TTMA ANNUAL REPORT 2010
Dear Members,
I’m pleased to provide you with this annual report for the Travel Tourism Marketing Association. Although this year was very trying for many of us in the tour and travel industry, I’m happy to report that our organization stayed steadfast in its mission of providing high quality professional and educational resources and networking opportunities to our membership. In addition, our very dedicated Board of Directors coordinated some terrific programs, and helped lead the way for better communications tools and practices for the day-to-day administration of our organization. Following is an overview.
MEMBERSHIP
At year’s end our organization was comprised of 92 members. This number has remained fairly consistent over the last five years. It is my hope that many of the new communications tools and programming initiatives put into place in 2010 will help us to increase our membership past the century mark in 2011.
COMMUNICATIONS
Our electronic communications mediums greatly improved this past year. Board Member Carrie Tayloe did a complete overhaul of our TTMA.org website. This has given the organization a much more professional look and a better platform to communicate with our membership. This past week Carrie was able to make some additional technical upgrades to the site. This will now allow us to easily post photographs of current events, updates to our membership directory, and user-friendly membership resources. A big thank you to Carrie for her leadership on this project.
Fellow Board member Dick Bublitz did a great job of photographing our meetings and events, arranging our participation in LA’s Largest Mixer, and sending out press releases about standout events.
Rounding out the team effort, Mia Falkenstein and I created a TTMA facebook page, which the entire Board and Joanie have contributed to regularly.
PROGRAMS
This past year we hosted a variety of programs, attracting superior speakers from a broad range of tourism organizations and companies. Highlights included:
January at the Getty Center– Cultural tourism address featuring Michael McDowell, LA INC’s Senior Director of Cultural Tourism and Ron Hartwig, J. Paul Getty Trust’s Vice President of Communications.
February at Charlie Palmer’s at Bloomingdale’s in South Coast Plaza – Warner Escher, Executive Director of Domestic and International Markets for South Coast Plaza presented
“Pairing Shopping, Dining and Tourism for a Premiere Shopping Experience.”
March at the Air Tel Plaza Hotel in Van Nuys – Featuring addresses by Anastasia K. Mann, Chairman, Corniche Group and Jay Aldrich, Consultant/Professor, CSUN & SFV CVB. Adlrich and Mann discussed the state of the airline industry and new trends in luxury travel.
May at the Biltmore Hotel Downtown – Michael K. Krause, Senior Vice President of Sales, LA INC. discussed the role unions play in our industry.
June at Hotel Maya in Long Beach – “Two Seminars and A Lunch” featuring John Severini, the new President & CEO of CalTIA and bonus social networking and search engine optimization seminars .
July at Universal Studios – “The Impact of International Tourism in California” as presented by Thomas See, Vice President of Sales at Universal Studios Hollywood.
August at Club Nokia at LA Live – Cocktail party, networking mixer and ASIA concert hosted by Club Nokia as a TTMA fundraiser!
November at Chaya Downtown – Media Panel led by Carol Martinez of LA Inc. featuring addresses and Q&A with Michael Hart, Editorial Director of Schneider Publishing, Hugo Martín, Business Writer for the Los Angeles Times, and Jennifer Miner, Luxury Travel Columnist at Suite101 and Travel Blogger for The Vacation Gals.
December at Taix Restaurant in Silver Lake – Featuring Kathleen Heerwagen, Product Manager for New World Travel discussing trends in international inbound travel from the receptive operator’s perspective. We also held a very successful Toys for Tots holiday collection drive at this event.
In sum, it was a year packed with great venues, informative speakers, and a diverse array of opportunities for networking with our friends and colleagues. All Board Members were involved in setting up these monthly meetings, but special thanks goes to Patrick Kaler of LA INC. for his extra effort to bring us great programming.
AKM/LANDMARK AWARDS CELEBRATION
Our annual AKM/Landmark Awards celebration, “An Evening with the Stars” was held September 29thon Madame Tussauds rooftop terrace in Hollywood. Industry leaders and Publisher and Editor of Discover Hollywood magazine Oscar and Nyla Arslanian were honored with the Anastasia K. Mann Leadership Award for their role in Hollywood’s resurgence as a tourist Mecca. The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce received the Landmark Award in honor of the 50th Anniversary of the Hollywood Walk of Fame ™. The award was accepted by Hollywood Chamber President Leron Gubler. Emmy Award-winning actress Mariette Hartley served as mistress of ceremonies, and award presenters included Anastasia K. Mann and LA City Councilman Tom LaBonge.
I’m pleased to report that our attendance was higher than last year’s event, but our Silent Auction suffered some due to some unseasonal rain and inadequate lighting of the auction area. Although the event was not as profitable as a fundraiser as we had hoped it would be, it was a great representation of the talent that supports our industry and a terrific tribute to our honorees.
We learn a great deal with each AKM event, and hope to expand on our findings from this past year to ensure the 2011 event is a smashing success.
I’d like to thank Lisa and Diane Scalia from Melting Pot Food Tours, our event chairs, for producing a truly elegant and memorable evening. Many thanks also to all who purchased tickets, sponsored tables and participated in the silent auction. Special thanks also to our dedicated Board Members who helped us set up and break down the dinner very cost effectively, Elizabeth McDonald for her assistance with set-up and ticket sales, the staff of Madame Tussauds and Joanie McClellan.
FINANCES AND ADMINISTRATION
Our Executive Director reports that our organization is sound financially. Should any member wish to see a financial report, one will be available after our Annual Board Retreat on February 9, 2011.
Thank you to our Secretary, Kathleen Cook, for keeping the minutes this year.
CHALLENGES FOR THE FUTURE
The Board has made significant progress this year in ensuring the organization’s finances and administrative practices are in order and that our communication tools are strong. It is my hope that in 2011 we can use these advances to grow our wonderful organization. This includes increasing membership and developing stronger and more diverse programming, social activities and productive forums for networking and professional growth.
The support and participation will enable the organization to reach these goals, and I’d like to encourage you to make the most of your TTMA membership. Join a committee, host a luncheon, suggest a future speaker or venue, or simply invite one of your fellow TTMA colleagues to lunch or coffee to exchange ideas. You’ll be glad you did.
I’d like to close my summary with a thank you to our Executive Director, Joanie McClellan, who continually demonstrates her commitment to this organization through her hard work and dedication. Joanie, thanks for all you do to better TTMA and our industry.
I’d also like to again acknowledge and thank our terrific Board of Directors who took on some tough issues this year. Although we faced many challenges, I am very proud of what we accomplished as a team and I hope you are too.
Your 2010 Board of Directors included:
Richard Bublitz – R.C. Bublitz & Associates, Kathleen Cook – Hollywood Heights Hotel, Mia Falkenstein – Hornblower Cruises and Events, Lance Haddix – Law Offices of K. Lance Haddix & Associates, Jerri Harris – Auto Club of Southern California/Westways Magazine, Stacy Huszczo – Club Nokia/LA Live, Patrick Kaler – LA Inc., David Singleman – The Getty, Carrie Tayloe – Smart Destinations, Lori Tostado – Madame Tussauds Hollywood
I look forward to continuing to serve you as a member of the 2011 Board of Directors and seeing the continued growth of TTMA.
Here’s to a terrific 2011!
Ilysha Buss
2010 President
Travel & Tourism Marketing Association
