Smart Meetings July 2022 Digital Issue - 6

* BRIGHT PERSPECTIVE * *
Celebrating 20 years of You
Y
ou only turn 20 once. Now that we are old enough to know more, but still young enough to care passionately
about supporting meeting professionals, we thought it was worth making a big deal out of
it. What we are really celebrating is the innovation, resilience and dedication of our chosen meetings
industry. You are the ones who inspire us every day, make room in your life (and mailboxes) for Smart
Meeting Magazine, SmartMeetings.com, Smart Chat Live! webinars and join us at Smart Meetings
Experiences. You are the dynamic community we have been enjoying for two decades.
Our friends at Allseated suggested an event on their fun ExVo platform. For those who didn't make
it, this is virtual way beyond Zoom boxes. Their fun 3D experience is the closest thing to walking into a
ballroom we have seen. We were, frankly, humbled by the outpouring of support as friends who have
traveled this journey at our side from the beginning reached out in the form of video messages, donating
their services and joining us in the metaverse during the celebration. A big shout out to all the partners
who helped us along the way.
In that spirit of celebrating excellence, this magazine is dedicated to the Smart Stars, the reader's
choice of best properties and destinations to host dream meetings and events. You are going to want to
save this list as your go-to resource for making sourcing easy. While you are at it, we invite you to learn
more about destinations large and small in our feature on the benefits of mid-tier cities and our Destination
Ideabook section. Every month we feature popular convention areas with updates on what is new and exciting.
This month we look at Puerto Rico, Colorado, Idaho, Missouri, Chicago, Portland and The Florida Keys.
We indicate the destinations covered on the spine for those of you who tell us you shelve them like a reference
library for easy retrieval when it is time to start sourcing your next program.
Thank you to everyone on this journey with us. We appreciate you and are dedicated to educating, exciting
and inspiring you for decades to come.
" What we are really celebrating
is the innovation, resilience
and dedication of our chosen
meetings industry. "
@marinbright
VOLUME TWENTY, NUMBER SEVEN, JULY 2022
FOUNDER AND CEO
Marin Bright
PRESIDENT Luc Troussieux PUBLISHER Eric Haase
EDITOR AT LARGE Gary Diedrichs
EDITORIAL DIRECTOR JT Long SENIOR EDITOR Gretchen Kelly
DIGITAL EDITOR Malik Anderson JUNIOR EDITOR Skylar Sjoberg
EDITORIAL INTERN Madeline Franz
MARKETING DIRECTOR Kathleen Melen EMAIL MARKETING SPECIALIST Darien Jackson EVENT TECH CONTRIBUTOR Brandt Krueger
EDITORIAL CONTRIBUTORS Michael Alpiner SMART STYLE AMBASSADOR Kate Patay NATIONAL SALES DIRECTOR Ginny Pohlman
REGIONAL SALES MANAGERS Jeff Posner, Kerry Latham SALESFORCE ADMINISTRATOR | MEDIA PRODUCTION | AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT Tara Perez AD OPERATIONS Mary Ann McMahon
ART DIRECTOR Garrick Naguit PRODUCTION DESIGNERS Johnathon Tott-Berger, Mary King, Terry S Wang EVENT DIRECTOR Michele Gardner-Kelley
OFFICE SECURITY Scarlett
SMART MEETINGS EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD
MODERATOR Brad Weaber, Brad Weaber Consulting Group MEMBERS Jenn Artura, vice president of global events, Workhuman; Eduardo Chaillo, global general manager, Maritz Global Events;
Mark Cooper, CEO, IACC; Michael Dominguez, CEO, ALHI; Kevin Edmunds, VP, meeting and incentive sales, AIC Hotel Group; Megan Finnell, director of meetings, MGMA;
Brian Gilligan, senior vice president of sales and distribution, U.S. & Canada, Marriott International; Carol McGury, EVP, SmithBucklin; Allison Magyar, chief product officer, Notified;
Mark McMinn, VP of sales, Grand Sierra Resort and Casino; Faith Morris, CMO, National Civil Right Museum; Andrew Weir, executive vice president of destination development, Tourism Toronto;
Don Welsh, CEO, Destinations International; Carl Winston, director, SDSU Payne School of Hospitality & Tourism Management; Toni Zoblotsky, director of B2B marketing, Hilton Hotels
Phone: 415.339.9355
*
Fax: 415.339.9361
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for facts as presented by authors and advertisers. Copyright 2022 by Bright Business Media,
LLC. All rights reserved. Contents may not be reproduced in whole or in part without prior written
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JULY 2022 * SMARTMEETINGS . COM
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Smart Meetings July 2022 Digital Issue

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