The City Council of Duluth MN recently voted to redirect funding from its Destination Marketing Organization to an ad agency 150 miles away. For those of us that know how this game is played...that's beyond lunacy.
Across the bay, in Superior WI, the Mayor is advancing a notion that there should be a "Commission" that decides how Room Tax funds are deployed. Make no mistake, the City Council has had this responsibility for years. But this concept will put the decision in the hands of residents that are appointed to the Commission by the Mayor. Thus, the Mayor takes control of where the money goes, as his minions will do his bidding.
A telling quote from a story from Wisconsin NPR: "I think that's a very real desire to have some say in what these marketing campaigns look like and how much we spend on them," said Paine. "That's a power we don't have now."
Power. Control. I get it. Cities collect the tax and they have a fiduciary responsibility to ensure it is invested wisely.
But, can someone tell me why a Mayor thinks he knows how Destination Marketing works? That he has spent time doing the work that we all do to build campaigns based on data? And that his minions have a clue as they decide how Room Taxes should be invested?
As the authors of "Race for Relevance" so clearly state, "these are part-time amateurs." Well meaning, well intentioned...but, they don't do this work for a living. But because they are elected, believe they know how this all works.
DMOs do. So why are these politicians so hell bent on wresting that talent away from the people that know it best?
I know, I know...because they can. Not because it's right.
Agreed. Choosing Minneapolis to award the Visit Duluth contracts is shocking.
In Boston and NYC, I worked for two big-city mayors with hubris in excess. Note that in this case, "hizzoner" is a she.
Posted by: Laurie JM Farr | September 09, 2021 at 12:37