Featured speakers include internationally known John Hope-Johnstone CTC, Chief Strategist for HPR Internet Marketing Agency, who is the author of three marketing books and a member of the World Future Society. He will discuss’ How Transforming Technologies will Herald a new Era in Travel. John has been Director of Marketing for Four Seasons Hotels, Vice President of Lakeview Development of Canada (Sheraton Hotels) and then Vice President of Marketing for L’Ermitage Hotels of Beverly Hills. John has also been past President of the Greater Western Chapter of Travel and Tourism Research Association and has sat on the International Board of the parent organization TTRA. He has been President of the Tourism Research Advisory Council for Oregon and Washington States and Chair of the Tourism Industry Council of Oregon.
Also speaking is Adam Sacks, the founder and Managing Director of Tourism Economics based in Wayne, PA; an Oxford Economics company dedicated to analytically-based consulting to the tourism sector. His presentation, ‘Making Definite Plans in an Uncertain Economy’ will provide insights into the current economic landscape & potential scenarios for the US and global economies. The tourism industry has been a shining star in the US economic recovery. However, recent indicators and a range of external risks are raising concerns about growth prospects. He will then discuss implications for the tourism industry in New Mexico and how the industry can best shield itself from risks while still taking advantage of growth opportunities. He will also give insight into the newly released economic impact study his company did for the NM Tourism Dept.
Sacks is an expert in developing custom systems for quantifying relevant tourism market segments and tracking the competitive landscape for clients. Adam has developed tourism forecasting models with unrivalled track records. Over the past thirteen years, Adam has conducted and managed millions of dollars of relevant economic consulting. On the public sector side, Adam has worked with dozens of national, provincial/state and local tourism offices throughout the world (now including New Mexico). He is an authority on measuring the economic impact of tourism activity – both broadly and for specific initiatives and projects. He has advised destinations on tourism investment policy, the effects of proposed entry procedures, tourism taxation, and marketing strategies. He has provided numerous destinations with analysis on market positioning and emerging opportunities.
Suzanne Cook, Senior Advisor to the U.S. Travel Association will speak about the Outlook for U.S. Travel and Tourism. This session will provide the data and insights you need to prepare or tweak your marketing plan for 2013. It will summarize the expert analysis of domestic and inbound international travel trends presented at the late October Global Travel Outlook Conference, the nation's leading strategic forecasting conference, presented by the Travel and Tourism Research Association (TTRA). Current performance of and outlook for key travel industry sectors and traveler segments for the U.S. and New Mexico will be revised, all within the context of the economic and consumer environment in which we are all conducting business.
For more than three decades, Suzanne served as the Senior Vice President of Research for the U.S. Travel Association, providing economic and marketing research and analysis to benefit its members and support industry efforts involving advocacy and promotion. The comprehensive program she developed and directed includes the Travel Economic Impact Model and ongoing consumer research such as TravelHorizons™, a quarterly, forward-looking survey conducted in conjunction with the Ypartnership. She was also the principle architect of travelgreen.org, the primary source for information on sustainability efforts within the travel community, and some of the industry’s best efforts, developed in partnership with American Express.
Lisa Simon, NTA president, will present, ‘Where Group Travel is Taking You’ as she’ll explain how NTA tour operators are finding success by packaging travel for specialty markets such as faith-based, adventure and family travel. She will also discuss ways that TANM members can capitalize on these group-travel trends. NTA, (National Tour Association) is the premier travel and tourism association in North America. NTA has a global membership of 3,000 tourism professionals involved in the growth and development of the packaged travel industry. NTA tour operators package group and independent travel to, from and within North America. She has spoken on global and domestic travel—and tourism marketing and trends - throughout the U.S., and on the North American market in Canada, China, Egypt, India, Italy, Jordan, Mexico, Scotland, Senegal, Spain, Tanzania and the UK.
Secretary Monique Jacobson and staff will give the New Mexico Tourism Department Update Secretary Jacobson and staff members Jordan Guenther and Jim Orr will present the latest in emerging consumer travel trends in New Mexico and the US, with in-depth discussion about their current and upcoming research projects. Jordan Guenther, NMTD Digital Media Manager and Jeff Norris, Digital Director of New Mexico Magazine will demonstrate how NMTD & NM Magazine are using new features in Google Analytics and other online analysis services to track conversions, segment visitors by behavior, setup & track goals, and use social metrics to better understand and market to website visitors.
James Orr, Research Coordinator for the New Mexico Tourism Department, will present historical and up to the minute research on consumer travel trends specific to New Mexico, along with highlights of information presented at the 2012 Global Travel Outlook Conference in Chicago. He will also discuss the department’s current & upcoming research projects. In March of 2011 Monique returned home to New Mexico to work for Governor Susana Martinez as the Tourism Secretary, driven by the opportunity to affect the state’s economy through the growth of the tourism industry. In her first year as Cabinet Secretary for The Tourism Department, Monique Jacobson has restructured the tourism department to become more fiscally responsible, turned NM Magazine into a self-sufficient enterprise, launched two successful statewide tourism promotions “Catch the Kid” and “Get The Picture”, opened up communication to the industry by creating an industry website bringing to light critical research and information, all this while spearheading a new branding campaign for the State of New Mexico, NEW MEXICO TRUE.
Other topics includes at the conference include ‘The Voice of your Customer—the New Market Research Paradigm’, explaining how the latest web analytics now involves continuous monitoring of every keystroke for all visitors to your website. Chris Cordova of CRC Associates will explore how companies are now using these technologies to analyze vision, human behavior, user experiences and consumer responses.
In concurrent breakout sessions Cara Rogers of McKee Wallwork Cleveland will discuss ‘Converting Leads into Visitors’; and Megan Mayo & Kelly Ryan from Visit Albuquerque will present Tips on Working with Travel Media— before, during & after their visit.
Find more details on the conference and registration information at www.tanm.org.