Destination Marketing & Economic Development
A Mid-Sized American City, Probably
Notes, links, and resources on destination marketing and economic development.
Currently Excited About
Latest From Destination Innovate
Launched this year, Hosts & Home Teams is a working lab that brings destination leaders and short-term rental hosts into the same room. It's built around what Destination Innovate calls "the host gap" — the missing operating system connecting DMOs to the short-term rental economy, which now makes up a substantial share of most visitor markets.
Learn more at hostsandhometeams.comProfessional Associations to Join
The principal industry association for destination marketing organizations, maintaining a directory of member organizations and affiliated consulting firms.
A professional networking platform built specifically for DMOs and their affiliated destination marketing consulting firms.
Where Jobs Get Posted
Maintains the largest curated directory of tourism-related job postings currently available.
Aggregates job postings from member destination organizations across the United States.
Most destination organizations serving cities over 100,000 residents maintain a dedicated jobs page, though listings are worth checking regularly. State tourism agencies and statewide travel associations often post openings as well, and may require a separate state government application.
Where Things Happen
Hosted by the U.S. Travel Association, this is a large annual conference focused on international group travel sales.
An educational seminar focused on destination marketing organization leadership.
The industry's largest annual gathering of destination marketing professionals.
Many tourism industry conferences, while serving as a primary point of contact between U.S.-based DMOs and tourism consulting firms, can be exclusive and cost-prohibitive for those not currently employed by a DMO.
Podcasts
Hosted by Adam Stoker of Brand Revolt, this weekly show covers topics affecting the tourism industry, including funding models, AI-driven travel discovery, and evolving stakeholder expectations.
Hosted by Adam Stoker of Brand Revolt and Stuart Butler of Visit Myrtle Beach, this show features weekly guests from DMOs across the United States discussing current, real-world issues.
Hosted by Visit Mesa, this well-produced show sets a benchmark for DMO podcasting, featuring both studio conversations with local arts, culture, and sports guests, and on-site episodes with area attraction operators.
Hosted by Visit Lincoln, this show demonstrates that quality on-premise production is achievable for a small city, featuring a range of community guests who each offer a distinct perspective on what Lincoln has to offer.
Companies to Watch
Provides technology-forward solutions for DMOs looking to recapture their audience and reinvest in owned media.
Piloting programs that connect DMOs and short-term rental hosts to address changing tourism funding models.
Helps communities facing funding challenges and fragmented promotional efforts by consolidating tourism, chamber, and economic development functions.
Offers visitor count estimation technology built on a range of extrapolated data points.
Provides AI visibility tracking and GEO/SEO improvement solutions for an emerging area of growing importance to destination marketing.