When was the last time you read through a 300+ page strategic plan? If you’re like most people, you probably never made it past the Executive Summary. How many strategic plans do you have sitting on a shelf gathering dust?

In this engaging session you’ll learn why strategic plans are passé, and why we are now in the age of Action Plans – shorter, to the point, to-do list, working plans.

“The top activity of visitors, in the world, is shopping, dining, and entertainment in a pedestrian-friendly setting. It’s typically not the primary reason people visit, but once they arrive, it’s the number one activity. And this is where 80% of non-lodging visitor spending takes place. Are you getting your fair share?

Here you’ll see how tourism and downtown organizations can come together to create powerful partnerships with stronger, more successful marketing programs, increased local spending, all while saving money in the process.

In this presentation, we provide you with the tools, facts, and figures you need to successfully sell tourism to your funders. Unfortunately, tourism is often seen as a “non” economic development activity, when in fact, it’s the front door to ALL of your economic development efforts. We even show you a presentation format you can customize to your situation so you can effectively sell the importance of tourism and your efforts to those who ultimately provide your funding.

Once you get the funding you need to be successful, you need to follow that up with ways to show the economic impact of your efforts. We show you how to determine the positive impact of your work and what’s in it for the organization(s) that provide your funding. We look at ways to calculate your effectiveness and how important both downtowns and tourism are to each other in creating an outstanding destination – for both local residents and visitors.

Many non-profit and community-related boards are too large or don’t have the right mix of members. Rather than becoming engaged, members show up long enough to vote and give you a “good work” pat on the back. In this presentation, we show you how to create a board of “doers” who will pitch in, champion your work, and share the load when it comes to managing your organization so you can spend more time focusing on everything else that’s on your plate!

Imagine what would happen if each Coca-Cola bottling plant designed it’s own Coke logo, designed its own bottles and cans, and each did it’s own advertising. Coke wouldn’t exist as one of the world’s most powerful and valuable brands.

The same can be said of communities. The most successful cities and towns in North America have their organizations working in unison towards common goals and common marketing messages. Is that your situation? If not, this is the presentation for you. You’ll learn:

- Why this is more important now than ever before
- The step-by-step guide to getting everyone on the same page, pulling in the same direction
- Several case histories where they used common messaging and marketing themes and are seeing great results

It’s actually amazing that communities are ever able to achieve great things, and hats off to those who succeed—it’s rare. Usually, a community has numerous organizations, each with their own goals and priorities, each working on their own projects, and, for the most part, never working with other local organizations on common goals and big ideas. But those who can get out of their silos, working together as a unified team, can see enormous success. Roger will show you how to create an amazing team, what to call it, who should be on it, and what you can accomplish together. The sky’s the limit with a team like this!

The bane of just about every local organization is how to be able to communicate effectively with its members. How often have you heard “I never got that email,” or “No one told me about that”? We’ve reached out to hundreds of organizations that have found unique solutions that got everyone communicating, easily and effectively, with their local businesses and/or members. You’ll learn the best ways to reach out, which forms of media are most successful, how frequently communications should take place, and how to keep your messages short and sweet so they are read and remembered.

We often refer to the “Chamber Conundrum” of trying to do so many things that you are pulled in a gazillion different directions and simply don’t have the time or staff to be truly successful at any of them! In this workshop, we’ll dive into how to create an incredible Chamber of Commerce that’s a fantastic success, where people can’t wait to join, and communities will happily fund.

Getting people to work effectively with one another and keeping them on the same page can be one of life’s greatest challenges. In this workshop, we explore the concept of ideal partners: who they might be, how to get them to work with you, and how to create a winning team where everyone is pulling in the same direction with the same goals in sight. We’ll help you challenge the status quo and provide proven ways to break down silos and created a unified team that will be incredibly successful.

It always comes down to money. It’s sad but true. In this workshop, we share ways to uncover pots of funding to help produce events, marketing, and product development initiatives. We talk about civic crowdfunding, sponsorship opportunities, grants, foundations, hidden local resources, and other possible funding sources. Don’t miss this one!

You’d be amazed at how many highly qualified, motivated people would volunteer if only they were approached and engaged the right way. We show you new ways to find those great volunteers, how to reach out to them, how to vet them (a good fit is essential to successful volunteerism), and how to keep them engaged without burning them out!