Travel talk focuses on taking it to Congress
In a political advocacy forum held during IMEX America this week, travel industry leaders came together to talk shop.
Roger Dow, CEO of the U.S. Travel Association, said the organization's top priority is determining how to keep jobs in the country. To do that, industry members need to be armed with data and build relationships with legislators. Since the recession, the association, Dow said, has identified "meetings champions" in Congress who will work for the industry.
Part of the group's outreach initiative was supported earlier this year by its Vote Travel campaign during which members rode a bus 20,000 miles around the country to put a focus on meetings and travel. U.S. Travel also hosts back-of-house hotel tours for members of Congress, in an effort to give those folks firsthand looks at what makes the travel industry tick.
"We hit it with a guerilla attack," Dow told the group.
He then urged them to establish relationships with the members of Congress from their districts.
In the same session, Rod Cameron, manager of the Joint Meetings Industry Council, said, "Generally speaking, in most parts of the world, there is a lack of appreciation for how meetings and conventions support business and professional development."
Through the council, 150 countries are represented, and Cameron said that global economic recovery has been "disappointing."
"In fact, in many parts of the world, there hasn't been one," he noted.
Cameron added that because the industry is diverse and local governments make most of the investment decisions, it needs governments and communities on board to thrive.
"People do not have meetings to generate revenues for destinations," Cameron said. "It's what they accomplish in terms of economic and professional development. Your credibility depends on your ability to measure results, and local engagement is key to results."
But, obviously, meetings do generate revenues for localities. The Las Vegas meetings industry, for example, makes a $6.3 billion annual impact on the local economy and supports 58,000 jobs. Which is why U.S. Travel solicited the opinions of three travel board leaders on major issues facing the industry.
When asked about how to deal with unexpected challenges that can arise in a destination, Rossi Ralenkotter, president and CEO of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, had this to say:
"It's all about delivering on your brand promise. The welcome and thank you is very important."
Elliott Ferguson, II, president and CEO of Destination D.C., added, "There's a perception that business automatically comes to Washington, D.C. because we're the nation's capital."
But, that's not the case. Ferguson said his task is to get clients to understand the value of what Destination D.C. provides.
"Future job growth in Washington is tied to the growth of this industry," he said.
Ralenkotter suggested that "the game changer is how we talk."
For instance, he always mentions job creation when talking tourism, "because it's how you position it."
As for the industry's next challenge, Ferguson mentioned globalization and how travel boards are able to generate more global opportunities.
Ralenkotter said: "I think it boils down to one thing. You have to be able to move people from point A to point B."
Travel needs a strong transportation infrastructure to thrive, he argued.
"That's the way to create jobs," Ralenkotter said.
(See what he did right there?)
"Without (the infrastructure), we're going to be competitively at a disadvantage with all these other countries around the world," Ralenkotter finished.
Steve Moore, president and CEO of Visit Phoenix, agreed, and added that convention authorities have to work to create environments that make young adults feel as if they're learning.
"The moment we take our foot off the pedal is the moment we go back to 2009," said Geoff Freeman, senior vice president of public affairs for the U.S. Travel Association.
Contact reporter Laura Carroll at lcarroll@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4588.
