One + July 2011 - (Page 79)

The familiarization (FAM) tour is considered by all sides of the meeting and event industry to be a business essential. Despite being host to well-known controversial elements—such as perceptions of suppliers using FAMs to buy inﬂuence, and planners using the opportunities as something akin to vacation—FAMs are here to stay, but they’re getting smarter. FAMs provide ﬁrst-hand education for planners, targeted marketing for suppliers and help advance and grow relationships within the meeting and event industry. “When done properly, with pre-qualiﬁed attendees, FAMs are perhaps the most effective marketing tools at a supplier’s disposal,” said Richard Miseyko, CMP, CMM, president of Site Search Inc. Even planners say their own marketing efforts are often aided by the FAM experience. “Meeting the local residents ﬁlls in the picture for me—I often base my marketing concept around the vibe I got from the local culture and people,” said Nancy Coll, CMP, an independent planner based in Ontario, Canada. “FAMs are critical. I cannot book a large group into a property until I have walked the corridors and slept in one of their beds. I cannot book an eight-day convention into a facility until I have physically explored it, smelled it, touched it and met the people [working] on site. Virtual maps cannot replace the knowledge I get from standing at the front door of a venue and listening to and looking at what surrounds it.” Indeed, not even virtual tours can compete with the myriad beneﬁts meeting professionals glean from FAMs. “While destinations can do PowerPoint presentations and webinars, nothing replaces taking the right meeting planner and/or decision maker to the destination so they can experience all that the destination has to offer for a meeting or incentive program,” said Pam Balakian, Mondotels sales manager, Development Counsellors International. mpiweb.org 79 http://www.mpiweb.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of One + July 2011

One + July 2011
Contents
Energy of Many
Impressions
Paradigm Shifts, Part II
Web Watch
Agenda
Thoughts+Leaders
Ask the Experts
Recognizing Community and Organizational Excellence
Overheard
Art of Travel
The Prism Effect
Top Spots
Connections
Irrelevant
Using New Tech for Old Purposes
So You Think You Can Dance
Don’t Use Tech You Don’t Understand
Are You In It to Win It?
Anything is Possible
Night of the Radishes
Well Played
When People Come Together, Magic Happens
Size Matters
Building a Better FAM
One Bar at a Time
MPI + CSR
Industry Insights
Your Community
Making a Difference
Until We Meet Again

One + July 2011