Four Weekly Check-ins with Your Strategic Planning Tool

Maximize the impact of data on your strategic planning and outcomes by incorporating weekly check-ins into your routine. Learn more here!

“Strategic planning is a process, not a done and done event."

Think about your Strategic Planning as a process, not a done and done event. You don't make a plan a forget about it. You make adjustments as you implement and begin seeing results. The value in ZDOS® is giving you continuous insight into your strategic planning throughout the entire process. That is why we recommend routine and regular strategic check-in with your operating system. 

Here are four weekly check-ins you can build into your monthly routine to give you the most strategic edge in your planning and reporting processes. 

First Week of the Month

Take a look at how your marketing campaigns and socials have performed over the last month. 

Marketing data such as website and social media is loaded in your ZDOS on a daily basis making this available to see complete data for the previous month immediately. 

Login to your ZDOS and go to your Marketing Modules for a quick evaluation of the impact and response to your marketing and social campaigns. 

Here are some questions to ask and evaluate this week:

1. Is your click-through rate higher or lower than the same month the previous year?
2. Is your cost per click trending up or down since a year ago? 
3. Is the response to your campaigns moving you toward your destination goals? 
4. Did the market areas you have directly invested marketing dollars into show up and spend more, less, or the same over the past month?
5. Which social posts were the most engaged last month? 
6. Are your social media engagements moving you toward your destination goals? 

Second Week of the Month

Take a look the impact of your events last month. 

By the second week of the month you will be able to see movement data for most of the previous month. Remember there is an 8-10 day lag for location data to give you the most accurate data in your OS. 

Login to your ZDOS and go to your Event Impact and Origin Behavior Modules for a quick evaluation of the impact and response to your marketing and social campaigns. 

Here are some questions to ask and evaluate this week:

1. Did the event draw the expected origin markets? 
2. How did the event impact the visitor-to-resident ratio in the region where the even took place. 
3. Did spending increase in the region of the event during the event compared to the same week the previous month and previous year? 
4. Who were you top origin markets during the event? 
5. Did these origin markets align with your marketing campaigns or is this a potential new opportunity? 

Third Week of the Month

Take a look at your movement and spending trends during the last month. 

By the third week of the month all movement and spending data is complete for the previous month. 

Login to your ZDOS and go to your Movement, Spending, and Origin Behavior Modules for a look at who is making the biggest impact on the local economy and how. 

Here are some questions to ask and evaluate this week:

1. Who were your top visitor origin markets during the last month? 
2. Who were your top spending markets during the last month?
3. Are there any of your top spending markets that were not in your top three visitor origin markets? 
4. Where did your top visitor origin market visit last month by region and by POI category? 
5. Where did your top visitor origin market spend money last month?

Fourth Week of the Month

Take a look at your overall destination performance during the last month. 

By the last week of the month all data, including your lodging information is complete and available for a high-level assessment. 

Login to your ZDOS and go to your Situational Awareness Module for a great overview and status of how your destination is performing overall. 

Here are some questions to ask and evaluate this week:

1. Is my hotel occupancy trending up or down compared to the previous year? 
2. Are my visitors increasing overnight stays? 
3. Are my top visitor origin markets spending on accommodations? 
4. How are your top visitor origin markets comparing to your top spending markets?