Speakers/Sessions

Roger J. Dow

Roger Dow is President and Chief Executive Officer of the U.S. Travel Association, the national umbrella organization representing all segments of the $770 billion U.S. travel and tourism industry. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C. with an active presence in Europe, Asia and Latin America. (read full bio here.)

Bill Geist

Bill Geist is the President of Zeitgeist Consulting, a firm specializing in strategic planning, governance, marketing and legislative issues for convention and visitor bureaus, tourism focused chambers of commerce, economic development organizations and communities.  (click here to read full bio.)

Horst Schulze

Legendary hotelier renowned for creating a culture of service.

As founding president and COO of Ritz-Carlton, Horst Schulze established a new standard of excellence in his industry. He energizes organizations to reconnect with their service commitment.

Horst Schulze revolutionized the hotel industry, creating one of the most recognizable international brands, forever altering the very nature of customer service by creating a culture of “ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen.” A charismatic leader and entrepreneur with an intimate understanding of market demands, he created a legion of loyal customers by raising the bar for customer service expectations to previously unimagined levels. Schulze provides audiences with successful service-oriented strategies to build and maintain lasting customer relationships that keep them coming back for more. A man of rare ability and prophetic vision, Schulze himself was named “Corporate Hotelier of the World” by HOTELS magazine and was awarded the Ishikawa Medal for his contributions to the quality movement. Currently chairman, president and CEO of The West Paces Hotel Group, Schulze is launching the newest standard in luxury hotels, Solis Hotels and Resorts and Capella Hotels and Resorts, creating an unmatched tier of customer service. 

Hillary Bressler

Hillary Bressler is one of the most respected internet marketing professional speakers on the hot topic of internet marketing.  Known for her high energy search marketing presentations and spontaneous humor, she has been described by various audiences as chock full of internet marketing tips, cutting edge and one of the best internet marketing public speakers.  Bressler has been delivering her powerful internet marketing presentations to conferences, workshops, events and companies since 1997.  Her company handles the internet marketing for hotels, theme parks, CVBs, and travel agencies all over the nation.  President and Founder of .Com Marketing, a top 100 interactive marketing and advertising agency nationwide, Hillary speaks from real experiences and proven internet marketing case studies.

Social Media Strategies To Gain Friends and Influence People
Now that you have entered the world of social media, it is time to take your social media to the next level. Learn the best practices for Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube in this intermediate session.  You will walk away from this presentation with tips and ideas that you can implement in your own business and organization immediately.

• Are you losing valuable customers due to inadequate social media strategies, bad reviews, or small number of fans?
• Do you know as much as your competitors about to how to use sites like Facebook to engage customers?
• Learn how to deal with negative reviews. Learn how to promote positive reviews.
• Are you sure that all the time that you spend on social media marketing is providing the maximum return? Which are the best paid and free tools to track social media.
• What makes a good post?
• How do you get to the thousands of fans your competitors seem to have?
• How can you use social media to drive sales, customer service, recruitment, brand management, and to market events and promotions?
• How are other travel destinations and hotels using social media?
• How to use social media to create buzz and get you good, very good, press.
• Get the latest in new social media sites like Foursquare and others.

Cool Applications and Trends in Mobile Marketing
Mobile Marketing for Destination and Hospitality Industry
With over 4.6 billion mobile phones in the world, and 11,000 travel apps available it is no wonder that 40% of smartphone users do their travel research on their mobile devises. These numbers speak volumes to any marketer in the travel and destination industry. Mobile has arrived and will be the catalyst to how travelers get information while traveling.  If you have started a mobile campaign and want to know what is next, or are new to mobile marketing this session is for you. You will learn new terms like Augmented Reality and Crowd sourcing. Even if you are not technical you will walk away with a new understanding of mobile marketing and how to apply it to your business tomorrow.

• Learn how to set up an SMS/Text Messaging campaign.
• Learn how you ethically build up mobile numbers in your database.
• See the top Trends for 2011 from Augmented Reality to 2d barcodes.
• Thinking about developing an iphone, android or ipad app? Get tips and suggestions.
• Find out how you can develop campaigns and get user generated content through crowd-sourcing.
• Review brands like Virgin, Disney, and the Netherlands Tourism and see how they are changing the way people use their mobile phones.
• See how GPS enabled phones are making travel more fun.
• See how other CVB’s have embraced mobile marketing and iphone apps.
• See how small businesses can apply mobile marketing in a cost effective way.

This presentation is a jaw-dropping look at how mobile media is bringing the world to a time that looks more and more like a Star-Trek episode.

Shannon Gray

KNOW THY CUSTOMER:
MARKET SEGMENTATION FOR DESTINATIONS
In destination marketing as well as consumer product marketing, it’s important to know your consumer: what kind of people they are, what kind of lifestyles they lead, their likes and dislikes, what drives their purchase behaviors and decisions, and where they come from. Corporations and consumer product companies do this as a matter of course; if you split your consumer base into like groups and separately identify the habits and behaviors that go with them, you have a much better understanding of how to communicate with target customers most effectively. This talk explores methods and tools destinations can use to segment and target their core visitors, including geocoding and geodemography techniques to identify areas in the US where more people like their visitor base can be found. The session will also profile how market segmentation can be used, including determining the geographic areas and media vehicles that will be most effective, the tone of voice and message for ads and spots, support for economic development efforts and positioning of community assets for the biggest return on marketing investment.

Case study examples will be shared which illustrate how market segmentation can benefit the bottom line for hotels, DMO’s and attractions. Beaches of South Walton research revealed a primary consumer segment of high-income, well-educated women who make bragging rights a priority when choosing a vacation destination.  This insight influenced the tonality of the advertising; allowing the consumer to place herself in the picture.  The results have been dramatic!  Other case studies from communities such as Hattiesburg, MS and Fredericksburg, TX will be shared as well.  Each community’s approach varies based on their own unique market segmentation.  (read full bio here.)

Jeff Hilimire

Chief Digital Officer, Engauge

Jeff Hilimire leads the agency’s Social and Emerging Marketing practice. Since 1998, Jeff has seen his enthusiasm and expertise in online marketing gain the attention of many leading brands, including Coca-Cola, the State of Georgia, and The Home Depot. Under his direction, the agency has been recognized by a number of industry awards, including PRSA awards, the Web Awards and American Business Awards. Jeff was ranked #4 on Catalyst Magazine's Top 25 list of Atlanta Entrepreneurs and is a 1to1 Magazine Customer Champion. He speaks regularly in the industry on the topic of emerging marketing and leadership.

Session Title:
The Future of Digital Marketing in Tourism

Session Description:
Consumers most influential resource in making travel decisions is word of mouth. To maximize word of mouth, an integrated marketing approach is critical – leveraging the power of traditional advertising, digital marketing and customer retention marketing.  As timelines become shorter for travel planning, consumers are relying more heavily on digital resources.   Looking forward at how consumers currently utilize social and mobile platforms to make decisions and share information will allow smart marketers to harness not only lead generation opportunities but develop brand advocates.  The social and mobile universe is more than Facebook and texting and Jeff is a national leading expert on social and mobile trends.  In ‘The Future of Digital Marketing in Tourism’ he will share trends and tips to activate current opportunities and plan for the future.