Bill Geist's Zeitgeist

The Next Round is Open

Earlier today, the U.S. Commerce Department unveiled how it will invest the $3 billion it was awarded in the Administration's American Rescue Plan. Within that pot of resources, $750 has been earmarked for "Travel, Tourism and Outdoor Recreation." That's the good news.

Far from bad news (but not ideal), Destination Marketing Organizations are, again, not specifically named among the eligible entities to apply for funds through the Economic Development Administration (I mean really, WTF?). However, smart DMOs that have built mutually beneficial relationships with their Economic Development Agencies and local and State governments should be on the horn this afternoon (tomorrow at the latest) to outline how these funds can be most appropriately invested. After all, who knows better what our destinations need than DMOs?

And, don't limit your recommendations to the Tourism Fund...the other 5 funds underneath the $3 billion umbrella can easily be imagined to assist our communities build back better within a tourism lens. Just because it doesn't say "Tourism" doesn't mean we can't also recommend joint-venture projects that bring back jobs or provide planning assistance for our communities.

DMOs that don't have a relationship that permits that phone call and meeting by week's end? This is the wake-up call that you need to build that relationship by year's end.

Ready. Set. Go.

20 Voices

Just back from Destinations International's live, in person Annual Convention in Baltimore. Over 800 gathered last week in the Charm City...and suffice to say, it was good to be back. And, Al Hutchinson and his team at Visit Baltimore were the consummate hosts.

We'll do a recap of our take-aways in the Z-News later this week. In the meantime, we roamed the halls and meeting rooms asking DMO pros what they did differently during COVID that they will keep post-pandemic. And, you can hear those conversations in the latest episode of the DMOU Podcast.

Enjoy.

The Future of Tourism > DEI

Honored to be interviewed (along with my friend Mike Gamble of SearchWide Global and Tourism Diversity Matters) by David Peacock on Simpleview's Future of Tourism podcast.

You can find the video here 

You can listen to the audio here.

It's an important conversation on the importance of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Destination Marketing.

Thanks David, for the opportunity and for all you do for our sector.

Landing a Dream Job

I can't imagine my life not in the travel and hospitality field...and yet, that's never where I aspired to be when I was younger. I stumbled into it quite innocently and I've never let go (or, probably more truthfully, it never let go).

But why wasn't it an option? My mother instilled in me an ethos to always give back; to be in service to others. And, I can't think of an industry that is more "in service" than the service industry. So why wasn't it a viable option as I made way way into adulthood? Because, historically, we've paid shit wages and demanded impossible hours of entry-level positions? Because society and educators didn't value the work we do? Because self-absorbed asses in our midst think it's OK to demean service workers to their faces?

An interesting story in Fast Company caught my attention over the weekend. Roughly half of teens aspire to work in an artistic or investigative career. Only 2% of careers are in the arts/creative field and 8% are investigative (think scientist, detective, researcher, etc.). Why don't more dream of a job in hospitality?

Which then got me thinking about the new Amazon Prime series "Life's Rewards," where a rich playboy loses everything and is forced to live off his hotel points. As I suggested to Visit St. Pete / Clearwater's Steve Hayes on the DMOU podcast, my favorite aspect of the show was not just the character's reawakening...but the service staff around him that helped him find his way.

The answer isn't ads that extoll the virtue of a life in hospitality (did those Army ads make you want to join...or was it the TV shows and movies that glorified the cause?). We need more shows like Steve's to inspire the other half of teens that hospitality is a path worth considering.

Rough Seas Ahead

On the DMOU podcast, we've talked with DMO CEOs about creating sensational culture within their organizations. Pre-Plague, Anchorage's Julie Saupe said that she didn't want to risk her culture by allowing remote work. Sounds quaint now...but it made tons of sense then.

South Shore's Spero Batistatos built culture by creating a daycare in his office for staff with newborns. And, mid-Plague, Fired Up's Tammy Blount shared her thoughts on maintaining culture through a crisis.

Friends...it's about to get a whole lot tougher. Slack recently surveyed 10,000 knowledge workers...and the numbers are scary (tip of the hat to Fortune's CEO Daily for these chilling stats:

—76% of those surveyed want flexibility on where they work.
—93% want flexibility on when they work.
—56% are open to new job opportunities that may provide them more flexibility.
—21% are likely to jump ship in order to get that flexibility.
—Flexibility is second only to compensation in the factors leading people to change jobs.
—Black, Hispanic and Asian-American workers are more desirous of flexibility, and far more open to changing jobs to achieve it.

And, as most non-profit DMOs pay below private sector market rate and we, as a sector, are desperate to diversify our offices, this isn't good news.

But, as DMOs did last Spring, we'll figure a path through this new reality.

The Folly of Fair

I support the notion of a level playing field in virtually everything. I say "virtually" only to cover my butt in case there is a situation I have yet to experience where it wouldn't make sense. But, I'm hard pressed to imagine such a situation.

Unfortunately "fair" is increasingly seeping into community conversations regarding contracts for Destination Marketing. Visit Duluth is in the midst of an RFP process with their City...and news out of Juneau AK indicates that its DMO will be facing a similar gauntlet.

Don't get me wrong...Cities have every right and responsibility to demand accountability for the revenues they invest in any endeavor. Unfortunately, those that go down this path haven't considered that their DMO is a classic example of a "Sole Source Provider." There are simply no other entities that provide the breadth of services that a local DMO does and can. Saying that we must be "fair" and let competitors state their case is flimsy, at best.

If it's an ad agency, they might have cooler creative...but they don't have a running relationship with a database of thousands of meetings and event planners across the country. If it's a Chamber of Commerce, they might have good relations with the region's business community...but they won't represent those cool businesses that make a destination magnetic if those businesses aren't members. And handing DMO responsibilities to a Convention Center that may have a database but no expertise in brand and social media? There are more examples of where it doesn't work than where it does.

It's called a Sole Source Provider for a reason.

And, let's not even go to engaging a vendor from out of town. This past year has shown how vital boots on the ground are. Would a vendor from Wichita have worked 70 hours a week to help save businesses in Duluth during the pandemic? Doubtful.

Again...I get that this might seem like a lot of money for Cities to invest (it's really not when one understands the true impact of Destination Marketing in Economic Development and Quality of Place) without a competitive process. But, when DMOs are the only entities with the experience, database and dedication to successfully (and singularly) market a community...these are RFPs that should have a pre-determined outcome.

Unless it's political...or about price. But, consider this...would a City contract with a road construction company that doesn't have graders and pavers just because of price?

Then why consider such a move with your DMO...if it isn't price or politics?

New on DMOU: Getting LGBTQ+ Right

Just up in the DMOU vault is an insightful conversation with our friends Billy Kolber and Kenny Porpora of HospitableMe into the world of LGBTQ+ travel. From ensuring that your community is ready...to hitting all the notes perfectly in your messaging, this podcast is for any DMO pro that recognizes the opportunity to welcome a vibrant and growing market to your community.

You'll also hear about their new Master Class...and score a DMOU / DMOproz discount code, just for listening. And, yeah...their Bonus Round questions are pretty fun, too.

Join us.

Like That Will Have a (Positive) Impact

Not to throw shade at the head of the Hotel Association of New York City, but his recent support of Mayor Bill de Blasio's summer-long waiver of Hotel Room Taxes is perplexing, at best, and reckless, at worst.

Don't get me wrong, there are some destinations where $18 a night might influence a potential visitor to choose another city. But, honestly? This is freakin' New York City. A destination that isn't up for debate on haggling over price. It's also a City with a pandemic-induced budget hole that could use those revenues to shore up other parts of the economy or infrastructure. To forfeit an estimated $30 million of tax revenue on a feel-good gimmick that's simply not needed to jump start the hotel sector is amazingly short-sighted.

The consumer tax savings on a $300/night room is roughly $18, it's $12 on a $200/night stay and $6 on a $100/night stay. So, don't call me elitist when I say people wouldn't let $18 blur their desire. That's a drink in the hotel bar for people willing to spend $300 a night...and a hot dog for those attempting to be frugal. 

If the powers at work here really want to help, don't waive the Room Tax. Use it to subsidize a portion of theatre tickets so the theaters and their crews and companies are made whole...but that tickets are more affordable to the tight-fisted (but culturally sophisticated) consumer this summer. That will capture people's attention. Broadway on Sale for one Summer only? That will cause theatre goers that might fear an unmasked city to take a chance and return. The same with admissions to sporting events and museums. And, let's find a way to help our restaurants come back.

The Mayor deserves huge props for dedicating $30 million in recovery funding for the work of NYC & Company. But, forgiving a fee that hardly anybody notices when there are so many ways to maximize this revenue? Unforgivable.

Taking a Stand

Back in the '90s, a movement began that is de rigueur today in hotels around the world...that if you don't need your towels washed every day, you'd help save the environment. I remember making that then novel suggestion in my DMO's member newsletter and having an innkeeper tell me, "ohh puleeeze." In the end, she was wrong and I was right, as it caught on as both the right thing to do and a cost savings for hotels.

As we emerge into a post-Trumpian world where climate change is once again a valued concern, is this our moment to take a stand?

The Oregon Coast Visitors Association, the agency which promotes tourism on all 363 miles of the Oregon coast, joined tourism agencies around the globe this month when it declared a “climate emergency.”

The DMO says that its goal is to provide a “blueprint” for how the hospitality sector can reduce their carbon footprints. Recommendations will be completely voluntary...but that it's a necessary first step in environmental sustainability. It's also a sensational reaffirmation of the Coast's brand identity.

The movement has begun. Shall we join in?

The Nod From the NFL

Customer Service is nothing new...but when we experience stellar service, we notice. Right?

That's what I felt over the weekend when I thought about the NFL Draft. I mean, that's all I've been hearing about on Sports Radio for the past two months. When the hell is it, I asked myself. And then, I asked the internet and was taken to a page that said it starts Thursday. And, for more information, I was directed to visit the website of Destination Cleveland. And, that made me smile.

It shouldn't have. That link should be expected. DMOs in pro sports towns have been working with their franchises for years. But yet, it still did...and Destination Cleveland didn't disappoint, as they've transitioned their home page to NFL Draft HQ.

And again, I smiled.