Conference Agenda

Roundtable: Marketing | Speaker, Organization | Islander
Connect with fellow destination marketers to swap ideas, share what’s working and what isn’t, and dig into how AI and other emerging tools are changing the way we promote our places.

Roundtable: Meetings, Groups & Sports | Speaker, Organization | Governor’s Room
Join peers focused on bringing meetings, groups, and events to their communities to compare notes on sales strategies, talk through shifting group travel trends, and swap ideas on what’s actually moving the needle.

Roundtable: Executive/Leadership | Speaker, Organization | Ambassador/Executive
A candid peer conversation for destination leaders to connect and reflect on what’s top of mind, from funding and advocacy to the evolving role of the DMO in your community and beyond.

SEO Isn’t Dead (It’s Just Evolving): Navigating Modern Search, AI Visibility & Hard Truths | Kyle Huff, Tempest | Islander
The rules haven’t disappeared — they’ve changed. AI has already reshaped how travelers find destinations, and most DMO websites haven’t caught up. This session cuts through the hype and the noise to show what still works, what’s shifted, and what you need to do right now to stay visible in a search landscape that looks nothing like it did two years ago. You’ll leave with a clear picture of how AI search is reshaping discovery and what that means for your organic traffic. You’ll walk away with a practical framework for making your content relevant, extractable, and trustworthy to both humans and AI systems. And you’ll have actionable starting points ready to bring back to your team the same week.

Stronger Together: How Nebraska Is Winning Sports Tourism Through Collaboration | Sports Nebraska | Governor’s Room
Sports NE is a cooperative of 14 convention and visitors bureaus and sports commissions working together to bring more district, regional, national, and international events to Nebraska. Join us for a look at how this collaborative model strengthens the state’s economy, image, and quality of life, and what it takes to attract and retain high-impact sporting events. Whether you’re building a sports tourism program from the ground up or exploring how regional partnerships can expand your reach, you’ll leave with practical insights and a clearer sense of what’s possible when destinations work as one.

Choosing a Data Partner: What DMOs Should Know Before They Commit | Bonnie Alley, Discover Ames | Ambassador/Executive
Visitor data shapes nearly every decision a destination organization makes, which is why the choice of data provider matters more than ever. This session walks through the considerations that separate a strong fit from a frustrating one: methodology, coverage, integration with your existing tools, and the kind of support you can expect after the contract is signed. You’ll leave with a clearer framework for evaluating your options and asking the right questions before you commit.

Tripadvisor Trendcast 2026 | Scott Caufield, Tripadvisor | Islander
Discover the biggest shifts shaping traveler behavior in 2026 and beyond, and what they mean for destinations and attractions. Based on Tripadvisor’s latest Trendcast report, this session will explore ten emerging travel trends and practical ways to turn insights into visitation for midwestern destinations.

Beyond the Algorithm: Building Community When Social Media Stops Working | Jenn Gjerde, Visit Nebraska | Governor’s Room
As organic reach declines and paid social costs rise, destination marketers are rethinking how they connect with travelers and residents beyond traditional social media pages. This session explores a scalable, low-cost alternative through community-based platforms, using the Nebraska Passport Pals Facebook Group as a case study of shifting from broadcast marketing to peer-driven engagement that now reaches more than 50,000 people per day with zero media spend. Attendees will learn how Nebraska turned a Facebook Group into a grassroots advocacy engine that drives visitation, supports local businesses, and builds trust and community ownership for DMOs of any size.

Weird Wins: Harnessing Your Destination’s Unique Identity | Dylan Does, Meet in Marshalltown  | Ambassador/Executive
Not every destination can be world-class in every type of conference & competition, but every destination can be world-class in a conference or competition. This is all dependent on finding what makes your destination different and capitalizing on that. We will focus on what I learned from taking a 30,000-person community without a convention center or sports complex, and becoming the “Kart Kapitol”, a national scholastic esports destination. Marshalltown is home to a national powerhouse collegiate program, a world-class AV/VR company, and a committed community focused on making “an event” into “the event”. We have been featured at the TEAMS Esports Travel Summit and the National Association of Esports Coaches and Directors (NAECAD) National Summit. We host the Iowa High School Esports Association State Championships 3 times a year, hosting the 10th Annual NAECAD National Summit in 2027, and many other events throughout the year.

Nature’s Biggest Shows: Partnership Strategies for DMOs | Amy Krueger, Williston CVB, Brad Mellema, Visit Grand Island | Islander
Nature may be the attraction, but partnerships create the experience. Join destination leaders from Williston, North Dakota, and Grand Island, Nebraska, as they share how they transformed seasonal natural assets into compelling visitor experiences that generate demand, inspire travel, and encourage longer stays. Learn how strategic collaborations with local businesses, organizations, and community partners can turn a natural event into a signature destination brand.

CPMs Lie: How DMOs Can Buy Attention Instead of Impressions | Steve Maly, Maly Marketing | Governor’s Room
Tourism marketing has an attention problem, and most of the proposed solutions make it worse. Bigger digital buys, more platforms, more dashboards: none of it matters if the destination never lands in the visitor’s memory before booking time. This session uses hard data on CPMs, attention seconds, and the multiplier effect to rebuild the way directors think about media. AI is in the conversation, but as a tool, not a strategy. You’ll walk out understanding why slower, “”old”” media is often the smartest place to put your next dollar, and where AI can make that dollar stretch further.

Every Activity Counts: Turning Daily Effort Into Measurable Impact | Brent Foerster, Tempest | Ambassador/Executive
Site visits, FAM tours, media tours, tradeshows, follow-ups – the work that drives a destination forward happens in dozens of small touchpoints every week. But without a clear way to connect that effort to outcomes, the story gets lost, especially for lean teams wearing multiple hats. Join us as we explore why tracking these activities has become a best practice for high-performing DMOs of every size, how it links daily work to results, and what it takes to give leaders the accountability, ROI clarity, and compelling narrative they need. Includes practical tips and a real-world case study showing what’s possible when activity and impact come together.

1:45 pm – 2:00 pm | Networking Break & Refresh

2:00 pm – 2:45 pm | Concurrent Sessions

AI Disruption: Welcome to the New World | Adam Johnson, Tiki | Islander
The travel industry is no stranger to disruption, but AI is elevating disruption to an entirely new level. This session explores how AI is transforming the way travelers access and use information when making travel decisions, and how these shifts are reshaping travel and tourism marketing. It will highlight current trends, emerging developments, and what the future may hold. The session will also examine the implications for hotels and attractions, with a particular focus on destination information and marketing strategies.

Beyond Demographics: Building Traveler Personas That Drive Engagement and Visitation | Holly Laurencelle, Advance Travel & Tourism | Governor’s Room
Many destination organizations still rely on broad audience segments that make it difficult to create meaningful connections with travelers. This session explores how DMOs can build modern traveler personas based on motivations, behaviors, interests, and trip intent rather than age and geography alone. Attendees will learn how to identify their most valuable audiences, develop actionable personas, and use those insights to create more personalized content, campaigns, and visitor experiences. Participants will leave with a framework they can immediately apply to strengthen marketing effectiveness and audience engagement.

Leverage LinkedIn and Social Ads for Meetings, Groups, and Sports | Brian V. Matson, TwoSix Digital | Ambassador/Executive
During this session, discover strategies to grow your groups, meetings, and sports business within your destination by leveraging LinkedIn and other social advertising networks. We’ll discuss strategies to help you build relevant audiences and the tactics
you’ll need to grow your base, nurture leads, and book more group business. You’ll walk away from this session with some fresh ideas to get more groups coming into your destination.