Privacy Policy
We Value Your Privacy
Effective Date: March 23, 2023 • Seattle Southside Regional Tourism Authority (“Seattle Southside RTA”) understands that you care about how we collect, use, and share information when you interact with our websites, social media sites and handles, email, and online services (our “Services”), and we value the trust you place in us.
This Privacy Policy explains:
- the types of information we collect through our Services;
- how we use and protect that information;
- the types of information we may share with others and under what circumstances; and
- the choices you have regarding our collection, use, and sharing practices.
We also include a specific disclosure about our use of cookies and other tracking technologies. We use these technologies to deliver our Services, gather data for our internal analytics, and for advertising.
This Policy applies to Seattle Southside RTA and our websites, emails we send, as well as the information we collect when you interact with us other websites and online services. It also applies anywhere it is linked. It does not apply to non-Seattle Southside websites and mobile applications that may link to the Services or be linked to or from the Services; please review the privacy policies on those websites and applications directly to understand their privacy practices.
For questions about our privacy practices, contact us at Privacy@SeattleSouthside.com.
What Do We Collect?
Information You Give Us
Some of the Services may include features or services that permit you to enter contact information and other information about you. We collect and store any information you enter on our Services. This includes information collected through e-newsletter forms, online request forms, chatbot queries, contests, feedback forms, surveys, personal interest forms, and mobile application forms.
When you register to receive emails, travel planners, or meeting planning help on SeattleSouthside.com, we will ask you for certain information such as, your name, address and e-mail address. If you use our Request for Proposal option, we will ask you for detailed information regarding your meeting requirements so that responding proposals from our partners are on-target with your needs. If you request a media tour, we will ask you to provide contact information and detailed regarding the focus of your story and the media outlet that will publish the story. If you send Seattle Southside RTA correspondence via email, phone call, or regular mail, or if other users or third parties such as businesses send us correspondence about your activities in connection with your use of the website, Seattle Southside RTA may retain that information. Further, if any third parties provide information to us about you, we will treat that information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.
When you choose to book a hotel room through the reservation engine on our site, we collect information necessary to reserve your room, such as contact information and stay information. Your payment will be processed by a third party, and we do not receive your credit card information.
To unsubscribe from our emails, or to update your information, please contact Privacy@SeattleSouthside.com or click the unsubscribe link found in emails to update your preferences or unsubscribe.
Information We Collect Automatically
When you interact with the Services, certain information about your use of our Services is automatically collected. We use cookies and other tracking technologies to offer you a better browsing experience, analyze site traffic, personalize content, and serve targeted advertisements. This includes:
- Details of your visits to our Services and information generated in the course of the use our Services including, but not limited to, traffic data, location data, weblogs and other communication data, the resources that you access, the timing, frequency and pattern of service use, and how you reached our Services.
- Details regarding the device you use to access our Services, including, but not limited to, your IP address, operating system and browser type.
- Information that you make available to us on a social media platform (such as by clicking on a social media icon linked from our Services), including your account ID or username and other information included in your posts.
Most web browsers automatically accept cookies but, if you prefer, you can usually modify your browser setting to disable or reject cookies. You can choose to not provide this information in your browser settings and still have full access to the information on SeattleSouthside.com.
You may be able to opt out of or block tracking by interacting directly with the third-parties whose tracking technologies are integrated directly through our website and mobile application. Please see below for more information.
Why Do We Collect This Information And How Do We Use It?
We use your information to:
- Provide you with the information and services you request
- Send you information about our destination
- Updating you about information on your account
- Communicate with you on matters relating to your request
- Provide necessary information to our partner hotels, vendors, meeting places, and other businesses to permit them to prepare proposals for you in response to your RFP and to provide you with information about related services and/or products from our partners
- To provide you with the best service and improve and grow our organization
- Improve our visitor experience and services
- Send you direct marketing communications if you consented to us doing so
- Keep our site and systems safe and secure
- Understand the effectiveness of our marketing
- To detect, investigate, and prevent activities that may violate our policies or be fraudulent or illegal
- Defend against or exercise legal claims
- Investigate complaints or potential legal violations
- Assist law enforcement
- Comply with legal requirements regarding the provision of products and services
Who Do We Share Information With?
Service providers: We engage third party service providers to perform functions on our behalf such as: payment processing, marketing automation, website, software, data storage, and analytics.
Business Partners: Where you request our assistance on a Request for Proposal, we share information about your company and event with our partners who may sell services of interest to you.
Social Media Platforms: Where you choose to interact with us through social media, your interaction with social media providers typically allows that third party platform to collect some information about you through cookies they place on your device and other tracking mechanisms. In some cases, that third party social media platform may recognize you through its cookies even when you do not interact with their application(s). Please visit those third parties’ respective privacy policies to better understand their data collection practices and controls they make available to you.
Third parties involved in advertising: We engage third parties to assist us in serving advertising regarding the Services to you after you leave the Services. These third parties utilize cookies to fulfill this function. Please see Additional Information About Our Use of Tracking Technologies below for more information.
Sharing of Aggregated Data: We may analyze aggregated, de-identified data and share these analyses at our discretion, including with marketing agencies, media agencies and analytics providers. These third parties will not be able to relate this data to identifiable individuals.
Change of Ownership or Corporate Organization: We may transfer to another entity or its affiliates or service providers some or all information about you in connection with, or during negotiations of, any merger, acquisition, sale of assets or any line of business, change in ownership control, or financing transaction. We cannot promise that an acquiring party or the merged entity will have the same privacy practices or treat your information the same as described in this Policy.
Cross-border Transfer of Data
If you use our Services outside of the United States, you understand that we may collect, process, and store your personal information in the United States and other countries. The laws in the U.S. regarding personal information may be different from the laws of your state or country. Any such transfers will comply with safeguards as required by relevant law. By using the Services, you consent to the collection, international transfer, storage, and processing of your data.
Information for Individuals Located in the EEA and Switzerland
Purposes of processing and legal basis for processing: We process personal data on the following legal bases: (1) with your consent; (2) as necessary to perform our agreement to provide Services; and (3) as necessary for our legitimate interests in providing the Services where those interests do not override your fundamental rights and freedom related to data privacy.
Right to lodge a complaint: Users that reside in the EEA or Switzerland have the right to lodge a complaint about our data collection and processing actions with the supervisory authority concerned. Contact details for data protection authorities are available here.
Transfers: Personal information we collect may be transferred to, and stored and processed in, the United States or any other country in which we or our affiliates or subcontractors maintain facilities, as described above.
Individual Rights: If you are a resident of the EEA or Switzerland, you are entitled to certain rights. Please note: In order to verify your identity, we may require you to provide us with personal information prior to accessing any records containing information about you. These rights include the ability:
- to request from us access to personal information held about you
- to ask for the information we hold about you to be rectified if it is inaccurate or incomplete;
- to ask for data to be erased if the data is no longer necessary for the purpose for which it was collected, you withdraw consent and no other legal basis for processing exists, or you believe your fundamental rights to data privacy and protection outweigh our legitimate interest in continuing the processing.
- to request that we restrict our processing if we are processing your data based on legitimate interests or the performance of a task in the public interest as an exercise of official authority (including profiling); using your data for direct marketing (including profiling); or processing your data for purposes of scientific or historical research and statistics.
To submit a request to exercise your rights, please contact us at Privacy@SeattleSouthside.com. We may have a reason under the law why we do not have to respond to your request, or respond to it in a more limited way than you anticipated. If we do, we will explain that to you in our response.
How We Secure the Information We Collect From or About You
We use a combination of physical, technical, and administrative safeguards to protect the information we collect through the Services. While we use these precautions to safeguard your personal information, we cannot guarantee the security of the networks, systems, servers, devices, and databases we operate or that are operated on our behalf.
Additional Information About Our Use of Tracking Technologies
Seattle Southside RTA relies on partners to provide many features of our sites and services using data about your use of the Seattle Southside RTA Services and other sites. We use cookies for the following purposes:
- Site Operations: Enabling features that are necessary for providing you the services on our site, such as tracking content views.
- Analytics: Allowing us to understand how our services are being used, track site performance and make improvements
- Personalized Advertising: Delivering tailored advertising across services and devices and measuring the effectiveness of ads
- Social Media: Enabling the sharing of content from our Services through social networking and other sites
Below is a list of partners we use for these purposes with links to more information on their use of your data and how to exercise your options regarding tracking:
Category | Partner | Further Information |
Advertising, Analytics | Quantcast | Privacy Policy Opt-Out |
Advertising | OpenX | Privacy Policy |
Advertising, Analytics, Site Operations | Google (Adwords, Analytics, DoubleClick, GA Audiences, Tag Manager) | How Google users information from sites or apps that use our services |
Advertising | AddThis | Privacy Policy Opt-Out |
Advertising | Adara | ADARA's cookie collects information about your travel activities and preferences that allows SeattleSouthside.com and/or approved 3rd party companies to engage with you through personalized, relevant adverts when you're browsing other websites and social media platforms, and through ADARA analytics services. You can learn more about ADARA and opt out at Privacy Policy and Opt-Out. |
Advertising | Bound Systems (Smart Content) | Privacy Policy |
Advertising, Social Media | Data Policy | |
Advertising, Analytics | Near.com (UM.co) | Data Policy |
Hotel Reservations | RootRex | Privacy Policy |
Vouchers | Bandwango | Privacy Policy |
You can learn more about ad serving companies and the options available to limit their collection and use of your information by visiting the websites for the Network Advertising Initiative, the Digital Advertising Alliance, and the European Interactive Digital Advertising Initiative. Similarly, you can learn about your options to opt-out of mobile app tracking by certain advertising networks through your device settings and by resetting the advertiser ID on your Apple or Android device.
Please note that opting-out of advertising networks services does not mean that you will not receive advertising while using our Services or on other websites, nor will it prevent the receipt of interest-based advertising from third parties that do not participate in these programs. It will, however, exclude you from interest-based advertising conducted through participating networks, as provided by their policies and choice mechanisms. If you delete your cookies, you may also delete your opt-out preferences.
Your browser or device may include “Do Not Track” functionality. At this time, Seattle Southside RTA does not respond to browser “Do Not Track” signals.
Changes to This Policy
We may make changes to this Policy from time to time. We will post any changes, and such changes will become effective when they are posted. Your continued use of our Services following the posting of any changes will mean you accept those changes.