Posts by Jonathan Freeze, CDME

Author: Jonathan Freeze, CDME

Jonathan Freeze, CDME, has built a career in the marketing of places, directing the Greater Raleigh CVB's marketing efforts since 2008. Though a firm believer in the science of marketing, Jonathan also began his career as a writer and creative wordsmith. More recently he became an instructor for two courses within the CDME Program of Destinations International—on brand strategy and on destination research. Learn more

Last year I wrote about the philosophy behind developing festival/event tourism in our area and plugging data into a cycle of improvement that leads to more positive impacts from these events. This week I want to be more specific about how GRCVB can help area festival/event organizers who are

Once a year or so, I overhear someone say that the Raleigh area doesn't have a brand. Having been project manager for development of the Raleigh, N.C., Destination Brand Strategy in 2014-2015, however, I know that we have at least one brand platform countywide! The problem is that we...

In past posts, we’ve covered visitor profile research and shared stats about Raleigh area visitors’ current makeup (studied biennially by GRCVB); we’ve also covered the economic significance of producing visitor-friendly festivals/events here and how economic impacts can be...

Back in 2015, GRCVB first expanded its promotion of signature experiences for visitors of all types, developing a Things to Do webpage that showcased a curated collection of personal tours and hands-on encounters in Raleigh/Wake County. All these experiences were suited for small groups (e.g.,

In past discussions of Visitor Math, I have summarized findings of big-picture (macro), annual research projects from the Greater Raleigh CVB, such as the 2016 Report on the Economic Impact of Tourism. (A 2017 report will be published this summer.) In this post, I want to describe how even small

In follow-up to past posts featuring GRCVB’s tourism research, let’s delve even more into the makeup of the average visitor to Raleigh/Wake County. Today’s stats give us insights into how we can optimize promotions to the area’s overnight visitors, including cooperative...

In late Sept., amid some simple tips for using GRCVB’s 2017-2018 Business Plan as a business planning resource, I suggested that our area hospitality businesses compare and contrast their average customers with the average visitor to Raleigh and Wake County. Doing this allows us to look for...

The business plan, or marketing plan updated annually, is a fundamental in most industries, and hospitality-sector businesses and organizations can use this long-range planning tool to guide their paths to year-over-year success even if their year-end outcomes are not strictly financial (as in the

The Greater Raleigh CVB has thousands of peer organizations throughout the world, each representing a city/county, region, state or nation, and many are members of our CVB industry association, the Destination Marketing Association International (established 1914), officially rechristened as

One of the most fulfilling times of year working at a destination marketing organization is when we stop to study the past year of visitation, measure the annual impacts and report on the area’s progress in visitor-related economic development. Perhaps nothing is more crucial to fulfilling...

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Tourism Talk blog

Author: Jonathan Freeze, CDME

Economic Impact Analysis Now Available for More Events

Keeping the Destination Brand Promise is Hard Work

Visitor Math: Benefits of Awareness Research

Signature Experiences: Putting People First

Tracking of Tourism Leads to Increased Impact from Events

Visitor Math: From + Where + What

More Ways of Applying Visitor Research to Increase Area Welcome

Use Research to Inform Your Hospitality Business Plan

From the Road: Raleigh Keeping Pace with Peers Internationally

Annual Visitation Numbers to Celebrate

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Author: Jonathan Freeze, CDME

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