Brand USA Talks Travel

Hear how the Tourism Exchange creates new opportunities for Suppliers, Distributors and Destinations. Early Travel Exchange adopters Nick Laister, Owner of Fairytale Farms, and Kathryn Davis, Managing Director of Visit West, share their experiences with this groundbreaking new platform. Nick runs a small business and Kathryn is at a destination. Nate Huff, President of Tourism Exchange USA, provides an overview. The session is moderated by Staci Mellman, Senior Vice President of Integrated Marketing at Brand USA. This episode was recorded live at Brand USA Travel Week UK & Europe 2023.

British-American Broadcaster, Author, and Co-Host of the “Men in Blazers” podcast, Roger Bennett and Brand USA's Senior Vice President of Public Affairs, Aaron Wodin-Schwartz, reignite a passion for all things USA in this Travel Week chat. We delve into the enduring promise of America, the growing popularity of soccer in the U.S. and commiserate over supporting losing sports teams on both sides of the pond.

Our expert panel discusses consumer demand for sustainability in travel, climate change effects, potential policy change, the latest research on the subject, and needed innovation. Panelists include Nejc Jus, Head of Research at the World Travel and Tourism Council; Chip Rogers, President and CEO of American Hotel and Lodging Association; and Eric Hansen, Senior Vice President of the US Travel Association. Moderated by Brand USA’s Senior Vice President, Public Affairs, Aaron Wodin-Schwartz. This episode was recorded live at Brand USA Travel Week UK & Europe.

Phil Marshall from Sky Sports speaks with Rowena Samarasinhe, Dave Goodger & Ben Martin about the best to ways to position sports to drive visitation to America. The panel discusses creating a blend of memorable experiences that includes sporting events, authentic storytelling around sports, and the growth of international sports tourism. Dave Goodger is Managing Director, Europe and Middle East at Tourism Economics. Ben Martin is CEO, Pitchside Sport and Entertainment. Rowena Samarasinhe is Partner at LEVEL, Managing Director at GENSport, and a TEDx Speaker. The episode was recorded live at Brand USA Travel Week UK & Europe.

Panelists Helen Brocklebank - CEO, Walpole, Karen Joyce - General Manager, EMEA, Virtuoso, and Toby Skinner - Features Director, Conde Nast Traveler dissect trends in luxury travel, the importance of storytelling in the luxury travel space, luxury travel experiences that transform, and different demo experiences. The panel is moderated by Brand USA’s Mathu Premaruban, Senior Director, Marketing Communications & Public Relations. This episode was recorded live at Brand USA Travel Week U.K. & Europe 2023.

Mark and John discuss how the travel industry can better serve the accessibility market, what options are available to DMOs who might not know where to begin, and current opportunities in accessibility marketing. John is one of the few people in the travel industry to hold the Accessibility Certification from the International Association of Accessibility Professionals. He is CEO of Accessible Travel Solutions.

Mark and Aaron Wodin-Schwartz sit down for a bittersweet farewell to Julie Heizer, retiring from her role as Deputy Director at the U.S. Department of Commerce's National Travel and Tourism Office. Julie shares lessons learned throughout decades of promoting travel and tourism to the United States, the unique nature of tourism as a business built on relationships, and how current travel and tourism professionals can welcome the next generation into the industry. And, oh yes, Julie names names!

Scott dishes on using card points to your benefit – knowledge he gained from his tenure as Executive Editor of The Points Guy. We also discuss the traveler's "bed-to-bed experience" as opposed to the traditional “sidewalk-to-sidewalk" approach, and how content curation can add authority to messaging. Scott Mayerowitz runs his own consultancy, GlobeTrotScott, and has a long career in editing and reporting on travel and business for ABC News and the Associated Press.

Marks digs into Matador's newest product, GuideGeek, one of the first artificial travel planners for consumers that offers answers to most questions concerning travel. We cover AI mistakes and how that affects brand authority, interaction of live agents with customers, and how destinations might utilize GuideGeek. Ross Borden is CEO of Matador Network.

Google Travel’s Head of Content Partnerships, Rachita Awasthi, helps destinations and their constituents drive discoverability online. She explains the Google travel initiative, free tools, education, and best practices for producing video to be surfaced on Google and YouTube.