Tuesday Newsletter
June 6, 2006
Tuesday Newsletter June 6, 2006
Volume 26: Issue 23
| Interested in becoming a sponsor for Tuesday? Contact Karla DiNardo at karla.dinardo@NTA.travel. |
On the Convention Trail With Barb Bowman
This is the second installment of On the Convention Trail, a series of articles that will appear in Tuesday, written by 2006 Convention Chair Barb Bowman of the Grand Junction (Colo.) Visitor and Convention Bureau. The stories are aimed at getting you ready for Annual Convention, which will take place Nov. 3 – 7 "on location" in Salt Lake City.
The shapes and colors of the tulips in the square were so beautiful that I thought for a moment I was back in Holland in the spring. The magnificent architecture of the building before me, however, was a quick reminder that I was in Salt Lake City at the famous Temple Square.
A few weeks back, Michele Michalewicz, NTA board member and president of Western Leisure, took time to show NTA Public Relations Manager Sara Morton and me some of her favorite Salt Lake sights. Temple Square is truly exceptional, and we got to visit many other wonderful places in the city. Besides seeing its great attractions, we also had breakfast at a local favorite, the Lamb’s Grill Café. For those of you with a hearty appetite and love of Art Deco architecture, you won’t want to miss this restaurant during Convention.
Salt Lake is a truly a treat for all your senses, and I know you are going to love it as much in November as Michele, Sara and I did in April. To learn more about some of its great places, read the article on Fam and sightseeing tours below.
Better Business. Better Be There.
NTA Convention: See Salt Lake and Utah
Salt Lake City has woven its "on location" theme into the NTA Annual Convention sightseeing and Fam itineraries. Each tour is titled after a famous movie or television show that was filmed in Utah. Visit the NTA Convention Web site for details on tours titled "Back to the Future," "City Slickers," "National Treasure," "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" and "Indiana Jones."
Additionally, all sightseeing and Fam tours were developed with NTA’s AIM (Areas of Interest Marketing) program in mind. Each tour description indicates which AIM category the tour was designed around. Adventure, youth travel, affinity – whatever your forte, you’re sure to be pleased. Review the categories to see which tour may be most appealing to your customer base.
Visit the NTA Convention Web site for more information on Fams and sightseeing tours.
Need to register for the 2006 Annual Convention? Click here to make plans to join us in Salt Lake City, Nov. 3 – 7.
NTA’s Cultural Diversity Task Force Seeks Your Feedback
In reviewing NTA’s strategic direction of growing and diversifying the association’s membership, the Cultural Diversity Task Force developed position statements to succinctly outline the value of this direction for NTA members and the association. Click here to review this brief information.
"For many years NTA has communicated the importance of growing our membership and has been especially focused on looking at ways to diversify our membership to reflect the world we live in," said Ed Hall, CTP, chair of the Cultural Diversity Task Force. "Since 2002 NTA has accepted companies outside North America as members, and going in that new direction for diversified growth has not been without its challenges. The task force created these position statements to help all NTA members understand the benefit of this growth for their individual businesses and for the association as a whole."
Hall said the Cultural Diversity Task Force wants NTA members to send in their case studies on working with culturally diverse markets, both domestic and international. "We want feedback on these papers, and we want to share information from the members so we can learn from each other’s successes and failures."
To pass along your thoughts on NTA’s goal of growth and diversification and to share your case studies, please e-mail NTA Vice President of Communications Catherine Prather at catherine.prather@NTA.travel.
Clarification on The Berkely Group’s Corporate Partnership
Due to an inadvertent error by an NTA associate member, an e-mail promotion may have created the impression that NTA has entered into a new insurance corporate partnership, which is not the case. NTA’s corporate partnership with The Berkley Group is the only insurance partnership NTA has established.
The Berkely Group can handle all customized travel insurance needs, offering both professional liability coverage and a travel protection plan to NTA members. Berkely also offers two exclusive travel insurance products for NTA’s U.S.-based members – an administration-free product that can be distributed to clients for purchase via mail, fax or phone and a group product that offers more flexibility in pricing and compensation.
For information on the professional liability coverage, contact Maureen Kaye at 800.645.2424 or mkaye@berkely.com. To learn more about the travel protection plan, contact Geni Priolo at 800.383.9617 or gpriolo@berkely.com.
Additional details of the NTA-Berkely partnership are available at NTA.travel, if you click here.
How to Run for the NTA Board of Directors
If you have interest in helping lead your association, here is what you need to do in order to qualify to seek an office. Members must either have served two years as a member of an NTA committee, council, task force or related board of directors, or they must meet three of the following five criteria:
If you want to be considered for one of the positions on the NTA Board of Directors – three tour operator seats, one tour supplier seat, one DMO seat and the officer positions of vice chair, treasurer and secretary – you need to fill out an interest form by June 16. The Nominating Committee will announce the slate of candidates to the full membership in early July via Tuesday.
For more information on NTA elections, or to receive an interest form, contact Todd Hamilton at todd.hamilton@NTA.travel.
Benefit Basics: AIM Program Links Members with Shared Interests
In April, NTA surveyed its members to find out which AIM categories they were involved with. The information has been compiled and, as a result, each AIM category now has a roster of individuals that have declared themselves as either a "business" or "learning" member.
The printable rosters represent a strong business-to-business enhancement to the two-year-old AIM program. They are a great reference for NTA members who are looking to partner with colleagues in their area of expertise or for members to find mentors in an area into which they may be trying to expand.
You can view the roster for each of the six AIM categories by visiting these links:
If you have questions about the AIM program or want to designate yourself in an AIM category, contact Christy Stigall via e-mail at christy.stigall@NTA.travel or call 800.682.8886, ext. 3579 (U.S. and Canada) or 859.219.3579.
Interested in Serving on an NTA Committee?
NTA relies heavily on member volunteers to assist in guiding the association and enhancing its programs. The purpose of volunteer leadership is to allow NTA to fully utilize the tremendous wealth of talent available from its members to advance the mission of the association.
Incoming 2007 Chairman and CEO Randy Julian will appoint individuals to serve one-year terms on various working committees and task forces. These groups are a vital link between the Board of Directors and the membership. Some are standing committees, while others are established each year based on the current needs of the association. Some of NTA’s committees require in-person meetings, while others conduct business through periodic conference calls.
It is NTA’s goal to financially support committee members by paying the majority of expenses for in-person meetings. NTA’s Finance Committee examines the volunteer expense policy on an annual basis.
Members are chosen based on several criteria. To view guidelines used in the selection process, click here.
To put your name in for consideration, simply submit a Volunteer Interest Form to NTA prior to Aug. 4. Appointments will be finalized in November.
Tourism Cares for Bermuda Project Part of Leadership Summit
Tourism Cares will hold its 6th Annual Leadership Summit Sept. 28 – Oct. 2 on the beautiful island of Bermuda. The Fairmont Southampton Resort and the Bermuda Department of Tourism are generously hosting sponsors and guests, with all proceeds to benefit Tourism Cares.
The program includes cocktail receptions, gourmet meals, sightseeing tours and the opportunity to play on world-class golf courses. The event also will feature a panel discussion by high-level tourism executives and a brief tabletop trade showcase of Bermuda products.
An exciting new element will be added this year – a Tourism Cares for Bermuda work project. Attendees will have the opportunity to work with their Bermuda counterparts to help clean up a historic site on the island. This addition to the program, reminiscent of the Tourism-Caring for America projects of the past, will be the first international Tourism Cares effort.
Please visit http://www.tourismcares.org/ to find out more about how you and your organization can get involved.
See You in Salt Lake City … In More Ways Than One!
Convention is what everyone’s talking about! Ensure that your presence is evident before, during and after the big event in Salt Lake by creating your own custom sponsorship/advertising package.
Before
During
After
Click here for a full list of opportunities, then contact your NTA sales representative at 800.682.8886, ext. 4238 (U.S. and Canada) or 859.226.4238 or via e-mail advertising@NTA.travel who can help you create a custom sponsorship/advertising package for Convention.