2024 PACE Forum
Thank you for attending the inaugural PACE Forum!
February 26 – 28
View list of attendees
Photos from the forum
Share your photos with fellow attendees and view or download others' photos below!
Resources
PACE Forum Presentation Folders
Presentations and materials saved in folders and can be accessed to view and download.
PACE 60 in 60
A transcript and summary of the PACE 60 in 60 session.
Google Group
PACE/Shirtsleeves
PACE Google R&D Spreadsheet
All PACE Forum registrants have been added to this Google Sheet with the email address provided at registration. If you would like your email updated to a personal Gmail address, reach out to Phil Berndt, Destination Door County, at phil@doorcounty.com with "Please add to PACE Sheet: in the subject line. Direct your questions or concerns to Phil.
Post-event Survey
We value your feedback and will use it to shape our future events.
Agenda
*Indicates breaks have food and/or beverages
Jump To Monday, February 26
Jump to Tuesday, February 27
Jump to Wednesday, February 28
Monday, February 26
Registration opens at 8:30 a.m.
Lunch
12:30 – 2:00 p.m.
Wisconsin Ballroom
Program starts at 1:00 p.m.
Introduction, Welcome and Remarks
Round the Room - "What keeps you up at night?"
2:15 – 3:45 p.m.
Wisconsin Ballroom
Facilitated by Polly Flachman, Vice President of Community Engagement for Visit Phoenix, and Judy Cullen, former VP of Community and Partner Development for Visit Salt Lake, the intent of this unique interactive opening session is to gauge from our PACE attendees what problems various organizations/departments are facing and what actionable outcomes our attendees would like to take away from the next two days. This conversation promises to be lively, educational, and thought-provoking!
Break
3:45 – 4:00 p.m.
Newcomers Session
4:00 – 4:30 p.m.
Wisconsin Ballroom
Welcome networking session for new PACE attendees.
Break
4:30 – 5:00 p.m.
Opening Reception
5:00 – 6:30 p.m.
Madison Ballroom
Sponsored by Simpleview
On Your Own Dine Around
7:00 p.m.
Tuesday, February 27
Registration opens at 8:30 a.m.
Breakfast
8:00 – 9:00 a.m.
Wisconsin Ballroom
Recap of previous day.
Session #1 – DMO Funding & Revenue Sources
9:15 – 10:15 a.m.
Wisconsin Ballroom
This opening session will be led by Brian Hilemon, Sr Director of Marketing Partnerships for the San Diego Tourism Authority and Emily Shorrock, Sr. Director of Industry Partner Relations and will explore a variety of topics including capitalizing on unique revenue streams, discussing different membership pricing structures, the pros and cons of annual renewals vs calendar renewals and members’ tolerance for dues increases.
Break*
10:15 – 10:30 a.m.
Breakout #1 – Visitor Services
10:30 – 11:30 a.m.
Capitol Ballroom A
Visit Phoenix’s Visitor Experience Manager Sarai Case and her panel of experts will be addressing the importance of visitor services and visitor centers to DMO’s and how to elevate visitor services as a valuable tool. They will also tackle the issues of visitor guide relevance and visitor center staff training.
Breakout #2 – Tourism Improvement Districts
10:30 – 11:30 a.m.
Capitol Ballroom B
Stories “from the trenches” of the challenges and opportunities when creating a tourism improvement district, how to work effectively to get community buy-in and the opportunities and challenges of an assessment once established.
Lunch
11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
Wisconsin Ballroom
Presentation by Simpleview.
Break
12:30 – 12:45 p.m.
Session #2 – The Future of the Membership Model
12:45 – 1:45 p.m.
Wisconsin Ballroom
This general session will be led by Phil Berndt, Director of Advocacy for Destination Door County, and Gayle Lee, VP of Partnership and Visitor Services at Visit Cabarrus County, with a discussion focused on the advantages and disadvantages of membership models vs partnership models, best practices for prospecting new members and partners, and stories from the front line from those who switched models.
Break
1:45 – 2:00 p.m.
Breakout #3 – Networking & Engagement Opportunities
2:00 – 3:00 p.m.
Capitol Ballroom A
Jordan Engermann from Visit Chicago and Kristen McGovern from NYC Tourism & Conventions will share their experiences with restaurant week promotions and “other week” promotions. Additionally, they will share the types of trainings, seminars, webinars and engagement opportunities that have been the most effective in engaging partners and community members.
Breakout #4 – Growth, Tracking & Retention
2:00 – 3:00 p.m.
Capitol Ballroom B
Lead by Visit Denver’s MC Genova, Director of Partnership and Lauren Huffer, Partnership Services & Events Manager, this discussion will center on the bottom line - renewals and collections and how to effectively measure ROI, with an emphasis on utilizing data driven engagement. The panel will also discuss the effectiveness of partner surveys and focus groups to drive growth and increase member retention.
Break*
3:00 – 3:15 p.m.
Session #3 – Research & Data
3:15 – 4:15 p.m.
Wisconsin Ballroom
During this session, Eric Kerr, VP of Insights and Development and Polly Flachman, VP of Community Engagement, will share best practices on how to use data and why data is so important when making strategic decisions and how to utilize data as a retention and membership acquisition tool.
Wednesday, February 28
Breakfast
8:00 – 9:00 a.m.
Wisconsin Ballroom
Remarks, recap & external speaker on association membership trends.
Break
9:00 – 9:15 a.m.
Breakout #5 – Community Engagement & Perceptions
9:15 – 10:15 a.m.
Capitol Ballroom A
Polly Flachman, VP of Community Engagement for Visit Phoenix, and Judy Cullen, former VP of Community and Partner Development for Visit Salt Lake, will lead a discussion about what is community engagement and why it is critical for DMO’s to be community partners. The panel will also delve into engagement successes and challenges, neighborhood initiatives and ambassador programs.
Breakout #6 – Potpourri
9:15 – 10:15 a.m.
Capitol Ballroom B
Partner Initiatives - Driving visitors, workforce and training to your local hospitality community.
Break*
10:15 – 10:30 a.m.
Session #4 – Making Partnership Accessible for All
10:30 – 11:30 a.m.
Wisconsin Ballroom
Greg LaDuca, VP of Industry Relations and Visitor Experience for Visit Rochester, will guide the panel in a discussion regarding best practices in recruiting DEI into membership. The panel will also provide an overview of foundations and grant guidelines for those DMO’s exploring foundation and grant opportunities. We are going to be giving examples of diversity, equity, accessibility and inclusion in action from 6 different destinations
Lunch
11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
Wisconsin Ballroom
Seating arranged by DMO budget size for table discussions.
Break
12:30 – 12:45 p.m.
Breakout #7 – In-House Advertising
12:45 – 1:45 p.m.
Capitol Ballroom A
Andy Rankin, Director of Investor Relations for the Charleston Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, will lead the panel a discussion regarding advertising sales. Discussion topics include how to effectively monetize in-house assets, advertising sales strategies and more.
Breakout #8 – Simpleview Best Practices
12:45 – 1:45 p.m.
Capitol Ballroom B
Simpleview’s Chris George will share ideas and best practices on underutilized existing functions that can significantly help collections/renewals, operational efficiency, communications, marketing/promotions, Extranet usage, and more. In addition, he will provide a sneak peek at new and improved features that are coming down the pipeline. Chris will also field questions on new and existing functionality.
Break*
1:45 – 2:00 p.m.
60 in 60
2:00 – 4:00 p.m.
Wisconsin Ballroom
A Shirtsleeves favorite, this is when we go around the room and each attendee shares his or hers best successes (or fails!) in 60 seconds or less.
Break
4:00 – 4:30 p.m.
Shuttle to Destination Activity
5:00 – 5:45 p.m.
Madison on Tap: Craft Beverage and Cheese Pairing Experience
5:00 – 7:00 p.m.
Sponsored by Bandwango
Mix & Mingle
7:00 – 8:00 p.m.
Shuttle to Hotel
7:00 – 8:00 p.m.
Thank you to our sponsors
Thank you to our vendors
