*schedule subject to change
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 (Pre-Conference/Conference Day 1)
9:00 am – 5:00 pm | Registration | Lobby Pool Dome-South
10:00 am – 2:00 pm | Exhibitor Set-Up | Salon CD
10:00 am – 11:30 am | Pre-Conference Sessions
Mastering Google Analytics 4: A Hands-On Workshop for Powerful, Efficient Reporting | Kyle Huff, Tempest | Great Hall
New to Google Analytics 4 or struggling with reporting? Join Tempest’s analytics expert for a hands-on session covering GA4 basics and simple ways to build insightful, time-saving reports. Bring your laptop and GA4 login to get the most out of this collaborative workshop.
TBD | Presenter | Rosewood/Linden
TBD | Presenter | Briarwood/Ebony
12:00 pm – 2:00 pm | Lunch on your own | Appleton, WI
2:00 pm – 2:30 pm | Conference Welcome | Salon AB
Welcome to the 28th annual UMCVB Fall Conference!
Presented by:
2:30 pm – 3:30 pm | Opening Keynote | Salon AB
TBD | Presenter
3:30 pm – 4:00 pm | Break & Visit Exhibitors | Salon CD
4:00 pm – 4:45 pm | Concurrent Sessions 1
TBD | Presenter | Great Hall
Game Plan for Success: Leveraging Websites to Maximize Large-Scale Events | Simpleview & Discover Green Bay | Rosewood/Linden
When a major event like NFL The Draft comes to town, how can DMOs ensure they’re capturing attention, driving traffic, and keeping visitors engaged? This session takes a behind-the-scenes look at how Green Bay prepared for The Draft, with insights into website strategies, collaborative marketing efforts, and how DMOs across Wisconsin played a role in amplifying the event. Learn how to optimize your digital presence to make the most of large-scale events, ensuring your destination is part of the conversation before, during, and after the big event.
Embracing a Regional Tourism Economy | Fox Cities CVB | Briarwood/Ebony
The Fox Cities has long taken a regional approach to promoting and developing tourism. Hear from Fox Cities community leaders on why and how they support and engage with their DMO and tourism businesses to ensure a healthy and vibrant destination.
4:45 pm – 5:45 pm | Welcome Happy Hour | Salon CD
Join us for a snack and a drink to network with your peers, the UMCVB Board, and our incredible sponsors.
Hosted by Tempest
6:00 pm – 9:00 pm | Opening Reception | Fox Cities Exhibition Center
Light the Night with a Taste of Downtown
Mesmerizing street performers, live music, projection art, and an abundance of glowing lights will illuminate the night sky and welcome you to the Fox Cities. Light the Night is an enchanting open-air event that will illuminate the plaza at the Fox Cities Exhibition Center. Food stations will feature Downtown Appleton businesses.
Sponsors: Fox Cities
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9 (Conference Day 2)
7:00 am – 5:00 pm | Registration | Lobby Pool Dome-South
7:30 am – 8:30 am | Breakfast Buffett | Salon CD
8:30 am – 9:00 am | Welcome & Announcements | Salon AB
9:00 am – 9:30 am | Break & Visit Exhibitors | Salon CD
9:30 am – 10:15 am | Concurrent Sessions 2
TBD | Presenter | Great Hall
TBD | Presenter | Rosewood/Linden
TBD | Presenter | Briarwood/Ebony
10:15 am – 10:30 am | Break
10:30 am – 11:15 am | Concurrent Sessions 3
Executing Exceptional Guest Experiences | Fox Cities CVB | Great Hall
Every industry can benefit from anticipating and exceeding guest expectations to create positive and memorable moments. Attend and hear our panel of local experts sharing their strategies for executing exceptional guest experiences that you can incorporate into your business or organization. Hear insights from the award-winning Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, Fox Cities Performing Arts Center, and the Appleton International Airport.
TBD | Presenter | Rosewood/Linden
TBD | Presenter | Briarwood/Ebony
11:15 am – 11:30 am | Break
11:30 am – 12:15 pm | Concurrent Sessions 4
TBD | Presenter | Great Hall
Securing the Competitive Edge: Finding Funding Stability | Tiffany Gallagher, Civitas | Rosewood/Linden
In today’s competitive tourism landscape, securing stable funding and enhancing organizational stability is crucial for DMOs to achieve long-term success. This session dives into the foundational elements of funding stability, offering actionable insights on improving a destination’s competitive position regarding funding sufficiency and sustainability. Explore factors that contribute to funding and organizational stability, including revenue diversification, stakeholder alignment, legislative support, and innovative funding models.
TBD | Presenter | Briarwood/Ebony
12:15 pm – 12:45 pm | Lunch Buffet & Visit Exhibitors | Salon CD
12:45 pm – 1:45 pm | Award Presentations | Salon AB
Presentations for the Bureau Innovation Award will take place and be voted on by you, the audience, to choose the winner(s) this year. Geist Up and Coming Leader Award and McDaniels Individual Professionalism and Lifetime Achievement Award winners will both be announced and presented.
1:45 pm – 2:15 pm | Break & Visit Exhibitors | Salon CD
2:15 pm – 3:00 pm | Concurrent Sessions 5
Embracing the Future of Search: Successful Content Strategies for 2025 and Beyond | Kyle Huff, Tempest | Great Hall
Prepare your website’s content for the evolving search landscape with strategies designed to enhance discoverability by AI-driven tools and capture organic traffic. This session covers essential steps to future-proof your content, optimize for advanced search algorithms, and align with the latest trends to keep your destination top-of-mind in the modern search ecosystem.
TBD | Presenter | Rosewood/Linden
TBD | Presenter | Briarwood/Ebony
3:00 pm – 3:30 pm | Break & Refresh
3:30 pm – 4:00 pm |Travel to Experience Tours
More information to be announced.
4:00 pm – 5:30 pm | Experience Tours
Art Tour | Glass Art Museum
Discover the beauty and intricacies of glass art and view the world’s largest well-known public collection of glass paperweights in this stunning mansion-turned-art museum on the shores of Lake Winnebago. Complete the tour by creating a take-home masterpiece in the museum’s glass art studio.
Sports Tourism Matters | Fox Cities Stadium & Community First Champion Center
Tour the award-winning sports complexes of the Fox Cities. Fox Cities Stadium, home of the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, recently underwent several additions and improvements to elevate the guest experience. Next, explore the expansive Community First Champion Center. This 169,000-square-foot indoor sports complex features a field house that seats 1,000, an NHL-sized hockey rink, and a convertible arena that can be used for either hockey or fieldhouse sports. This economic powerhouse hosted 70 tourism-generating events over 49 weekends in 2024.
Tourism Infrastructure | Downtown Appleton
Learn how the Fox Cities CVB has reinvested millions of dollars into the community through its Tourism Development Grant Program which benefits both visitors and residents alike. This walking tour of downtown Appleton will include the Fox Cities Perfoming Arts Center, the Trout Museum of Art, the History Museum of the Castle, and the Fox Cities Exhibition Center. Additionally, take in the assortment of public art displays of Downtown Appleton.
Original Breweries| Stone Arch, Appleton Beer Factory, & McFleshman’s Brewing Co.
Old meets new as you sip and savor award-winning brews at three of Appleton’s prominent breweries. Since 1858, tradition and innovation have seamlessly intertwined at the oldest continually operating Brewpub in Wisconsin, Stone Arch. Sample their handcrafted beers in their storied cream city brick building. Fast forward to the “newer” kids on the block, Appleton Beer Factory and McFleshman’s Brewing Co. A mere 25,000 man-hours went into creating Appleton Beer Factory, which features a 20-barrel gravity-fed custom brewing system. Serving up classic German lagers and English ales is McFleshman’s Brewing Co. Party like it’s 1933 in their prohibition room, marvel at the antique deco bar, or head outdoors to the quaint beer garden.
5:30 pm – 6:30 pm | Pre-Dinner Reception | Fox Cities Performing Arts Center
More information to be announced.
7:00 pm – 10:00 pm | Dine Around Fox Cities
dinner on your own
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10 (Conference Day 3)
7:00 am – 12:00 pm | Registration | Lobby Pool Dome-South
7:30 am – 8:30 am | Breakfast Buffett | Salon CD
8:30 am – 9:00 am | Welcome & Announcements | Salon AB
9:00 am – 9:15 am | Break & Visit Exhibitors | Salon CD
9:15 am – 10:00 am | Concurrent Sessions 6
TBD | Presenter | Great Hall
TBD | Presenter | Rosewood/Linden
Bureau Innovation Revisited: Bob the Bridge (and Friends) | Christine Eipperle, Visit Omaha | Briarwood/Ebony
In this session, we hear from Visit Omaha as they give us an update on what’s new with Bob the Bridge. Did he find love (and expand his family)? Who is his new roommate? How does he maintain a normal life while living in the public eye? Get all these answers and more as we revisit the 2018 winner of the Bureau Innovation Award.
10:00 am – 10:30 am | Break & Visit Exhibitors | Salon CD
10:30 am – 11:30 am | Closing Keynote | Salon AB
TBD | Presenter
11:30 am – 11:45 am | 2026 Welcome Presentation | Salon AB
Next Host of UMCVB TBA