Sea to Shore Alliance

Sea to Shore Alliance hired T3M to manage and promote the sixth annual Right Whale Festival in Jacksonville Beach held on November 15, 2014. Sea to Shore Alliance is a nonprofit focused on protecting and studying manatees, right whales and sea turtles in Florida, Cuba, Belize, and West Africa. The Right Whale Festival celebrates the annual return of right whales to their calving waters off the Florida coastline.

Key results:

Randy Moore with T3M served as Director of the 2014 Festival and Bryan Moore served as the Site Manager.
Recruited 15 new sponsors (27 total) and 23 new exhibitors (58 total). This was a record number of participants for the public event. In comparison, the 2013 festival had 12 sponsors and 41 exhibitors.
Raised $38,155 in sponsor donations, exhibitor fees, tee shirt sales, and donations. This was a record amount of money raised for the public event. In comparison, the 2013 festival generated $15,586 in total revenue.
Added a higher percentage of private industry businesses as sponsors and exhibitors. This was important in making the festival relevant to a larger and more influential segment of the Jacksonville community.
Added 9 new exhibitors focused on art and product sales to enhance the appeal of the festival with more adults and families.
Created and managed a new and improved website to promote the festival.
Enhanced the support for sponsors supporting the festival with more marketing outreach to promote their brand before and at the event.
Added 1,250 new contacts to the festival Facebook page.
Expanded the use of the venue to create a more dynamic site plan that was more visually appealing and comfortable versus prior festivals that were crammed into a smaller space.
Developed a plan to engage the Jacksonville Port Authority to help recruit five shipping companies to become festival sponsors. The participation by these major businesses generated additional revenue. It was the first time in the history of the festival that shipping companies participated. Ship strikes are the number one threat to right whales along the eastern seaboard of the U.S.
Recommended the presentation of the inaugural Right Whale Champion Award to the Jacksonville Port Authority featuring a custom wood carving of a right whale and its calf. The Director of Sea to Shore Alliance presented the award following the festival to the CEO of the Jacksonville Port Authority at their board meeting in December.
The festival attracted a record number of participants.
Enhanced all of the marketing materials and managed a comprehensive marketing and media promotion campaign that was a major upgrade over prior efforts.
Expanded and upgraded the live music lineup to make the festival more appealing to a wider cross section of residents and other visitors.
Introduced a community art mural featuring a painting of a mother right whale and calf with the header: Jacksonville Loves Right Whales. Most of the “artists” were children under the age of 12 supported by parents and other loved ones.
Used a professional photographer to document the festival resulting in a higher quality archive of photos for future marketing.