People & Jobs
Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch of Indiana announced the launch of an arts, cultural and Destination Marketing Organization grant totaling $10 million in financial assistance. The funding for this grant program comes from the CARES Act. In a partnership, Indiana Destination Development Corporation (IDDC) and Indiana Arts Commission (IAC) will provide economic support to local organizations whose normal operations have been disrupted due to COVID-19.
Dan Rowe, president and CEO of Visit Panama City Beach has been appointed as the 2020-2021 Chair of the Visit Florida Board.
Travis Napper, director of Arkansas Tourism, has been named to the board of directors for Travel South USA and will serve as the 2020-2021 chair of the Advertising Committee.
Randy Newcomb is the new executive director of the Galesburg Tourism and Visitors Bureau in Illinois, a relatively new operation spun off from the chamber of commerce. Newcomb was the longtime executive director of the Kentucky Lake CVB in Benton, KY. Galesburg was part of the 19th century Underground Railroad.
Virginia Beach Convention and Visitors Bureau has named Finn Partners as its PR agency of record, its first such appointment since 2018. Recently, Virginia Beach City Council provided funding to help the city’s tourism industry recover from COVID-19.
After more than four years at the helm of the Fremont Street Experience in Las Vegas, president and CEO Patrick Hughes is stepping down, effective Oct. 31. The six-block downtown entertainment district is known for its 1,500-foot-long Viva Vision canopy screen. The Fremont Street Experience and its board will conduct a search to find a new CEO over the next several months.
Detroit Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau has retained SearchWide Global to conduct an executive search to find their next President & CEO, to include responsibility for the Detroit Sports Commission. The ideal candidate will have a minimum of 10 years executive management experience in a supervisory capacity with hands on experience in budgeting, business planning and analysis, public speaking and strategic planning.
In British Columbia, Canada, Metro Vancouver seeks an Executive Director of Regional Economic Prosperity in the large and diverse Pacific Gateway. Refer to Destinations International job site.
Virginia Tourism Corporation has retained SearchWide Global to conduct a search to find their next Director of Research and Market Intelligence.
Reno Sparks Convention and Visitors Authority has retained SearchWide Global to conduct an executive search to find their next Chief Executive Officer. The ideal candidate for this position will have travel, tourism and hospitality experience with DMO experience preferred.
Naples, Marco Island, Everglades Convention & Visitors Bureau has retained SearchWide Global to conduct an executive search to find their next Deputy Director.
Park City Chamber of Commerce | Convention & Visitors Bureau has retained SearchWide Global to conduct an executive search to find their next President & CEO. The ideal candidate will have knowledge of Park City, Summit County and the State of Utah with a minimum of four years of progressive growth and experience in the tourism industry, including but not limited to convention sales, marketing, special events, public relations, and facility management.
In Maryland, Visit St. Mary seeks an Executive Director for the county economic development and tourism job with a minimum of two years’ DMO leadership experience.
In Colorado, the Greater Grand Junction Sports Commission seeks an Executive Director with a minimum of 5 years’ sports event and tourism industry experience. Applications are due by Aug. 30, 2020.
Alabama Gulf Coast Convention & Visitors Bureau (Gulf Shores & Orange Beach Tourism) is looking for a new CEO, a DMO professional with at least 10 years’ experience.
Visit Baltimore is seeking an in-house publicist reporting to the CMO, collaborating with the social media team. New listing. Apply via resumes@baltimore.org.
In Silicon Valley, California, SearchWide Global has been retained to conduct an executive search to find the next President & CEO for the newly formed Santa Clara DMO.
Explore Asheville Convention & Visitors Bureau has retained SearchWide Global to conduct an executive search to find their next President/CEO.
Events
At the intersection of digital media and tourism promotion, the eTourism Summit mission is to “See Tomorrow” in an intimate interactive setting featuring highly relevant, dynamic content. This fall, #eTS2020 will showcase all-new “See Tomorrow” programming focused on digital marketing in the post-pandemic environment.
A hybrid event model offers innovative and flexible choices for marketers and suppliers.
For marketers, a virtual participation package is available via “21 Days of eTS.” This registration option includes curated hour-long sessions throughout the month of October as well as pre-selected private vendor appointments. Virtual registration may be extended individually or company-wide.
An exciting concept for virtual attendance is being newly introduced. Using a unique code, the “Community Pass” allows marketers to share unlimited attendance with their qualified members and partners in a destination.
Will Seccombe, president of Connect Travel: “The eTourism Summit has been the premier industry event for digital savvy tourism marketers for the past 21 years. It’s known for presenting ground-breaking thought leadership that keeps everyone one step ahead of the pace of change. Due to the sudden and rapidly evolving events of 2020, we’ve seen the critical role that technology plays. In the two decades since the founding of eTourism Summit, digital marketing and communications in tourism have gone from emerging to highly relevant to absolutely irreplaceable.”
“Connect Safe Space 2020,” provides leadership in post-Covid environments, ensuring design and implementation of best practices, cutting edge solutions and common sense protocols to enable in-person business events.
You gotta be in it to win it.* The 3rd Annual eTourism Summit Excellence Awards (the “eTSY” Awards) recognizes and celebrates the best of 2019-2020 campaigns and programs with awards in a dozen original categories. Will you help us recognize the best of digital tourism marketing by submitting your entry by Aug. 31, 2020?
*includes virtual attendance
AWARD CATEGORIES:
- Best Website – small budget
- Best Website – large budget
- Best Content Marketing Program – small budget
- Best Content Marketing Program – large budget
- Best Influencer Marketing Campaign – small budget
- Best Influencer Marketing Campaign – large budget
- Best Use of Video (live, short-form, long-form) – small budget
- Best Use of Video (live, short-form, long-form) – large budget
- Best Campaign that Went Viral
- Best Email Marketing Campaign
- Best Use of Augmented, Mixed or Virtual Reality
- Innovation Award – best use of new ideas or technology
Small budget = annual marketing budget is under $5M
Large budget = annual marketing budget is $5M and over
See the preliminary agenda, speaker lineup, testimonials, and the WHY — Register for THRIVE.
Come to Las Vegas: Meet with a variety of domestic and international companies for pre-scheduled, one-on-one connections.
Network: Build key relationships between destinations, resorts, hotels, attractions, domestic and international tour operators and travel agents, sports rights holders, media, marketers and brands.
Learn from Experts: Enjoy in-depth sessions about relevant topics led by industry experts.
Unwind and Mingle: Build relationships while the networking continues at our entertaining and interactive receptions.
