Network Membership Advantages
As World of DMCs members gather this coming week in Frankfurt for IMEX, one of the major meetings and incentive trade show forums of the year, we will also be coming together as a network for our annual general meeting and a members’ dinner the eve before the show.
As someone who has spent years on the road, doing sales calls, trade shows and exhibitions for hotels, I know first-hand what a lonely life that can be. Yes, you meet lots of people and can generally talk the hind legs off a donkey, but when everyone goes home at night, so do you. Most often to sit in a hotel restaurant or hotel room, alone with your laptop.
One advantage of belonging to a network such as World of DMCs is the company you have when attending these trade shows. Our members benefit from sharing their time with like-minded people; people with whom they can swap stories and ideas; people who understand them – and people they do not have to ‘sell’ to at the end of the day. This is only one of the many advantages of belonging to a professional group or network such as World of DMCs.
Even if you do not attend the two or three trade shows we manage stands at every year, there are so many other ways to stay in touch with other members. We use a private Facebook Group for members to share their ideas, problems, successes, and to ask questions; we have WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and of course Email. You could also simply pick up the phone – or Skype. Our members share their contact details for exactly this reason – to help each other, to support one another, and to simply exchange ideas.
Then there are the business reasons to join a network such as World of DMCs. The self-managed page you get on our website; the social media marketing support; the database for regular network newsletters; advertising opportunities; editorial opportunities; group rates for attending smaller trade shows around the world; not to mention the advantage of using a recognised logo on your communications and collateral to identify you as a reputable DMC worthy of your client’s business! We receive RFPs through the website, via email and through social media platforms that are forwarded directly to the DMC concerned. No commission taken, no involvement, just straight referrals, and on we go! We also have our own stand at IMEX and IBTM, and this year joined CONFEX in London for the first time – all at reduced rates, subsidised by membership fees.
By accepting just one member per country (or US State), we avoid conflict and competition. We ensure that our members are indeed reputable and professional before we accept their application – a process some complain about, as it involves a fair amount of paperwork, but in this way we are able to confidently recommend our DMC services worldwide, comfortable in the knowledge that professional standards are maintained by everyone.
World of DMCs is not focused on recruiting members to boost numbers, although of course we welcome new countries and new colleagues, rather on supporting the members we already have.
If you would like to know more, come and see me on the World of DMCs stand at IMEX 21-23 May 2019 (Frankfurt). Stand D500. Or just drop me a line, and I can explain all the many other benefits of belonging to our amazing network of professional destination marketing companies worldwide.
Oh, and don’t forget to sign up for our regular newsletter, and follow our social media platforms for up-to-date news and information from our members and their destinations.
See you at IMEX!
Caroline Tapken
Executive Director – World of DMCs
