Bill Geist's Zeitgeist

Opening a $107 Million Convention Hotel without a DMO

I'm pretty sure that the disillusioned head shake by hotel developers in Conroe has been more pronounced than that of the serial killer in the Geico commercial. As the City of Conroe footed most of the bill for the exceptional new Hotel & Conference Center that opened last week, you'd think someone would have considered that having a DMO with no staff to assist with the opening would have been a red flag.

Hey, if forces within the City wanted to fire accomplished, award-winning DMO leadership...that's fine. Completely their prerogative. But doing it weeks before one of their biggest private economic development partners opens such an ambitious project that needs a professional DMO (and not City Hall receptionists)...that's just carelessly clueless.

But hey, there's a lot of that going on out there.

Sadly.

Say What?

A recent piece on Local10 in South Florida suggests that the Governor's recent migrant relocation bill has resulted in undocumented workers walking off job sites. Which is not good for Florida's economy.

Whether true or not, I had to laugh at the Governor's response: “You can’t build a strong economy based on illegality.”

And yet, the economy he touts as one of the nation's best as he prepares to run for President, has been just that.

Just sayin...

Reality v. the Circus

For the past 5 years, Shannon Overby took the destination marketing of Conroe TX beyond what most would consider possible. She recently got caught up in political shitshow when forces within the City decided that the DMO should serve as the receptionist for City Hall and she pushed back.

Conroe let her go for her "insubordination." And, within days, she is snapped up by one of the top DMOs in the State of Texas.

Hey Conroe? Does that suggest to you that you have no friggin' idea what you're doing? Or the talent you just frittered away?

Yeah...probably not.

Like an SNL Skit

Wisconsin's US Senator Ron Johnson (yeah, we're sorry) recently said that climate change was good for our State.

OK...so ignoring the impacts on the rest of the world is troubling enough. But his rationale is beyond parody: 

"Without global warming, my state of Wisconsin would still be mostly covered by a 1-2-mile thick glacier."

Honestly? US Representative Mark Pocan (who, to be fair, has said some pretty nutty stuff too) nailed it when he said Ron's comments were like an SNL skit.

The shit that comes out of our "leaders'" mouths...

Sigh.

 

Some Good News

We often, with disbelief, report on the unwarranted attacks upon Destination Marketing Organizations...but we gotta say, the past couple days have been pretty sweet.

A proposal to kneecap Florida Tourism marketing received a pretty stellar punch in the nose as the State Legislature not only appropriated revenues to Visit Florida but increased its budget by $30 million.

And, the attempt to disband the Hawaii Tourism Authority failed.

In both cases, it is clear that legislators ultimately set aside their personal interests for headlines and accepted that, while there may be issues to be resolved, the DMOs in question produce so much State revenue that it's best to keep them in play.

Can we hope that the future will bring more sophisticated decisions? Fingers crossed.

And then, there's this. Minnesota, which has traditionally trailed its Midwest neighbors (except Indiana) in its investment in Destination Marketing is now considering doubling its Destination marketing budget.

And Indiana? Long the "why do you even bother" budget? The Legislature is considering more than doubling its investment.

Pretty cool news for those of us that have, for so long, preached the value of Destination Marketing. And congratulations to all that have advocated for such investment in your States and communities.

Next on DMOU: Peggy Williams-Smith

How does a very Blue City land a very Red Convention? Visit Milwaukee’s Peggy Williams-Smith joins DMOU to share the story of how her Team and City landed the 2024 Republican National Convention. We’ll also discuss how Milwaukee was named one of National Geographic’s Top Destinations and how Visit Milwaukee has expanded the organization’s community awareness, visibility and support. Plus a Bonus Round question on her deep Beer City roots.

Join us.

That's Bold

Every year seems to favor a new word...intentional one year, paradigm the next, pivot during the plague, etc.

In virtually every interaction I've had with community leaders in the destinations with which we've been working, this year's word is "bold." As in community leaders looking to their Destination Marketing Organization to "be bold." While DMOs are under fire in several destinations, there are many other communities that are looking to their DMOs to step up and lead. Which is exactly what we should be doing. As I've said before (and will to my last breath), our sector is less DMO than DLO: Destination Leadership Organizations.

And, there is no other DLO that has been bolder this year than the Sedona Chamber and Tourism Bureau. Readers of this blog have followed with us the dumpster fire of a community that lost their shit 5 years ago. Listeners of the DMOU podcast have heard former CEO Jennifer Wesselhoff explain how the Chamber moved aggressively to mitigate issues that residents found onerous.

On Monday, the Sedona Chamber cut ties with the City and called upon it to rescind the portion of the Room Tax that historically funded tourism promotion. In doing so, the Chamber took a bold step to support local business and the community's economy in ways in which elected officials are unable...doing what's right without fear of retaliation or retribution by people who are singularly motivated by what will get them re-elected and not what's right for the community.

Bold kudos to you, Sedona Chamber/Bureau. Here's to doing what's right, regardless the cost.

Solvang...Sigh

Solvang is such a cool town. Dubbed the Danish Capital of America, it's where California wine cellars mix with European bakeries and shops. Home to over 120 wineries, it's a great destination...with a completely dysfunctional governmental view of how this all works.

In the months before COVID, the City Council cut the contract with its DMO, dispatching a highly successful DMO CEO, and hired an outside agency to run events and festivals for the City (really?). When that didn't work out, they appointed a Tourism Advisory Committee to provide counsel to the Council. But City staff has apparently become so difficult to work with that the current out-of-market marketing agency of record has resigned their contract.

This is why there are Destination Marketing Organizations. There must be professionals, on the ground, that can curate and represent the community. It can't be done by outside agencies. It never could. It never will.

But there are governments that continue to think it can.

 

What We Really Need

Most politicians start out with a raison d'etre. It may be border security or an insane need to drive their religious agenda on the rest of us. But, if they were really smart, they'd focus on the thing that makes us all crazy: the IRS. And, as I reluctantly dive into the hours required to pay my taxes....

According to FreshBooks, 60% of business owners indicated they would rather remove a nest of angry bees, hang out with their mother-in-law for a day, undergo a root canal or even lick a pole on the subway instead of doing their taxes. 

Hey electeds? Can we get beyond the the divisive bullshit you spin and get to the real issues we care about? Like a flat tax...just send me a frggin' bill. Because the system you've created makes me forfeit hours of my life that I could spend enjoying it and pay someone a boat load of money for the right to pay you a boat load of money.

Can I just pay you a boat load of money?

It's Still the Most Elegant Funding Model

Back in the 1990s, Missouri unveiled the most elegant funding model for Destination Marketing that we've ever seen. On this week's edition of the DMOU podcast, we talk with one of the architects of the Missouri Model, Tracy Kimberlin, the recently retired CEO of the Springfield MO CVB.

Inspiring stuff for DMO pros, to be sure.