3 takeaways

We were recently invited to curate a panel at the Southeast Tourism Society Connections conference. This is the annual gathering of tourism leaders spanning 14 states. Our team at HUG has been involved with STS for more than a decade and it has proven to be one of the most important organizations for us over the years.

This year’s event was in Richmond and since we have done quite a bit of work in the Commonwealth of Virginia, we decided to put together a three-tiered panel of Virginia based groups. One just opened a new indoor sports complex, one suburb of Richmond started their own sports division, and lastly the state tourism office director of sports.

The panel was great and the audience was quite interactive with their questions. The session offered up several actionable items. Below are our three favorite takeaways…..

First, regional partnerships are mission critical to long-term success. Each of the panelists talked about how working in tandem with multiple destinations proved positive. Partnership versus competition is key.

Second, getting multiple jurisdictions rowing the boat in the same direction (especially in facility development) is not just suggested, it is required. Making sure that stakeholders all have some form of skin in the game keep decision makers engaged in the process along the journey.

Third, not everything is perfect. There will be bumps along the way, no matter what the goal or task. Dealing with those up front (such as who gets access to the facility, when, and for how much) is required to keep things on the right path.

There were several more we could list here. These are the key learnings. Between them is one common thread.

Communication.

Many of the destinations we work with operate in silos. That isn’t the best way to generate community support. Stakeholder engagement throughout the journey is the way to win the race.

Find ways to build relationship bridges. Be vigilant about it. Be strategically and measurably consistent with it. That is the path to victory.