Some meeting planners have the wrong idea about destination management companies (DMCs), according to Nicole Marsh, DMCP, CMP, president and CEO of The Arrangers, a Denver-based DMC. “The biggest misconception is that we cost more,” said Marsh. Susan Henderson, president and CEO of Atlanta Arrangements, A GEP Company, and Atlanta-based DMC, agreed: “Some planners see us as an additional layer of expense when we actually are an additional layer of insurance, when you consider the expertise, vendor relationships and due diligence processes we use to make sure a program is logistically sound.” Plus, said Marsh, “Some planners just view DMCs as commodities.”

Marsh is the current president of the Association of Destination Management Executives (ADME), the professional organization for DMCs. Henderson is a past president of ADME and the 2008 recipient of ADME’s Destination Management Professional of the Year award. Obviously, Henderson and Marsh are distinguished and accomplished professionals. But might some cost-conscious planners be right? Are Henderson and Marsh too heavily invested in the DMC field to be objective?

Missing Luggage, Hotel Blockades And Bus Strikes

Dolores Rauschl, owner of Corporate Conference Services, a Greenville, SC, meeting planning firm, certainly doesn’t think so. Rauschl’s firm handles meeting planning activities for numerous high-tech companies across the U.S. A few years ago, one of her clients had scheduled its meeting in St. Lucia in the Caribbean. Just one problem: St. Lucia airport baggage personnel could not find the luggage for many of the attendees who had just deplaned. “They told us our luggage did not arrive,” Rauschl said. “Fortunately, I was working with a local DMC who had a representative at the airport with us. He told the airport luggage handlers to go back and look a little harder. ...Soon the luggage magically appeared.”

During an incentive meeting in the beach resort of Ixtapa, Mexico, for another of Rauschl’s high-tech

The Arrangers planned a survivor-style teambuilding for Sun Microsystems at Chautauqua Park in Boulder, CO, for 150  sales-meeting attendees. Photo by Steve Crecelius, Wonderworks Photography

groups, local taxi drivers objected to a plan to bus all the attendees to the airport. To register their dismay, the angry drivers blockaded the hotel with their taxis, preventing anyone from leaving. If they did not move, all of Rauschl’s attendees, about 125 people, would miss their flight back to the U.S. However, Rauschl’s local DMC representative spoke to the taxi drivers and they quickly dispersed. The attendees got back to the U.S. on time.

Rauschl had a similar occurrence at a meeting she arranged a few years ago in Costa del Sol, Spain. Her local DMC quickly arranged alternative transportation when area taxi drivers unexpectedly went on strike during the dinner hour. Without the DMC’s help, Rauschl, and the attendees, would have been stuck — and hungry. She had to get about 125 people to their pre-arranged restaurants. However, thanks to her quick-witted and plugged-in DMC, the South Carolina planner was able to get everyone to their Costa del Sol dinner destinations without any problems. Rauschl claims that she almost always uses DMCs when she handles a meeting “off the mainland.”

Clearly, a DMC can be invaluable when a group meets in a foreign country, or indeed any location away from its home base. Because they are local, DMCs have a superior knowledge of vendors and venues. And they are able to save planners a great deal of grief if something unforeseen develops. But what about the charge that DMCs cost more?

Twenty Percent Savings

When it comes to costs, some planners’ perceptions of DMCs are exactly backwards, according to Chris White, chairman and CEO of Global Events Partners (GEP), a Washington, DC-headquartered partnership of 65 DMCs representing 92 destinations worldwide. He said that when used correctly, DMCs can actually offer their clients substantial savings.

“Our international DMC partners have negotiated special rates with many hotels in their respective destinations. Thus, the DMCs often can get better prices for the client than the client could get if they called the hotel directly,” said White. “We have seen savings amount to 20 percent for individual clients. But if the client goes first to the hotel and then lastly to the DMC, all bets are off.”

How can DMCs achieve such impressive cost savings? “Our international DMCs generate a great deal of business for these hotels,” said White. “They use that leverage to get preferred rates. Unfortunately, some U.S.-based clients don’t understand this.”

White went on to point out that GEP’s international DMC partners do not charge for this service. “Our DMCs overseas are not looking to make a profit on the hotels they book for their clients. They do this on an advisory capacity,” said White. “If the DMCs can save their clients money in the hotels and in order to work with them on the DMC services outside the hotel, doing so is like a loss leader to develop the relationship.”

It is ironic that while some planners regard DMC fees as a costly extravagance, others think that the DMCs should provide many of their services at no charge to planners and the groups they represent. “Some clients want our services — the clean motor coaches, the right drivers, the best venues — but they don’t want to pay for anything,” White said. “The biggest misconception out there is that DMCs should be in business to provide their time and services for free.

“Take a dine-around that involves 15 to 20 different restaurants. Such an activity involves an enormous number of phone calls, making sure that everything will go as planned,” White continued. “Think about it: You call the manager of a restaurant to make a reservation for four people. How frequently does that get messed up? Just multiply that many times over to understand what is involved when a group does a dine-around that a DMC sets up.

“Groups pay for our expertise to deliver the quality services they want,” White continued. “There is a cost for that. However, some clients have no conception of the amount of labor by the DMC that is involved.”

Knowledge Is Power

Of course, the primary benefit that DMCs stress has nothing to do with price. Rather, it is the comprehensive knowledge they possess of individual destinations. DMCs claim, and many planners agree, that this superior understanding regarding what a destination has to offer is vital to ensure that a group

Atlanta Arrangements created this seated served dinner for 1,850 attendees at Atlanta’s Centennial Olympic Park — the first and only of its kind. Photo courtesy of Atlanta Arrangements

maximizes its meeting experience in that locale.

This paid off in a big way regarding a sales incentive program organized last July in Monte Carlo by Loretta Lowe, CMP, president and owner of Meeting Planning and Special Events, a San Francisco-based meeting planning firm.

“It was a high-end, deluxe trip for a Fortune 500 company, although I really had to toe the line financially because the Euro exchange rate was really high at that time,” said Lowe. “I needed to find some exciting activities in Monte Carlo, so I met with three DMCs. The one that got my business, WTT, showed us the Paul Ricard Circuit, a motor sport race track near Marseille, France.

“Our guys got to do some high-performance test-track driving there in Audi R8s. It was exciting and fun, just the right thing. I would never have found that on my own,” said Lowe. What about costs? “Sure, I paid a little more for WTT, but that worked out extremely well for me,” said Lowe. “Even on local things that I went direct on in Monte Carlo, WTT was willing to share inside information with me. They helped out a great deal.

“I especially like to use DMCs when I have international meetings or groups,” Lowe continued. “They know the language and culture. They know how to negotiate locally and what concerns to watch out for. The big advantage is that they can be your ‘partner in planning.’?” 

Clearly, DMCs in international locations can be a planner’s best friend. But what about here in the U.S.? Are stateside DMCs able to make the same significant contributions to meeting groups that their international colleagues can achieve?

“We were just able to get $10,000 off of a special event venue rental for a client because we work with that venue so often,” said Henderson. “We knew what was important to the client and what the venue needed to make it work.”

And just like overseas, failure to partner with a DMC when planning an event out of town can end up a disaster, according to Scott White, vice president of global sales for GEP.

“Recently, here in Washington, DC, a corporate group decided to book all of their motor coaches directly. They found a bus company on the Internet,” said White. “They had paid a large donation to hold an event at a Smithsonian museum. Unfortunately, many of the museums look very similar at night. As things tuned out, half of the motor coaches dropped their attendees at the wrong venue.

“So, people in tuxedos and formal dress ended up having to walk a few blocks to the event,” White said. An unusual occurrence? “No, this sort of thing happens more than a little with planners who find transportation on the Internet,” White said. “Deal directly with unvetted suppliers and you are playing with fire.”

References Matter

Jacquie Brave, a partner at Accenting Chicago Events & Tours, a Chicago DMC, echoes these sentiments. “One of the unfortunate things we see are companies who go directly to the Internet to book transportation or entertainment, or other aspects of their event or program,” Brave said. “?‘Cheap’ should not be the operative word. The Internet is no better than the Yellow Pages. You have to get references before you buy, and you must ask the right questions.”

Of course, as DMC professionals, Henderson, White and Brave are not about to make a weak case

GEP Washington planned this spectacular event at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC. Photo by Freed Photography

regarding why planners should work with DMCs. But it is planner Jessica L. Levin, CMP, manager of communications and member services for Moore Stephens North America, an accounting group of 35 member firms headquartered in Saddle Brook, NJ, who makes the strongest case for DMCs.

“Our association only has a staff of two people total so we rely on outside help,” said Levin. “DMCs know the properties and their cities better than anyone. They already receive special pricing. This may offset the DMC fees because the pricing is reserved for DMCs. Plus, they have existing relationships with vendors and know how an event will run. This takes a lot of the risk out. Also, they can share ideas that were used by other clients. This way, you don’t have to reinvent the wheel.”

When it comes to DMCs, Chicago meeting planner Anne Carey, CMP, sums things up this way: “To me, the DMC is a godsend for an offsite event. There may be times when a DMC isn't necessary, but there always will be times when it's definitely the way to go.”

Plug In The DMC Early

What is the best way for planners to work with DMCs? The consensus seems to be this: Planners should get DMCs involved in their programs as soon as possible. Henderson put it this way: “The more information they can quickly give us so we know what their objectives are, and what their budgets are, the sooner we can contribute and become a part of their team. This is how we can best serve them.”

Marsh agreed. “Typically, we are brought in after clients have already selected their speaker and their entertainment. Often, clients bring them in from out of state,” Marsh said. “But if clients would involve the DMC sooner, we could help them locate local speakers and local entertainers. This way, they don’t have the expense of airfare and lodging for these people. Plus, because these individuals are in their hometowns, you get a break on what their rates will be as well.”

Marsh points out another valuable benefit that comes by plugging the DMC into the picture early. “We can act as an advocate on behalf of planners and their groups with our vendors,” Marsh said. “Plus, since the program is still relatively open, we can come up with creative ways to do things.”

Will it cost planners and their groups more to involve DMCs in the early planning stages of a meeting or event? “Our fees are based on the final services that planners select from us, so working with us early is not a cost factor at all,” said Marsh. “Doing so will not increase the group’s cost in any way. It will just make the program better.”

Carey relates how not involving the DMC early can easily backfire. “Once, due to a tight budget, there was no money available for a site visit. I therefore had to investigate the destination on a long-distance basis,” Carey said. “Because the DMC was not brought in at that stage, even though they did a fabulous job, something fell through the cracks: The bathrooms turned out to be horrific. Since then, I always make sure that the DMC is involved from the very beginning. They will know the venue and be able to avoid that kind of situation.”

An ‘Open-Door’ Policy With Vendors

Besides getting DMCs into the picture early, planners also are advised to fully coordinate with the vendors that the DMC selects. “There are times when planners should talk directly to their vendors, particularly when they are doing something that relates to the content of their program, or something that ties into their strategic goals and objectives,” said Sharon Fisher, CEO and “IdeaSparker” of Play with a Purpose, an Orlando-based events and teambuilding firm.

“Things like tours, centerpieces and linen colors are not important. But when the client wants to do some type of a teambuilding, or hold a training event, it is critical that they talk to the people that are going to plan and implement the program,” said Fisher.

“The same would be true with speakers,” Fisher said. “I think planners would want to talk directly to the speaker so they could state, ‘Here is the true message we are trying to get out. Here is where we need you to tweak it, here is what we need attendees to take away.’?”

According to Fisher, planners make a mistake when they communicate only with DMCs, not directly with vendors, concerning meeting content and related issues. “It always loses in the translation,” said Fisher. “It is the old game of telephone. The planner can explain something to the DMC. The DMC will hear it. But they will not necessarily know the correct questions to ask in order to get the information they need to be sure everything is actually on target.”

As seasoned meeting professionals know, the success of any one program is contingent upon many successful collaborations and partnerships — a result that DMCs deliver.    C&IT