Peach byte: monthly newsletter for Georgia tourism, 2021 February 11

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PEACHBYTE February 11, 2021

Explore Georgia Organizational Changes
Dear tourism industry partner,
It's said the actions taken early on in a new role will largely determine long-term success or failure. Over the years, I've learned the importance of first seeking to understand - among other important aspects - the markets, products, structures, and culture of an established team before making any alterations.
I tried very hard to do that over the last six months as the new Deputy Commissioner responsible for leading Explore Georgia, the tourism division of the Georgia Department of Economic Development (GDEcD). While COVID-19 made it challenging to establish relationships face-to-face, I am grateful for the time and input given to me by the Explore Georgia team, GDEcD leadership, and many of our partners across the state's tourism industry.
There are several goals of the organizational changes being announced publicly today. Chief among them is the desire to align and mobilize our existing resources to best meet the demands of the situation we face: recovering from the worst economic depression the tourism industry has ever encountered. Together with you, we will build a tourism economy in Georgia that's stronger than ever before.
As the state's DMO, our ultimate goal is to drive increasing numbers of visitors to Georgia. I believe the best way to do that is to understand how consumers of Georgia travel, to develop targeted marketing plans for all key travel segments, to work closely with tourism partners statewide and establish mutual benefit by working together, and to deploy marketing plans that will influence travelers to choose Georgia.
To help achieve this goal, the Explore Georgia team will now organize around two central areas of focus: Tourism Consumer Marketing and Tourism Partner Marketing, with strong support from Tourism Research, Tourism Planning & Budget, tourism division leadership, and in partnership with our GDEcD leadership team and colleagues, as seen here in an outline of our new organizational structure.
Our new Consumer Marketing team combines our Brand + Content Studio team with an expanded focus on key travel segments important to Georgia's tourism recovery and long-term success. Our new Partner Marketing team is a reimagined
https://mailchi.mp/georgia.org/an-update-from-deputy-commissioner-mark-jaronski?e=10d3f347f8[2/17/2021 7:35:58 AM]

Explore Georgia - Peachbyte
and refocused version of the regional team we had in the past. For starters, this team is organized around the 12 service regions, used successfully by GDEcD, with the goal to be an internal resource designed to work collaboratively and directly with you. Beyond that, my hope is this team will be as helpful to you as the regional effort we stood up in the past, and that it will also offer many new benefits. As one example, the services provided by Tourism Product Development will be shifted to the new regional team to streamline our efforts across the state's regions. Our Visitor Services team also falls under Partner Marketing to better integrate all on-the-ground efforts.
Helping me to drive our vision for excellence across Explore Georgia is a newly announced senior leadership team for our division. I'm confident the skills and experience of the following individuals are a great match for our entire organization.
Division Director > Meggan Hood Director, Tourism Research > Ashley Barfield Director, Tourism Partner Marketing > Brittney Gray Director, Tourism Consumer Marketing > Regan Young
I've been so impressed by how everyone in the division has worked tirelessly over the last year to lead our statewide tourism efforts, and I'm energized by this team's openness to new possibilities and enthusiasm as we work with our partners throughout the state to address the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead.
While the impact of COVID-19 has been challenging, I like to believe it's given me the chance to understand our Explore Georgia team and any obstacles we face even more deeply. I'm excited about how our team has come together, and I ask that you make time to familiarize yourself with our new structure and the new Regional Tourism Marketing Manager responsible for knowing your business. We also have multiple roles that will need to be filled, and those job opportunities will be posted to the career page on Georgia.org over the next few weeks.
So that I may connect directly with you, I'll be leading a webinar on March 9 to elaborate further on our new organizational structure and goals, take your questions, and share thoughts. It is my hope that we can create a better understanding of how you can work with our team in order to further your marketing efforts in the months and years to come.
Sincerely,
Mark Jaronski Deputy Commissioner
This page is part of the electronic travel newsletter program brought to you by Georgia Department of Economic Development, 75 Fifth Street N.W., Suite 1200, Atlanta, GA 30308 2021, GDEcD. All Rights Reserved. All other marks belong to their respective owners. All materials Copyright
https://mailchi.mp/georgia.org/an-update-from-deputy-commissioner-mark-jaronski?e=10d3f347f8[2/17/2021 7:35:58 AM]

Explore Georgia - Peachbyte

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https://mailchi.mp/georgia.org/an-update-from-deputy-commissioner-mark-jaronski?e=10d3f347f8[2/17/2021 7:35:58 AM]