Successful Meetings - May 2008 - (Page 18)

News & Analysis > Destination News Long Beach Customizes Website for Groups Following an April 2007 re-launch of its award-winning website, www.visit longbeach.com, the Long Beach CVB management company, NXTevent. “We are very excited,” says Joan Esneault, vice president of resort sales, Foxwoods Resort Casino and MGM Grand at Foxwoods. “The company’s reputation for executing professional and flawless programs and events bolsters [our] ability to host the region’s most unparalleled meetings and conventions.” Last October, the $800 million, 400room MGM Grand Detroit debuted as the Motor City’s first purpose-built casino resort complex. The MGM Grand Detroit features fine-dining restaurants; rooftop VIP suites; a 20,000-squarefoot destination resort-style spa; and 30,000 square feet of new and exclusive meeting and event space. However, there is little news about MGM’s proposed $5 billion “Center City East,” in Atlantic City. “There’s been a very cool drawing,” says Gary Musich, vice president of sales and marketing for Atlantic City Convention & Visitors Bureau. “The public information states that it’s due to break ground sometime in 2008 in the Marina district.” —Terri Hardin entered 2008 with new features to further benefit groups. “We want to make everything customized for groups before their meeting,” says CVB president Steve Goodling. “People want to obtain information easily and at their convenience, and our new options allow them to do just that.” The CVB creates custom micro sites that allow groups to communicate their specific message, schedule, and off-site events and activities. The CVB launched a new feature—interactive maps that show everything from the hotels where the group is staying, to the restaurants where they’ll be eating, to special event venues where they’ll be gathering. Delegates can then build itineraries from the maps. Later this year, the maps will also feature public parking “counters” that will show up-to-theminute parking space availability throughout the city and streaming videos showcasing hotels and attractions. The CVB will also add a new Web application that, once planners input their meeting parameters, will map out the room layouts for meeting spaces throughout the convention center. The bureau hopes to expand this to hotel meeting space in 2009. “Planners are looking for more assistance in marketing that will drive attendance to their meetings,” Goodling says. “We can provide all the content and tailor to the group’s needs.” —Lori Morris Hilton Makes Promoting Small Meetings Easier In March, Hilton Hotels Corp. launched the capability for meeting planners of programs requiring up to 25 rooms at any one of more than 2,400 hotels across North America to create their own webpage for an event. The new offering, available across all Hilton brands, is the second element of Hilton’s e-Events product. The sites include a booking mechanism linked to the room block, giving attendees more accurate rate and availability information. The sites also furnish planners with one central platform from which to promote a meeting—the planner can choose to include two photos and event details MAY 2008 SUCCESSFUL MEETINGS Donald Trump and Phil G. Ruffin, developer of the Trump International Hotel & Tower Las Vegas, toast the official opening of the property last month. The 64-story tower, encased in 24-karat gold glass, offers 1,282 ultra-luxury hotel residences and suites and 2,400 sf of meeting space that includes two meeting rooms of 800 and 1,000 sf, as well as a 600-sf Trump Board Room, each outfitted with state-of-the-art technology. 18 mimegasite.com http://www.visitlongbeach.com http://www.visitlongbeach.com http://mimegasite.com

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

Successful Meetings - May 2008
Contents
Editor's Note
Industry Trends
Destination News
Destination News
Suppliers
Destination News
Calendar
On the Record
Websites of the Month
Management Matters
Mouth for Sale
Meetings Law
Planner's Spotlight
Pre-Event
On Site
Tools of the Trade
Pre-Event
Counting Change
Giving Them the Business
The Magnificent Seven
All-American Gift Guide
Green Lights
Places & Spaces
Anaheim & Orange County
Upstate New York
Cincinnati
Detroit
San Diego
Phoenix
Gurus

Successful Meetings - May 2008