1. Making friends and influencing people as a DMO TMI/SLAD May 2012
Melanie Sensicle, Chief Executive

2. Company basics Established in June 2006 Fully operational by Sept 2007
Board of Directors
10 – 8 private sector, 2 public sector
Funding over five year period
£3.2m from RDA
£547k from public authorities
£275k from private sector

3. Destination basics Core product 500 accommodation providers
100 attractions
20 activity providers
County divided up into:
Dales
Vale
City
Coast
They all belong to Durham!

4. RDA era 2006-2010 RDA interested in what we do, not how we do it
Create main relationship with tourism businesses
Create main relationship with local authorities
Generate income as contribution to activity
Generate income to pay for core costs
Deliver regionally designed activity

5. Challenges
What the RDA wanted didn’t always match what the businesses wanted or destination needed
RDA wanted main relationship with big boys
RDA went direct to industry when it suited

6. Challenges LAs expected to pay but have no say
LA expectations on delivery exceeded level of contribution
Business confused about who they were working with
DMO – piggy in the middle!

7. What we did Provided evidence base
Represented visitor perspective to all
Tailored regional activity to Durham
Got close to the LA, esp members
Said ‘no’ when necessary
Did a few things well

8. What we did…continued Became the experts on visitor economy
Articulated why DMOs are important
Celebrated our successes
Acknowleged our mistakes
Led from the middle

9. Impact
We used a lot of staff resource on relationship building and maintenance rather than delivery
We spent a lot of money on research rather than delivery
We were unpopular sometimes
We also gathered a lot of support from public and private sectors

10. Local authority era 2011…
Local authority interested in how we do things, not what we do
Deliver activity that reflects well on the LA – provide the good news
Deliver more for less
Integrate strategic with operational
Take on more functions, esp festivals and events and place marketing

11. Challenges How LAs do things is often incompatible with what we do
Local politics can be incompatible with destination development – the focus is visitor not resident and visitors don’t vote
Integration of public and private difficult – operationally and culturally

12. Challenges LA are big and complex to navigate
Working with an LA has slowed us down
Keeping the private sector on board – literally on the board
Ensuring the private sector have a genuine role

13. What we do Maintain our service brand Continue to deliver good work
Resist LA organisational culture, esp communication hierarchy
Challenge processes where necessary
Ask for forgiveness more often than permission

14. What we do Go the extra mile for members
Join in LA corporate activity that is most important to the LA
Ensure LA gets credit for supporting the visitor economy
Involve members in media work

15. Impact We are sometimes seen as ‘the council’ by business
We are struggling to deliver in some areas due to complicated processes
We are more influential within the local authority
We are more secure

16. Impact
We have integrated strategic services with visitor services – eg sales and marketing sit in the same room
We have modernised visitor services – eg centralised enquiry handling, new information network
We have integrated destination marketing and event marketing to mutual benefit

17. The key to our survival
Relationship building at all levels by all staff
Effective communications
An evidence base that is difficult to argue with
High level of delivery for public and private
Maintaining high standards at all costs
Innovation – daring to do things differently
Approach to risk – embrace it
Courage – to do the right thing by the destination

18. Our biggest successes
Writing the tourism section of the county plan…at the request of planners!
Getting the pocket guide paying for itself
Getting the private sector to lead and pay for group travel promotion
Replacing the visitor guide with the visitor website as the main marketing platform

19. Our biggest successes The establishment of business networks
Our summer garden party – highlight of the tourism social calendar
‘Our DMO’ Leader of Durham County Council
The destination brand

21. We have been lucky BUT You make your own luck
Conclusion
We have been lucky BUT You make your own luck