Georgia tourism monthly e-newsletter, 41091

July 2012 Issue
In This Issue:
BEDA JOHNSON NAMED GEORGIA TOURISM'S DIVISION DIRECTOR FOR OUTREACH GEORGIA TOURISM JOB ANNOUNCEMENTS REGISTER NOW FOR THE 2012 GEORGIA GOVERNOR'S TOURISM CONFERENCE IN ATLANTA GEORGIA TOURISM CALENDAR OF EVENTS PUBLICATION UPDATE SMACKDOWN II - THE NEXT SMACKDOWN CHALLENGE STATE'S ANNUAL TRAVEL MEDIA MARKETPLACE 2012 A HUGE SUCCESS GDEcD SALES TEAM UPDATE GDEcD RESEARCH UPDATE VISITOR INFORMATION CENTER (VIC) UPDATE GEORGIA NEWS: WHO'S WHO IN HOSPITALITY: THE TOP 100 LEADERS IN ATLANTA HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY NEWS: 57% OF AMERICANS EXPECTED TO TAKE A SUMMER VACATION THIS YEAR INDUSTRY NEWS: STUDY REVEALS BUSIEST DAY FOR HOLIDAY SEARCHES INDUSTRY NEWS: U.S. TRAVELERS SEEK TO STAY IN SHAPE ON THE ROAD, REVEALS TRIPADVISOR SURVEY INDUSTRY NEWS: ONLINE & SOCIAL BOOKINGS, WEEKEND GETAWAYS AND EXPERIENTIAL TRAVEL - AMEX REVEAL U.S. SUMMER TRAVEL TRENDS
...................................................................................................................................................................... BEDA JOHNSON NAMED GEORGIA TOURISM'S DIVISION DIRECTOR FOR OUTREACH
Please join us in welcoming Beda Johnson to the GDEcD team. Beda joined the department on July 16 as the Tourism's Division Director for Outreach. She will oversee all of Tourism's outreach-oriented programs - the Tourism Regional Project Managers, the Visitor Information Centers and the Business Development team. Beda brings a wealth of tourism and management experience to our team, having served as executive director of the Columbia County Convention and Visitors Bureau for a number of years, and before that, having served in various positions at the Morris Museum of Art, Georgia Golf Hall of Fame and Phinizy Swamp Nature Park. Beda's is available at bjohnson@georgia.org or 404-962-4063.
...................................................................................................................................................................... GEORGIA TOURISM JOB ANNOUNCEMENTS
Job announcements for a Content Manager; Communications Specialist - New Media; and Assistant Director for Product Development; VIC Specialist in Lavonia; Assistant VIC Manager in Savannah; VIC Manager in Kingsland; and Historic Heartland Tourism Project Manager are available on Georgia.org. The positions are open until filled. Click here to access the Georgia Department of Economic Development's Careers page.
..................................................................................................................................................................... REGISTER NOW FOR THE 2012 GEORGIA GOVERNOR'S TOURISM CONFERENCE IN ATLANTA
The largest annual gathering of tourism and travel professionals will take place in Atlanta from August 26 - 29, 2012. Hear from leading industry experts; understand the issues facing the tourism industry; learn the latest tools and techniques identify solutions; develop leadership skills; and share ideas and best practices. The theme of the annual event is 'Connecting and Cultivating Georgia Travel'. Click here for more information.
...................................................................................................................................................................... GEORGIA TOURISM CALENDAR OF EVENTS PUBLICATION UPDATE
With decreasing budgets the past several years, fewer event-organizers have been able to support the separate printed Calendar of Events with advertising. The printed version of the Calendar of Events has been entirely advertiser supported, so the state has had to inject funding into the project to continue to produce a printed version. Our budget has been continuing to shrink over the years as well, so after consulting with our Visitor Information Center staff and with each regional travel association, it was decided that we would no longer produce the printed version. We are now going to incorporate a new Events sidebar in each regional section of the 2013 Georgia Travel Guide. This new section will highlight 10 events per region. Our goal is to feature the top events each year, but also feature new events. We encourage you to include your events on ExploreGeorgia.org since we will be encouraging visitors to use the site to access our events calendar. "This solution will meet visitors' needs, provide a new opportunity in our flagship publication to publicize both longstanding and new events each year, and minimize costs," said Kevin Langston, Deputy Commissioner for Tourism. "We appreciate your continued support." Click here to access and upload your events to ExploreGeorgia.org.
..................................................................................................................................................................... SMACKDOWN II - THE NEXT SMACKDOWN CHALLENGE
The 2012 Georgia Smackdown Challenge invited Georgia tourism professionals to assemble teams to work together on a creative proposal focusing on Georgia residents. Congratulations to the three finalists! Watch this video to see who will be competing at the Georgia Governor's Tourism Conference.

Georgia Residents Smackdown Finalists Announcement
................................................................................................................ STATE'S ANNUAL TRAVEL MEDIA MARKETPLACE 2012 A HUGE SUCCESS
Statesboro and Vidalia hosted 24 travel writers from around the United States for the state's 2012 Georgia Travel Media Marketplace event May 17 - 19. The writers had the opportunity to discover new, fresh and unique story ideas in Statesboro and Vidalia. The writers also met with two representatives from each travel region during the annual marketplace event on May 19 in Vidalia. The travel writers then departed on one of three post familiarization tours around the state through May 22. A big thank you to all of those who were involved in this event - we couldn't have done it without you!
...................................................................................................................................................................... GDEcD SALES TEAM UPDATE
DOMESTIC
Pam Kruseck will attend the Georgia Motorcoach Operators Association (GMOA)/Alabama Motorcoach Association (AMA) Joint Annual Meeting July 29 - August 1, 2012 in Stone Mountain. The Annual Meeting will include appointment sessions with tour operators, educational seminars and networking opportunities. For registration information please contact Pam Kruseck via email at pkruseck@georgia.org.
Georgia Tourism will be participating as a sponsor at the National Tour Association's (NTA) annual CONTACT Conference in San Diego August 16 - 18, 2012. CONTACT provides Georgia Tourism the opportunity to meet with one-on-one with operators, participate in educational sessions and a variety of networking opportunities. For additional information, please contact Pam Kruseck via email at pkruseck@georgia.org.
Nija Torrence will attend Connect Marketplace August 16 - 18, 2012 in New Orleans. Connect Marketplace is an educational conference designed specifically for professional and specialty association meeting planners. The three-day event includes a reverse trade show with oneon-one appointments between planners and suppliers; an all-day planner boot camp for both novices and professional planners; several general sessions and two days of sessions covering basic planning topics, business skills and strategy, technology tools and social media, and program innovations. For additional information, please contact Pam Kruseck via email at pkruseck@georgia.org.
Georgia Tourism will attend the Student & Youth Travel Association (SYTA) Conference August 24 - 28, 2012 in Nashville, TN. The SYTA Conference is the premier event for the student and youth travel market and serves as the essential marketplace and networking event for the industry. Georgia Tourism will participate in pre-scheduled appointments with tour operators who specialize in the student market. For additional information, please contact Pam Kruseck via email at pkruseck@georgia.org.
Pam Kruseck will attend the North Carolina Motorcoach Association (NCMA)/Virginia Motorcoach Association (VMA) Joint Annual Meeting September 13 - 16, 2012 in Winston-Salem, NC. The Annual Meeting will include appointment sessions with operator members of each Association as well as educational seminars and networking opportunities. For registration information, please contact Pam Kruseck via email at pkruseck@georgia.org
Georgia Tourism will once again be participate as a sponsor of the American Bus Association (ABA) Annual Marketplace (January 5 - 9, 2012) and National Tour Association (NTA) Travel Exchange (January 20 - 24, 2012). As part of our sponsorships we will have a booth on the marketplace floor which will allow maximum exposure to all attendees and provide us a better opportunity to sell Georgia. We are continuing with our level of participation this year for ABA and will be the show bag sponsor - as such we will offer co-sponsorship to our partners. Co-op information for both NTA and ABA will be available soon.
INTERNATIONAL TOURISM BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
On Saturday, July 14, a MOU was signed between the City of Qingdao and the Georgia Tourism at the Georgia Department of Economic Development office in Midtown Atlanta. The goal of the MOU is to increase cooperation and to help promote tourism activities between the two regions.
The UK Sales and Media Mission will take place September 24 - 28, 2012. Co-Op opportunities are available. The fee to participate in the mission is $1,000 (does not include airfare, accommodations, and meals). The fee includes meetings with Travel Trade and Media, Product Training Sessions, Media Event(s), and Travel Trade Event(s). If you are interested in participating - please contact Jonathan Boisjolie August 10, 2012. Jonathan is available at 404-962-4080 or jboisjolie@georgia.org.
Travel South USA International Showcase is November 26-29, 2012 in Atlanta. The two and a half day event is designed to be a boutique style marketplace connecting pre-qualified international tour operators interested in selling southern destinations, hotels, restaurants, attractions and travel service providers. Click here for more information.
...................................................................................................................................................................... GDEcD RESEARCH UPDATE
Have you visited www.marketgeorgia.org recently? You can find a wealth of valuable data and tools under the industry research section. Contact Nerissa Serrano for additional information at nserrano@georgia.org.
Smith Travel Report for Georgia:
June 2012:
Hotel/motel occupancy increased 2.6% statewide Room rates (ADR) were up 3.6% Statewide, RevPAR was up 6.3% Room revenues increased 5.2% Room Demand increased 1.6% from June 2011 Room Supply was down-0.9%
Year-to-date (YTD):
Hotel/motel occupancy is up 2% Room rates (ADR) in Georgia are up 3% Statewide, RevPAR is up 5.1% Room revenues are up 4.1% Room Demand is up 1% Room Supply is down -1%
...................................................................................................................................................................... VISITOR INFORMATION CENTER (VIC) UPDATE
There are a variety of advertising and promotion opportunities available year round at the 11 VICs. Get your message in front of the more than 12 million visitors we see every year. For more information, contact Paul Selby, Director of Visitor Information Services, at pselby@georgia.org.
...................................................................................................................................................................... GEORGIA NEWS: WHO'S WHO IN HOSPITALITY: THE TOP 100 LEADERS IN ATLANTA HOSPITALITY

Kevin Langston, Deputy Commissioner for Tourism for the Georgia Department of Economic Development, was named one of the top 100 names and faces to know in Atlanta's thriving hospitality industry. For the full Atlanta Business Chronicle article, click here.

...................................................................................................................................................................... INDUSTRY NEWS: 57% OF AMERICANS EXPECTED TO TAKE A SUMMER VACATION THIS YEAR
The portion of Americans (57%) taking a summer vacation will rise this year, up three percentage points from last year, according to the research conducted by Allianz Global Assistance USA, the seller of travel insurance formerly known as Access America. That portion also is comfortably above the 50% of Americans who say they typically take a summer vacation, defined as traveling at least 100 miles from home for a week. Click here to access the article.
...................................................................................................................................................................... INDUSTRY NEWS: STUDY REVEALS BUSIEST DAY FOR HOLIDAY SEARCHES
Travel companies could be wasting money by paying to advertise on search engine Google at all the wrong times. The latest report on the holiday sector by search marketing agency Greenlight found that the most travel-related queries on Google are on Mondays and gradually decrease towards the weekend. Saturdays see the fewest holiday queries and Sundays have only slightly more, yet the amount travel companies spend on paid ads on Google at weekends suggests they are over-estimating how many customers are searching for holidays on Saturday and Sundays. Greenlight tracked, recorded and analyzed the behavior of consumers online in May for its latest sector report. Click here to access the full report.
...................................................................................................................................................................... INDUSTRY NEWS: U.S. TRAVELERS SEEK TO STAY IN SHAPE ON THE ROAD, REVEALS TRIPADVISOR SURVEY
Healthy eating and exercise play an integral role in many Americans' vacations, according to the results of TripAdvisor's health and fitness on vacation survey of more than 1,400 U.S. travelers. Sixty-nine percent say healthy eating is important to them when traveling for leisure, while 53% always or often exercise when they're on the road. According to the survey, travelers' top physical activities on vacation are: walking - 87%; swimming - 46%; hiking - 35%; using cardio machines - 23% and biking - 16%. Click here to access the complete survey.
...................................................................................................................................................................... INDUSTRY NEWS: ONLINE & SOCIAL BOOKINGS, WEEKEND GETAWAYS AND EXPERIENTIAL TRAVEL - AMEX REVEAL U.S. SUMMER TRAVEL TRENDS

Healthy American Express released data around American summer travel trends and the results are positive for the travel industry - travel plans and estimated travel spending ($1,180 per Person for 2012) on the rise from last year. Click here to access the full report.

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