Tourism Academy 2021
Full Conference Agenda
The tourism conference for professionals who are transforming the landscape of travel through technology and marketing.
Monday, March 29th (Pre-Conference)
Monday, March 29th (Pre-Conference) 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
10:00 AM - 4:00 PM
2nd Annual Tourism Academy Classic Golf Tournament
Monday, March 29th (Pre-Conference)
This pre-conference golf tournament will tee off at 10 am to raise funds for the Destinations International Foundation. This year's host course will be RiverWinds Golf & Tennis Club. More information and RSVP here.
Monday, March 29th (Pre-Conference) 1:00 PM - 5:00 PM
1:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Explore Philly With Us
Monday, March 29th (Pre-Conference)
If you will be arriving a little early for the conference to check out the city, that's great! We're planning some fun Philly activities and excursions for the group! So stay tuned!
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1) 8:00 AM - 9:00 AM
8:00 AM - 9:00 AM
Breakfast & Registration
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1) 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM
9:00 AM - 10:00 AM
Welcome & Opening Remarks
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
We'll kick off with an overview of our goals for Tourism Academy 2020 and exciting developments from Tempest.
Featuring:
Alex Heimann
CEO
Tempest
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1) 10:10 AM - 10:50 PM
10:10 AM - 10:50 PM
Beginner Basics
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
Need a basic overview or refresh of iDSS? This session is perfect for new users to understand how iDSS can help you to save time and create effective workflows.
2019 Data Recap: How The Community Uses iDSS
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
We dug into our data to highlight insights and best practices around how our community is using iDSS. Find out how your peers are using iDSS and get tips for improving your processes.
How to Build Community With Your Digital Platforms
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
See real examples of how other destinations are using their CRMs, websites, and marketing to connect with their communities. We’ll share case studies and actionable ideas for leveraging your digital platforms to better support and communicate with your residents, local businesses, and stakeholders.
One-on-One Meetings
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
Schedule time to meet individually with Tempest and iDSS experts.
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1) 11:00 AM - 11:40 AM
11:00 AM - 11:40 AM
Roundtable: Membership & Accounting
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
An interactive shirtsleeves-style conversation where you'll hear real examples about how your peers use iDSS. Take away new ideas and best practices for improving your membership and accounting workflows.
Featuring:
John Barnett
Client Success Manager
Tempest
Beginner Sales
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
A refresher on how to manage sales leads in iDSS. Get familiar with lead distribution and take home actionable ways to improve your leads workflow so you can win new business.
Featuring:
Chris Mateer
Client Success Manager
Tempest
Local Love: Transforming Residents into Tourism Advocates
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
Join us for a panel discussion exploring how destinations are including locals in their storytelling. Take away strategies for converting residents into brand ambassadors who will improve the overall visitor experience.
One-on-One Meetings
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
Schedule time to meet individually with Tempest and iDSS experts.
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1) 11:50 AM - 12:30 PM
11:50 AM - 12:30 PM
Visitor Center & Inquiries
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
Review best practices for using iDSS to manage inquiries and Visitor Center activity. Hear from your peers who are using inquiries to collect valuable data and measure success.
Featuring:
Chris Mateer
Client Success Manager
Tempest
Services Best Practices
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
With iDSS reports and queries, actionable data is right at your fingertips. Find out how to identify the most critical data to report on, how to use industry standard reports, how to build custom queries, and more.
Big Thinking for Small DMOs
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
Hear from smaller destination organizations about how they maximize their resources and use innovative strategies to drive success. Take away tips and frameworks for thinking big when it comes to leadership, funding, and more.
One-on-One Meetings
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
Schedule time to meet individually with Tempest and iDSS experts.
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1) 12:30 PM - 2:00 PM
12:30 PM - 2:00 PM
Lunch Panel: Building Inclusive Experiences
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
Are you effectively welcoming all visitors to your destination? This panel discussion will feature destinations leading the way and overcoming unique challenges to offer a more inclusive message and visitor experience.
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1) 2:10 PM - 2:50 PM
2:10 PM - 2:50 PM
Media & Advertising
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
Are you fully leveraging the media and advertising capabilities within iDSS? During this session, we will showcase a client utilizing the Google Analytics integration and other workflows and share the benefits of using this integration.
Featuring:
Chris Mateer
Client Success Manager
Tempest
Itineraries & Expenses
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
iDSS can help you to manage itineraries and expenses for your sales and services team. Find out how to leverage these valuable tools to increase your effiiency and accountability.j
Featuring:
John Barnett
Client Success Manager
Tempest
A Travel Marketing Guide to Google Chrome & Data Privacy
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
In two years, Google Chrome will no longer support third-party cookies. This panel will unpack what this means for media buying, targeting, and travel marketing data going forward.
One-on-One Meetings
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
Schedule time to meet individually with Tempest and iDSS experts.
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1) 2:50 PM - 3:10 PM
2:50 PM - 3:10 PM
Afternoon Break
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1) 3:15 PM - 3:55 PM
3:15 PM - 3:55 PM
iDSS Email Campaign Creation
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
Are you using iDSS for your email marketing yet? This session will take you through an entire campaign and share tips and best practices for succcess.
Sales & Reporting Best Practices
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
If you're working as part of a sales team, find out how to use reporting and best practices in iDSS to improve your day-to-day sales activities. We'll share tips for tracking your teams success, using data to lead sales meetings, and more.
Does Your Destination Offer A Unified Visitor Experience?
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
Do you have a large geographical area to represent or a range of tourism assets with different audiences? This session will explore unique challenges and share case studies from destinations that have created a unified visitor experience from disparate elements.
One-on-One Meetings
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
Schedule time to meet individually with Tempest and iDSS experts.
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1) 4:05 PM - 4:45 PM
4:05 PM - 4:45 PM
Email Campaign Best Practices
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
We'll look at email campaign statistics across our community to identify best practices around email timing, message content, and more. See how other destinations are succeeding with email and take home new ideas for your campaigns.
Featuring:
Chris Mateer
Client Success Manager
Tempest
iDSS API Overview
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
Are you using the iDSS API? Do you want to learn more? This session will demonstrate how the API can help you to update partner data or local events on your website or push inquiries into iDSS from online forms and RFPs. We will also showcase some creative API use-cases from across the community.
Session Coming Soon
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
More session details coming soon.
One-on-One Meetings
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
Schedule time to meet individually with Tempest and iDSS experts.
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1) 5:30 PM - 8:00 PM
5:30 PM - 8:00 PM
The Museum of the American Revolution
Tuesday, March 30th (Day 1)
Join us for an opening reception at The Museum of The American Revolution, one of Philly's hottest new attractions. We'll enjoy food, drinks, and full access to the exhibits. Just a quick walk from the hotel. Meet in the Marriott Old City lobby at 5:15 to head over!
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2) 8:00 AM - 9:00 AM
8:00 AM - 9:00 AM
Breakfast & Registration
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2) 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM
9:00 AM - 10:00 AM
Keynote: Expectations and Risks for the Economy and Travel
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
The travel industry has enjoyed nearly continuous growth for a decade. Analysts from all corners are reasonably asking how much longer this growth cycle can last. Fault lines in the economy are only amplifying the volume of these questions. Adam Sacks will survey the state of the US and global economies and share implications for the travel industry over the coming year.
Featuring:
Adam Sacks
President
Tourism Economics
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2) 10:10 AM - 10:50 AM
10:10 AM - 10:50 AM
iDSS Publish
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
iDSS Publish can help your team generate consistent, elegant, branded communications on-the-fly. See case studies from destinations currently leveraging Publish and learn how to get started with Publish in your organization.
Where to Find Inspiration?
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
How do you ensure your marketing and visuals are fresh and inspiring? In this session, Michael will share strategies and resources for renewing your approach to branding and visual storytelling, plus case studies from destinations doing stunning work.
Featuring:
Michael Tripi
Creative Director
Tempest
One-on-One Meetings
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
Schedule time to meet individually with Tempest and iDSS experts.
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2) 11:00 AM - 11:40 AM
11:00 AM - 11:40 AM
Introducing Extranet 2.0
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
The iDSS Extranet can help you to maximize partner engagement. We'll showcase the latest iDSS Extranet developments and share case studies and best practices for increasing engagement with your community.
Does Your Content Spark Joy?
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
Just like Marie Kondo's "KonMari" method for decluttering your home, we'll share case studies and best practices for pruning your content and only keeping the most effective and engaging pieces.
One-on-One Meetings
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
Schedule time to meet individually with Tempest and iDSS experts.
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2) 11:50 AM - 12:30 PM
11:50 AM - 12:30 PM
iDSS Team Activity
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
This session will provide an introduction to the new Team Activity feature in iDSS Cyclone with plenty of resources and features for taking your meetings and trade shows to the next level.
How to Plan & Execute Your Most Successful Photo Shoot
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
What goes into a succesful destination photo shoot? Veteran commercial photgrapher Grant Taylor will walk through tips for a successful shoot from working out technical logisitcs to developing a creative strategy.
One-on-One Meetings
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
Schedule time to meet individually with Tempest and iDSS experts.
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2) 12:30 PM - 2:00 PM
12:30 PM - 2:00 PM
Lunch Panel: Funding Your Destination Organization
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
Destination organization funding is always evolving. Hear from a panel of your peers who are navigating funding threats and exploring new models for funding including grants, TBIDs, and more.
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2) 2:10 PM - 2:50 PM
2:10 PM - 2:50 PM
iDSS Attend
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
This session will provide an introduction to the new Attend feature in iDSS Cyclone. A revamped housing and registration platform to support meetings sales success.
Featuring:
Mark Lynch
Chief Client Officer
Tempest
How To Use Video-Based Social Platforms To Reach Travelers
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
TikTok and Instagram Stories are on every marketer’s radar in 2020. How can you use these platforms to attract travelers, engage locals and stand out? We’ll cover how travel brands are using these video-based platforms with examples that are fun, inspiring and effective. We’ll also provide a framework for planning and storyboarding using examples from leading destination marketers.
One-on-One Meetings
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
Schedule time to meet individually with Tempest and iDSS experts.
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2) 2:50 PM - 3:10 PM
2:50 PM - 3:10 PM
Afternoon Break
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2) 3:15 PM - 3:55 PM
3:15 PM - 3:55 PM
iDSS Tips & Tricks
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
When working with the iDSS user community, our team sees a lot of innovative tips and workflows and cool ideas. This session will share a roundup of the best tips and tricks from real users, to make sure you are maximizing the potential of the platform in your day-to-day.
Featuring:
John Barnett
Client Success Manager
Tempest
What Keeps Us Up At Night?
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
Destination Organizations today are tasked with a lot more than just marketing. How does your organization approach regulatory and policy issues, protect its funding model, navigate government relations, and work with public and private partnerships to support economic development? This session will explore hot-button issues impacting travel and tourism organizations and share governance strategies for you to continue advancing your mission
One-on-One Meetings
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
Schedule time to meet individually with Tempest and iDSS experts.
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2) 4:05 PM - 4:55 PM
4:05 PM - 4:55 PM
iDSS Roadmap
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
It's been an exciting year for iDSS. This session will review all of the latest features and updates rolling out on the platform.
State of the State Tourism Office
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
Hear directly from state tourism directors about best practices for collaborating with your state tourism office and how to get the most out of state resources.
One-on-One Meetings
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
Schedule time to meet individually with Tempest and iDSS experts.
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2) 5:30 PM - 8:00 PM
5:30 PM - 8:00 PM
Dinner on Your Own
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
Experience Philly's award-winning dining scene. Then head to the Big Tourism Academy Party at 8 pm.
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2) 8:00 PM - 11:59 PM
8:00 PM - 11:59 PM
Party at Theater of The Living Arts
Wednesday, March 31st (Day 2)
Bring your dancing shoes! The house band will headlining at Philly's Theatre of the Living Arts on historic South Street! Live music, drinks, food, fun and surprises.
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3)
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3) 8:00 AM - 9:00 AM
8:00 AM - 9:00 AM
Breakfast & Opening Remarks
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3)
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3) 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM
9:00 AM - 10:00 AM
Keynote Presentation
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3)
Get excited! This keynote will be announced soon!
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3) 10:10 AM - 11:40 AM
10:10 AM - 11:40 AM
Interactive Workshop: Radical Ideas via Radical Thinking
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3)
Join us as we put Radical Thinking into practice by tackling some of the biggest challenges we face as an industry. We'll welcome designer and facilitator Troy Thompson back to Tourism Academy for this brand new workshop. Collaborate with your peers and partners to re-think roles and re-build processes to be more helpful and effective for all. Utilizing real-world examples, stories, a card game, a lot of craft paper, and (most importantly) your brain, you will leave Tourism Academy with new peers, a new approach, and new ideas!
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3) 11:50 AM - 12:30 PM
11:50 AM - 12:30 PM
Roundtable Session: Admin Best Practices
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3)
An interactive shirtsleeves-style session, where you can discover new ways to revolutionize your workflow, maximize your efficiency, and increase your overall impact with iDSS. This session will connect you with your peers to share real scenarios and solutions for administrators.
Featuring:
John Barnett
Client Success Manager
Tempest
Becoming A Community Shared Value Through Our New Tourism Lexicon
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3)
Words matter in politics, and those words need to be chosen carefully. If we are going to be successful in changing the narrative surrounding our industry, it starts with a values-based approach. That means talking to stakeholders in a manner that is simple and emotional and connects their values to your organization. In this session, we demonstrate why our industry must utilize a new tourism vocabulary to connect with elected officials and residents in a meaningful way and how to implement the lexicon with your staff, your board, and your key stakeholders.
One-on-One Meetings
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3)
Schedule time to meet individually with Tempest and iDSS experts.
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3) 12:30 PM - 2:00 PM
12:30 PM - 2:00 PM
Lunch On Your Own
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3)
Philly's restaurant scene is impressive! Explore the many dining options in Old City.
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3) 2:10 PM - 2:50 PM
2:10 PM - 2:50 PM
So Fresh & So Clean: Data Hygiene
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3)
A clean and consistently updated database is a cornerstone for your organization's success. This session will cover best practices for data upkeep. Take away ideas and processes to ensure your database is updated regularly.
Measuring Economic Impact
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3)
Learn the best practices around using industry-standard tools like the Event Impact Calculator to measure your organization's economic impact, and how to communicate the information to stakeholders in an efficient and powerful way.
One-on-One Meetings
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3)
Schedule time to meet individually with Tempest and iDSS experts.
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3) 2:50 PM - 3:10 PM
2:50 PM - 3:10 PM
Afternoon Break
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3)
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3) 3:15 PM - 3:55 PM
3:15 PM - 3:55 PM
Roundtable Session: Engaging Your Members & Partners with iDSS
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3)
In this interactive shirtsleeves-style session, see examples of how the iDSS community uses the platform to drive greater member and partner engagement. From leveraging data to identifying new outreach opportunities, learn how to increase your community's engagement.
A Roadmap for Website Success
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3)
What are the latest trends in website design and marketing that can drive success for your destination organization? Explore case studies and examples from destinations using audience-driven design to increase brand awareness and engagement.
One-on-One Meetings
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3)
Schedule time to meet individually with Tempest and iDSS experts.
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3) 4:05 PM - 4:55 PM
4:05 PM - 4:55 PM
Roundtable: Sales Session
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3)
In this interactive shirtsleeves-style session, we'll walk through common destination sales challenges and kickstart peer-to-peer discussions to share ideas and best practices for maximizing your success.
Session Coming Soon
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3)
More session details coming soon.
One-on-One Meetings
Thursday, April 1st (Day 3)
Schedule time to meet individually with Tempest and iDSS experts.