Successful Meetings - February 2008 - (Page 38)

CVB Focus Convention and visitors bureaus find a pot of gold working with multicultural and minority groups By Corrie Dosh J.R. Cook, Executive Director, United National Indian Tribal Youth, Inc. Rainbow Connection When the United National Indian Tribal Youth (UNITY) in 2006 looked for a destination for its 1,000-attendee, five-day summer event, the key factors of rates, dates, and space were definitely in play. But once those needs were taken care of, the group could make a decision based on other factors rooted in their identity as a nonprofit organization to support Native American youth. “Our first preference was to look at the Northeast because we had never been there,” says J.R. Cook, executive director of Oklahoma City-based UNITY. “We had a lot of interest in Buffalo, but the convention and visitors bureau sort of sealed the deal, you might say.” While most CVBs would offer the provision of local information on hotels, conference centers, and restaurants, the Buffalo mimegasite.com The PHOTO: DAVID MCNEESE / MCNEESE FITZGERALD ASSOCIATES Niagara CVB had a designated salesperson for multicultural groups, Cook says, and the personal touch convinced him that UNITY would be most welcome in that city. “[The CVB sales representative] personally took us to meet with the Seneca Nation, which was a pretty good drive. Not only did [the rep] assist us in making a decision in working with the hotels and convention center, she also stayed there FEBRUARY 2008 SUCCESSFUL MEETINGS 38 http://mimegasite.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Successful Meetings - February 2008

Successful Meetings - February 2008
Contents
Editor's Note
Trade Shows
Events
Research
On the Record
Suppliers
Associations
Planner's Spotlight
Websites of the Month
Technology Talk
Personal Success
Food & Beverage
Pre-Event
On Site
Tools of the Trade
Pre-Event
The Rainbow Connection
The CVB in Your Backyard
Welcome to the Webolution
The Rail Deal
Spas with a Sense of Place
Places & Spaces
Mystic, CT.
Barcelona
Hong Kong
Florida’s East Coast
Atlantic City
Maui, Kauai, & Lanai
Aruba
Houston
Gurus

Successful Meetings - February 2008