DMOU: Destination Marketing Organization University

Bill Baker’s latest book is called “Place Branding for Small Cities, Regions & Downtowns.” We recently caught up with Bill to learn more about the new book and, more importantly, where he sees the future of Place Branding taking us all. Armed with several case studies to drive home his philosophies, Bill suggests that destination logos may well be giving way to font type to represent a brand...and several other game-changing concepts. Oh yeah...and there's a story about bagpipes and a kilt in there, too.

As the philosophical discussion of whether the "M" in DMO stands for "Marketing" or "Management" (or both) continues in many quarters, the Rockford Area (IL) CVB has blazed its own path over the past decade by focusing on what's best for the community. RACVB CEO John Groh guests on this edition of DMOU with his thoughts on how a "Citizens First" mantra has lifted Rockford's image of itself and for others. You'll also hear why having exceptional video assets at the ready offered the RACVB the opportunity to punch back when Forbes dissed the city...and about one of the most interesting internships one could imagine.

When Destination Madison publicly endorsed an ambitious lakefront hotel project a decade ago, the push-back was as unexpected as it was swift. While a scaled back version of the project eventually came to fruition, CEO Deb Archer took steps to ensure that the organization would never be in that position again. In this episode of DMOU, Deb recounts the process and shares how her DMO developed a “Decision Matrix” tool that vets every project or legislative initiative that comes before it. You’ll also learn how a Destination Madison-sponsored public art project impacted the community in multiple ways.

Longwoods International changed the way many understand the impact of Destination Marketing on Economic Development with its "Halo Effect" study. The research consultancy now is changing how the industry views and interacts with residents. In this episode of DMOU, we talk with Longwoods CEO Amir Eylon for a deeper dive into these new tools...and more.

For background on "The Halo Effect," click HERE. For the new "Resident Sentiment Survey," HERE.

Shelly Green (former CEO of Visit Durham) is one of the DMO world's thought leaders. Thus, when she wrote her CDME paper on Ethics, we were all over learning about her research into what we're doing right...and wrong. In this episode, Shelly shares the concept of "ethical blindness" and offers up examples of how the best intentions can trip us up. And, you'll learn more about her international musicality in the Bonus Round.