Storytelling 2024/25 Application

RTO7’s offer of the Partnership Program for 2024/25 is contingent upon the Ministry of Tourism, Culture & Sports' approval of RTO7’s 2024/25 Business Plan.

If you are unfamiliar with the Partnership Program and applications, I highly recommend calling (Alex 705-441-2931 ahogan@rto7.ca) to first talk through your proposed project and/or completing the application, as the process is greatly simplified with some direct explanation prior to completion of the application.

RTO7 reserves the right to limit the number of programs/funds that one stakeholder may receive per year.

Please read the Partnership Program Guidelines  for important background information before completing this application.  The Guidelines refer to a Resource Guide which we have put together that contains lots of useful information that relates to Partnership Program projects (e.g. target markets, performance metrics, the importance of data, etc.) - we encourage you to check this out. 

The documents linked to within this application should open in a new window in your browser when clicked on.
We highly recommend that you log into a Google account (directions in link) to access this form and know that your progress is automatically saved as a draft for 30 days so you can return to it.

If you choose not to do this or to work offline
  • You will need to complete and submit the form all in one sitting
  • Be sure to save a copy of your submitted application (if you are not logged in as recommended, once submitted, neither you nor we will have access to your application to make edits so if we ask you to make any revisions to your application you will have to start the application process from scratch)
If you choose not to log into a Google account, contact us to discuss how best to submit your application.

● This category of Partnership provides opportunities for partners to tell their respective individual and community stories and to encourage travel throughout the area
● An important aspect to this program is that the Partner has also considered the distribution of the story once it is complete (how will it be shared as broadly as possible)
● Private tourism businesses, DMOs (Destination Marketing Organizations), Tourism Organizations, Municipalities and Tourism Associations/Interest groups are eligible partners for storytelling partnerships
● Partners to suggest appropriate writer(s); if partner does not have an appropriate writer recommendation, we will work together to find one
● RTO7 and the Partner will jointly vet current work samples from qualified writers that are familiar with the product/experience and the locale the story pertains to and/or have a following  that aligns with the demographic the Partner is seeking to attract
● Successful writers will contract directly with RTO7
● To ensure timely and constructive execution of the planning and actioning of the project, the person named below as the Individual Responsible for Day-to-Day Execution will act as the decision maker and liaison with RTO7 and the storyteller
● Once the project is approved, all communications regarding the project MUST be conducted in Basecamp (provided by RTO7)
● Resulting ‘stories’ will be used by the Partner, RTO7, and the Storyteller and may be made available to Destination Ontario and MTCS as well for print publications, web applications and other digital advertising
● Stories may take many forms (articles, blog posts, Instagram and Facebook posts, etc.); reporting on resulting engagement will be required (specific deliverables to be determined)
● Both writer and Partner will be expected to report on their respective performance measurements (sample metrics outlined in application) as part of final project report
● Budget is intended to cover creative output (stories, images, etc.) and is not intended for travel, accommodation and/or incidentals. Images from current or previous projects may be made available to accompany stories
● $1 partner funds matched by $1 partnership funds, (to a combined maximum of $10,000 per project), e.g. $1,000 leverages to $2,000
● Minimum $500 investment from the partner (can be a single tourism entity or a tourism group/DMO/tourism organization); maximum $5,000

The red asterisks below indicate required fields.
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Email *
Tourism Operation Business Name (and Legal Operating Name) *
Senior Organization Rep*  *
*Note this is the individual with signing authority for the project and ultimate responsibility for the execution and completion of the project 

Please provide Name, Title & Email (needed to send the Agreement to, with a copy to the Contact below)
Contact Name & Title of Individual Responsible for Day-to-Day Execution of the Project*
*Note this person will be the  day-to-day decision maker for the project,  responsible for execution of the project and regular communications with RTO7 and agencies, and should have skills and experience in managing projects of a similar nature as well as available time to devote to the project).
Address *
Phone Number *
Project Name
Project Date 
 *
Allow at least 6 weeks from project application to anticipated story delivery.

Are there any special circumstances or deadlines we need to be aware of? Note that all projects must be completed prior to March 31, 2025.
BUDGET *
Partner Contribution
This should be 1/2 of the total project cost (including tax)
You will need to send RTO7 this amount in the form of an EFT, e-transfer or cheque.
The minimum partner contribution for this program is $500; the maximum is $5,000 (including tax)
Total Project Budget  *
This is the total cost of the project you are applying for including tax (with 1/2 paid by you; 1/2 paid by RTO7)
Target Markets & Activities *
These are markets and activities that RTO7 targets in our campaigns; check off those that you would like to target in your campaign.

Required
Required
Can you provide any other relevant demographic information for your target audience? (e.g. age ranges, families with school-aged children, young couples, grandparents, etc.)
What will the story promote to the target audience (and why)?
 *
Partner will provide initial direction (in form of an outline) to the writer addressing the desired story/theme/concept to be covered.  

Please keep in mind that revenue generation by tourism operators is of key importance and should therefore be considered in what you are promoting to your target audience i.e. we are more likely to approve stories that profile or link to businesses that stand to benefit e.g. a tour guide, an outfitter, etc., than simply beautiful vistas or free hiking trails.
Messaging *
What is the specific message(s) that will be communicated through the story?

How will the story relate to/promote Sustainability (economic, social or environmental) - consider things like incorporating plan ahead/book ahead messaging, profiling active transportation, field to table food, promoting responsible tourism, how the chosen storyteller aligns with an audience interested in sustainability, etc. 

Key Activities, Milestones & Responsibilities
The following is an approximate sequence of events for the campaign you will be undertaking:

  1. Project approval – RTO7
  2. Project agreement – RTO7 & Partner; logos on Partner website
  3. Submit 50% share of project funding to RTO7 – Partner
  4. Kick-off conference call to confirm/negotiate project objectives, deliverables, deadlines, posting schedules, performance measurement, etc. – RTO7, Partner & Writer
  5. Draft(s) provided to RTO7/Partner for review – Writer
  6. Requested edits made – Writer
  7. Posting of final deliverables according to schedule – Writer, Partner & RTO7
  8. Sharing of stories by Partner, RTO7, Writer
  9. Final reporting including performance metrics - Writer, Partner & RTO7
Performance Metrics *
Please indicate how your organization will evaluate the success of the project.

Select at least 2 metrics that are appropriate for your specific project to determine whether it met expectations. Note that attributing return on investment to storytelling is challenging;  some of these metrics will be somewhat subjective.

For an explanation of these and other useful tourism metrics, please read Why Collect This Info and
Additional Reporting Metrics

Metric #1
Required
Metric #2 *
Required
Requirements

Please confirm that the following are in place CURRENTLY in order to qualify for funding. 

WEBSITE
 *
Required
CREATIVE *
Required
ENGAGEMENT
 *
Contact Allison Davies at 705-888-8728 or adavies@rto7.ca for assistance if required in setting up a listing on the BGS website or in accessing the RTO7 Stakeholder Site
Required
ATTESTATION *
Required
SUSTAINABLE TOURISM *
RTO7 is committed to sustainable tourism (link out to get a better understanding of what we mean by this) and we hope you are too! As one aspect of our sustainability journey, we will be looking to our tourism stakeholders to collect and share sustainability related data in future. 

While  collection/reporting of this data will not impact on evaluation of your application this year, it may in future years.

We believe sustainability is good for your business and we're committed to making it as easy as possible in the future for you to incorporate and report on your sustainability so that down the road, we will be able to tell the sustainability story of the region (and your operations) in our promotions.

We will be directing you to a survey with a long list of potential sustainability indicators - we'd like your input as to which you are currently collecting and/or are willing to report to RTO7 on annually for the purposes of an aggregated tourism story and improved decision making.  

Please read carefully...

For  this  year, we're simply collecting  information.  To complete the survey as a required part of your application process follow these steps:

  1. Click on the link below - the sustainable tourism survey will open in a new window.  
  2. Click on the box below to indicate that you have done so and will complete the survey immediately after hitting submit on this application. Then continue on to complete the funding application and hit Submit.
  3. Next go to the survey window, complete the survey and hit submit (you have now completed the application process - both documents will be required for an application to be considered complete).


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