Destination Leadership
The 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 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 MoreDiversity in Tourism: Takeaways from the Travel Unity Summit Southeast
By now, DEAI/DEI is a familiar topic and critical strategy component within professional settings. And while conversations surrounding diversity, equity, accessibility and inclusion are becoming more commonplace, representation of the diversity that surrounds us has always been more than a trend. Travel Unity is an organization that seeks to make the world of travel welcoming…
Read More5 Ways to Keep a Forward-Thinking Mindset
I first wrote down these five steps to keeping a forward-thinking mindset in the fall of 2020. The future was uncertain, and it was hard to stay positive. This week I joined the Accelerate Women Leaders in Travel Retreat in Kennebunkport, Maine and it served as a great reminder to look back at how far…
Read MoreCommitment: Creating World-Changing Collaborations
This is the last post in a series introducing a 3-part framework for creating world-changing collaborations. This framework is based on over 5 years of podcast interviews, over a decade of conversations and first-of-its-kind research. In it, I identified three key parts to creating and maintaining successful world-changing collaborations. 3 C’s framework: Communication, Commonality and…
Read MoreCommonality: Creating World-Changing Collaborations
In the last blog, I shared a 3-part framework for creating world-changing collaborations. The 3Cs framework is a crowd-sourced framework based on over 5 years of interviews on my podcast with professionals from all parts of the travel and tourism industry. From those conversations, I identified three key parts to creating and maintaining successful world-changing…
Read MoreCommunication: Creating World-Changing Collaborations
As we start to look toward the future and recovery for our industry, we have a tremendous opportunity to rebuild smarter. We did it after 9/11 and again after the great recession and we will do it again after the COVID-19 pandemic. We need new thinking and new ideas to help create the new normal…
Read MoreNavigating Tourism Marketing Now: 10 Themes from 26 Leaders
In July, I attended the Destinations International annual convention in Baltimore Maryland. It was my first live conference and the first convention to take place in Baltimore since before the pandemic. The energy at the event was contagious and the team at Visit Baltimore were amazing hosts. I brought my award-winning, 5-star podcast to the…
Read MoreHow to Promote Local Tourism
When it comes to promoting your tourism business – whether you’re an attraction, restaurant, museum or hotel, you may feel like you’re all alone. Luckily, that’s not the case. By working with your Destination Marketing Organization (DMO) or Tourism Promotion Agency (TPA), you’re able to get some free marketing that will help to distribute your…
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