By now, you should have received two postcards inviting you to save the dates of August 15-18 for THE destination marketing conference of the year – ESTO 2007! Not only will you NOT want to miss this year's phenomenal program lineup, but you definitely WILL want to experience The Phoenician – one of Phoenix, Arizona's premier locations. Check it out at ThePhoenician.com.
State tourism directors should hold the evening of Wednesday, August 15th open. Immediately following the ESTO Official Opening Reception that evening, there will be a fun, private get together with fellow directors. Stay tuned, details will follow as they are finalized.
The headliner for this year's ESTO is best-selling author and expert on innovation, competition and the changing world of work, Daniel Pink. A much sought after national speaker, his latest book, "A Whole New Mind", charts the rise of right-brain thinking in modern economies and explains the six abilities individuals and organizations must master in an outsourced and automated world. You will not need caffeine to keep you awake for this session!
Check your inbox over the coming weeks for more details on the ESTO 2007 program and bookmark www.tia.org/esto to stay up-to-date.
Thirty tourism directors attended the NCSTD Spring Forum, February 22-23, in Washington, DC and engaged in a packed day and a half of meetings and briefings that dealt with top-line national and state-level travel industry issues as well as NCSTD business. Attendees passed a resolution pledging a minimum of $500,000 from the state offices in calendar year 2007 to support the critical work of the Discover America Partnership. They also acted on recommendations of the Research Professional Development Section regarding recent proposals from the Office of Travel and Tourism Industries, U.S. Department of Commerce relative to the In-Flight Survey of International Air Travelers. The minutes of the business meeting outlining these actions in detail along with the resolution were sent to directors electronically on Friday, March 9. They can also be viewed at www.tia.org/Councils/NCSTD/Resource/Downloads.html.
Due to several requests from meeting facilities and local DMOs that needed more time to prepare their bids, the date for receiving proposals to host ESTO 2008 has been extended until Monday, April 2, 2007. If you are interested in hosting ESTO in your state, you still have time to submit a bid. To download a copy of the meeting specifications and host state responsibilities visit www.tia.org/Councils/NCSTD/Resource/Downloads.html.
The various list serves hosted by TIA for the tourism directors and some of the Professional Development Sections were offline for about two weeks due to a change in Internet Service Providers. All list serves are now up and running. If you or your staff would like more information or to be added to a list serve, please contact kriley@tia.org.
The U.S. Commerce Department is forecasting a 4% increase in international visitors over 2006. Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez made this announce on March 2 in Orlando, Florida. He further stated that international travel should break a record set in 2000. Commerce estimated that 51.1 million visitors came to the U.S. in 2006, an increase of 1.9 million over 2005. Gutierrez acknowledged that security measures may be holding down foreign visitation at a time when other currencies are making travel to the U.S. very affordable. "We will look at our visa process," he said. He also said travel policies need to be adjusted on a nation-by-nation basis.
According to a new study conducted by event marketer TA Global, experiential marketing is increasing in value and as a result growing as a method by which companies reach customers. Nearly 90% of marketers in the TA survey said they are getting more value from their events as compared with three years ago, and about 85% said the number of events they are staging at present is the same or more than three years ago. The survey also found that experiential marketing is the most effective way for companies to develop a bond with customers, beating out, in order, advertising, direct marketing, sales promotion and public relations. "Smart marketers are leveraging the power of live events to connect their brand with their audiences in a meaningful way that builds relationships and delivers results," said Lee Rubenstein, present of TA Global.
TIA and Yesawich, Pepperdine, Brown & Russell, the Orlando-based travel marketing research firm, will collaborate on the introduction of a new consumer survey designed to monitor the public's attitudes toward travel and measure the impact of current events on Americans' travel behavior and intentions. Known as "travelhorizons," the survey will look at data on the prevailing lifestyles and social values of American adults. The results will be developed from a nationally-representative survey of 1,500 active U.S. travelers conducted every other month beginning in March. Survey topics will monitor the impact of the new U.S. passport requirements, fluctuations in the price of gasoline, significant weather events, world events and other developments likely to influence the travel habits or intensions of U.S. adults. The survey results will be made available on a subscription basis in April. For more information, please contact Andrea Brunk (abrunk@tia.org or 202.408.2182) in TIA's research department.
In 2006 visitors to Hawaii spent $12 billion on their stays, setting a new record, according to figures released by the state Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism. Although total visitor days were flat compared with 2005, visitors spent 2.9% more per day than they did in 2005.
Illinois welcomed an unprecedented 92 million visitors in 2005, generating an economic impact for the state that increased more than $1 billion from 2004, according to figures released at the Governor's Conference on Tourism in February. Travel to Illinois in 2005 directly accounted for more than 300,000 jobs and created more than $7.8 billion in payroll.
The Empire State Development Corporation has begun a required review to find an agency to handle its tourism campaign "I Love New York". A new contract to handle the $6 million account will be awarded for three years with a two-year renewal option. In a request for proposal the department said it wanted to "increase the amount it spends on travel and tourism over the next several years."
For a comprehensive listing of upcoming state and regional tourism conferences, industry meetings, conventions, and trade shows, check out TIA's online Meetings Calendar.
StateSide is the official e-newsletter of the National Council of State Tourism Directors (NCSTD), an industry council of the Travel Industry Association (TIA). StateSide is a free service of TIA, produced by its National Councils Department under the direction of Patty Hubbard, Vice President, National Councils. You receive this communication as a benefit of your NCSTD membership within TIA. Please direct comments or suggestions to Kathleen Riley, Manager, Council Programs at 202.408.8422.
Please click here if you no longer want to receive Stateside.
The National Council of State Tourism Directors (NCSTD), an industry council of the Travel Industry Association (TIA), is comprised of the tourism directors of the 50 states, five territories and the District of Columbia. The mission of the NCSTD is to provide a forum for the exchange of ideas and leadership on travel industry issues impacting states and territories. For more information on NCSTD programs and activities, visit http://www.tia.org/councils/ncstd/index.html.
The Travel Industry Association (TIA), in existence since 1941, is:
The Washington DC based, non-profit association that represents and speaks for the common interests and concerns of all components of the U.S. travel industry;
The recognized leader in promoting and facilitating increased travel to and within the United States in order to make America the world's number one tourism destination; and
The authoritative and recognized source of research, analysis and forecasting for the entire industry and its primary spokesperson to the domestic and international media.
For information on TIA programs and activities, visit www.tia.org. For additional consumer destination information, visit www.seeamerica.org.
TIA members get one year of free, unlimited job postings and resume access on the only comprehensive online job board in the travel industry, GetATravelJob.com. Follow the link to learn more.
Educational Seminar for Tourism Organizations Phoenix, Arizona August 15-18, 2007
