Stuffed teddy bear hunts for locals, and virtual cooking and visits to Harry Potter filming locations for out-of-towners, are among the creative approaches that destination marketing organizations throughout the world have been taking to engage people during the coronavirus pandemic.

Though these organizations are generally doing an excellent job of covering the coronavirus pandemic, which is uppermost on most people’s minds throughout the world, they are finding that clients and other readers still want to be engaged, informed—and, yes, distracted—about other things.

An online Opinium survey conducted March 20-25 with 2,006 U.S. adults ages 18 and over found that while 31 percent feel that coronavirus is the only thing that matters right now, 41 percent disagree and more than half (55 percent) think that there are other important matters that aren’t being addressed.

“If relevant to your brand, consumers will welcome content on other important issues that are currently being sidelined,” stated Giulia Prati, vice president of research at Opinium.

For CVBs and DMOs, this refers to the need to keep people informed about their destination by providing new content in imaginative ways, and to keep things light in the process. And really, what better time to give marketers’ imaginations free reign?

Changing the Messaging

Nacogdoches, Texas

During spring and early summer in Nacogdoches, Texas, the community typically sees a boom in travelers and visitors as it capitalizes on its sprawling gardens and wild spaces, and festival season gets underway. In early March, as the coronavirus began to spread, Nacogdoches Convention and Visitors Bureau changed its messaging to encourage healthy people to enjoy the city’s gardens and natural rural areas while observing social-distancing guidelines.

When more restrictive travel guidelines were implemented nationally, the CVB began focusing more on the local community. It created a teddy bear hunt—in which businesses and people are encouraged to put a stuffed bear in a place where it would be easy to spot from a sidewalk or window—and is planning to offer a Chalk-Your-Walk event.

Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau launched a “Philadelphia from Home” webpage that includes ways to interact with the city’s offerings from a distance, which it’s promoting on social media. Recipes for a famous Philly Cheesesteak, a Facebook Live post from Philadelphia Zoo and a list of restaurants open for takeout are among the ways locals and would-be visitors can interact with the destination—and they are likely to inspire many visits.

A 60-second video, Intermission—which features employees in the tourism industry—was created by Visit Omaha to highlight the community’s strengths and attractions, and inspire viewers to look toward the future.
The 7 Minutes in St. Lucia campaign began on Thursday, offering viewers an opportunity to explore the Caribbean destination via Instagram Live. Produced by Travel Santa Lucia, the campaign kicked off with a seven-minute streamed yoga practice with the Pitons, the island’s world-famous volcanic spires, in view. A cooking class, dance party, and guided meditation were also included.

Discover Puerto Rico is inviting its followers and would-be visitors to a virtual getaway with its salsa classes, cocktail making and cooking. The DMO shifted from a “visit now” to a “visit later” approach a couple of weeks ago to keep the destination top of mind for future visitors.

Enhancing the Scenic Journey

Visit Britain has been posting ways for readers to engage with British culture from a quarantine couch. Each post includes calls to action, such as inviting followers to explore the filming locations featured in The Crown and Harry Potter movies, as well as including crowdsourcing tracks for a Spotify playlist of iconic British music.

Switzerland Tourism is giving users on social media some new slices of Switzerland from afar, using hashtags such as #neverstopdreaming and #staystrong to bolster morale.

And Visit Portugal’s two-minute “Can’t Skip Hope” video takes viewers to sweeping vistas and charming scenes, and comes across as an inspiring “we’re all in this together” rather than a heavy sales pitch.

Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority released a library of Zoom meeting backgrounds, including the fountains of Bellagio and views from High Roller observation wheel at The Linq. The fun additions to virtual meetings can be downloaded at the destination’s web site. At the same time, visitors can also get their Vegas strip through apps available from The Neon Museum and The Mob Museum. Interactive exhibits and narrated photo tours are almost like being there.

Though DMOs have hit the pause button on planned marketing activities, these types of creative approaches are not only maintaining ties with consumers, but also enhancing them by providing enjoyable, educational activities in a difficult time. The approaches can also help to inspire other DMOS to follow suit in their own unique ways.

As the saying goes, when it rains, it pours. In the midst of mass layoffs of its employees, global shutdowns of its properties and executive pay cuts, Marriott International today said personal information of 5.2 million of its customers could have been stolen.

The hospitality company did not say how the theft may have occurred, or who was at fault. But it did stipulate that the data did not include sensitive details such as credit card and passport numbers.

Guests’ information—contact details and Bonvoy loyalty account numbers—were not properly safeguarded for more than a month, Marriott said.

This is the second major data breach for Marriott in recent years. In 2018, the company announced that 500 million guest records had been breached—but said the vulnerability had been inherited from the purchase of Starwood hotels in 2014.

More: 500 Million Starwood Guests May be Victim of Data Breach

Greg Sparrow, senior vice president and general manager at CompliancePoint, an Atlanta-area consultant for cybersecurity and risk management, advises members of Bonvoy and other hotel and airline loyalty program to “silo your risk.”

By that he means, use different passwords for each of your rewards accounts. Never use the same passwords for email and social media accounts, and certainly not for financial accounts.

“People need to realize there’s risk in storing information,” he says. “Companies need to think long and hard about what has to be saved and retained. If there’s no good business reason for it, get rid of it.”

As consumers, he urges, we should “be mindful of the type of information that’s being asked for.”

Beware the Scammers

Other security experts urge that extra caution be taken online as many of us work from home while sheltering during the COVID-19 crisis. Without the sturdy firewalls and extra layers of protection offered on company networks, remote workers are more at risk for cybertheft and scamming.

In Detroit, for instance, the FBI released a message urging local residents to avoid scammers looking to cash in on the coronavirus epidemic.

According to a local television report, FBI Detroit Special Agent in Charge Steven M. D’Antuono said he had been personally targeted by email and phone scammers, who were trying to sell protective equipment or a phony COVID-19 test.

“Through your email, your computer or phone calls, there’s a lot of phishing scams that try to get you to click on a link,” he said. “If you don’t recognize it, don’t click on it.”

Nominate the Industry’s Smart Stars

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We will calculate the results, and the top-rated properties will be featured in our June issue in print and digital, plus gain recognition and exposure through our national email newsletter, social media and a nationwide press release sent over a major newswire.

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What was a cost- and time-saving novelty two months ago has now become a vital solution during the “coronareality” of today. Virtual site inspections make it possible to experience a ballroom while still practicing social distancing to slow the spread of coronavirus. Smart Meetings asked the experts about how realistic VR tours are today—and what to ask when setting one up.

A Match Made in the Ballroom

Even before the COVID-19 outbreak, more meeting professionals were exploring the option of touring sites remotely to avoid scheduling issues and travel costs, says Sandy Hammer, cofounder and chief marketing officer at Allseated, which just launching Connect, a video conferencing feature that will allow properties to hold virtual meetings in the actual event space.

At first, the alternative was particularly popular with wedding couples looking to plan their destination weddings. Now the event industry is discovering the convenience.

Even sales professionals who live by the motto, “Once they visit in person, they will understand the magic,” are beginning to understand that a virtual tour can also sell a space in a world where no one can travel, Hammer reports.

At the same time, planners who normally require a site inspection before they sign a contract are discovering that the right tools can help them make decisions now, while the properties are available. Amy Robb, a meeting broker and live event producer with Meetings Made Easy says that her company is using virtual tours as a tool to help clients postpone rather than cancel. She had an active RFP for a November event and was able to scout for sites from her home office for an outdoor cocktail party at a boutique hotel.

Post-Corona Adoption

Hammer predicts more meeting professionals will site virtually beyond the virus outbreak. Virtual tools will save time and allow them to sell remotely. Bonus: They never have to worry if the space is already running an event, limiting their ability to show it to a prospective client. “Virtual site inspections are going to be the new way to sell,” Hammer says.

See also: Best Practices for Just in Time Virtual Meetings

Robb hypothesized that most planners will use the technology to narrow down the range of choices and then physically visit the top candidates. “This makes it much easier to consider a property, and for planners with a lot of programs can help them file ideas away for later,” she says.

Virtual Tour Dos and Don’ts

Walking the expo floor is still a little bit different from taking a video-assisted tour, so Sandy and Robb have tips for making the most of the tool.

  • Look for venues that have virtual tours on their website. “This also shows that a venue is forward-thinking, adaptable and has the newest technology available so you can have confidence in making a decision remotely,” Hammer says.
  • Ask for a Zoom-type video conference inside of the venue’s floorplan. It is important to get a photorealistic, 360-degree model of the environment. It will give you the look and feel of being in the space.
  • A virtual reality headset enhances the impact by immersing you in a 3-D version of the event space. You can more easily visualize different set-ups and angles. Hammer recommends getting your own headset before you take the tour so you are comfortable with the technology. “You really lose yourself in the feeling of being transported directly into a venue,” she says.
  • Be specific about what you want to see, Robb advises. That way the hotel team can prepare the areas for the set-up you are considering, and you can skip the redundant parts of a physical tour, such as seeing a double guest room and a queen guest room and a…

Event planners have been sidetracked by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, wondering about the best route to take. Cancel? Postpone? Claim force majeure? It seems that many of them are doing a combination of all three.

Smart Meetings spoke to meeting planners and destination representatives to find out how they’re managing responsibilities in the current climate. Even though this is a tough time for the meetings industry, many event professionals remain optimistic.

Aiming at a Moving Target

Every day seems to have a week’s worth of news packed in it. That makes it tough for planners, hotels and destinations to agree about when to hold in-person meetings. There’s really no way to know what the future holds, leaving planners and CVBs in the dark. The best approach is to follow the news and listen to health experts.

More: #HospitalityStrong Your Coronavirus Resource Guide

“It’s kind of a moving target,” said Mark Feldman, regional sales representative for Visit Santa Barbara. It isn’t easy to know what to do in this situation, as new information roles out every day, and with that comes uncertainty as to when groups can get together again.”

Feldman sees many planners moving their meetings to the fall, which may result in an abnormal surge then. “Fall is typically a very busy time, especially in California, so while we are accommodating groups then, we are also encouraging them to look to other times of the year, if that’s an option for them.” Along with New York and Washington, California is one of the states being hit the hardest by COVID-19.

Postpone, Don’t Cancel

“We’re seeing postponements more than cancellations,” Feldman said. “There’s a camaraderie with the hotelier, the CVB and the planners to keep the industry moving in a positive direction.” He said Visit Santa Barbara is seeing most of its postponements rescheduled for the fall.

“This is a bad time,” said Miriam Davis, owner of Event Pro Productions. Miriam’s company hosts many sporting events all over the globe, including China, France, Italy and the United States. Event Pro Production’s events that have been postponed are being moved to later in the year or early next year. Event Pro Productions’ events that take place after 2020 have not been affected, including Super Bowl LV, which takes place Feb. 7, 2021.

“We were fully prepared to postpone all events from 2020 [to] 2022 or to convert to alternate or hybrid type meetings. So fortunately, my business has not been interrupted like many other event businesses,” said Carol Davis, owner of CPER Productions & Incentives. Carol said events are still being planned for ’22, ’23 and ’24.

Seeking Alternatives

Many meeting planners, including those with Zoom and Microsoft Teams, are moving to digital alternatives to host their meetings. Davis’ company, which offers a long list of different experiences, ranging from incentive trips to concert experiences, will host a virtual concert in the near future

See also: 5 Mistakes to Avert in Virtual Meetings

Until 2021, CPER’s experiential events will consist of digital meetings in various forms, using traditional video, virtual reality, augmented reality and holographic tools.

Meeting professionals who use a slow-down in face-to-face meetings due to coronavirus (COVID-19) containment measures to work on their skills will be prepared to thrive when a new events marketplace emerges after the all-clear sign. Experts warn that agendas will not just pick back up where they left off. After weeks spent on Zoom calls and virtual happy hours, attendees will expect more tech-driven options and companies will look for risk management that takes into account serious disruptions. Smart planners who take the time to sharpen their skills to meet those new expectations will be the ones to excel in the coming rebound.

“Online education is the fastest way to master skills from the convenience of your laptop while earning credits toward your CMP and hearing from experts in the field,” said Howard Givner, founder and CEO of Event Leadership Institute (ELI), which has partnered with Smart Meetings to offer Smart U, Meeting Professional Masterclasses. These in-depth industry courses are formatted for learning specific skills or bingeing to a certification. More than 180 curated educational videos in the Netflix-style library are tailor-made for the current WFH reality. For those seeking more structure, eight professional development certificate courses can be streamed any time, enabling learners to knock out a five-week course in just a day or two.

Pick Your Passion

So, you want to bulk up your planning muscles while quarantined. Where do you start? Michael Granek, ELI president and chief operating officer, said that while anyone can start with the overview of Event & Meeting Management Fundamentals certificate course, he is also seeing a trend toward deep dives on specific topics. Online, on-demand classes are led by working leaders in the field, including Brandt Kruger on chatbots and mobile apps, Mark Addison on Experience Design and Lindsay Maloni on negotiating contracts. They allow planners to access tips that work in the real world. Masterclasses such as Technical Meeting & Event Production offer a way for industry professionals to strengthen their knowledge and learn the language of A/V and event tech to become more efficient planners while earning a certificate and digital credential.

Upcoming Courses

Event & Meeting Management Fundamentals Starts March 31

Technical Meeting & Event Production Starts March 31

Event Entrepreneurship: Business Foundations Starts March 31

Webinars

Leadership During Uncertain Times March 30, noon Pacific/ 3:00 p.m. Eastern

Business Options During World Economic Challenges April 1, noon Pacific/ 3:00 p.m. Eastern

Change Management in Times of Crisis April 3, noon Pacific/ 3:00 p.m. Eastern

In a matter of weeks, the world flipped upside down and daily life changed for meeting planners. With hotels closed, events postponed and financial strains increasing anxiety levels, a little bit of time from list-making pros can go a long way toward helping a community cope.

Small Businesses Need Big Efforts

Buying gift cards and shopping local are the two most common ways to help keep a small business intact. Recently, many have taken to calling restaurants for take-out orders rather than using delivery apps such as UberEats or DoorDash that take a percentage of the bill. Diners are also participating in ‘National Takeout Days’ across the country to encourage others to help restaurants struggling to survive. Planners can synch up orders for neighbors who might not be able to leave the house.

Online Fundraising Tools

Those who are financially strained have relied heavily on websites such as GoFundMe or Crowdfunder to help with bills and other necessities. Meeting professionals can share needs from families and small businesses with their extensive networks. Who better to connect those with needs and those who can help?

Mask-Making

With a shortage of masks and a dire need for protection, crafty meeting profs with some down time can help make masks for health workers from the comfort of their home. If you have the necessary supplies and time, mask-making is a vital way to help those on the front lines tending to the sick. Designer Christian Siriano employed his design team and is helping in New York State. No matter where you are, if you are sewing-savvy and have the resources, you can do the same. Some hospitals have even made mask-making kits available for pick up.

Giving Blood

Blood donations are needed now more than ever since many blood drives have been canceled. Those who have underlying health conditions and rely on blood transfusions are urging people to help. The American Red Cross has kept many blood donation centers open as essential services and set up new ones in hospitals around the country. They have assured donators that protocols have been installed and enhanced disinfecting procedures are in place. Donors sit six feet apart while waiting to ensure social distancing.

Adopting/Fostering Animals

Being forced in isolation leaves many feeling lonely. Consider adopting or fostering a pet during this time. Numerous adoption centers are encouraging people to bring some love into their homes and free up vital space in shelters. During these stressful times, find your quarantine companion and look to your local shelter!

Donations

Donations are helping people, companies and organizations stay afloat. Consider donating to causes that help others and non-profit organizations seeking to make a difference.

  • Guardian Angels, a non-profit organization that has been helping people worldwide since 1979, is feeding the homeless on NYC subways amid COVID-19.
  • With schools down for children who rely on school meals, Feed the Children is looking for cash donations or items. If you want to donate food or hygiene items, call 1-800-627-4556.
  • Whatever you can spare will go a long way. Remember each state has their own resources as well, so a simple google search followed by your state will provide you with direct resources to help your local community.

Neighborhood Communities

There’s nothing like helping out those living beside you to instill a sense of community. Neighbors have been posting more frequently on Nextdoor, a hyperlocal social platform. It has become an easy way to offer your organizational, logistics or other services in your community.

People have also taken to Instagram Live to share tips or simply answer emails to help people navigate through these turbulent times. It’s comforting to know that your skill may be just what someone in your community needs.

The number of business leaders that say live events are critical for success has doubled year-over-year, according to the 2020 Event Trends and Benchmark Report by Bizzabo, an event software company. In all, 85 percent of 500 senior-level marketers surveyed affirmed the power of live events in a post-coronavirus (COVID-19) world.

“The coronavirus may be canceling events, but according to our findings, the most successful organizations still are investing in in-person,” said Alon Alroy, co-founder and chief of customers and strategy at Bizzabo. “In fact, we found that leadership across industries understand the value of in-person events and are increasing event marketing budgets accordingly.”

Other key findings:

  • Sixty-one percent of respondents believe in-person events are the most critical marketing channel—a 20 percent increase compared to last year’s report.
  • Most marketers are investing at least 21 percent of their marketing budget in live events, with the majority (62 percent) expecting to see a marketing budget increase for in-person events in the coming year.
  • Trends show that the biggest obstacles to achieving event success include attracting the right audience and demonstrating event ROI. More than half of respondents surveyed expressed difficulty in proving event ROI. Of the marketers that are currently using event software, 80 percent do not have trouble showing ROI.
  • Technology plays a role in increasing operational efficiency. The vast majority (89 percent) of respondents who use event software believe that they save time to plan events by using technology.

What if I told you a brand-new event, created less than two weeks ago, just hosted over 150,000 attendees? You might think I’m imagining things or living inside The Matrix, but I assure you I took the red pill and this is the real world, Neo.

Status Report

First, a quick recap of the current situation. The impact of coronavirus around the globe has rocked major live events, conferences, conventions (and the destinations where they are held) to our core, driving mass cancellations and postponements. It is wreaking havoc on the budgets and staff of the associations, nonprofits and other businesses who host them, and on the verticals we promote and serve like education, hospitality, travel, tourism, restaurants, retail, manufacturing, healthcare and real estate.

More: #HospitalityStrong Your Coronavirus Resource Guide

The economic impact already surpassed $1.1B according to PredictHQ a few days ago, and it continues to rise. Often, anywhere from 30 percent to 70 percent of annual operating revenues is lost (with cancellation) or at risk (with postponement) for these organizations. Some do not have the reserves to close the gap.

According to the Events Industry Council 2018 study on the economic significance of the meetings industry in the U.S., we’re talking about 1.9 million meetings that serve more than 250 million attendees annually, contribute nearly half a trillion dollars to U.S. gross domestic product, and directly support 5.9 million jobs. Many of these events are produced by associations and nonprofits. In fact, nonprofits of which associations are a major segment, employ 12.3 million people─the third largest workforce in the U.S. with payrolls exceeding many other industries as well. The value of executing our live events (and other products and services) is crystal clear in a financial sense, but our control is limited here by recent events. Let’s focus on things we can control–what we’re going to do now.

The Real Value of Live Events

We set out to create memorable experiences, earn customer (member) loyalty, give guests the opportunity to engage with our brands, provide a means for one-on-one engagement around knowledge and ideas, help attendees discover and explore business solutions, support industry professionals who need to share their work and who need to learn, create environments that enhance personal-emotional connections, grow professional networks and nurture lifelong friendships. We aim to ensure our event-goers have a positive brand experience that will have a halo effect on our organizations and industry throughout the year and beyond.

The opportunity, then, is to step back with wonder and rigor (two sides of the same coin according to innovation strategist Natalie Nixon) and discover how we deliver on the purposes of our events and organizations–our why–in new ways.

Streamed Live

That brings me back to that new event. It turns out that some of the hottest events right now are on social media, and I’m talking about the very real, wildly popular new event ironically called Homeschool. Started just days ago with about 4,000 guests, #ClubQuarantine by Derrick Jones (aka D-Nice) has quickly become the hottest event in town. Well… the hottest event on Instagram live anyway. Since Wednesday last week (day one) these live streamed global jam sessions from D-Nice’s home in LA have grown exponentially by the day. Saturday’s 10-hour set had more than 100,000 and Sunday topped out at over 150,000 live viewers at its peak, including ya girl because it was fire!

At times, viewers looked like a who’s who of Hollywood (especially Black Hollywood, but that’s another topic). Dozens of big names like Will Smith, Ava DuVernay, Jimmy Fallon, John Legend, Janet Jackson, Mark Zuckerberg (who bought the bar, lol), Oprah and Michelle Obama showed up on the guest list and joined in the fun. Politicians like Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders were “in da club.” Technically speaking viewers could listen to the seemingly endless, amazing tunes (many sparking nostalgia among the heavily genX crowd), use ‘reactions’ style quick-response emojis, comment (many pretending to actually be at a party), people watch who comes in and out of the stream, and (thanks to some slick maneuvering with the Instagram Live split screen feature) we could watch as special guests occasionally appeared on the live feed from their homes.

FOMO? Forget about it. D-Nice went from around 200K to over 1.4M followers almost overnight, a community that will be rocking with him for weeks, months and perhaps years to come. The latest iteration? On Wednesday, March 25th at 6:30 ET D-Nice teams up with “forever FLOTUS” Michelle Obama and the nonpartisan nonprofit When We All Vote for a #CouchParty. While hundreds of thousands watch, listen and dance along, volunteers across the country are calling eligible citizens to help them register to vote.

Lessons for Association Planners

Seeing that so many in my network were grooving right along with me last weekend, I grew curious about what associations and nonprofits might learn from this overnight success story which seemed to be delivering on our superpower to convene and connect communities.

For starters, like most success, it wasn’t actually overnight. D-Nice (@dnice) has a professional history as a DJ, producer, rapper, and photographer. He is very well connected, and has curated music at events for the likes of Barack Obama, Jerry Seinfeld, Dave Chappelle. Still, aren’t we associations and nonprofits well connected to all the influencers in our communities too? D-Nice leveraged his existing assets: knowledge of music, grasstops network, talent on the-ones-and-twos, plus passion and compassion for people. He married all that with an existing technology solution (meaning little, or no, learning curve) and aimed his idea squarely at a substantial need: social connection, through music, fun, and play.

Then, the hardest part, he got started. He iterated, getting friends and partners in on the action, and then he tried it again, and again. It was a recipe for success, and reminder that in many ways we already have what we need to keep going and delivering for our communities. The show must go on.

During the last two weeks we’ve all seen great examples of this. A few of my favorites acts of innovation in sync with the needs of our community in this surreal moment are connected to performing arts, fashion, craft spirits, food, and healthcare (no big surprise for folks who know me). I find these stark examples of resiliency, innovation and community particularly inspiring (and I’d love to hear your stories as well). This look at inspiration and ingenious acts of community happening every day now could go on and on.

See also: Destinations Lend Support During Coronavirus Slowdown

They underscore my point: those much-needed ideas, opportunities, and innovations that will help us flip the script and ensure we remain a vital resource are likely already among us. We must allow ourselves to step back with calm, curious, fresh eyes to see them in this post-coronavirus light.

Rhonda Payne, CAE (@my19cents) is an award-winning association executive and learning leader who has led programs and strategy for more than 25+ years. She currently wears multiple hats providing support for association and nonprofit clients, as interim executive director at C4 Performing Arts, and as a board member at the New York Society of Association Executives (NYSAE). This article is excerpted from her LinkedIn Article “Club. Quarantine. The Show Must Go On.”