Bill Geist's Zeitgeist

Beware the "Value Add"

A software that has become one of my favorite productivity builders recently notified me that Version 5 had just been released. 

To sweeten the pot (as if I need it), they're offering a piece of desktop publishing software (from another company) that, on the surface, looks like a perfect solution for our needs, since both Apple and Microsoft have dumbed down their word processing programs to a point that they are virtually unusable for anything more than writing letters.

Except...upon attempting to download said software, I get a warning prompt from Apple saying that the software didn't pass their requirements for being added to the App Store. Now...I could be a conspiracy theorist on this and believe the block is on because this answers my problem with Mac Pages. But, when I can't find a single review on this program online? 

Yeah...that $49 value my (until now) trusted software vendor offered to sweeten the deal? 

I still love you...but I no longer trust you.

The Hard Ache of Katrina

Time has a way of sanding down the edges of the pain and helplessness we endure in crisis situations. With all the media fanfare surrounding the 10th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, my mind wandered back to a Z-News post I wrote (pre-blog) in those raw, emotional days following the disaster along the coast:

It’s the annual return to school here in North America. And, when you have an over-achieving daughter in an advanced English class that gives out homework over the summer...it’s like we never left.


Last night, I was proofing a paper she wrote in which she used the word “hardache.” I chuckled momentarily...and then put down my pen. She clearly had meant “heartache,” but her new word resonated off the page. And, I instantly thought of my friends along SouthCoastUSA. And, all of a sudden, my youngest daughter’s new word gave expression to what I have been feeling since Katrina’s landfall.



We don’t just ache. And, it’s not a heartache. It is, indeed, a hard ache. One of the hardest aches we’ve ever felt. With no less respect for this nation’s loss on 9/11...we have just lost (if for but a time) an American icon in the City of New Orleans. Destinations like Biloxi and Gulfport that were just last week celebrating the stunning rebirth of their communities. The parishes of Louisiana that may not have been top-line destinations...but they were home to thousands of good people. People like you and me. We’ve lost entire communities in the blink of an eye.



It’s a hard ache we feel as we helplessly watch the coverage unfold.



I ache for New Orleans CVB CEO Stephen Perry as I read his chilling updates on his Bureau’s website. He and his staff are almost completely cut-off from the world...and from each other. Thanks to the foresight of hosting the Bureau website in California (where there are precious few hurricanes), Stephen has been able to communicate through that site, creatively using a personal Yahoo e-mail account. His post last night elicited a hard ache:

"To our knowledge, all CVB personnel are safe. Virtually all were asked to evacuate and relocate. Those few who remained cannot be contacted or reached for the most part, but are assumed safe. Only those who evacuated are able to work with you at some level at this time. It is estimated that more than 90% of the CVB staff will have sustained major home damage or outright loss of their homes.



Longtime CVB Vice President Nikki Nicholson, who retired 18 months ago to buy a bed and breakfast in Bay St. Louis Mississippi has barely survived. Nikki attempted to stay and ride out the storm in her b&b, but the storm destroyed her home around her and she and her dog survived clinging to a tree until rescued.



I have continued to write updates to the website as I have gained spotty windows of internet access and will continue to do so as able. We apologize for any inadequacies of information and are doing our best to maintain communication with all emergency preparedness entities and with all travelers, meeting planners, and tour operators. Please work with our regional offices in the meantime. Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers. I am sorry we cannot speak personally to each of you who have important questions at this time."



And then, this: 

"CVB staff members are unable to communicate with or reach each other even though they have been dispersed to different locations because all are using area code 504 cell phones which are non-functional due to loss of the networks.



Any CVB executive team member who evacuated and is in a secure location, please email Mr. Perry (at his Yahoo account). Please include your location and a landline number and your status and safety update."



I don't know about you, but the thought of not knowing how or where your staff is in a time like this makes me ache even harder for Stephen as he valiantly tries to lead his destination through this catastrophe.

As we wish all our friends along the SouthCoast a speedy return to basic services and a sense of normalcy...a thought for the rest of us: Are you prepared for a crisis of this magnitude? Creating redundant web hosts in other areas of the country is a start (as the Alabama Gulf Coast’s Mike Foster suggested on a DMOU Teleseminar on Crisis Planning). But, what about your communication plan with members of your staff? Should we look to having mobile phone numbers outside our local exchange (after all, long distance is free these days)?



As we ache hard...we need to take notes to better prepare us all for future catastrophes. And then, we need to get out our check books. We’re real good about sending hundreds of millions of dollars to victims of the Tsunami. We need to be even better about helping our own...

You can make a donation to the American Red Cross or by calling 1-800-HELP NOW.

Still Hard to Grasp

Casey Kasem called him "The Voice." And, he was one of the premier rock vocalists of the '80s as the frontman for Survivor.

Jimi Jamison departed terra firma a year ago this weekend...and it still feels strange whenever his voice shuffles forward in my iTunes collection. How could he (and so many others) no longer be in our midst.

On this Music Friday, we offer a couple tracks in tribute to a regular guy that I had the chance to meet that had a major league gift that he shared around the world. The first is a fan video from 5 years ago. If any of us could have a video like this play at our funeral, you gotta admit, it would be pretty cool. What an amazing life he enjoyed.

The other is a recently discovered track that may be from one of the last times that he ever stepped into a recording studio. While I had followed his solo career, it never got much traction. I can't help thinking that "Summer Rains" may have been the one.

RIP, Jimi.

 

Throwback Tourism Thursday

From the, "We've Come a Long Way, Baby" archives...check out this groovy promotional video for Chicago, circa 1977.

From a time where interactive museum displays were a new thing, "swinging discotheques" featured and saying that you were a "religious city" wasn't considered taboo.

And, when nobody thought a 15 minute video was excessive.

It's (All) About the Promise

If one was in the Destination Brand business, one could be justifiably ecstatic that one of the three pillars of DMAI's DestinationNEXT mandate centers on "Building and Protecting the Destination Brand."

But, that's not what I heard from Duane Knapp (author of Destination BrandScience™ and Global Destination BrandScience™) when we caught up a couple weeks ago. Instead, I heard concern in his voice as he bemoaned the avalanche of new destination logos and taglines masquerading as brands with no mention of a promise or commitment to train the community on how to make their guests feel great.

Last week, Duane posted up his concerns (and solutions) on the DMAI Blog. And, it's seriously worth your read. 

It's (All) About the Music

Anyone who has heard me talk at Tourism and Economic Development Conferences knows that I'm pretty blunt when it comes to the way that most Destination Marketing Organizations have handled promotion of their nightlife.

DMOs are traditionally excellent at promoting their destination assets before 7pm...and lousy after. I can't begin to tell you how much money I've saved because I can't find music in the towns I visit. I know it's out there...but only locals know how to find it. And, that means I leave town with a less enthusiastic impression than I should.

The Chattanooga Area CVB knows it too. Which is why they have just created a new position that will focus entirely on promoting that city's music scene. Mary Howard Ade (ex-Spin magazine) has been hired as the Bureau's Music Marketing Manager.

According to the Times Free Press, having a full-time DMO pro on staff means music gets full-time attention. As Bureau Marketing and Public Relations Director Candice Davis said, "Before, if I promoted the Chattanooga Market [to tourists]...I might focus on the produce and the crafts and mention the music. Now, Mary Howard will focus on the music and mention the food and crafts."

Exactly.

Going Underground

I don't sense it's quite as bad as it was...but I know there are still Destination Marketing pros that walk on eggshells in an effort to balance the interests of the consumer versus members of the business community that demand "fairness." That "fairness" mantra holds that if you mention Hotel A, you must mention Hotel B...even if B gets 2 stars on TripAdvisor to A's 4.5 stars.

I know, it doesn't make sense (it's a DMO thing). And, it reminds me of a Q&A session in which restauranteur (and Social Media expert) Joe Sorge was asked how he would handle the fairness thing in Social Media. Because he is not from the DMO world (but, instead, from the real world), he said, "Fair? Fair? If they want you to talk about them, tell 'em to do something cool."

Alas, some of us can't be that flip. So, here's another way around fairness: sponsor somebody else's guide to your destination.

That's what Chris Jennings and the Spartanburg SC CVB just did (for the second time) by sponsoring "The Underground Guide to Spartanburg," a 112-page guidebook by Hub City Press featuring sections on nightlife, eats, arts, outside, shopping and odds and ends.

According to Chris: “Visitors want to go to the places locals frequent, and 'The Underground Guide' highlights them. This publication is sometimes called the 'unofficial visitors guide' because it's edgy, and guests love that."

And, it gets the correct message to the consumer without taking a lot of flak from two star attractions.

Well played.

Rattle that Lock

Back in the early days of the new millennium, I was interviewed by Billboard magazine on the subject of brands using rock songs to sell their stuff. While it's pretty common today (with very few of us even noticing), it was a pretty unusual experience back then.

With Alice Cooper shilling for Staples and Genesis allowing its music to be used by Michelob, the once subversive genre was now, as the producer Peter Sellers once said, being used to sell dishes.

And, today, it has come full circle. David Gilmour (best known as a stalwart of the now defunct Pink Floyd) says he heard the five-note sounder used by the French rail company SNCF that alerted passengers to an upcoming announcement. Every time he heard it, he said he wanted to start dancing. And, addicting it is.

So addicting, that he used it as the backbone of his new song, "Rattle That Lock."

You'll not soon get this Music Friday feature out of your head.

You've been warned.

The Future of TBIDs

I'm not a big fan of Tourism Business Improvement Districts because they require hotels to pay more than they already do in Room Taxes to fund them.

I'm a huge fan of Tourism Business Improvement Districts because they clearly work.

Greg Oates has penned a great overview of TBIDs on Skift. If you're in the Destination Marketing world, it deserves your read.

On the Job Training

I remember all too well the frustration of one of my daughters, upon entering the workforce, with the expectation of some employers that their employees would actually have experience.

"How the hell do I get experience if they won't hire me," she said, the exasperation all too clear. And, as always, she was spot on.

I was reminded of that conversation last week when a newly minted Destination Marketing Organization director (with no previous DMO experience) said, somewhat breathlessly in a news article, that she hoped to target motor coach groups that might stay the week.

That would be a target market of exactly...errr, zero. Motorcoach groups don't ever spend a week in one place, especially in a town that they've never heard of.

Now, to be fair...we all have to start somewhere. And, when I got my first job in DMOland, I had no experience whatsoever in the tourism and hospitality field (I had been a DJ, for crying' out loud). But that was in the 1980s, when Destination Marketing wasn't understood as one of the most vital aspects of economic development. Back then, we came from all kinds of backgrounds and learned the trade.

Today...the stakes are too high. Rookies are rarely successful because expectations are excruciating.

So, where to get the experience? Not a baptism of fire. If you want to be a successful DMO CEO, learn the trade at another DMO first. Then use your knowledge gained to make your mark somewhere else.