Building Relationships for Partnership Marketing

building relationships for partnership marketing

Museums have a unique perspective in the tourism industry, and they form their collaborations and change around community. What can other tourism attractions and destinations learn from these foundational relationships with the community? How can we approach partnership marketing in new ways that fuel change and build more than visitation? Museums are cultural institutions, aiming…

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Creating Experiences to Create Memories

Creating Experiences to Create Memories

At the 2017 NYSTIA Empire State Tourism Conference in Lake Placid, I was inspired by the overall theme of how to make a destination stand out that still stand true today. Bill Geist, DMOproz, talked about the importance of disrupting the status quo in order to drive brand awareness and visitors to your destination during…

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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,…

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10 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…

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The DMO of the Future

The DMO of the Future blog title with a gray background and a glass ball with the reflection of a city inside it

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…

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How to Combat Overtourism Through Marketing & PR

How 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…

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Using Anniversaries, Celebrations and Awards for Tourism Marketing

Using Anniversaries, Celebrations and Awards for Tourism Marketing [image of several people with wine glasses bringing them together to cheers]

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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4 Brand Storytelling Lessons from a Former Washington Speechwriter

4 Brand Storytelling Lessons from a Former Washington Speechwriter

Disclaimer: This is not a political post. However, politicians and Washington D.C. staff may be referenced throughout the course of this blog. In early 2017, I had the chance to listen to Jon Favreau, former speechwriter for former President Obama, talk about his time in Washington. While the stories he told – days on the…

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What the heck is a Facebook Pixel?

What the heck is a Facebook Pixel?

You’ve probably heard of pixels, you may have even heard of Facebook pixels. But what is it, really? A Facebook pixel measures online activities from Facebook ads – and the best part is it can measure activities beyond the initial click to your website. Measurement and tracking are crucial to successful tourism marketing campaigns and…

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