Bill Geist's Zeitgeist

The Suffering Congress Ignores

Few have been spared from the pain wrought by the 'VID. But, it's the small business owner that has been impacted the most. And, when one recognizes that roughly 95% of tourism-related businesses are classified as "small business" by the SBA, you have your proof that travel and hospitality have been hurt the worst. Yet, Congress fiddles while small businesses close, wiping out hundreds of thousands of entrepreneurs and millions of jobs.

A restauranteur in Minocqua recently closed his business until next season, citing the lack of State leadership in an insane, partisan-fueled stop-start-stop dance that has been Wisconsin. His closing line in a Facebook post announcing the close was "Please join me in voting against everyone who hurt us on November 3."

You'd think that, in the less than 50 days to election day, our elected leaders would be focused on voters over campaign contributors and political ideology. But, I see no such evidence as scores of business owners shutter their dreams and the livelihoods of so many. Think they're pissed? Think they'll vote?

Maybe what our elected leaders all need is to read this open letter from one of the owners of the now-shuttered Mermaid Inn on New York City's Second Avenue. I dare any member of Congress to read the owners' story and not be galvanized to do something NOW to assist these businesses who were forced to close in March. 

Because, if action isn't taken, I dare say that there will be a sizable portion of the more than 15 million people that were employed in the restaurant industry in this country in March that will give voice to their disgust at what Congress has become on November 3rd.

Or, one must ask, does Congress even care?

A Powerful Local Message

Full disclosure: DMOproz facilitated the Strategic Planning process for Visit Champaign County...but that really has no influence on my affection for how that DMO has rolled out their Annual Report to the community, along with a simply sensational video designed for local consumption.

As I noted in the June edition of the Z-News (and, if you attempted to subscribe in the past few months and haven't seen an issue, we have recently discovered a subscriber field glitch that dumped up to 100 of you...so please, try again), we reviewed all the Strategic Plans we created in 2019 to see if they were still relevant. What we found is that they were (Marketing Plans were another story). Indeed, our Strategic Plans were often more relevant in a world gripped in crisis than they were when designed. When life is good, it's hard to get motivated. With the 'VID, it's imperative.

Jayne DeLuce is the CEO of Visit Champaign County...and both the Annual Report and video offer a proud and positive message to a community that has been rocked by our government's response to the 'VID and the Big 10's decision to postpone football. Her Chair's Opening Letter to the community is impressively empowering ("Our timelines may be altered, but we remain steadfastly committed that our destination vision...will come to fruition").

The video is simply inspiring.

Jayne and her team nailed it.

 

This is What DMO Pros Do

In yesterday's post, we shared a story about how a City government has shifted from "them's the rules, bub" to "how can we make this work." Refreshing...and as Quint Studer points out in Building a Vibrant Community, that's exactly what today's local governments should be doing to encourage private sector Place Making.

The back story makes this tale even better. Amie Burrill is the Executive Director of Experience Burnsville. The reporter who wanted to do a story on the soon-to-open Ineffable Brewing Company had reached out to Amie via the DMO's Facebook page using Messenger on Monday morning around 10. That would be the morning of Labor Day, when Experience Burnsville was closed, for a Labor Day story to run that evening.

Never fear...because DMO pros like Amie don't pay attention to holidays or operating hours. Even when they are out of town, as Amie was. But, because she brought her "business phone" along on her trip, she picked up the message in minutes, connected the owners of Ineffable to the reporter and alerted a Board member (also a City Council member). An hour later, the TV crew arrived at the brewery to interview the owners (and the City Council's Dan Gustafson). And, the piece aired that evening, showcasing not only the brewery but the City's can-do response to entrepreneurial opportunities for viewers throughout the Twin Cities.

This is how it's done in the pros.

Nicely played, Amie.

 

This is How Government Should Work

You gotta love the entrepreneurial spirit in the face of a global crisis. Three friends from the Twin Cities are planning to open a brewery in Burnsville MN next month called the Ineffable Brewing Company. As with any such venture, there is typically a staggering gauntlet of regulatory hoops to traverse. But apparently, the economic struggles brought on by the response to the 'VID has the City of Burnsville reassessing how it works with local businesses.

Dan Gustafson is a Burnsville city council member (and Board member of Experience Burnsville). In a recent interview on KSTP-TV, he said, "We've gone from 'these are the rules' to 'how can we make this work?' And that's how we're operating out here these days."

Bravo Burnsville. And here's hoping that more communities realize that going back to "these are the rules" isn't nearly as effective in Place Making as "how can we make this work."

Congratulations to the crew preparing for their grand opening. We can't wait for our next visit to Burnsville to experience Ineffable.

Deb Archer

When I told my Board Chair that I intended to step down to launch my consultancy, he initially considered the process of a national search. I remember giving him "the look" and saying, "Really? Your next CEO is right here...and you know it."

A year previously, we had been able to snare Deb Archer from Visit KC as our VP of Sales. We had help in the process, as she was dating a Madison guy. But, from the moment she joined our team, it was clear to me that, one day, she would lead it and Madison's visitor economy. And, for just over 25 years she has done just that...and then some.

When I stepped away in May of 1995, I was intentional in laying low. Because I had been at the forefront of the fight to build our Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Convention Center, my face was synonymous with the DMO. I wanted to make sure that Deb became the focus. And, during that summer of '95, I rarely ventured out in public.

To set the story, you must know that Deb often busted my chops for spending too much time with elected officials...and not enough helping her close business or schmooze clients. I still smile today when I remember bumping into her on State Street on a brisk autumn day, six months after she had taken the helm..

She gave me "her look" and said, "I really hate you." As I recoiled in surprise, she said with a sigh, "I haven't been able to sell anything in months (and Deb loved to sell). All my time is spent with the Mayor and the Council and the County Board." And, we shared a laugh at what managing a Destination Marketing Organization had become.

Today, Deb announced her retirement from Destination Madison. She never lost her affection for destination sales...but she evolved into one of the best DMO CEOs in the nation. Had she not ultimately married her Madison boyfriend, I have no doubt that she would have gone on to lead a Top 20 DMO. Luckily for us, she stayed here in Madison.

Thank you, Deb, for all you've done for this community. While I may have played a role in the referendum win to build the Convention Center, you powered Destination Madison (the organization and the community) to heights that were unfathomable back then. This community owes you a debt of gratitude that will, sadly, never be repaid.

Now go enjoy your next chapter. You have been a blessing to us all.

 

An Archer Hits Her Mark

Those of us in the Destination Marketing and Tourism field have been left adrift in the Federal response to the 'VID. With legislation that would bring some relief stalled in Washington over philosophical differences that just simply don't matter anymore, DMO pros are writing impassioned missives to urge action.

Our friend Rick Antonson penned one a week or so ago that hit a nerve. And, Destination Madison's Deb Archer so nailed it last week in her op-ed piece in the Wisconsin State Journal.

There are people that are surviving these times...and for every one of them, there is someone who isn't:

"For every local resident who glides across Lake Wingra in a kayak, there is an out-of-work tourism industry worker who is swimming in debt. For every group of friends who picnic in a shady park shelter, there’s a family headed by an unemployed hospitality professional who doesn’t know how much longer they’ll have a home. For every restaurant striving to survive by serving outdoors, there’s another that’s permanently closed its doors."

The full column is here.

Your job? Try to beat Deb's words. And then, get them heard.

We are all depending on you.

Subsidization vs. Investment

I've always been fascinated by media outlets that are critical of their community's economic development efforts. Hey, if there is evidence of mismanagement or fiscal irregularities, by all means, have at it. But, to just mistrust these agencies at face value and poke them whenever the opportunity arises doesn't seem to make a lot of sense. Especially when, if these agencies are successful, it would stand to reason that there would be more advertising money available in the community for said media outlet.

And, maybe that's the root issue. Economic Development agencies don't generally advertise locally because that would be a pointless waste of resources. The whole raison d'etre of these organizations is to advertise outside the community to attract new money and investment. Maybe that concept is lost on some.

Words matter, as we've seen with Destinations International's work in their Lexicon series (which has recently been updated). So, I had to shake my head when the Orlando Sentinel, in announcing the resignation of CEO George Aguel from the top spot at Visit Orlando, led the story by saying, "The top executive at Orlando’s publicly subsidized tourism advertising agency is stepping down as the region confronts the worst tourism crisis it has ever faced amid the COVID-19 pandemic."

Let's unpack the two wildly inflammatory references here.

"Orlando's publicly subsidized tourism advertising agency." OK, right off the bat, the word subsidy is defined as "a sum of money granted by the government or a public body to assist an industry or business so that the price of a commodity or service may remain low or competitive." That is not what is at work here. The County invests the proceeds of a specific non-resident, visitor generated tax on hotels into Visit Orlando to power an agency that works to ensure that visitors choose the region as a destination in which to drop off boatloads of cash before heading back home. Sounds like a win to me.

And, "stepping down as the region confronts the worst tourism crisis it has ever faced?" That's just shitty. The dude's 67. He's worked his ass off and broken records. The paper has been consistently submissive of the organization for over a decade...and now you're going to say he should stay because the industry is in free fall? Like he owes you that?

There will be no getting back to normal any time soon. Why not let a younger DMO pro step in and redesign the next iteration of Orlando Tourism? Not that George couldn't...but WTF? And, that's exactly what George has set in motion on the community's behalf.

Hey George? The Sentinel may not appreciate you...but over a half million residents that depend on a robust tourism economy (that's 41% of the population) thank you for all you've done. 

Now, go and enjoy the fruits of your labor with your family. You done good.

 

How We View Ourselves Differently

When the 'VID began to rear its ugly head, Destination Marketing Organizations pivoted on a dime and came to the aid of their business communities. DMOs went from Destination Marketers to Destination Leaders overnight.

Not that what recently happened in Cedar Rapids IA wouldn't have happened before the pandemic (because that's just how the CEO of Think Iowa City is wired), but it's a wonderful example of DMOs that are increasingly being understood as a vital agency to the lifeblood of the community.

The destruction that whipped through Cedar Rapids during the recent Derecho left tens of thousands of people without power for days, grain silos crushed, millions of acres of crops destroyed, homes and apartment buildings damaged and destroyed. 

Cedar Rapids is 20 minutes up the road from Iowa City...but that didn't stop Think Iowa City CEO Josh Schamberger from quickly assembling a crew of University of Iowa athletes, coaches and other volunteers to make that drive to help strangers recover.

That's what Destination Leaders do...even for other towns. Even for competitors.

Josh Rocks.

A New Vision

We have several ways to stay connected with our friends and clients in the Destination Marketing space. Of course, there is this (almost daily) blog, coming up on its 14th anniversary.

We also publish a monthly newsletter in which we share sector news and a commentary from yours truly. I tweet sporadically. And we repurpose the important missives on our Facebook and LinkedIn pages. Oh yeah...and the podcast is here.

Why am I reminding you of this? You may be a regular on this blog...but not a subscriber of the Z-News. And, if that's the case, you missed yesterday's release of our new position paper on how community marketing must change if we are to maximize resources, talent and opportunity. And, we think it's unlike anything you've seen.

We're boldly going where only a handful of visionaries have gone before...and we'd love to hear your thoughts.

Now, back to our regularly scheduled blog.

The Lack of a Coherent Strategy

The global pandemic has laid bare the absolute lack of leadership across the globe that should cause us all to re-examine whether voting for an eloquent candidate produces qualified individuals to lead us.

Here in America, a President that was unable to grasp the enormity of the growing menace passed it off as nothing to worry about in the early days of the 'VID. And, whether you support or loathe the man, the President told us not to be concerned...and the power of the office lulled many into complacency when swift action was needed. We now pay the price for that faith.

Because of that lack of leadership at the top, States were the next line of leadership. Some addressed the pandemic aggressively. Others followed their President's lead. The resulting shitshow of uneven mitigation threatens us all.

One of the leaders in shutting down the virus was Ohio Governor Mike DeWine. Many of us watched as he would announce lockdowns...and Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin and others would rapidly follow. In the early days, Ohio was rocking it on the nation's behalf, stepping into the leadership void at the Federal level.

But, in recent days, the protocols that Ohio has employed have a lot of people scratching their heads. There is a lack of consistency and coherency in the ever changing rules businesses must follow. A recent op ed piece by Chelsie Thompson, President of Renaissance Performing Arts, called into question the inequity of the State's standing orders.

Strip Clubs are open (essential services, apparently?) but Performing Arts Centers are not? Casinos are open..but not live theatre? Bars featuring live music with hundreds of people, shoulder to shoulder, are OK but museums are not? It's as if the State believes Arts & Culture are inconsequential.

As Chelsie so eloquently said, "What we cannot accommodate is the continued confusion on what is and is not allowed to happen across the state, the obstinate refusal to acknowledge the presence and impact of our industry on Ohio’s economy, and the egregious double standard to which the arts are being subjected under the Responsible Restart plan."

Honestly...can we have leaders that work with epidemiologists to produce a coherent strategy? Is that too much to ask?

Yeah...it obviously is.