Think Like A Visitor

There is a strange expectation placed on Destination Marketing Organization leaders. The Executive Director or President-CEO is often expected to be a strategist, cheerleader, crisis manager, fundraiser, politician, economist, public speaker, mediator, salesperson, and visionary, sometimes all before lunch. The pressure can become relentless. Unlike many leadership positions, DMO leadership carries a unique emotional burden. Your success is publicly measured. Hotel occupancy, tax collections, visitation numbers, stakeholder satisfaction, political relationships, community perception, staff morale, media narratives, and board expectations all seem to converge in one office. And because tourism is tied so closely to economics and public perception, every challenge can feel personal. Many DMO leaders quietly carry stress they never openly discuss.  That silence can become dangerous. Mental health is not weakness. Burnout is not failure. Anxiety is not incompetence. In fact, many of th...

For years, Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs) were mainly evaluated based on one key question: “How many visitors did you bring here?” This focus made sense back when many communities were all about growing. More visitors meant more hotel stays, more restaurant visits, more shopping, and ultimately more tax money for local services and a better quality of life. Marketing was the driving force. Advertising, branding, visitor guides, public relations, and trade shows were the tools they used. But tourism has changed, and so have the expectations that communities have for the organizations that represent them. Today, many DMOs are transforming into Destination Management Organizations, a small change in wording that really shows a big shift in what they’re responsible for. The modern visitor economy isn’t just about how many people are coming. More and more, destinations are asking important questions: Are visitors making life better for the people who live there? Is tourism a sus...