On The Cover - March/April 2008

By Diana Rowe

“This week a meeting in West Palm Beach; next week a one-day event back in New York City followed by a citywide event in Los Angeles,” said Dona Hettinger, exclusive consultant for a major New York City-based life insurance company. “Whether I have 20 events back to back, or one each month, my first step is always the same — call the local CVB.”

CVB is the acronym for Convention & Visitors Bureaus, the not-for-profit organizations charged with representing a specific destination and helping the long-term development of communities through a travel and tourism strategy. Many CVBs are funded through a combination of hotel occupancy taxes and membership dues. CVBs are both a hotel and meeting planner’s best friend. They book business for a hotel without a fee and provide the same service free of charge to planners.

When meeting locations rotate, it’s impossible for planners to keep up with what’s new in every destination, including the one they reside in, according to Hettinger. With a growing to-do list and a day that only has so many hours, planners need to make the most of every valuable minute — and that’s when a CVB can help by providing current information on meeting hotels and convention centers, as well as what’s new to see and do around town.

The Manhattan skyline at night evokes unique and memorable experiences that await attendees on each visit to New York City for meetings and incentive programs. © Jeff Greenberg

The Place To Start
For planners not sure where to start, a quick Google search of the destination will provide the CVB’s Web site. Alternatively, planners can look to Destination Marketing Association International (DMAI), the world’s largest association of convention and visitors bureaus. DMAI boasts more than 1,500 members from more than 625 destination management organizations in more than 25 countries. Their Web site (destinationmarketing.org) provides planners with invaluable information that includes links and contact information to national and international CVBs.

According to Hettinger, when time and quick communication are the most critical components in planning a meeting (and when aren’t they?), after your initial research, submit an RFP to the local CVB. “CVBs are a one-stop shop,” Hettinger said. “Their fingers are on the pulse of the city. That’s their job!  When I contact them at the initial research stage followed by an RFP, it’s like being given a key to the city. The CVB can identify influences within a certain area and whether a hotel is going though a change or revitalization. The CVB’s job is to know the structure of their city including the framework of its educational, family and cultural patterns and economic development.”

Hettinger cited her own backyard as an example. When planning a meeting in Manhattan, she immediately opens the channels of communication with NYC & Company, the official marketing and tourism organization for the City of New York, to get the scoop on what’s new in terms of hotel developments as well as upcoming and ongoing renovations and expansions. Hettinger also uses the CVB as a source to suggest a date for theater tickets for an open night.

Susan Wall, senior vice president, convention development at NYC & Company, reiterates that teaming up with CVBs saves planners valuable time. “Each year, hundreds of new hotel rooms are added to our inventory. Who has the time to comb through thousands of hotel rooms and sites? We do!  Our job is to know what’s going on within New York City, and that’s why we are known as destination experts. We can

The Hartford skyline on the Connecticut River is home to many insurance and financial company headquarters. The Greater Hartford Convention & Visitors Bureau has staff that caters specifically to these markets. Photo courtesy of the Greater Hartford Convention & Visitors Bureau

recommend well-known hotel brands like Hiltons and Starwoods, but we can also suggest unique, diversified, independent boutique properties. Planners should also tap our knowledge on what’s going on in our city, such as special events, venues, products and services.”

With a planner’s RFP, NYC & Company narrows the possibilities to hotels that fit the event’s parameters. Often, the team at NYC & Company can suggest venues a planner might not have known about or even considered. Wall says she recently helped one large group book their general session offsite at the Radio City Music Hall. For another group, NYC & Company solicited sponsorships to develop a street banner program. The banners hung in various places from the airport to near the host hotel and welcomed delegates with the company’s and vendors’ logos.

Even when planners prefer to stay loyal to a particular hotel brand, the planners still should include the CVB, Wall advised. “We are much more than a hotel resource. We are a branch of the city government with ties to the city. If your event needs special permits or a mayoral letter or proclamation, with enough time, we can be your legs.

Boost Attendance
“We can also assist in boosting attendance,” Wall added. “Statistics show that a meeting based in New York City breaks attendance records, but we can ‘up’ the excitement of your incentive trip with more exposure and press releases geared to your attendees. We also have a brochure for convention delegates that offers discounts or value-added deals with area retailers, restaurants and special attractions like museums. We can even customize these brochures by including the company logo.”

NYC & Company is excited to debut a new online tool for planners this spring: mini event sites hosted by NYC & Company’s Web site. Wall explained, “The site will be an interactive and dynamic source for attendees on everything related to New York City. That is, everything that the planner wants listed. Instead of sending the attendee to a generic site filled with more information than they need, the information will be shaped per the meeting specs. For example, only the host hotels will be listed, versus all the properties, so that the meeting’s room block objectives can be met.”

Alison Costa, corporate events manager for the Hartford Financial Services Group Inc., Hartford, CT, uses the CVB’s Web site as her first research tool. “A lot of time and money is invested in their Web sites, as it is often the first introduction to the destination. Web sites such as the Greater Hartford Convention & Visitors Bureau include hotels, offsite and unique venues, a calendar of events, maps, videos and so much

From the multifunctional 5,000-seat Wells Fargo Theatre to Concierge Colorado  (staff run errands and make arrangements from the usual to the out-of-the-ordinary), planners rave about the services and amenities at the Colorado Convention Center in the heart of Denver. Photo courtesy of Denver  Metro Convention &  Visitors Bureau

more. When I’m just beginning to look at a destination, I begin with the Web site to orient myself with the destination. If I don’t already have a contact at the CVB, I can also pull that information from their Web site.”

Costa explained that she used to make dozens of phone calls to dozens of possible sites and often discovered that either the property had no availability or wasn’t a match for her event. Now she simply submits one RFP to the CVB, which it quickly returns with recommendations for available properties that are the right size and location. She doesn’t waste time on the phone, so she’s not inundated with dozens of e-mails from hotels that don’t fit her meeting’s specifications.

“I don’t withhold any information,” Costa added. “My RFP includes all the parameters necessary to a successful meeting. From attendee size to budget to objectives, it’s all there, and the CVB weeds out those bids that don’t meet my requirements. It saves me time, money and a lot of headaches. The best part is the CVB’s service is free.”

Costa says that partnering with the GHCVB has also been a good referral source for other destinations. “Since CVBs are often a part of a national network, my local CVB has also been able to provide me with contact information at other CVBs from Washington, DC, to California. It makes me more comfortable using the recommendation of a proven partner.”

The GHCVB is at the heart of many insurance and financial company headquarters, and they pride themselves on knowing this market. In fact, the GHCVB, like many other CVBs, has a staff that caters specifically to the insurance and financial markets.

Hot Buttons
According to Michael Van Parys, vice president of the GHCVB, that means planners can rely on his team to bring market knowledge to the table. “We recognize your hot buttons. We can cut to the chase and identify venues or properties that fit into your needs. Where an association planner might require properties at different price points, we understand that insurance planners are more interested in managing their group in one location to build rapport amongst attendees.”

Planners shouldn’t hesitate to select a second-tier destination such as Hartford, said Van Parys, who explained, “Getting attendees to Hartford is easy and affordable. We’ve found that organizations that bring groups here are experiencing higher than anticipated attendance, probably based on the location. The other benefit is that when a group is 400 to 800 attendees, the meeting becomes a citywide event. The group isn’t lost in the throes of the city and actually garners more attention and recognition. It’s a win-win partnership.”

Audrey R. Fan, convention sales manager for Seattle’s Convention and Visitors Bureau, said that planners should consider a CVB as their personal assistant. “Our services don’t have to end at the initial site selection. Many planners overlook our representation of many other visitor-related businesses. From restaurants to unique venues to teambuilding, CVBs have an open line to the full range of meeting-related products in our city, and we can match your meeting’s needs to our destination’s resources. We are your ambassador to ensure that your meeting in Seattle is one of the best.”

Fan continued, “Planners might think that they don’t have time to negotiate and contract with, for example, the Washington State Convention & Trade Center and three or four different hotels for a citywide event.

The Experience Music Project/Science Fiction Museum complex located in the 74-acre Seattle Center, which is also home to the Space Needle, totals 137,000 square feet, with 10 different meeting event spaces. Photo courtesy of EMP/SFM

Although we can’t negotiate numbers, we can meet with potential vendors on your behalf and present them with your RFP or contract.”

That’s what Fan did for Jan Ansbro, corporate vice president of the New York Life Insurance Company, who is planning an upcoming citywide event for more than 3,000 attendees. Since consolidating four regional meetings into one large meeting a few years ago, Ansbro faced challenges in site selection, but partnering with the local CVB has helped smooth the way for a less stressful event.

Last year, Ansbro partnered with the Salt Lake CVB and this year with Seattle’s CVB. As a former hotelier, she knew her hot buttons were meeting space and sleeping rooms. “Our population is so diverse, that I affectionately say New York Life is a space hog: We require a large ballroom, lots of breakout space for staff offices, executive meeting rooms, workshops, cyber café and even a Jewish prayer room.”

Yet Ansbro doesn’t have time to visit and negotiate contracts for multiple venues. Last year she contacted the Salt Lake CVB and most recently Seattle’s CVB to identify the hotels within walking distance of the convention centers, and she worked with them to put together a room block. With her hotel background, Ansbro developed a generic contract with a standard hotel boiler plate and handed this contract to her CVB sales team.

Ansbro explained, “I know every hotel will have its own lawyers and certain issues with varying contracts, but I didn’t want to worry that the attendees at Hotel A were being treated differently than those at Hotel B. I want my attendees to concentrate on the meeting, not that their coworker has a better room, so every attendee had to be provided the same level of service.”

Fan and Seattle’s CVB met on behalf of New York Life with each of the five hotels and the convention center, and presented the boiler plate contract. Fan also timed the walk from each of the hotels to the convention center.

“Following our experience in Salt Lake City,” Ansbro reported, “the citywide event exceeded our expectations. Upon arrival, attendees were gathered by color-coded luggage tags and sent to their respective hotels. Since all are within walking distance, we don’t have to worry about transportation. Plus when attendees have free time, they have direct access to everything the downtown offers.”

Ansbro said that she appreciates the CVB’s true commitment to bringing business to their destinations. “For example, the Salt Lake CVB made us feel so welcome by preparing signage that went in storefront windows and at the airport. No matter where we turned, our presence was embraced by the community. The CVB has expertise in understanding and handling the planning part of meetings from contracting to the economic impact our meeting has on the community.”

According to Douglas Small, senior vice president of the Denver Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau (DMCVB), the real services kick in soon after the planner selects the site city and partners with the CVB. “We realize that planners have multiple choices for host cities, and we want to entice you to Denver. However, we still have plenty more to offer planners after the site selection.”

Small said that because the CVBs are an integral part of their community, they are also keepers of the community events calendar and will know when an event will positively impact your meeting, or might adversely affect it. “We can suggest local events that might fit perfectly into your attendees’ schedule, without making a dent in your budget,” he said. “For example, when your meeting dates fall on the first Friday in the month, we might suggest dinner at The Santa Fe Tequila Company in conjunction with a local art night.”

The restaurant, which features unique flavors of traditional Sante Fe fare, is located in the Art District on Santa Fe Street just south of downtown Denver. The district has more than 40 galleries filled with contemporary, emerging and traditional art, restaurants and shops. The galleries open their doors the first Friday of every month for the popular First Friday Art Walk.

Small said successful CVBs are also good listeners. “We recently hosted a large meeting that had already visited some pretty spectacular destinations, like Dubai and Florence. However, they shared that meeting history with us, so we knew we had to raise the bar, be proactive and make the Denver event stand out to their attendees.”

That’s when Small put the planner in a helicopter and flew her over the city to The Fort. Located in southwest Denver, The Fort Restaurant is a replica of Bent’s Fort and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, a restaurant where heads of states have dined. Featuring fine beef, buffalo, game and seafood, The Fort’s menu offers a tantalizing selection of old and new foods from the Great West, but for a planner, The Fort also boasts a helicopter pad and a tantalizing view of downtown Denver. Plus, groups of all sizes can enjoy this 19th century experience.

“We want to know your meeting’s hot button,” added Small. “What is it that will set your meeting over the top? Some have said it’s the price of coffee. Others want a record attendance. Whatever your button is, share that with us. CVBs are here to help you from the initial site inspection to enhancing your entire meeting experience when you get here. When you partner with your CVB, we become the matchmaker and you become the star.”

Kathy Rust, vice president, corporate meetings and events at the Seattle-based WaMu (Washington Mutual), sums up the benefits of partnering with a CVB, “A CVB is a tremendous time-saver and simplifies the process of researching different destinations. Rather than contacting individual properties for large citywide meetings, a CVB takes my RFP and matches my objectives and needs to properties and venues with availability and the right location to fit my budget.”

When comparing multiple cities, this information is priceless, Rust said. “I can cover a lot of ground in a very short period of time by utilizing the CVB’s capabilities. Plus the CVB makes these contacts anonymously, so I don’t have to field dozens of e-mails. Once I’ve narrowed down my search and then make my final decision, the CVB continues to be my partner by offering collateral support, attendance building, registration assistance, community awareness, welcome programs, and onsite staff support.”

Rust added, “For me the CVB is a successful means of researching and doing business, and I applaud their work as it makes my work as a planner simpler.”    I&FMM