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DMAI 94th hosts record-breaking annual Convention
The Destination Marketing Association International’s 94th Annual Convention is hosting nearly 1260 individuals in Las Vegas – a record-breaking crowd. Nearly 775 destination marketing professionals, educators, students and industry partners from nearly 350 destinations registered for the convention, held 28-30 July 2008 at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.

In addition, more than 315 exhibitors and sponsors are participating, up 45% from 2007, including 25 firsttime exhibitors. More than 100 exhibiting and sponsoring companies are on a sold out tradeshow floor – the first time in the association’s history. The Business Exchange is the exclusive tradeshow showcasing DMAI Allied Members, which are vendors and suppliers dedicated to serving the destination marketing community, and a growing part of DMAI’s membership base.

Themed “Betting on the Future,” the convention is a one-stop-shop for educational seminars, product familiarization and networking, with delegates from 13 countries in attendance. “All the education at this year’s convention is focused on major themes revealed from the 2008 Futures Study,” said Michael D. Gehrisch, DMAI president & CEO. “Taking a first-hand look at the elements of the study will help destination marketing professionals examine the impact of our strategic conversations and community roles on our destinations, and to plan for the future of their destinations.”

Convention highlights include:
?? Fred Kent, the president of Project for Public Spaces, Inc., world-renowned urban anthropologist and an international expert on revitalizing city spaces opened the convention with a session about destination “placemaking,” an approach to tourism development that helps ensure economic success, manage negative impacts and build local capacity for a destination that continues to evolve.

?? An expert panel looked at the eight globally-focused super-trends revealed in the new study The Future of Destination Marketing: Tradition, Transition, and Transformation. The panel focused on how DMOs can best play a strategic role in developing their destinations.

?? Stephen M. R. Covey is a highly respected advisor on trust, leadership, ethics and high performance. His groundbreaking session based on his book, The SPEED of Trust, challenges the assumption that trust is a soft, social virtue and instead is a hard-edged, economic driver.

?? Susan Sweeney, an internet marketing expert and best-selling author of eight internet marketing books including 101 Ways to Promote your Tourism Web Site, will close the convention with a session about the current formula for online success for DMOs and ways to exceed web site visitors’ changing expectations.

Three senior-level education courses were also offered in conjunction with the convention, in the Certified
Destination Management Executive (CDME) program, which sold out. Theodore Koumelis - Tuesday, August 05, 2008