Broadway at Travel Exchange | Millennials Meet Up | Mentoring Makes a Difference
November 13, 2012
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TODAY’S ARTICLES
The Best of Broadway at Travel Exchange!
Millennials Meet with NTA Board and (soon) at Travel Exchange
Join NTA at COTTM and Tap the Fastest-growing Inbound Market
Mentoring Makes a Difference, Recipients Say
Webinar: Updated Forecast for International Tourism into U.S.
Q. What’s Simple, Enjoyable and Member-recommended?
Here’s How to Stand Out at Travel Exchange
5 Ways (Times 3) to Market on Instagram
Industry News and Updates
The Best of Broadway at Travel Exchange!
The stage is set! Newly merged Group Sales Box Office/Broadway.com has announced the lineup of Broadway shows they will be bringing to the always-popular Broadway Luncheon at Travel Exchange! Come join us Monday, Jan. 21, from noon to 1:45 p.m. and enjoy one incredible, standing-ovation lunch.
The acts—with the actual Broadway performers—currently confirmed are: 
- Annie
- Chaplin
- Chicago
- Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella
- Kinky Boots
- Motown: The Musical
- The Mystery Of Edwin Drood
- Nice Work If You Can Get It
- Once
- Spider-Man Turn Off The Dark!
You won’t want to miss this magical event, so be sure to arrive early; seats fill up fast!
Check out the full Travel Exchange schedule here! And don’t forget to register for Travel Exchange, if you haven’t already!
Millennials Meet with NTA Board and (soon) at Travel Exchange
Several young professionals who are part of the Millennial Generation (born between 1980 and 1995) attended NTA’s Board of Directors meeting in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, yesterday. The group, mainly from nearby tourism businesses and organizations, shared their perspective on the world and the travel industry.
Meeting with the board were Abby Howard of Pennsylvania Association of Travel & Tourism, Alyssa Rader of Dutch Apple Dinner Theater, Nicole Sutton of American Music Theatre, Sheila Contento of Crowne Plaza Reading, Kelsey Dixon of Heritage Hospitality, Jenny McConnell of Gettysburg Convention & Visitors Bureau, and Ian Reddekopp of Earth Bound Tours.
The board’s interest in young professionals made an impression on McConnell. "Wow," she said. "NTA really cares about us."
For takeaways from the meeting, head on over to NTA’s Do Big Things Blog. And be sure to attend a presentation on this demographic at Travel Exchange. The session, "Pathway to Understanding the Millennial Generation," will be led by Cathleen Johnson of Edelman at 8:15 Thursday morning, Jan. 24.
The industry’s next generation of leaders will be also be coming together at Travel Exchange through the newly formed NTA Young Professionals group, which will hold a "town hall" meeting on Sunday, Jan. 20, at 4:15 p.m. The session will be a chance for younger members of the association to connect with peers and explore common challenges and opportunities. (You can connect on Twitter at #NTAyp.)
For the full lineup of education at Travel Exchange, follow this link.
NTA sends a special thanks to the members that sponsored the board meeting in Pennsylvania:
- Pennsylvania Dutch CVB
- Sight & Sound Theaters
- Marriott Lancaster at Penn Square
- Dutch Country Roads
- Plain & Fancy Farm Restaurant
- Doubletree Resort Lancaster
Join NTA at COTTM and Tap the Fastest-growing Inbound Market
You are invited to reach the 4,000 trade visitors expected to attend the 2013 China Outbound Travel & Tourism Market, the only B2B show in China for outbound travel business. The U.S. Department of Commerce projects travel from China to the United States to increase nearly 200 percent through 2017, the strongest growth of all visitor countries.
For the fifth year, NTA will host the U.S. Pavilion at COTTM, held in Beijing April 9-11. "The United States is the most-desired destination country for Chinese tourists, and we expect the U.S. Pavilion to be sought out by most Chinese attendees," said Haybina Hao, NTA’s director of International development.
Through Dec. 14, you can secure space in the U.S. Pavilion for the early-bird rate of $3,995, and after that date it’s $4,295.
Also, NTA can arrange sales calls with local Chinese trade before or after COTTM. For more details on this service-or securing space in the pavilion, please contact Hao.
Can’t go to China? You can still put your collateral material into the hands of the thousands of Chinese travel trade professionals at COTTM. Use NTA’s professional translation/production services to turn your English flyers into Chinese, and then let NTA handle distribution at the show. Questions? Contact Hao.
Mentoring Makes a Difference, Recipients Say
For the past six years, the Tourism Cares Mentoring Program at NTA conventions has helped scholarship recipients transition into tourism careers, evidenced by testimonials from two scholarship alumni:
"During my time at the NTA Convention in Los Angeles, I was able to meet [my future employer], who hired me after graduate school and launched my interest in DMC services. When I moved, I continued to work for a local DMC for several years, and now I work as an association meeting planner."
—Alisha Campbell, recipient of NTA Utah Keith Griffall Scholarship"The few days at the NTA Convention were, without a doubt, some of the greatest days of my education in the field of tourism. Not only did I learn an incredible amount about the industry, but I was able to make many great contacts that will help me now and in the future. I certainly hope the amazing staff at Tourism Cares will be able to provide this great experience for many years to come."
— Whitney Knollenberg, Recipient of New Horizons Kathy LeTarte Scholarship
This year a record number of students have asked to participate in the 
program, so Bruce Beckham and the Tourism Cares staff are reaching out to ask for your support in the expansion of the Student Mentoring Program. There are several ways to ensure the program’s continued success:
- Volunteer to share your knowledge and guidance by being a mentor at Travel Exchange.
- Make a donation to help offset student travel expenses as well as organization of the mentoring program. (Indicate "Students Programs" in your donation.)
- Contribute an in-kind travel package, unique collectible or item to be featured in our online auction, marketed to 17,000-plus travel, tourism and hospitality professionals with over 300,000 registered, affluent bidders.
- Become a program sponsor. Contact Alyssa at Tourism Cares to discuss promotion and visibility associated with sponsorship at Travel Exchange.
For further information about Tourism Cares’ efforts to strengthen the future workforce of the industry, contact Alyssa O’Driscoll, development manager, by email or phone: 781.821.5990, ext. 207.
Webinar: Updated Forecast for International Tourism into U.S
"In April, OTTI issued a five-year forecast for international travel to the country for 40 countries and all world regions," said Ron Erdman of the Office of Travel and Tourism Industries. "A lot has changed since then."
To get an updated forecast for international travel into the United States through 2017, join the Nov. 14 webinar conducted by the U.S. Department of Commerce, OTTI and the Commercial Service Travel and Tourism Team.
The outlook is prepared by OTTI staff using economic, demographic and social factors; historical visitation trends; and input from U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service staff abroad. The forecast is based on independent country-level estimates for the top 40 visitor origin markets, which account for 95 percent of total international arrivals.
The hour-long session begins at noon and costs $50. For more information—and to register—follow this link to OTTI.
Q. What’s Simple, Enjoyable and Member-recommended?
A. Sharing your people-power skills at Travel Exchange. When Tara Thomas gave tips for success to participants in the Travel Exchange Insider Webinar, volunteering 
ranked high on her list.
"Volunteering is a great way to get a feel for the culture," said Thomas, sales and marketing coordinator for The Old Spaghetti Factory. "Volunteering allowed me to give back while having a chance to meet new people. It’s great to mix and mingle as much as possible."
Thomas assisted at the registration table last year in Las Vegas, which was her first NTA convention. Here are some other roles we’re counting on volunteers to fill:
- Greeters: Welcome your peers and hand them a copy of Travel Exchange Daily.
- Luncheon/Opening Ceremony volunteers: Set out table centerpieces and promotional materials prior to meals.
- Seminar monitors: Help the speaker prior to the session and record attendance.
- Tourism Rocks: Help make this energetic Tourism Cares event a success.
- Mentors for Tourism Cares students: This opportunity earns a separate article; see above.
We need your help in Orlando. Please sign up to volunteer here. Questions? Email NTA Headquarters or call 800.682.8886 (U.S. & Canada) or +1 859.264.6540. And if you still need to register, follow this link.
Here’s How to Stand Out at Travel Exchange
NTA has great marketing opportunities, all of which are geared to reach the anticipated 1,000 tour operators attending Travel Exchange in Orlando this January:
- Profile Form Notebook: Guarantee that your profile is in the hands of every operator at Travel Exchange by pre-inserting your profile in the Profile Form Notebook.
- Travel Exchange Daily newsletter: Our on-site daily newsletter features updates, photos and need-to-know information.
- Travel Exchange Program: A handy reference given to all delegates on site, the program includes the convention schedule, seminar descriptions and a delegate registry of all attendees-for use at Travel Exchange and beyond.
- Travel Exchange Map & Schedule: This conveniently sized schedule and map of the show floor will be given to all Travel Exchange delegates on site.
The deadline to be included in the Travel Exchange publications is Wednesday, Nov. 12, so contact us right away at +1.859.264.6559, or email NTA Services for more information.
5 Ways (Times 3) to Market on Instagram
With 80 million users, Instagram is a social media site dominated by images. Think of it as a phone-based photo album—or Twitter in pictures. The app is free, and businesses have been taking advantage of Instagram’s wide reach since its inception two years ago.
Tech journalist Kim Lachance Shandrow, writing for Entrepreneur.com, lays out five tips for using Instagram to elevate your marketing efforts; they include ideas for promoting your services, hosting contests and going behind the scenes.
To see examples of companies successfully marketing with Instagram, see this article on Mashable.com.
And on Network Solutions.com, Monika Jansen lists five examples of visual content ideas for Instagram, including your employees, products and events.
- Enterprise earned the top rating in the J.D. Power and Associates 2012 North America Rental Car Satisfaction Study, which evaluated six aspects of the rental car experience. National and Alamo, which finished second and third, are owned by the same corporate parent as Enterprise.
- The number of international visitors to Mexico arriving by air increased 7.1 percent in September 2012 over last September. Arrivals for the first three-quarters of 2012 have risen 6.1 percent.
- The European Union is halting rules that would force airlines, including U.S. carriers, to pay for their carbon emissions. The requirements, unpopular with U.S. officials and airlines, are on hold for at least a year.
- A hotel in the Balearic Islands installed payment machines throughout the venue that allows guests to pay for drinks and services using their fingerprints. The same property last year started providing Facebook-synched wristbands, increasing the hotel’s fans from 4,000 to 70,000.
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