In February, over 400 destination marketing professionals met in Austin, Texas at the Destinations International Marketing & Communications Summit. It was both my first time attending an out-of-state conference and my first visit to the Lone Star State.  

I am coming up on my 1-year anniversary of working in the tourism industry. As much as I’ve learned in this short amount of time, my professional network still largely comprises local partners and other Colorado DMOs. This was my first time interfacing with a group of destination marketers outside of my home state. I had no idea what to expect from this summit, and I couldn’t wait to experience it for myself.

The event exceeded my expectations. I got to learn from a variety of engaging speakers and experts. Although I work in our DMO’s communications department, I bounced between the Communications and Marketing breakout sessions. Both tracks provided very insightful perspectives. Through many of the sessions (both breakout and general), I noticed a compelling throughline: maintaining conversation with our local communities.  

Demonstrating Value to our Communities

The CEO of my DMO often calls destination marketing an “invisible” industry. He’s right. The work is critical to our local economies while our communities are often unaware of our efforts. DMOs need to demonstrate our value and elevate our visibility to our residents. Once they understand what do, many become vocal supporters of our work.  

• Explore Asheville makes an exceptional effort to educate their community on the value of tourism. They run a year-round, resident-facing educational campaign on local news highlighting the community projects financed by the Tourism Product Development Fund.
• Visit Corpus Christi produced a fabulous brand anthem video full of local talent and well-known locations in the area. They ran the commercial frequently on a local news channel. After the campaign, Corpus Christi saw a whopping 8% increase in resident pride!
• Visit Orlando had the exciting opportunity to host Phil Rosenthal of “Somebody Feed Phil” to try some of the best spots that Orlando’s culinary scene has to offer. Afterwards, Visit Orlando took the opportunity to publicize their role as a DMO in this exciting achievement. They activated partners, who pushed the message further out into the community. Visit Orlando also utilized a local restaurant owner who was featured on the show as part of a “Tourism Benefits You” campaign, highlighting the boost that the DMO’s work gave his restaurant. 

Listening to our Communities

Destination marketing organizations need to be loud and proud about the work we do.  However, DMOs can’t do all the talking: The conversation must be a two-way street. Residents aren’t just our loudest champions: they’re also our most trusted source. We must bring in community members into our projects to inform our strategy and ensure authenticity.   

• Discover Puerto Rico’s award-winning Live Boricua campaign was designed with community at the forefront: celebrating locals’ perspective, culture and values. The campaign was so well-received that Discover Puerto Rico even had local stakeholders react to the ad campaign in a YouTube video.
• Visit Norfolk’s incredibly charming “How do you say Norfolk?” campaign was inspired by a longtime local debate. Residents felt so seen by this campaign that social engagement and demand for branded merchandise skyrocketed.  
• I was deeply impressed with Visit Dallas’ wildly successful brand launch story. The launch took multiple years of research, surveys, focus groups, brand workshops and more. Dallas residents were involved in every step of the way. Eventually, Visit Dallas landed on highlighting the city’s “Maverik, can-do spirit.” They even hosted a launch event geared towards the Dallas community specifically.  

When destination marketers are in tune with our communities, we get authentic campaigns, captivating stories to tell and happier residents.  

In Conclusion

I had an incredible time at this event. Visit Austin knocked it out of the park with their hospitality. It was refreshing to gather with so many other destination professionals. Even though our destinations vary in size and character, we face the same challenges in this industry and greatly benefit from sharing our knowledge. I forged connections and made new friends. I couldn’t ask for a better first-time experience!

After the conference ended, I came back to my office reinvigorated, inspired and full of new ideas of how my DMO can deeper engage with my community. Visit Colorado Springs has had resident sentiment top of mind recently, having run multiple local surveys and a focus group in the past several months. Thanks to my findings from the summit, we already have concrete ideas on how we’ll move forward in furthering our residents’ perceived value of tourism.  

I highly recommend this event to other destination marketing professionals. I’m incredibly grateful that I was able to attend!