new york state tourism conference

2024 New York State Tourism Conference

April 17-19, 2024 | niagara falls, n.y., success 2024 new york state tourism conference.

Thank you to the 250+ tourism industry professionals who joined us from across New York State, the USA, Canada and Europe at the 2024 New York State Tourism Conference in Niagara Falls ! Our gratitude to the many attendees and presenters, the event committee, NYSTIA Board & staff, and our colleagues at I LOVE NY/ESD whose efforts contributed to a very successful conference.

Gain industry insights and inspiration during conference sessions and network with some of the best minds, most experienced individuals, and trendsetting thought leaders in the tourism industry. Hosted at the Doubletree by Hilton, adjacent to the stunning Niagara River and Falls, this year's programming will feature fantastic guest speakers from across the state and country, topics on AI, outdoor travel writing, sustainability, and more. 

Update 4/12 - As we have surpassed attendance expectations for the 2024 NYS Tourism Conference and are nearing room capacity, we have decided to close online registration. If you are a member of NYSTIA and would like to attend, please contact Bob or Rachele. Thank you!

"We Enjoyed Seeing You in Niagara Falls!"

John Percy Event Co-Chair Host DMO

Greg LaDuca Event Co-Chair Board Vice Chair

Corey Fram Board Chair NYSTIA

Featured Speakers (more speakers, details and agenda coming soon):

Geoff freeman, u.s. travel, keynote speaker.

As president and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association, Geoff Freeman is the leading advocate for the $1.1 trillion U.S. travel and hospitality industry.

In this role, Freeman is charged with ensuring the industry’s full recovery from COVID-19, positioning the industry to seize emerging opportunities in a post-pandemic market environment and further establishing travel as a vital economic force in the United States. About Geoff's session.

Janette Roush, New York City Tourism + Conventions

Session: chatgpt for tourism professionals.

Janette Roush is the Executive Vice President, Marketing and Digital, for New York City Tourism + Conventions, New York City’s official destination marketing organization. She oversees the organization’s paid media strategy, digital initiatives and media insights to raise the profile of NYC and to inspire visitation to the five boroughs. She is also responsible for the organization’s domestic and international promotional campaigns, B2B marketing for the travel trade and business event planners, partnerships, and promotional strategy for campaigns like NYC Restaurant Week and NYC Broadway Week. About Janette's session.

Madeleine Gionet, New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation

Let's celebrate ny state parks centennial.

Maddie Gionet is the Director of Marketing for the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. As director, Maddie oversees the agency’s marketing program, developing informative and engaging integrated campaigns to drive tourism to parks and historic sites across the state, as well as position New York as a recreation destination. Her responsibilities also include management of the agency’s brand strategy, partnerships, and large-scale events and activations. About Madeleine's session.

>> View All Speakers

Host Hotel:

Host Hotel: Doubletree by Hilton Address: 401 Buffalo Ave, Niagara Falls, NY 14303

Overflow Hotel:

Overflow Hotel:  Holiday Inn Niagara Falls Address: 114Buffalo Ave, Niagara Falls, NY 1430 Room Rate: $129 / night + 7% Destination Fee = Total $138

Book Your Room Now and follow the instructions below:

• Select a date range between April 15 - 18, 2024
• On the next page, your special rate will populate. You will not see the group name – just the special contracted rate.
• You may also call 716-285-2521 Ext. 2 to reach their front desk. Request to make a reservation into the "NYSTIA Overflow" room block.
• There will be a parking fee listed on the confirmation letter, please disregard this fee. Attendees get complimentary parking

At Niagara Falls , you can experience a natural wonder of the world, explore acres of pristine hiking trails and scenic terrain, immerse yourself in outdoor adventure, and taste the simple goodness of orchards and award-winning wineries.

Proud Partner Of:

The New York State Division of Tourism is part of the Empire State Development Corporation and goes to market under the consumer brand I LOVE NEW YORK. 

Presenting Partners:

Rove is a leading travel & tourism data and analytics company. Leading tourism organizations & destinations globally rely on their tourism data & analytic products and industry expertise to navigate change, maximize travel visitation, and grow revenues.

Miles is a strategic marketing company focused exclusively on travel and tourism, working with more than 90 destinations and hospitality businesses to create forward-thinking print and digital content marketing solutions.

Presented By:

Recently I attended the 2021 New York State Tourism Conference put on by NYSTIA (New York Tourism Industry Association). Held over three mornings, the virtual conference was packed with helpful presentations and tips. Though I couldn’t possibly summarize the wealth of insights shared throughout the conference, a few themes stood out for me.

• The importance of authentic relationships (and partnerships)
• The necessity of planning in good storytelling
• The value of data

We all know the landscape has changed dramatically over the last year. Consumers have changed, how they use social has changed, and the media we rely on to publicize our sites and destinations have changed. However, those three themes resonated across all conversations, whether the presentation was about public relations, social media, international travel, disability awareness, and inclusion, or creative design and content development.

Authentic Relationships

What do I mean by authentic relationships? It means taking the time to understand the person at the other end of the conversation – whether it is a journalist inundated with emails, the prospective visitor you are trying to entice on social media, the international visitor considering coming back to the US, or the person with a disability who is interested in exploring your location. Be respectful of people’s time, needs, and interests. Target your pitches, messaging, social ads, and creative.

Build partnerships. Train media to see you as a reliable, reputable resource within a specific area or industry by being respectful, thorough, and knowledgeable. Be creative with local partners within your drive radius. Remember, travelers don’t see county or even state lines. They’re looking for experiences and they want to travel. Who can you partner with that shares the same audiences with you? Think outside your usual box and consider local and regional partners – within NYS, or even with other adjoining states – that international and national visitors find attractive and want to visit. Leverage your up funnel DMO partners, Trade Partners & OTAs, airlines, hotel and attraction partners, your locals, and your nearby destinations.

Planning Means You Are Prepared

Good planning is absolutely essential for successful storytelling. It means having your 30-second pitch and press kit ready, staying on top of trends, and having a strategy behind your social media efforts. When it comes to social and digital marketing, first define your goals, your audience, and how you will track success. ROI – Return on Objectives – tracks measurable metrics like sales. ROO – Return on Objectives – allows you to prove marketing impact when it’s not possible or feasible to tie marketing activity directly to sales. Common marketing objectives include increasing factors like awareness, brand preference, social discussion, and purchase intent.

Data Drives It All

We’ve always been a stickler for research and knowledge-based strategy here at BBG&G, and the availability of good data makes it easier and more important than ever.

Use data to understand which writers and editors typically cover your industry and topics, and who the right person is within the Newsroom.

Use your website and social analytics to understand which ads, content, headlines, color palettes, and images perform the best; how people consume content on your site, what interests them most, and how they move around your site. If your CTR is low or Relevance Score and Frequency lackluster – time to adjust your creative. Watch your CPM – it should stay below $30.

Additional destination data that pinpoints your visitors, shows where they are coming from, and what they are interested in can help you formulate your strategy, creative, and partnerships.

• 70% plan to travel with the same or greater frequency as pre-Covid
• 81% of travelers hope to travel within the next 6 months
• 52% of hopeful travelers have already committed (booked hotel/flight)

With good planning, partnerships, and sound data as the foundation, it’s time to market!

By  Debbe , President & CEO | April 28, 2021

Did you know BBG&G offers free consultations? Schedule a session, and tell us more about your challenges. We'll help you find opportunities.

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New York Almanack

History, Natural History & the Arts

NYS Tourism Industry Association 2022 Conference

April 13, 2022 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

The conference will encompass two parallel tracks addressing Transformation Tourism Stewardship in the context of both Destination Management and Destination Marketing.

The focus in Destination Management will address strategies that embrace an expanded horizon for destination planning and strategy, aligning destination initiatives with both community and resident needs.

Destination Marketing programming will address both technologies and techniques that facilitate strategic growth, identify new and emerging markets, enable better understanding of existing visitor populations and opportunities to improve or even reinvent the visitor experience.

This conference will provide an opportunity for attendees to meet with tourism colleagues and friends for valuable insights and perspectives from national tourism industry leaders, state and regional executives, marketing best practice insights, and outstanding networking opportunities.

Tickets for the conference are $495, and include meals. The Conference will take place at Sonesta White Plains, located at 66 Hale Ave, White Plains. To purchase tickets or for more information, including a full agenda, click here .

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