2009 Governor's Conference on Tourism
October 18-20, 2009
Tulsa Renaissance Hotel
Schedule of Events
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Sunday, October 18, 2009
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4:00 p.m.
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OTIA Board of Directors & Annual Meeting (Open to all members)
Tulsa Renaissance Hotel
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6:00 - 8:30 p.m.
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Welcome Reception
Incredible Pizza
8314 E. 71st Street, Tulsa (1 block east of Memorial)
Enjoy networking with industry peers in a fun atmosphere, complete with food & games! Reception hosted by the Cities and Lakes of Green Country. Transportation provided by Red Carpet Charters.
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8:30 - 11:00 p.m.
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Oklahoma City Convention & Visitors Bureau Hospitality Suite at Tulsa Renaissance Hotel
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Monday, October 19, 2009
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8:00 a.m.
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Registration, Exhibit Review and Continental Breakfast
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9:00 a.m.
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Opening General Session: “Moving 4ward 2gether”
Oklahoma's tourism industry has made amazing strides over the past decade - what's needed to maintain the momentum? Join state, community and tourism leaders as they speak to the initiatives, attitudes and actions that will unite and propel Oklahoma's tourism industry in the current economic landscape. Super Session speakers include Governor Brad Henry, Lieutenant Governor Jari Askins, Cabinet Secretary of Commerce and Tourism Natalie Shirley, Tulsa Mayor Kathryn Taylor and Executive Director of the Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department Hardy Wakins. The latest economic impact numbers for Oklahoma's tourism industry will be unveiled and you'll hear about innovative solutions to sustain Oklahoma and our tourism industry during changing times.
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10:15 a.m.
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Break - Exhibit Review
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10:45 a.m.
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Concurrent Workshops
 1. Personal Leadership the Way You'd Like to Hear It
– Kin Thompson will lead you through an energetic overview of the #1
best-selling book “7 Habits of Highly Effective People” that remains
the leading authority on developing personal leadership skills.
Overview
I think all of us at one time struggle - we have a deep need for personal congruency and effectiveness. For healthy, growing relationships with other people. Do any of these sound like you?
- "I've started a new diet - for the fifth time this year. I know I'm overweight, and I really want to change. I read all the new information, I set goals, I get myself all psyched up with a positive mental attitude and tell myself I can do it. But I don't. After a few weeks, I fizzle. I just can't seem to keep a promise I make to myself."
- "I've set and met my career goals and I'm having tremendous professional success. But it's cost me my personal and family life. I don't know my wife and children any more. I'm not even sure I know myself and what's really important to me. I've had to ask myself - is it worth it?"
- " There's so much to do. And there's never enough time. I feel pressured and hassled all day, every day, seven days a week. I've attended time management seminars and I've tried half a dozen different planning systems. They've helped some, but I still don't feel I'm living the happy, productive, peaceful life I want to live."
- "I have a forceful personality. I know, in almost any interaction, I can control the outcome. Most of the time, I can even do it by influencing others to come up with the solution I want. I think through each situation and I really feel the ideas I come up with are usually the best for everyone. But I feel uneasy. I always wonder what other people really think of me and my ideas."
Come and relive the seven timeless habits for a truly effective life. There's a reason this personal leadership book has survived for twenty years. You don't want to miss this opportunity to be recharged and reconnected to your own life.
2. Making the Agritourism A-List: Partnering to Make Your Region Ripe for Revenue, with Presenter Abby Cash and Moderator Lindsay Vidrine - As Oklahoma's successful Agritourism program enters its fifth year, Agritourism Director Abby Cash will provide an overview of the program's newest initiatives and accomplishments. She will share insights and tips from successful agritourism ventures, provide information on new marketing partnerships and explain how you can be involved in this growing niche travel market. Oklahoma's agritourism program is the result of a dynamic partnership between the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry and the Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Department. Learn how you can benefit from this partnership to cultivate agritourism revenue in your area.
3. Creating Customer Connections: Using the New TravelOK.com to Grow Business, with Presenter Jennifer Kalkman and Moderator Sandy Pantlik - TravelOK.com, Oklahoma's official tourism Web site, has received an extreme makeover and will make its first appearance during the Governor's Conference on Tourism. Learn the inside scoop on how the new TravelOK.com can help maximize your online visibility and boost exposure for your destination, event or attraction. The TravelOK.com Interactive team will take you on a tour of the site's cutting edge features - including showing how you can upload, update and maintain your attraction's information, photos and videos. Be among the first to learn how to make the most of the exciting partnership opportunities available on the new TravelOK.com. (If you miss this session, the OTRD Interactive team will be available throughout the conference to provide you with a password to access the new site, review the highlights and get you on the way to being a TravelOK.com user).
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12:00 p.m.
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Break - Exhibit Review
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12:30 p.m.
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 General Session – "The Great Equalizer: How the Social Web Helps Any Destination Play in the Big Time"
Luncheon Keynote by Social Media Specialist Sheila Scarborough, Tourism Currents
You don't need a huge advertising budget any more. You don't need to represent a big city or famous event. You just need the special place where you live, the Web and lots of focused enthusiasm. Meet three people who are using social media right now to tell stories and attract attention to their destinations.
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2:30 p.m.
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Break - Exhibit Review
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3:00 p.m.
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Concurrent Workshops
4. Finding the Onramp: Tourism Boot Camp – This fast-paced workshop hosted by the Travel Promotion Division Team will give you the latest and greatest updates to keep your marketing plan moving forward. Learn about the many free and inexpensive programs available through the Oklahoma Tourism Department that are designed to help you spend less while reaching more travelers. Hear about the services available to help you grow your attraction or improve your tourism product. From delivering your story to journalists to cooperative marketing opportunities, this session will cover will cover all the important stats. You will also find out about the benefits and services offered by the Oklahoma Travel Industry Association, OTIA. This is the perfect session for those who are new to the industry and looking for ways to tie into the state's tourism marketing campaign or a refresher course for veteran tourism professionals.
 5. Now Playing: Opportunities to Attract Big Business to Your Community, A Reel Scout Tutorial, with Presenter Chris Kucharski – Chris Kucharski and The Oklahoma Film & Music Office is proud to present Reel-Scout, a free digital locations database that Chambers, CVBs, Main Street Associations and civic leaders can use to market their communities as a location for film, television, and commercial production. This tutorial will provide step-by-step instructions to use this powerful marketing tool to promote your locations and recruit productions to your community.
6. Sorting the Noise: How to Find and Hear the Online Voices That Matter, with Presenter Sheila Scarborough, Tourism Currents - You know Mama said there's a reason we have two ears and one mouth....the first step in social Web participation is to listen. How can you find the voices that matter, and which tools can be your ears online? Learn how to use Google Alerts, Twitter Search, Filtrbox, RSS feeds and more to hear folks talking about your destination. See what is on their minds, so that your marketing is more effective.
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4:15 p.m.
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Break - Exhibit Review
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5:00 p.m.
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Buses leave for the Redbud Awards Reception. Transportation provided by Red Carpet Charters
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5:30 p.m.
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Redbud Awards Reception
Hosted by the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, where you’ll enjoy hors d’oeuvres, cocktails, and networking fun!
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7:00 p.m.
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Transportation returns to the Renaissance Hotel for Redbud Awards Presentation
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7:30 - 9:30 p.m.
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The Redbuds Hit the Red Carpet: Annual Redbud Awards Dinner Presentation
Join co-hosts Lieutenant Governor Jari Askins & Tourism and Recreation Department Executive Director Hardy Watkins as we roll out the red carpet for the tourism industry’s most prestigious awards. This year’s tourism celebrities will make their premiere during an evening filled with Hollywood-style glitz and glamour.
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Tuesday, October 20, 2009
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8:30 a.m.
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General Session/Breakfast: One State, Many Nations – Breaking New Ground Through Tourism.
With Moderators Hardy Watkins and Shoshanna Wasserman; Panelists Bill Shoemate, Cherokee Hicks, Paige Williams and Cherokee Tribe member Travis Owens. A panel of tribal tourism professionals will discuss opportunities for tribes, communities and attractions to build tourism initiatives and generate travel through strategic partnerships and education. Panelists will provide an overview of current programs and projects, suggest positive ways to work together to strengthen Oklahoma's tourism industry and outline initial steps to create partnerships.
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10:00 a.m.
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Break - Exhibit Review
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10:30 a.m.
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Concurrent Sessions
7. Telling Travelers Where to Go: Itinerary Writing 101, with Presenters Janet Raines, Tanya Andrews and Todd Stallbaumer; Moderator Tina Gilliland – Behind every successful tour is a great itinerary. Join a panel of experts representing a community, a tour operator and a destination marketing organization to learn the ins and outs of writing persuasive and inclusive itineraries that sell your region or area to tour operators, groups and individual travelers. You'll hear real-life examples and receive step-by-step instructions on how to plan, write and implement engaging itineraries.
 8. "Throw em' a bone"...A Customer's Perspective on Excellent Customer Service! – Join Tonya Foreman for a fact-filled, fun hour of learning strategic ways for utilizing the three must-have “bones of success” for retaining and recruiting customers. What are your customers looking for in you? What do customers need from you in these uncertain economic times? Are your customers loyal? Do you know who your competition is? Web site, e-mails, Facebook, Twitter, direct mail - what mediums are you using to communicate with your customers? We will discuss all the answers to these questions and more. Come ready to participate and have fun!
 9. Leading Strategies for a Desperate Economy – Phil Bruno will illustrate how you can establish a “Strategic Customer Profile” to help exceed your customer’s expectations. Opportunity for new trial abounds as Value Seekers search to fulfill their needs in our new economy. Have you ever just asked your customers what they really wanted and then found a way to give it to them? Strategic Customer Profiling will give you a clear analysis of your customers needs and expectations. The more of your customers’ expectations you exceed, the more loyal customers you will gain. |
11:30 a.m.
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Break - Exhibit Review
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12:00 p.m.
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Closing Session and Luncheon Keynote – “Engaging the New Value Seeker”
Phil Bruno will review the current behavioral and attitudinal characteristics among consumers during today’s recessionary environment. You will learn the top five tactics being utilized by high-profile leaders who are realizing significant success within their brand category. You will actively participate in a brand building application exercise wherein you identify your organizations core values and outline potential promotions that could be based on those values. Everybody walks away positive and upbeat with shared tools and strategies that are real and working today.
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2:00 p.m.
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Post Conference Meetings:
- Oklahoma Lakes & Country Marketing Associations (OLCA)
- Oklahoma Tourism and Recreation Committee
- Oklahoma Indian Tourism Association Quarterly Meeting - a collaborative effort to promote and develop tourism of authentic Oklahoma American Indian cultures, histories, and destinations.
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