this and put a little bit more information about lodging and hotels with all their amenities and a city map as to where they’re located,” Hale said.
“Right now, we just have a listing of lodging properties. We need a little bit more extensive list of what each property has,” he said. “We hope to have that done by the end of the year so it’ll be ready for the first of the year.”
Commissioner Dianne Hammond asked if the El Dorado Conference Center is included in the Guide and Hale said yes, adding that the booklet also includes the El Dorado Municipal Auditorium, the El Dorado-Union County Recreation Complex, the Granite Club, Murphy Arts District, South Arkansas Regional Airport, Balcony on the Square and other places in which meeting and/or lodging space is available for booking.
A&P Chairman Barry Bagwell, also the director of the El Dorado Conference Center, asked if there is an online version of the Visitor’s Info Guide and Hale said the guide is available on the city’s Go El Dorado website (goeldorado.com), as is the El Dorado Insider.
“But I think the key is to make sure we have them in all the (Arkansas) Welcome Centers around the state,” Hale said.
Bagwell said he did not know the Guide was available on the city’s website, noting that he routinely receives inquiries from visitors about lodging properties and will now direct visitors online to the Visitor’s Info Guide.
Hale said that is good news for local hotels and motels.
“It was a good visit with most of the hotel operators and I think they appreciate to know that we’re looking for something to do specifically help them,” he said.