 |
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
|
|
|
|
|
 |
 
Find the books that Industry Experts and your peers are recommending that could help take you to the proverbial "next level".
|
|
The Destination Bookstore
|  Destination Leadership for Boards ... Bill Geist
The only book dedicated to Board Governance for Destination Marketing Organizations and CVBs. Now in its second edition, Destination Leadership for Boards is a compelling primer for Boards (and the CEOs that work with them) to advance their communities. From Board design to development, Bill makes a compelling argument for the need for Boards to be more than just overseers of the organization...and take their rightful place as destination leaders.
|
|  Destination Branding for Small Cities ... Bill Baker
Destination Branding has reached that tipping point that everyone is talking about it...but so few are doing it well. Our friend Bill Baker has authored what I believe to be the finest treatise on the topic to date. Filled with several case studies of both the good and the bad, Destination Branding for Small Cities defines what destination brands are and aren't...and outlines a clear path for those that want to do branding right. And don't let the title throw you. The tenets within apply to ALL destinations.
|
|  How to Market Tourism in the 21st Century ... John Hope-Johnstone
A no-nonsense toolkit that explains how destination marketing has shifted from seeking out visitors to participating in "reverse markets" where visitors seek destinations. John takes his readers on a content-rich ride through advertising, sales, distribution, PR, branding and social networks. And, he closes with some great suggested add-ons to DMAI's performance measures including PCAs (Potential Conversion Actions). Cooler still, John updates the book online on a regular basis.
|
|  Destination BrandScience ... Duane Knapp
In the Destination BrandScience™ book, Duane outlines the methodology for successfully developing community brands. Published by the Destination Marketing Association International, this guide outlines a disciplined process for a community to enhance its economic viability and the quality of life. It unveils a proven strategy for any destination, travel and tourism business, chamber of commerce or economic development agency to become unique and optimize communities’ success.
|
|  Managing Destination Marketing Organizations ... Bill Peeper and Robert Ford
This is, at once, a text book for the uninitiated student as well as a refresher course for veteran DMO CEOs. Bill and Robert base much of their writing on extensive interviews with CEOs that are perceived to be successful...and those that are perceived to be not so successful. From these telling conversations, the pair identify the common traits of both groups in an effort to paint a compelling picture of what the successful DMO CEO must be.
|
|  Destination Marketing for Convention and Visitors Bureaus ... Rich Gartrell
The first comprehensive book on the design and management of Destination Marketing Organizations, the final edition of this book was written the year before DMOs discovered the internet and IACVB was still located in Champagn IL. While the sections on marketing are somewhat dated...the core principles the underpin this classic are still as valid as they were in 1994.
|
|  Tourism Marketing for Cities and Small Towns ... Bonita Kolb
Full of examples from the field, Tourism Marketing for Small Cities and Towns is a great read for anyone involved in the expanding fields of cultural tourism and urban marketing. Bonita Kolb focuses her readers on ways to develop a community's brand to attract visitor spending.
|
|  Tourism Policy and Planning ... Edgell, Allen, Smith and Swanson
Tourism Policy and Planning addresses key ingredients for positive tourism policies and planning that will lead this generation and the next toward a greater quality of life resulting from tourism growth. The aim of this book is to provide government policy-makers, business leaders, not-for-profit executives, university professors, students, tourism industry managers, and the general public with an introduction and examination of important policy and planning issues in tourism.
|
|
Other Recommended Reading
|  The BrandPromise® ... Duane Knapp
The BrandPromise®, published by McGraw-Hill, is the new currency for success. Author Duane Knapp reveals the five step plan for finding and making a "Genuine Promise". It clearly explains why the promise philosophy is paramount and how any person or organization can enhance their success. It is filled with new BrandScience methodologies that organizations (including cities, counties and ports) can apply to create competitive advantage.
|
|  The Great Reset ... Richard Florida
Richard Florida is back with keen insight into today's economy...and how it compares to recessions and depressions of the past. Where his break-through The Rise of the Creative Class identified how today's young professionals choose their geography, The Great Reset shows how the knowledge-driven economy is responding to the realities of the new economy and technology. While we said that his first book was a "must-read" for DMO pros...this one is a must read for anybody that wants to get a handle on the future of the world's economy.
|
|
 Results ... Gary Neilson & Bruce Pasternack
Does your organization feel, well, off-track? This fascinating analysis of what makes companies work...and fail. Chances are, you'll be able to identify your organization in one of the 7 company types identified in this example-heavy book. And, unless you're working at the one that is, as the authors say," as good as it gets," you'll come away with ideas on how you can improve your situation.
|
|  The Ultimate Question ... Fred Reichheld
The Ultimate Question you should ask your customers is...well, that would spoil the surprise. But, it has to do with the relationship between those that love you and those that trash you. The ones who are ambivalent? You can be just as ambivalent. Reichheld's research nails the most important question that any destination or enterprise needs to ask itself. And, The Ultimate Question suggests additional ways to gauge ROI. Radically compelling stuff.
|
|  Creating Customer Evangelists ... Ben McConnell & Jackie Huba
Ben and Jackie share case studies of how some of the best companies so involve, impress and incite their customers that those very same consumers go out and tell all their friends (like that old shampoo commercial). And, in a world where most consumers believe our marketing messages about as much as the pitch from a used-car salesman, consumer evangelism is crucial to our ability to increase market share and sales.
|
|  The Rise of the Creative Class ... Richard Florida
Richard Florida makes the case for a smarter brand of community and economoic development that focuses on making our cities attractive to the needs and desires of an emerging niche of people...the "Creative Class." This read will challenge the way you look at your community, your market...and your business models. A "must-read" for Destination Management professionals.
|
|
 The One Thing You Need to Know ... Marcus Buckingham
One of the stars at IACVB/Boston, Buckingham breaks serious new ground with exceptional research and insight into the key reasons for success on both a professional and personal level. If you manage people, this book is a must. And, if you attempt to manage your life...ditto. An exceptional immersion into the real factors of success. Also on CD and as an e-book.
|
|  Blue Ocean Strategy ... W. Chan Kim & Renée Mauborgne
Kim and Mauborgne make an elequent case for changing the way we think about competition within a market (a red ocean) and provide a stunning framework from which to create new markets (blue oceans). With lots of examples from Southwest Airline to Cirque du Soleil, this isn't just another business book. Rather, it will forever change the way you look at your market...and the need for innovation.
|
|  Boards That Make a Difference ... John Carver
He's been called the guru of modern governance. His non-nonsense approach to non-profit boards is at once refreshing...and challenging. In our mind, he sets a standard for Boards that very few of us will ever attain. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't try. If you care about how your Board governs the affairs of the association...this is a "must-read." And, once read, we double-dog-dare you to try it!
|
|  Concepting ... Jan Rijkenberg
Struggling with the whole "branding" concept? It's because brands can't be artificially developed, they must spring from a product concept. Instead of being about the product, concepting looks at brand development in terms of ideas that actually mean something to the consumer, evoking sympathy and identification with the brand, and improving customer loyalty. Concept brands are the future for those wishing to capture their markets in this increasingly converging age.
|
|  Atlas Shrugged ... Ayn Rand
OK, many of us read this in or around our college years. Thought it to be akin to science fiction. Read it again! Our growing understanding of the world around us coupled with the increasing "entitlement culture" being espoused in much of North America makes for a wholly different canvas on which Rand's story will unfold. This time around, it doesn't read like fiction!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|