Key findings and actionable recommendations from the results of 2k+ DMO partner surveys nationwide
By Kristen Murphy
I love to read, but over the years my oldie-but-goodie reference is still Stephen R. Covey’s timeless book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. In business, as in personal life, the fundamental principles of effectiveness, happiness and ultimately success remain pretty consistent.
And because travel is so close to consumers’ hearts, the business of tourism is especially woven into the personal. Ours is the essence of a people business, which means that our success depends on our collective success in nurturing and managing all stakeholder relationships. A latecomer in the constant evolution of the destination management organization (DMO), partner engagement has lately been recognized as a key component to DMO success.
I recently spoke at Destinations International’s annual convention about the importance of understanding and influencing DMO partner engagement. Most of my 13 years with Paradise have been spent on the client services and the strategic planning side, and it has been my privilege to concern myself with the success AND happiness of clients. For the last couple of years, I’ve been privileged with the opportunity to focus on partner development offerings as a specialized line of service within our Paradise client services teams. And, to be clear, these are our clients’ partners; partners to our DMOs. As A Partner for GoodSM, my Paradise colleagues and I have come to realize that happy and engaged partners foster happy and successful DMO partnerships, which ultimately create a successful destination experience for consumers.
I’m delighted to share a little bit of what we have learned over the years. We actively deployed more than 2,000 surveys to partners across the country, tailored to every DMO, and hundreds of workshops and personal conversations we have held, and the results have been meaningful:
Partners want to be involved, but first they need to know how.
Education is a big component to engagement success. In order to get partners excited to be involved, partners need to be informed about who the DMO is, the value a DMO brings to the community and local businesses, what kind of partnership and promotional opportunities the DMO offers. Tell them about the events and unpaid social media or PR efforts the DMO has planned and where they could get involved. Share with them the big picture of your role as a DMO, and theirs, in shaping the economic development and sustainability of your area. Guaranteed that they will want to be on your side.
Data trends and visitor insights dominate
Partners are very thirsty for visitation and industry trends, and here they look to you, the DMO, for information and guidance. The global pandemic accelerated this need to know, and it’s a great opportunity for DMOs to shine with information partners can use: forecasting data, so that Publix can properly stock the shelves or a Bed and Breakfast can ensure they are staffed properly, or campaign dates and target markets, so that they can prioritize their own marketing budgets to have the most impact.
Know partners’ communications preferences
One of the tenants of marketing is knowing when and how to talk to your audience. So learn how your own partners prefer to be addressed and informed. In our surveys, for example, we learned that more than 80% of all the partners surveyed indicated that they want to receive email communications one to two times per month. The next best thing that they wanted was a texting program, because texts are more immediate, whereas emails go unread. Many partners also liked receiving information in private Facebook groups. It may come as no surprise that we found that partners want to be updated regularly of planned events in destination; many are interested in non-paid collaborations with social media, public relations, content development, or email inclusion; and many are asking for marketing educational tools and resources this can come in the form of webinars, workshops, even one-sheeters.
Know your partners
Here is where I draw upon Stephen Covey’s teachings, “Seek first to understand, then to be understood.” Listening to them will really help you understand where the gaps are in communication and what a partner might need. We get to do this by meeting with DMO partners and, depending on the need, we will host workshops, or a brand development session or a public relations effort to literally educate them how to capitalize on their DMO, because at the end of the day, it’s all about providing value to them.
Everyone is different, so take your time
Just like every DMO is different, depending on size, location, budget and so much more, it follows that partners even within a destination vary widely. And in our experience marketing destinations for more than two decades, we know that there’s no cookie-cutter approach when it comes to getting to know partners, so our advice is to take your time and not bite more than what you can chew. That means make sure you don’t set high expectations that will ultimately backfire. It’s really important that you take a step back and think through how to best align the DMO’s needs with your partners, and then make sure you’ve got the resources and a plan to achieve the goals.
Partner personas
You can see in more depth here how Paradise has laid out the different types of partner personas we have identified over the years, from the more educated and enthusiastic advocate (Active Ally or Practical Collaborator), along with the time and resource demands that come from someone as sophisticated as that, to the more self-directed one (Marketing Expert) to the newbie (Emerging Ally), all of whom have recognizable characteristics. We have developed recommendations on how to navigate these different types of partners and potential boundaries or pitfalls so that you can show all of them your value, leverage their influence, and get their best possible engagement. Our guide will hopefully help you anticipate some questions from the more zealous partners, formulate answers for the timid or skeptical ones and overall acknowledge everyone’s perspective and level of understanding of the relationship you are seeking to develop.
Visualizing success
In conclusion, what is sometimes easy to lose sight of is that DMOs and partners are in a mutually beneficial relationship, and one that requires active participation, management of expectations, setting of boundaries, and ongoing and clear communication. Practical information is key to this mutual success, with both sides needing to educate one another about their progress and celebrations. It is a constant process of managing people interactions and yet so rewarding once you achieve fulfilling engagements time and again. Here, another one of Covey’s tenets holds true: “Begin With the End in Mind.” In other words, always keep your goals in front of you by visualizing your success and trust in yourself that together you will get to the place you want to be.
Finding good partners to help
As A Partner for GoodSM along with my Paradise colleagues, I am here to help you realize that happy and engaged partners foster happy and successful DMO partnerships, which ultimately create a successful destination experience for consumers. If I can be of help to you, please do not hesitate to contact me.
