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Congrats to the 2020 Class of 30 Under 30

April 20, 2020 by Laurie Jo Miller Farr Leave a Comment

Destinations International announced the industry’s 2020 class of rising destination experts, all under the age of 30.

Now in its tenth year, “The 30 Under 30 program remains critical to our organization’s vision and mission,” said Don Welsh, president and CEO of Destinations International. “Especially in these uncertain times, we’re excited to announce these young professionals, as they are the future of the travel and tourism industry.”

The program is supported by founding program partner, SearchWide Global and sponsored by Fired Up! Culture, MMGY Global, Northstar Meetings Group and Pandora.

Congratulations to all. Meet this year’s honorees:

Christina Amrhein, Social Advertising and Emerging Media Manager, Visit Florida
Lisa Baird, Director of Marketing, Visit Oakland
Rebekah Baughman, Marketing & Events Coordinator, Kansas City KS Convention & Visitors Bureau
Meg Berno, Marketing Coordinator, Dublin Convention & Visitors Bureau
Tyler Edic, Video Production Coordinator, Visit Savannah
Christine Felton, Marketing Manager, Digital & Content, Visit Austin
Stephanie Fred, Public Relations, Visit Tampa Bay
Taylor Fry, National Sales Manager, Pasadena Convention & Visitors Bureau
Taylor Greenwalt, Creative Services Coordinator, Galveston Island Convention & Visitors Bureau
Michael Hensley, Group Tour & Niche Markets Manager, Go Great Lakes Bay Regional Convention & Visitors Bureau
Diana Kelterborn, Research Analyst, Visit Loudoun
Kylie Leslie, Destination Experience Designer, Visit Phoenix
Tiffany Lutka, Marketing & Sales Coordinator, DuPage Convention & Visitors Bureau
Courtney Manson, Global Social Media Specialist, Travel Alberta
Ronneisha Mayo, Cincinnati USA
Jordan McCauley, Destination Development Coordinator, Travel Oregon
Michelle McKenzie, Director of Marketing & Communications, Visit Vancouver USA
Jonathan Neis, Sales & Services Manager, Providence Warwick Convention & Visitors Bureau
Hayley Radich, Partner Services Manager, Travel Lane County
Erica Riddle, Tourism & Visitor Services Coordinator, Destination DC
Amelia Ritter, Digital Storyteller + Tourism Administrator, Livingston County Convention & Visitors Bureau
Amanda Scherlin, Marketing Manager, Visit Casper
Erin Setter, Manager, Partner Engagement, Brand USA
Ryan Shehu, Site Supervisor, Visit Ithaca
Steph Snelling, Content Marketing Specialist, Destination Greater Victoria
Taylor Stanley, Senior Sales Manager, Visit Lake Charles
Michelle Vilas, Marketing Director, Discover Puerto Rico
Jessie Walker, Public Relations Manager, Visit Baltimore
Rebecca Wu, Marketing Specialist, Tourism Richmond

A $4.5 Million Lunch, Instagram Crushes it on Earnings, New DMO Campaigns, News & Jobs

February 10, 2020 by Laurie Jo Miller Farr Leave a Comment

>> PEOPLE & PLACES & PLATFORMS <<

Justin Sun, 29, founder and CEO of Tron (cryptocurrency platform) and CEO of BitTorrent, spent $4.5 million to have lunch with Berkshire Hathaway chairman and famous billionaire, Warren Buffett, 89. According to Sun, Buffett is still skeptical about cryptocurrencies but sees great potential in blockchain technology. Sun won a charity auction benefitting the San Francisco-based nonprofit GLIDE Foundation on eBay last June when he made the highest-ever bid in the 20-year history of this fundraiser.

If you had a new U.S. airline, what would you call it? And the tag line? Such were the decisions to be made by David Neeleman, founder of JetBlue. Actually, he didn’t consider it a biggie.

He is quoted in Skift, “I honestly don’t really care. I really care about if we give good customer service and the plane is on time and people are happy with their flights.” The chronic airline entrepreneur has settled on Breeze Airways, The World’s Nicest Airline. Breeze will operate older, used 120-seat Embraer E195 equipment on routes with little or no competition. No route announcements as yet but mentions have been made of destinations such as Idaho Falls, Idaho; Gary, Indiana; New Haven, Connecticut; and Providence, Rhode Island.

World Travel & Tourism Council abruptly canceled its April meeting in Puerto Rico, claiming that the cancellation benefits the island (?) but Discover Puerto Rico says otherwise, according to USAE News. The high profile meeting was expected to draw about 1,000 people, generating $5 million to $6 million in economic impact and importantly, would have attracted extensive positive media coverage. Read what happened here. See the newly published partial speaker list here, which includes Caroline Beteta, President & CEO, Visit California and Fred Dixon, President & CEO, NYC & Company.

In response to recent seismic activity, Discover Puerto Rico has rolled out a new campaign, #GoForPuertoRico, to communicate local resilience and remind that tourism is critical for recovery. The latest campaign builds on the DMO’s “Have We Met Yet?,” which re-introduced the Island to the world in April 2019. “The campaign launched across digital banners, social and pre-roll in key markets and in over-the-top TV, the first since the DMO’s inception,” said Leah Chandler, CMO. Read more here.

On the giant digital screens in Times Square, Visit Philadephia kicked off a 12-month campaign focused on women visitors, riffing their moniker as the “City of Brotherly Love.” The DMO revealed “City of Sisterly Love” to strategically target female travelers and invite them to travel, with the other women in their lives, to Greater Philadelphia. On January 30, Philadelphia City Council issued a resolution that changed the city’s nickname from “The City of Brotherly Love” to “The City of Sisterly Love” for 2020. Further initiatives will follow throughout the year. The kickoff campaign creative, in partnership with Clear Channel Outdoor was simultaneously broadcast to 800 hotel and travel professionals at The Met in Philadelphia.

Marking the 25th anniversary of its launch, Galveston.com has unveiled a completely re-designed new website. A press release indicates that staff contributed programming, copy and video; additional support was provided by Simon Adams of London-based design firm, Archaea Mass.

U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Roger Dow laid out an ambitious 10-year agenda for the nation’s industry in a State of the Travel Industry address on Feb. 5, 2020. Covering topics ranging from trade and security to sustainability, he also addressed America’s loss in international market share, which could slip to 11% in 2020, a full percentage point lower than three years prior. Dow also mentioned the significance of the seven-year-long reauthorization of funding for Brand USA, which occurred in December. Read the full remarks here.

Richard Branson’s cruise line, Virgin Voyages, is taking their sustainability ethos one step further by having guests use bracelets made from recycled ocean plastic in place of key cards. The bands are made in partnership with an engineering company, BIONIC Yarn, each one made from material that includes six grams of marine and coastal plastic, equal to half of a plastic water bottle. From her home port in Miami, the new ship, Scarlet Lady, has her maiden voyage on April 1.

Instagram revenue was around $20 billion in 2019, sources told Bloomberg News. That’s more than a quarter of Facebook‘s sales and that also beats YouTube‘s $15 billion reported last week in The Travel Vertical news roundup. What a steal… Acquired by Facebook in 2012 for $715 million, Instagram had no advertising model at that time.

Google Maps turned 15 and got itself a birthday gift—a big update for Android and iOS. There are five easy-to-access tabs: Explore, Commute, Saved, Contribute and Updates. If you want to appreciate what the app is capable of doing, check out this new only-in-Japan feature: “Number of carriages available: In Japan only, you can pick a route based on the number of carriages so that it increases your chances of getting a seat.”

Apple also announced deployment of its new and improved maps software in the U.S. Users of the iPhone app now see more detailed roads, buildings, parks and other landmarks. Other new features include a “look around” mode, which appears as a binoculars icon that enables users to explore 360-degree streetscapes, similar to Google Maps’ Street View, in places including New York City, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Apple said it invested “billions of dollars in Apple Maps” including having its mappings cars drive over 4 million miles.

Global head of product Ryan Roslansky will take over as CEO of LinkedIn as Jeff Weiner, becomes executive chairman, effective June 1. Since Weiner joined in 2008, LinkedIn has expanded its membership from 33 million to nearly 675 million, with revenue rising from $78 million to more than $7.5 billion in the trailing twelve months. LinkedIn was acquired by Microsoft in 2016. Roslansky will serve on Microsoft’s senior leadership team and report to CEO Satya Nadella.

Airbnb has hired a 15-year Disney veteran, Catherine Powell, to lead Airbnb’s Experiences division, which offers tours and other activities for guests. Airbnb launched Experiences in 2016 to diversify beyond its core offering of accommodations and capture more of the travel economy.

Alison Best has been named as business development director for the Northstar Travel Group, publisher of the Travel Weekly family of travel trade publications. A veteran of the travel and tourism industry, Best has previously held executive positions at Destinations International, as president and CEO of Visit Oakland and as senior vice president, business development at Santa Monica Convention & Visitors Bureau.

Craig Ross, president of The Dollywood Company, a 150-acre family adventure park in the Great Smoky Mountains, was recently appointed chairperson for the Tennessee State Tourism Committee.

Congrats to Cory Lee, blogger, on his journey to Antarctica, meeting his lifetime goal of traveling to all seven continents (and 36 countries so far) by the age of 30, no less.

“Curbfree With Cory Lee” chronicles his worldwide explorations in a wheelchair. Cory is a Webby Award-winning travel writer, an SATW Lowell Thomas Award winner, and the New Mobility Magazine “Person of the Year.” Follow him, along with 12.2K others, on Instagram.

There’s a low tech solution to chasing langur monkeys off the airport runway at Sardar Vallabhai Patel International Airport in Ahmedabad, India. Solution: Dress an airport employee in a bear suit to run after them to scare them off. Airport Director Manoj Gangal told Indian media that the new technique has been a “good and successful experiment.”

Hilton and BuzzFeed announced an exclusive title hotel partnership that pairs content from the media platform’s travel brand, BringMe, with Hilton’s direct-booking. Creating a direct link from BuzzFeed content to Hilton’s booking capabilities builds on BuzzFeed’s plans to fix the longstanding attribution problem that allows digital middlemen to capture profit.

>> JOBS <<

VisitPITTSBURGH – President & CEO

Visit Salt Lake – President & CEO

Monterey County Convention & Visitors Bureau – President & CEO and VP, Group Business Development and Director of Marketing Communications

Greater Lansing Michigan Convention & Visitors Bureau – President & CEO

Bermuda Tourism Authority (NYC) – Trade Marketing Manager and Sports Business Development Specialist and Content Specialist

Visit Topeka – President and Sr. VP, Greater Topeka Partnership

Visit Santa Clara (CA) – President and CEO

Discover Lancaster (PA) – President & CEO

St. Louis Convention & Visitors Commission – VP of Sales

Galesburg Area Convention & Visitors Bureau (IL) – Executive Director

Shelby (KY) Convention & Visitors Bureau – President & CEO

Saugatuck/Douglas Convention & Visitors Bureau (MI) – Executive Director

Visit Bellevue – Brand Manager

NYC & Company – Coordinator Tourism, Established Markets

Visit Denver – Destination Events Manager

State of Colorado – Director of Destination Development

Visit El Paso – Director of Convention Development

Visit Seattle – National Account Director

Visit Anaheim – Partnership Marketing Manager

Corpus Christi Convention & Visitors Bureau – President & CEO

Visit San Antonio – Director of Market Strategy

Visit Orlando – Director of Visitor Services

Visit Santa Cruz – Marketing Communications Manager

Sonoma County Tourism – Public Relations Manager

City of Savannah – Tourism Management Coordinator

City of Omaha – Sales & Marketing Coordinator

City of Virginia Beach – Convention Sales Rep

Travel Portland (OR) – Vice President of Community Engagement & Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Spartanburg Convention & Visitors Bureau – Chief Tourism Development Officer

City of Grand Junction – Data Analytics Marketing Manager

Experience Columbus (OH) – Director, Regional Sales/National Sales – DC Region

Travel Marquette (MI) – Group Marketing / Sales Manager

Grapevine (TX) Convention & Visitors Bureau – Director of Media Relations

Korea Tourism Organization (LA) – Marketing Coordinator

Massachusetts Convention Center Authority (Boston) – Assistant General Manager

Charleston Coliseum & Convention Center (SC) – Executive Director

Anaheim Convention Center – Deputy Director, Sales & Services

Las Cruces Convention Center – General Manager

Herschend Family Entertainment (TN) – Destination Marketing Manager

TwoSix Digital (Brighton, MI) – Digital Ad Specialist

Expedia (Seattle) – Speakers Communications Manager and Senior Product Marketing Manager and Product Marketing Manager

CrowdRiff (Toronto) – Director of Demand Generation

San Francisco Giants – Tourism Sales Manager

Washington Nationals – Manager, Event Marketing & Administration

International Marketing Forum is Coming to Three Locations

February 4, 2020 by Laurie Jo Miller Farr Leave a Comment

International marketing is only for DMOs and attractions with a big budget, right? Nope, wrong.

There’s a place for marketers with small-to-medium-sized resources to get the tools, research, and insights to initiate or enhance global marketing efforts. Industry experts will lead informative and interactive sessions throughout the day to tackle the challenges of creating today’s successful global strategy in a highly competitive international arena.

Connect Travel is bringing a one-day event—2020 International Marketing Forum—to three U.S. locations:

West Coast (Greater LA on Feb. 25)
East Coast (NYC on April 15)
Florida (Kissimmee on Oct. 13)

Hear from these speakers and others:

Erin Francis-Cummings, President & CEO of Destination Analysts on “International Travelers Destination Decision & Buying Behavior – Established Markets“

Alina Xiang, President & CEO, East West Marketing on “What the Hell is Going on in China?”

Kathy Smits, Vice President, International Tourism, Los Angeles Tourism on “Is India the Next China…or the White Whale?”

Tyler Gosnell, Director of International Marketing, Visit California and Daniel Schwartz, Director Americas, San Francisco Travel on “Getting Started in Latin America.”

Be there for insights delivered from experts at Miles Partnership and others on data privacy, overtourism, cooperative advertising, claiming your free online real estate and lessons learned from Brand USA.

See the agenda and register here for the International Marketing Forum West on Feb. 25, 2020 in Marina del Rey.

People & Places News

January 28, 2020 by Laurie Jo Miller Farr Leave a Comment

Registration is closing 1/31/2020...Connect Travel Marketing Leadership Summit is Feb. 19-21, 2020 in Kissimmee, Fla. “This is a can’t miss event for destination markers! A forum to gain and share cutting edge insights along with dedicated time with topical experts to brainstorm innovative ideas to move our business strategy forward.” – Scott Schult, Executive Vice President, Visit Myrtle Beach.

National #PlanforVacation Day – Jan. 28, 2020. It may be a made-up occasion, but that’s OK. It’s the message that matters…because life’s too short to waste the 786 million vacation days not taken by Americans each year. The U.S. Travel Association is stressing that travel is essential to creating jobs, supporting our economy, growing our businesses and enhancing our lives. See “Inside the Mind of the American Traveler” from Expedia Group Media Solutions.

Brand USA board chair John Erdman of Explore Minnesota has announced three new members and re-appointments to the 11-member board of directors to represent sectors of the travel and tourism industry. Todd Davidson, CEO of Travel Oregon (for state tourism offices); Donald Moore, Senior VP, Enterprise Holdings, Inc. (for land or sea transport); Konstantinos Dean Kantaras, owner and managing attorney (for immigration law and policy); Alice Norsworthy, CMO of Universal Parks & Resorts (for attractions/recreation); and Tom O’Toole, Senior Fellow at Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University (for passenger air). Other members are Mark Hoplamazian, President & CEO at Hyatt Hotels Corp.; Kyle Edminston, President & CEO at Lake Charles/Southwest Louisiana CVB; Mike Gallagher, co-chair and co-founder at CityPASS; and Noel Irwin Hentschel, chair and CEO at American Tours International.

TripAdvisor is now Tripadvisor. Along with product changes aimed at creating a more engaging, traveler-centric experience, the switch to a lowercase “a” in its name is one of the signals of the brand’s transformation. Bloomberg reports that “Tripadvisor is cutting hundreds of jobs…as competition from Google increases.” A CNBC followup report confirms 200 jobs, or 5% of the workforce, was affected. The company has informed employees about a wide-ranging reorganization and a dramatic re-alignment. It will now emphasize Viator, acquired in 2014 for $200 million, as a separate tours and activities brand from Tripadvisor Experiences. Read more from PhocusWire here.

What’s this fadeout? A look at Google‘s own ad labeling over the course of a decade through 2016 shows how ads have been made to look like search results…and vice versa. Lately, Google has taken some heat for the lack of demarcations and “fifty attorneys general are pushing forward with an antitrust investigation against Google,” reports TechCrunch. Last week, Google said they’d be “redesigning the redesign” of search results in response to criticism that search results displays were made to look like ads. A click on an ad makes Google money, and if we cannot tell the difference, it’s a long way from “Don’t Be Evil,” which Google quietly removed from its employee code of conduct in 2018, writes Gizmodo.

Caroline Beteta, CEO of Visit California announced that the state’s tourism industry has given a resounding “yes” to the Visit California Marketing Renewal, extending the organization’s funding through 2025. At 95% approval, the voting result represented the strongest since the program’s inception among the largest pool of stakeholders.

Visit Alexandria (VA) worked with Destination Analysts on visitor research that identified history as “top of mind” for 56% of respondents. The new campaign launched by the DMO is “Seize the Day, Stay in the Moment,” a campaign to highlight Alexandria’s historic character, waterfront and proximity to the nation’s capital. Click here to see one of the digital assets, a 15-second family-oriented video.

Daytona Beach Area Convention & Visitors Bureau is re-thinking their current promotional campaign, “Wide. Open. Fun.” created by the Myrtle Beach-based Brandon Agency. Citing concerns about falling hotel occupancy, local tourism leaders plan to review their options next month for the contract that runs through September. Read more here.

Brooke Burnham, most recently at Visit SLO CAL, has been hired as Senior Account Director at Arrivalist. Burnham previously held marketing leadership positions at Visit SLO CAL, Visit Estes Park and Travel Waterloo where she built and executed integrated marketing strategies and advertising campaigns while managing award-winning marketing teams. Burnham earned her B.A. from Colorado State University in public relations and an MBA from the University of Northern Iowa.

In Massachusetts, MetroWest Visitors Bureau announced Erin Lynch as its new executive director. Interim executive director Jill Schindler resumes her role as outreach and development director.

And from the playbook, “When in doubt, use cute animals…” Visit Vacaville (CA) tweets, “This lovely lady needs a name! She’s gracing the cover of Visit Vacaville’s 2020 Inspiration Guide, and her home at Soul Food Farm is letting us put out a call for some help in finding a name that matches her beauty.

Reply with your ideas and a winner will be announced soon.” @VisitVacaville

Jamaica Tourist Board has unveiled ‘Jamaica, Heartbeat of the World’ campaign as the new destination brand positioning for the country. Director of Tourism Donovan White said, “On the map, Jamaica may seem like a small dot in the Caribbean Sea. But her influence on the world culture is the size of a continent. We are a cultural giant and we continue to have an indelible impact on the world’s food, music, sport, and literature while offering larger-than-life bucket list experiences with extraordinary, talented people.”

The Newseum has closed. The museum dedicated to journalism and the First Amendment, was located on prime real estate along Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C. The glassy, modernist attraction that opened in 2008 has sold its building to The Johns Hopkins University and will “explore all options to find a new home in the Washington, D.C. area,” said Jan Neuharth, the chairwoman and CEO of the Freedom Forum.

‘We’re Hiring!’ Dozens of Job Listings.

January 27, 2020 by Laurie Jo Miller Farr Leave a Comment

VisitPITTSBURGH – President & CEO

Visit Salt Lake – President & CEO

Monterey County Convention & Visitors Bureau (CA) – President & CEO

Visit Pensacola – President & CEO

Visit Lancaster (PA) – President & CEO

Greater Lansing Michigan Convention & Visitors Bureau – President & CEO

Travel Portland – VP of Community Engagement & Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau – VP, People Strategies

Galesburg Area Convention & Visitors Bureau (IL) – Executive Director

Spartansburg Convention & Visitors Bureau (SC) – Chief Tourism Development Officer

Saugatuck Douglas Area Convention & Visitors Bureau (MI) – Executive Director

Corpus Christi Convention & Visitors Bureau – CEO

Charleston Coliseum and Convention Center (WV) – Executive Director

Colorado Tourism Office – Director of Destination Development

Visit San Antonio – Director of Market Strategy

Shelby, KY Tourism Commission & Visitors Bureau – President & CEO

Ouray Tourism Office (CO) – Executive Director

Little Rock Convention & Visitors Bureau – Senior Sales Director

Visit Orlando

Director of Visitor Services
Applications Delivery Manager
Business Analyst
Email Marketing Manager

Experience Rochester (MN) – VP, Marketing & Communications

Experience Grand Rapids – VP, Sales & Services

Visit Anaheim – Business Intelligence Director

Visit Bellevue – Director of Visitor Experience

Visit Seattle – National Account Director

Visit Baltimore – Regional Director of Sales, Midwest

DuPage CVB (IL) – Sports Tourism Development Manager

Visit Milwaukee (in D.C.) – Convention Sales

Visit Norfolk – Director of Sales

Greensboro CVB – National Sales Manager

Travel Marquette (MI) – Group Marketing/Sales Manager

Wyoming Office of Tourism – Communications Senior Coordinator

Georgia Department of Economic Development – Marketing Account Manager

Visit Santa Cruz County – Marketing Communications Coordinator

Visit Scottsdale – Communications Coordinator

Visit Alexandria – Destination Sales Manager

Sitka Tribe of Alaska – Tourism Manager

ILoveNY.com (NYC) – Digital Production Coordinator

Visit SLO CAL – Executive Assistant to President & CEO

City of Virginia Beach – Convention Sales Rep

Grapevine Convention & Visitors Bureau (TX) – Director of Media Relations

Tulsa Regional Chamber – Experience & Events Manager

City of Ste. Genevieve (MO) – Director of Tourism

Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority – Public Relations Manager

Visit Omaha – Sales & Marketing Coordinator

Visit Mobile – Corporate and Association Account Executive

Destinations International

Senior Membership Engagement Community Manager
HR Manager

Skift (NYC)

Events Coordinator
Digital Campaign Manager

CrowdRiff (Toronto) – Director, Product Marketing

Aqua Marketing & Communications (Fort Lauderdale) – PR Account Executive

MMGY Global (NYC) – Account Supervisor PR / Travel, Tourism & Hospitality

Simpleview (Tucson) – Communications Specialist

Expedia Group (San Jose) – Associate Travel Market Manager

Miles Partnership (Sarasota) – Account Director

Finn PR (Wash., DC) – PR Consultant for Brand USA

Malen Yantis PR (Denver) – Senior Account Exec., Travel & Tourism

Bread & Butter PR (San Francisco) – Account Executive / Hotel & Tourism

Wagstaff Media & Marketing (NYC) – Account Supervisor / Travel & Destination

Oregon Shakespeare Festival – Executive Director

Holland America Line (Seattle) – Manager, Destination Product Marketing

Silversea Cruises (Miami) – Destination Management Business Analyst

San Francisco Giants – Tourism Sales Manager

Washington Nationals – Manager, Event Marketing & Admin.

National Comedy Center (Jamestown, NY) – Marketing & Communications Manager

New York City Ballet – Assistant Group Sales & Tourism

New York Botanical Gardens – Associate/Manager of Group Sales

Hornblower Cruises & Events (NYC) – Tourism Sales Manager

Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum (Nashville) – Website Content Coordinator

…and Aqua Nicaragua Resort Management Internship, a structured program for an age 21+ student currently enrolled in a 2- or 4-year hospitality/hotel/tourism bachelor’s degree program. Spanish language required. Email: paul@ielimited.com

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