Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/140546
•pg_14-22__BMT_pg3-58 6/21/13 9:09 PM Page 18 advertising. Associations need to think about how to play in this space to increase awareness…" ROGER DOW, PRESIDENT & CEO, UNITED STATES TRAVEL ASSOCIATION (USTA) While he didn't start 2013 worrying about the impact of "Sequestration," of late it has certainly consumed a significant portion of Dow's time as USTA and other industry leaders adopt strategies to cope with government cutbacks. Under the sequester, all government agencies, including the Federal Aviation Administration, the Transportation Security Administration, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service and other agencies that are vital to travel facilitation and outdoor recreation face automatic spending cuts. Dow's worry is that travel will become the face of cuts that everyday Americans will feel once sequestration takes hold. In a statement back in February, Dow said: "there is absolutely no excuse for travelers in one of the world's most advanced nations to suffer through a travel process that wastes their precious time and resources…We continue to point out to Congress that travel is driving post-recession recovery by creating jobs faster than the rest of the economy and that these cuts could derail our recovery." With no political solution in sight, USTA has developed some strategies to help fight this man-made crisis: Engaging media to voice the travel industry's concerns; Communicating directly with Congressional offices to inform them of the deep impact the sequester will have on travelers and its ripple in the economy; Activating a grassroots mobile messaging campaign that easily bridges frustrated travelers with lawmakers; and Developing economic research to paint a picture of the realities stemming from these reductions. MICHAEL DOMINGUEZ, CHAIRMAN, MEETING PROFESSIONALS INTERNATIONAL While we see increased attendance numbers and slowly rising budgets, Dominguez says, "there still remains tremendous pressure on budgets and resources with organizations closely scrutinizing every expense." "These budget challenges are driving an increase in local/regional meetings with shorter lead times. As such, we see more time and attention being paid to destination selection as an acknowledgement of the role that destinations play in the meeting and event process, with flexibility in business planning being seen as essential." "If we look at trends that are impacting the execution of meetings, we see that delivering content alone is not fulfilling the attendee's needs. Face-toface meetings will need to inspire, guide and create unique experiences. 18 The key to event success will be the ability for the planner to deliver this content and experience in diverse ways. Our recently released research on the future of meetings provides additional insight into several key trends: New monetization models will make context and connections onsite even more important; Content will need to be shared before meetings, so that delegates can come prepared to brainstorm and learn from their peers; Younger generations are less interested in lectures and more interested in having questions addressed; Delegates don't just want knowledge, they'll want know how to apply this knowledge to improve their daily functionality." Dominguez says the industry is somewhat of a mixed bag. "Not surprisingly, we are seeing an increase in growth for domestic corporate meetings, while government meetings continue to decrease." GREG EDWARDS, CHAIRMAN, DESTINATION MARKETING ASSOCIATION INTERNATIONAL (DMAI) "DMO budgets stabilized in 2011, but have not fully recovered from their peak in 2008," says Edwards. Public funding also stabilized at $2.4 million, but private sector -funding dropped eight percent. "Since 2011, with travel having resumed, communities are definitely seeing the positive impacts of visitor spending, and as a result of that, DMO budgets have increased." As 2013 continues to unfold there are practices that are unfolding to improve the DMOs situation across the board. One trend is the creation of engaging marketing content and strategies while managing stakeholder interests. Edwards says, "because of the way DMOs are structured, they are often driven by what their constituencies want, which isn't necessarily what the consumer is looking for." There is more of an opportunity to connect consumers with locals and provide inside information. Other practices include differentiating a specific brand from the growing number of destinations; accurately reporting the net benefit of tourism to a community and securing investment to make it all happen. HUGH RILEY, SECRETARY GENERAL, CARIBBEAN TOURISM ORGANIZATION (CTO) "I think its fair to say that 2012 has been both an exciting and challenging year for the Caribbean tourism industry," said Riley. "Visitor arrivals to the region continued to rise, fuelled by improvements in the US and Canadian markets. Yet we continue to face challenges in Europe, particularly the UK market from which the numbers have been falling. Visitor spending has also been sluggish." Late 2012 figures show a 5.3 percent rise in arrivals from both the US and Canadian markets. B M & T ••• May/June 2013 ••• www.blackmeetingsandtourism.com