Looking Ahead: Tourism Marketing of the Future
Last week, I attended the Marketing Profs B2B Forum and it felt like a glimpse into the shiny future of marketing. In the not-so-distant future, tech tools will be speeding our work along like the moving sidewalks at an airport. I came away from the conference energized and ready to experiment with so many ideas,…
Read More10 Must-listen Podcasts for Travel, Tourism & Hospitality Professionals
This week I celebrate 6 years since I launched my podcast, Destination on the Left, an award-winning show focused on creativity and collaboration in the travel and tourism industry. This week also marks the airing of my 300th episode and more than 75,000 downloads, more milestone markers crossed! Since launching one of the first podcasts…
Read More2023 Tourism Trends
In 2022, we saw a lot of new trends in the travel space. From abnormal travel planning cycles and travel habits to revenge travel. There were economic impacts of the pandemic recovery and impacts from global events, and natural disasters. It’s clear that while we’ve entered recovery in the travel, tourism & hospitality industry, the…
Read MoreFood for Thought: Inspirational Food Writing Tips for Destination Marketing
“I love how food has a magical power of bringing people closer together and breaking down barriers.”– Michelle Ng, episode 297, Destination on the Left Inspiration to travel can be sparked by alluring restaurant destinations. Since meals are a big part of any trip, writing about food in a way that inspires is key to…
Read MoreThe DMO of the Future
Everything we’ve gone through in the past few years has fast-forwarded the role of the DMO. It started to change shape, both to get through the pandemic and as a result of changes in our world. Many of these changes were already underway. We have been talking about place-making and destination management and cathedral thinking for…
Read MoreCollaboration is a Key to Improving Diversity, Equity & Inclusion in Tourism
Collaborations will be more successful if we build our collaborative teams to be more diverse, equitable and inclusive. Further, collaboration itself is a key to helping our industry solve issues related to DEI. Collaboration by its very nature leads to more diversity. By partnering with other organizations and different types of collaborators, you will open…
Read MoreTourism Marketing for a Milestone Event: Getting ready for the 2024 Eclipse
Milestones are major events that mark significant change or a new development. Milestones are also markers along the way to know that you are progressing on your path or towards your goal. A milestone event such as a big anniversary historical event, or astrological event like the total solar eclipse offers a community the opportunity…
Read MoreCo-opetition: Good For Business
I am a huge believer in co-opetition – where perceived competitors cooperate and together create something bigger than they could do on their own. It is this type of collaboration that I think makes the biggest impact and the guests on my podcast Destination on the Left believe it too. I have been learning from…
Read MoreHow to Combat Overtourism Through Marketing & PR
Before March 2020, an influx of people had been traveling to impressive destinations. While on one hand this is exciting, that surge of travel has a downside – overtourism. Overtourism is when there are too many visitors in a particular destination. The impact, as explained by the World Tourism Organization, is congestion at specific locations…
Read MoreUsing Anniversaries, Celebrations and Awards for Tourism Marketing
Break the Ice Media celebrated a milestone anniversary in 2019, 10 years since I started the company. In that year, I was also recognized with the Small Business Person of the Year award from the Small Business Council of Rochester. Many celebrations, anniversaries and awards are integral to successful tourism marketing campaigns. Some of the ingredients…
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