Join your colleagues in the destination marketing industry in Alexandria\, touted to be the Birthplace of America!
Top Reasons to Attend:
Learn. No matter how experienced you are\, everyone can learn. You&rsquo\;ll be exposed to a variety of points of view\, new ideas and trends\, new ways to conduct business and to be more productive.
Network. Collaboration is the way to approach networking. You&rsquo\;ll uncover ideas and be inspired when you get to know each other on a personal level.
Encounter new vendors and suppliers. They are some of the best people for you to get to know if you want to learn more about the current industry climate. Discovering innovative products and services is necessary to stay competitive in today&rsquo\;s fast-paced world.
Have fun. All work and no play can get old fast. The agenda mixes a social aspect into your learning experience. Never underestimate the power of a little fun mixed with some interesting people!
Conference Agenda:
Tuesday\, June 5\, 2018
12:00 pm \; \; \; \; \; \; \;Exhibitor Set Up
2:30pm \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \;Welcome and Introductions
2:45pm \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \;Minnesota&rsquo\;s Tourism &\;\nHospitality Industry&hellip\; Then and Now. \; \;
Dan McElroy\, President and\nCEO\, Hospitality MN
With\nretirement on the horizon\, Dan McElroy is still right in the middle of\nactivities at the State Capitol. \; \;Dan\nwill share with us the latest issues facing tourism that are hot topics right\nnow. \; \;Dan will also share insights on MN\nTourism from a perspective you may not have considered before. \; \;Why tourism and hospitality matter so much\nfor MN and more. \; \;In his career\, Dan has\nowned businesses\, served on Burnsville&rsquo\;s City Council\, Mayor of Burnsville\, served\nin legislature\, key leader in the Governor Tim Pawlenty administration to\nHospitality MN. \; \;This will be the last\ntime Dan McElroy will have a chance to speak to our group before retirement.
3:15 pm \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \;Break
3:30 pm \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \;How to Compete\nand Win with Smaller Budgets. \; \;
Steve Markuson\,\nTwin Cities Gateway. \; \;Joe Henry\, Lake of\nthe Woods Tourism
Moderator: \; \;Dave Looby
The travel and tourism industry marketplace has never been so challenging and competitive yet offer so many unparalleled opportunities. This session will demonstrate how digital marketing\, social media and earned media can level the playing field to enable any destination to compete and generate incremental visitation and measurable results. Examples of specific solutions that can be scaled to any budget will be provided. Learn why getting your stakeholders on the same page and strategic objectives are the key to success\; what digital marketing solutions are working for others\; how social media and earned media can drive organic search\; and much more! \;
4:30 pm \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \;Adjourn to Arrowwood Resort/Hampton Inn
5:30 pm \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \;Bus Pick Up At Hampton Inn
5:50 pm \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; Bus Pick Up At Arrowwood Resort
6:15 pm \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \;Arrive Carlos Creek Winery\, wine\ntasting and tour
7:30pm \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \;Board bus to Bug-A-Boo Bay
8:00 pm \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \;Dinner lakeside at Bug-A-Boo Bay on\nLake Le Homme Dieu
Wednesday\, June 6\, 2018 (Note\,\nbreakfast on your own)
9:00 &ndash\; 10:00\na.m. \; \; \; \; CEO Roundtable (Executive Staff Exclusive)
Back by popular demand\, CEO&rsquo\;s\, Executive Directors and leaders of DMO&rsquo\;s\nget together in a roundtable environment to discuss topics pertinent to leading\na tourism organization. \; \;Some topics to\nstart the conversation&hellip\; Merging or working together as CVB/Chamber\, board\nretreats\, performance reviews and a variety of other topics on the minds of\nleaders.
10:15 a.m. \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; MACVB... Collaborating for Success Group Activity
With a plethora of experience and wisdom in the\nroom from all corners of the state\, topics regarding our businesses will be\ndiscussed in a round robin style. \; \;This\nactivity has brought about valuable collaboration in the past and was requested\nagain by many. \; \;What topics would you\nlike to bounce off of tourism colleagues?
11:00 a.m. \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \;Break
11:15\na.m. \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \;MN Legislature...\nChallenges and Opportunities
MACVB Lobbyists: Todd\nHill and Tony Kwilas\, Hill Capitol Strategies
With this year&rsquo\;s session just wrapped up\, take this opportunity\nto learn about the current topics in the legislature that affect tourism\, how\nthey may affect your destination\, what you need to do about them and how your\ncolleagues are handling them. \; \;
12:30\np.m. \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \;Lunch and Learn \;
John Edman\, Explore MN Tourism
Explore MN Tourism is constantly doing research on trends in\nMN and the Midwest and adapting their marketing efforts to take advantage of\nthe latest information. \; \;John Edman will\nlead provide us a firsthand look at the newest campaigns\, ads and strategies from\nExplore MN Tourism.
1:30\np.m. \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; Getting the Most out of Analytics
Kat Gritzmacher\, W.A. Fisher
As an account manager\nfor advertising and website clients for over 12 years\, Kat Gritzmacher works\nwith Google Analytics nearly every day. She will explain the basics for\nbeginners: how to find out how many users are visiting your site\, where they\nare coming from and how they got there. She will also discuss how to interpret\nanalytics data to determine the effectiveness of both your website content and\nyour advertising. For those with a fundamental knowledge of Analytics\, she will\ndive deeper to explain how to track results from paid search and online\nadvertising programs by using goals and conversions.
3:00 p.m. \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \; \;Adjourn
Hosted by Explore Alexandria
Sponsors:
