INDUSTRY BRIEF
That is where it started. It is where we saw the creation of a legal entity charged with promoting a destination to visitors or meeting attendees. This is where the idea of a destination promotion profession began. Professionals in branding, marketing and communications. Professionals in destination promotion, sales and visitor services. Destination professionals in all the areas that support the branding, marketing, promotion, sales and service efforts. These people make up a destination organization and carry out vital work on behalf of their community. The destination organization has evolved from its early beginnings. While attracting conventions and meetings is still a goal, today’s destination organizations focus
on a wide range of potential visitors, from leisure to business, and on attracting a wide range of events, including social, sporting, film and television. At the heart of these efforts, destination organizations are concerned with attracting attention, visitors and investment by promoting and developing a destination through brand management, strategic marketing, events and meetings sales and visitor engagement. They approach these activities in a way that seeks to create a positive tourism experience for visitors and residents alike, and for current and future generations. “ Source: Ford, Robert C. & Peeper, William C. (2008), Managing Destination Marketing Organizations . Orlando: ForPer Publications Detroit may be recognized as the formal birthplace of the destination organization industry and profession.
4 | Destinations International
Powered by FlippingBook