The travel industry has endured a rough couple of years, to put it mildly. In times of downturn, there is always a desire to focus on short-term tactics that will “drive traffic,” and that often leads to pressure on a Destination Marketing Organization to promote more with fewer resources. In my opinion, however, this is a slippery slope. Instead, I would argue that while drawing more visitors through specific initiatives is important, now more than ever is a good time to remind yourself and your community partners of a few core obligations that you have as a DMO.

1. First and foremost, a DMO must ensure that the community brand remains strong. Your job is to answer the question, “Do I want to go there and will I enjoy it?” in the mind of the visitor. Hoteliers, restaurants, attractions and other businesses in your community are focused on the things that will bring them customers and revenue, and they should be. They need you, the DMO, to be the voice of what your community stands for and promote the values, lifestyle and experiences that their visitors will enjoy in your community. If you do not take care of the brand, no one else will.

2. Next, your constituents need you to give them the ammunition to attract the best customers. To do so, however, you need a lot of insight from your constituents and their customers. Specifically, they should allow you to speak with their customers (in a respectful way), and they should openly and proactively share things they learn about their customers. As a result, you need to give back to them in the form of customer profiles, trends and insights for the community as a whole. You should make sure that any potential visitor or group finds your constituents quickly and easily. I will take that one step further and say you should share this information with city members to see if there are opportunities to improve infrastructure or incorporate your brand throughout the city.

3. Lastly, your visitor is online (call me “Mr. Obvious”) and you serve your community best by engaging your brand with consumers where they are. If I were to do a Twitter search on your city, what would I find? What if I went to your website or Facebook page? Is a dialogue taking place between you and the online community? Does your website give me a sense of your community or is it simply an online version of your visitors guide? You are the portal to your destination and you cannot afford to neglect the online world or damage your brand by only touting local promotions. You serve your community partners best by being the one, if only, voice that allows people to get to know your community.

If you remain true to these fundamental challenges, I believe that you will see long-term success, and that the pain and length of the downturn can be greatly reduced.

How do you ensure your brand message is being heard today? How do you help your constituents attract customers? What does your online presence look like? I would love to hear how you are balancing your branding efforts with the downturn and what you are finding works.

Part I

RMS Titanic represented state-of-the-art technology in 1912. It was the pinnacle of Edwardian achievement and the height of accomplishment in the industrial revolution up to that time. And, it was in service for only 4 days.

The lessons learned from Titanic are profound and many. The sinking changed an antiquated system, and those changes continue to save lives to this day. So perhaps we can also glean lessons that apply to our job as communicators and brand stewards.

1. If you’re coming head on into disaster, don’t avoid it; aim directly for it.

When Titanic sailed, it was the brand new flagship of the White Star Line. So the line decided they should have their highest-ranking people in command. The problem was, most of those officers didn’t have a great understanding of the brand new ship. And that is ultimately what led to the disaster.

This is also true of brands. If the people in charge of a brand don’t understand that the brand really isn’t theirs, but instead is their customer’s property, that brand is doomed to fail in this new era of communication.

Chief Officer William McMaster Murdoch was at the helm of Titanic when the iceberg was spotted. His reaction was to go with his instincts. “Hard astarboard, full speed astern” was his command.

His intention was to swing the ship around the berg to miss it altogether. The problem was, he didn’t understand how Titanic was engineered. His command actually eliminated the ship’s ability to turn quickly. Because the ship “glanced” off the side of the berg, it damaged five watertight compartments. Titanic was designed to be able to stay afloat with four compartments damaged.

The best order at the helm of Titanic that night would have been “full speed astern,” an order to steer directly into the berg. This would have damaged at most two compartments and would have saved 1500 lives.

In a time when a brand can no longer control a one-way conversation, it is more important than ever to do what Officer Murdoch should have done: take on whatever is coming your way directly. Don’t try to avoid it. Don’t try to sugar coat it. Take it head on. The new consumer wants a “relationship.” They want to be able to trust a brand. So they want to feel like that brand is listening to what they have to say.

And just like in any friendship, not all conversations are going to be nice ones. But friendships survive because the two parties trust each other. They may not always agree, but they will always trust. Be authentic. Be real.

2. Be careful what you say. The message could turn on you.

“God himself could not sink this ship.”

After almost 100 years, this quote — which, legend has it, was made on the spur of the moment by a deckhand during Titanic’s sea trials a week before her maiden voyage — has become the defining characteristic of the disaster. Titanic: the unsinkable ship. Ironically, the brand — the White Star Line — never made this claim. Yet to this day it is synonymous with the greatest ocean liner disaster of all time. Why?

Because it was picked up and given life by the media, and by word of mouth, and made larger by each person who passed it along. The brand allowed this exaggeration to take hold and did nothing to influence or quell it.

Why not? The ship was practically unsinkable. It had a double bottom, 16 watertight compartments with three separate systems to activate the doors should the ship need them. What could possibly go wrong? Why not allow this misinformation to circulate? It could only help the brand, right?

Wrong. White Star never recovered after Titanic sank and was eventually absorbed by their primary competitor.

This exact situation lives on today, especially with the advent of social media. Any message, whether true or not, can now be picked up and circulated around the world instantly. The brands of tomorrow need to be cognizant today about a game plan for where the conversation goes and how to shape its life.

Those who have systems in place to guide the discussion won’t be blindsided. You will never be able to fully control the conversation, but you can get your side of the story to take hold if you are prepared. Because once the wrong story begins to spin, it is hard to slow down. Just ask Tiger Woods.

(to be continued)

The Birmingham chapter of the American Advertising Federation held its annual ADDY Gala at Soho in Homewood. Lewis captured 11 Gold ADDYs and 22 Silver ADDYs, more than any other agency. In addition, the agency won Best of Show/Broadcast for its “Never Saw It Coming” TV campaign for Alfa Insurance. Stephen Curry was honored as Creative Director of the Year and Copywriter of the Year, while Joel Wheat was named Art Director of the Year. In addition, being one of Lewis’ youngest employees didn’t stop Holly Cook from making her mark at the show. Holly was named Designer of the Year, Illustrator of the Year and her work from Auburn University was named as Best of Show/Student. This represents an unprecedented three major honors for a fresh-out-of-school designer.

Stony Brook University Medical Center captured the Gold Award for best total campaign for an Academic Medical Center at the 2009 Aster Awards. Individual honors went to Stony Brook’s microsite and print advertising. Clients Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt Medical Center and the University of Virginia Health System were also recognized for a total of nine Aster awards. In addition, Lewis clients received ten honors in the 2009 Healthcare Marketing Awards.

On December 1, at the Annual Recreation Vehicle Industry Association International Trade Show in Louisville, Kentucky, Lewis Communications helped Tiffin Motorhomes unveil their newest model, the Allegro Breeze. The Breeze is a 28′ Class A diesel-pusher that isn’t just a new product, but creates a whole new category in the RV industry. Just as luxurious as Tiffin’s high-end models, the Breeze is smaller, more maneuverable and fuel efficient.

In an industry where in the past bigger almost always meant better, a teaser campaign was developed with the tagline, “This is BIG.” The campaign targeted dealers and industry media letting them know Tiffin would soon be unveiling something brand new. The Tiffin website homepage included a countdown clock promising something huge at the industry’s leading annual show. Direct mail and social media posts also helped spread the word of Tiffin’s big news leading up to the show.

The actual unveiling at the RVIA show included an oversized curtain with fake wheels pushed out to create the impression of a vehicle almost twice the size of the Breeze.

When the curtain was dropped attendees were surprised to see a luxury RV half the size of what was expected. Miniature pocket-sized brochures were handed out and the wording on the side of the display changed to say “Small is Big.”

The Breeze was named Best of Show for the RVIA Expo and was featured in RV Business and MotorHome Magazine.

According to communications research company IDC (IDC.com), Internet usage in December 1996 was limited to only 36 million people, or 0.9% of world population. By June 2009, Internet World Stats measured nearly 1.7 billion Internet users worldwide, accounting for 24.7% of the global population.

For those of us in the marketing and communications industry, the difference between 1996 and 2009 is huge. Although the essence of what we do is unchanged in many ways, it has been like learning a new language as we work to tap into the vast potential of an always on and available online home for our clients’ brands, messaging and promotions.

And now, although Facebook and Twitter have been around since 2004 and 2006 respectively, these new web-based communications channels are again revolutionizing how virtually anyone with a message communicates with an audience.

But, it feels different this time.

The Great Recession of the last two years has really changed attitudes very quickly. Some of the same clients who even last year weren’t interested in a Google search campaign are now very open to new strategies that involve dialogue and engagement through social networking.

So although all of us will be glad when the recession is over and sustained economic growth returns, the pain of a downturn will not have completely been in vain. The quick leap of advancement being made in marketing and communications practices will be good for our industry and good for our clients. And I’m convinced these advancements would have taken a great many years, if not for the financial pressures of the current recession.

Viva la Revolución!

For some it’s an addiction. They need it after every meal. Before going to bed. Catching a quick hit while at a stoplight.

It’s not nicotine calling their name, it’s Facebook. Whether you’ve been enticed by trying to catch up with old friends, staying in touch with family, or just trying to accumulate more friends than your spouse, Facebook has probably sucked some time out of your life. And for the most part, connections are made and relationships strengthened. Sounds great, you say. What downsides could there be? Well, there are a few.

For instance, I’ve been stood up by a friend on FB 15 minutes before we were meeting for dinner. Did she really think I FB that often?

I also no longer feel the need to attend my 20-year high school reunion. I’ve seen all of these people on FB and experienced the fly-on-the-wall effect which was all that I was looking for anyway.

And I’ve seen one too many posts of husbands talking to wives (or vice versa) via FB posts. I mean, is this really how you communicate, or is it for the benefit of your friends?

In the world of advertising, we’re constantly talking about how social media is changing the way clients talk to their customers. How they need to have a presence in this new world of communication, otherwise they’ll be replaced by another business more technologically savvy than they are.

For most of us, we probably know which friends we can communicate with on FB and which need more outdated, I mean traditional, forms of communication, such as e-mail or (aghast) a phone call. We also know for which occasions social media is better suited. For example, you might post on someone’s wall, “What are your plans for Friday night?” But I hope you’d have the good sense not to post a cancer diagnosis or family death.

We should keep this same idea in mind for our clients. Some clients simply lend themselves more easily to a presence in social media. Their consumers are already on these sites and might even be looking for the type of information they have to share. However, some business categories are viewed as more conservative or conventional, and their place in this arena has yet to be carved out.

So I suggest treading carefully when leading some clients down this road. For now, Facebook and other forms of social media may not be a replacement for traditional advertising.

Let’s remember our messages, and most importantly, our consumers.