Athens CVB Newsletter August 2013

Athens Now:

The monthly newsletter of the Athens Convention & Visitors Bureau

In This Issue...

Athens Exhibits at ASAE

Annual Hospitality Award Nominations Sought

CRM is Here!

Media Coverage

Sales Updates

Out and About with the CVB

Hospitality Newsmakers

Athens Exhibits
at ASAE

Athens was one of a select few Georgia cities to exhibit at the American Society of Association Executives annual convention in Atlanta Aug. 3-6. The CVB and The Classic Center were joint participants, and debuted a brand new Athens trade show booth at the event. Athens reps gained 125 leads at a variety of convention events, both formal and informal and including a mammoth trade show, making new contacts, as well as strengthening relationships with existing clients at formal and informal events during the convention. The CVB and Classic Center will be working these leads over the next weeks and months and are confident that new business will be booked for our city.

Annual Hospitality Award
Nominations Sought waiter

The Athens Convention & Visitors Bureau's annual Hospitality Awards will be presented this year at our Annual Meeting September 19 at The Classic Center.

We invite you, our local hospitality partners, to nominate deserving individuals for the Louis Griffith Hospitality Leadership Award as well as for Hospitality HEROES of the Year (for front-line employees.) Nominations are due by COB on Friday, August 23.

By submitting a nomination, you are encouraging excellence in the Athens hospitality industry and promoting our city as a first-rate destination for visitors. Take just a few minutes right now to honor Athens' hospitality leadership and employees by returning a nomination!

Online Nomination Form

**Note: We would particularly like to request that employers nominate front-line (non-management level) employees for Hospitality HEROES of the Year award, including specific examples of the employee's great service.

CRM is Here!

The CVB launched a new Customer Relationship Management system at the start of this fiscal year, July 1. CVB staff have undergone training and hoteliers received their training on August 15. Attractions and other local partners will have the opportunity to be introduced to the CRM in upcoming weeks. The CRM allows the CVB to track all our various interactions with consumers, meeting planners, and local partners in one place. Local partners who have Extranet access will be able to view this data and see a comprehensive portrait of CVB activity, including leads, referrals, and earned media coverage on behalf of the partner.

For more information, contact Hannah Smith, 706-357-4430.

Recent Media Coverage

Athens continues to receive not only national coverage, but attention from the top lifestyle and travel publications around!

Conde Nast Traveler ran a mini travel guide entry on Athens on August 2, which quotes Spectacular Now producer Andrew Lauren as saying "Athens is like an oasis of cool in the middle of nowhere."

Georgia Traveler filmed in Athens on Friday, July 26, for the upcoming season. The Athens segment is scheduled to air this fall in episode 2 (look for it the first week of November).

The Sept./Oct. issue of Garden & Gun included Athens Food Tours' fall Agro Cycle Tour!

Keep up with Athens rankings and media coverage at the media section of the CVB's website, http://www.visitathensga.com/media/athens-in-the-news/.

Sales Updates

In July, the CVB booked 15 future meetings/conventions with:

12,120 anticipated room nights
Expected attendance of 18,299

Athens is hosting the Georgia Society of Association Executives (GSAE) Strategic Planning Meeting on August 29-30. The group met in Athens last year and were so blown away that they have decided to return. Our next task is to top last year!

Out and About with the CVB

Many CVB staff members attended the Athens Area Chamber of Commerce Midyear event August 1 at the Georgia Museum of Art. Chuck Jones, Tripp McKenney, Christina Garmon, and Rachel Watkins were in attendance.

Photo from Spotted: Christina Garmon & Rachel Watkins.

Hospitality Newsmakers

Paul Cramer, executive director of The Classic Center, has been named to the International Association of Venue Managers (IAVM) Foundation Board of Trustees, the world's largest professional association dedicated to issues relevant to the management of public assembly venues. Its Foundation's board of trustees' mission is to work to increase the positive impact and vitality of the public assembly industry by funding research, education, and resource development.

The Athens Welcome Center celebrated its 40th anniversary, along with the contributions of its volunteers, at a gathering on July 10, which was attended by Christina Garmon and Chuck Jones of the CVB. The Athens Welcome Center encourages locals to visit any time to see the continued progress of the Church-Waddel-Brumby House Museum, take a tour, shop for that "perfect" locally made Athens gift, and utilize as a resource to introduce your visitors to our fair city.

The T.R.R. Cobb House was listed in the National Register of Historic Places on July 23, 2013. The T.R.R. Cobb House was originally listed in the National Register on June 30, 1975. It was automatically removed from the National Register in 1985 when it was moved from Athens to Stone Mountain Park. Curator Sam Thomas tells us that it has been a seven year process to regain this designation, and is deserving of a huge congratulations for seeing this process through to completion. Read more about the T.R.R. Cobb House and the National Register here.

August 2013