CONVENTION AND VISITORS BUREAUS

Over the years convention and visitors bureaus (CVBs), also known as housing bureaus, have evolved to service their markets more effectively. Orig- inally, bureaus were created in large U.S. cities to promote their destination to convention groups needing hotel guest rooms and meeting facilities. As the name implies, the term visitors refers more to the tourism promotion.

Convention bureaus can be funded through different sources. Some are organizations to which local hotels, attractions, convention facilities, and ser- vices become members and pay fees. Some are funded through local room tax proceeds, which are paid by tourists (or anyone else) staying in the hotels. Yet, another funding source can be from publicly funded and built exhibition halls.

In the 1980s and 1990s, many smaller cities were able to get convention centers built primarily through this method.

Regardless of the funding sources, the main mission of the convention bureau is to promote and market that destination and its visitor services. The visitors can be convention delegates, tourists, or both. If, after the meeting, some attendees stay a day or two and visit local tourist attractions, the CVB has accomplished one of its objectives.

Figure 5.1 is an example of an organizational chart from a membership structured bureau. In this type of organization the members are on top. This model illustrates the decision and policy-making structure for the board of directors and CEO. There are usually two or three different operational departments. A bureau’s primary program is that of marketing a destination as a meeting and vacation venue. The sales and marketing department is pri- marily responsible for identifying, developing, and obtaining commitments and then providing servicing and support.

F

IGURE

5.1

CVB O

RGANIZATIONAL

C

HART

President/CEO

Marketing

Vice President Marketing

Director Partnership Marketing Director

Marketing Services Sales & Marketing

Analyst

Tradeshow & Events Coordinator

Graphic Designer Production Coordinator

Communications Coordinator

Communications / E-Marketing Coordinator Director

Marketing Communications

The marketing and communications department has a multitude of respon- sibilities directly related to the development of bureau publications and the writing of news stories and press releases. Other key areas include telling the bureau’s story not only to its own community, but also to the trade and con- sumer markets.

Figure 5.2 shows the marketing department of a CVB with the same orga- nizational structure.

Site Inspections and Familiarization Tours

In recent years, site inspections have become an industry standard. Con- ducted by the meeting planner, it is an in-depth tour and evaluation of a hotel under consideration for an event. Examples of site inspection standard guide- lines and recommended facilities and services to be evaluated are included in the addendum. The site inspection typically occurs after there has been a con- firmation that accommodations and event space are available for the dates

F

IGURE

5.2

M

ARKETING

D

EPARTMENT OF A

CVB

SEEABOVE

Sales & Marketing

Department Operations/Admin.

Dept.

Communications Dept.

Convention Sales Tourism Sales Finance Membership Publications

Public Relations

Members Board of Directors Chief Executive Officer

Source: Gartnell, R. (2004).

sought by the group. The hotel sales manager, along with the convention ser- vices coordinator, will conduct the inspection. If the CVB was the first point of contact for the meeting planner, it will usually coordinate the inspections at each hotel. A CVB should always be involved in planning the inspection itin- erary when it is anticipated that multiple hotels will be utilized for citywide conventions. With this type of planner the CVB representative will most prob- ably pick up the planner at the airport and escort him or her for the entire tour.

On the other hand, a familiarization (or “fam”) tour is often the first intro- duction to the destination, whether hotels or tourism attractions or both. Orig- inally a tool used by destination marketing organizations to familiarize travel agents, now group meeting/event planners are being offered fams.

Figure 5.3 is an example of a promotion advertisement, in the form of an invitation. The invitation was placed in a monthly trade publication that many professional meeting planners read. The fam is for all types of meeting and event planners to attend in Jamaica. Events such as this often are jointly spon- sored by the publication, destination marketing organization, and area hotels and meeting facilities.

Destination Marketing Organizations

The other category of destination marketing organization (DMO) is a tourism or travel office. Their promotional focus is primarily on developing the leisure visitor, but we will briefly discuss these organizations here, as they work closely with a CVB.

Many of these tourism organizations throughout the world operate inde- pendently from each other. Scope and jurisdiction vary widely. The one common thread is that each receives some level of governmental funding. As many travel tourism professionals know, many regions of the United States (and other countries) have a hotel room or so-called “tourist tax” law in place.

This funding source is rapidly diminishing or being redirected as local gov- ernments seek viable alternatives to their own state budget cuts.

The current situation at many destinations is that there may no longer be both a CVB and a separate tourism or DMO office. Therefore, both meeting planners and hotel sales and convention services professionals must research which local tourism organization can provide the materials and resources they need to ensure the success of each event.

Industry Insider

How buyers and sellers “find each other” . . . it’s no secret that meeting plan- ners get frustrated with hotel sales managers who don’t do their homework.

Qualifying the lead before you contact them means you have hotel rooms and event facilities large enough to accommodate their needs. On the other hand, a lead from a CVB is prequalified and a streamlined way for the buyer and seller to find each other.

F

IGURE

5.3

S

AMPLE

P

ROMOTION

A

DVERTISEMENT

Source: Successful Meetings Magazine (2003).