447: Experience Ruston's New CEO Reveals the 3-Word Framework Every DMO Needs with Tori Davis

Adam Stoker opens with the numbers that should worry every destination: US fertility hit a record low under 1.6 in 2025, net immigration fell from 2.2 million to 410,000, and the places people most want to visit are the ones your staff can least afford to live in. Sixty-five percent of hotels already report staffing shortages. His argument is that the visitor you market to today is the workforce you recruit from tomorrow. Then Cristal Rodriguez, Director of Marketing at Tempe Tourism, picks it up from a city that has to plan for it — through a rebrand built on six to eight months of listening, a boutique agency that had never touched a DMO, Prop 302 funding that runs out in five years, and the new Arizona TIA that Tempe is letting Visit Phoenix test first. Subscribe to our ⁠⁠⁠⁠newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠! The ⁠⁠⁠⁠Destination Marketing Podcast⁠⁠⁠⁠ is a part of the ⁠⁠⁠⁠Destination Marketing Podcast Network⁠⁠⁠⁠. It is hosted by Adam Stoker and produced by Brand Revolt. If you are interested in any of Brand Revolt’s services, please email ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.thebrandrevolt.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. To learn more about the Destination Marketing Podcast network and to listen to our other shows, please visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.thedmpn.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. If you are interested in joining the network, please email ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Travis Scott, CEO of Visit Big Bear, joins Adam Stoker for a conversation about running a rural destination when everything is on the line. Travis tells the story behind Jackie, Big Bear's world-famous bald eagle, and how Visit Big Bear turned a small nonprofit's unwatched nest cam into a global phenomenon while agreeing to take zero branding in return. He explains how he rebuilt trust at Visit Mendocino County by building a coalition instead of a plan, why Big Bear's real problem was never over-tourism but visitor distribution, and what moved him from destination marketing to destination management. With much of the Western U.S. on fire, Travis closes with the crisis playbook he's built across two rural DMOs — starting with the rule that gives this episode its name. Plus, Adam opens with the DMO that was missing from his hometown parade, and the float he'd build instead. Subscribe to our ⁠⁠⁠⁠newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠! The ⁠⁠⁠⁠Destination Marketing Podcast⁠⁠⁠⁠ is a part of the ⁠⁠⁠⁠Destination Marketing Podcast Network⁠⁠⁠⁠. It is hosted by Adam Stoker and produced by Brand Revolt. If you are interested in any of Brand Revolt’s services, please email ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.thebrandrevolt.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. To learn more about the Destination Marketing Podcast network and to listen to our other shows, please visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.thedmpn.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. If you are interested in joining the network, please email ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Adam Stoker opens with a hard look at why the industry plays it safe, and how that instinct produced both the sea of sameness and the funding fight that came with it. Then Jason Gamel, President and CEO of ARDA, shows what it costs in practice. The timeshare industry generates $3.3 billion in annual rental revenue, all taxed like any other stay, and the average family of four spends just under $5,000 per trip with lodging already paid for. Most destinations have never built a relationship with the resorts producing it. Jason and Adam get into who to call, how to tap shoulder-season inventory, and the stigma still keeping DMOs from picking up the phone. Jason also shares the risk he's taking right now: an association-owned insurance captive, two and a half years in and still not guaranteed to launch. Subscribe to our ⁠⁠⁠⁠newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠! The ⁠⁠⁠⁠Destination Marketing Podcast⁠⁠⁠⁠ is a part of the ⁠⁠⁠⁠Destination Marketing Podcast Network⁠⁠⁠⁠. It is hosted by Adam Stoker and produced by Brand Revolt. If you are interested in any of Brand Revolt’s services, please email ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.thebrandrevolt.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. To learn more about the Destination Marketing Podcast network and to listen to our other shows, please visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.thedmpn.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. If you are interested in joining the network, please email ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Collin Norman sat through 4 interviews, a Zoom panel with more than 20 people, a request for his start date and a tour of the budget — then got rejected by email, with no call and no feedback. Today he's the Executive Director of Visit Clearfield County, Pennsylvania, and he's building a hiring process that looks nothing like it. Collin joins Adam Stoker to break down why DMO hiring is broken, why it's the same disease as the RFP process, and the three steps he'd run instead — plus what job seekers should do to clear the AI screen and still read like a human wrote it. Adam opens with a monologue on Tennessee's "Yeah, It's Real" photo certification program and where AI stops enhancing an image and starts fabricating one. Subscribe to our ⁠⁠⁠⁠newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠! The ⁠⁠⁠⁠Destination Marketing Podcast⁠⁠⁠⁠ is a part of the ⁠⁠⁠⁠Destination Marketing Podcast Network⁠⁠⁠⁠. It is hosted by Adam Stoker and produced by Brand Revolt. If you are interested in any of Brand Revolt’s services, please email ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.thebrandrevolt.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. To learn more about the Destination Marketing Podcast network and to listen to our other shows, please visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.thedmpn.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. If you are interested in joining the network, please email ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠.

In a solo episode, Adam Stoker unpacks a shift he can't stop thinking about since the latest CMO Jam: the agency-of-record model in destination marketing is about to change — whether agencies drive it or clients do. Adam walks through the forces quietly reshaping the relationship — media commissions shrinking, AI erasing the knowledge gap that once justified agency premiums, and DMO teams pulling more work in-house — and what all of it means for who you hire and why. He also shares the one thing every destination should refuse to outsource, the budget line he thinks smart DMOs will start protecting, and a blunt look behind the curtain at how agencies really handle your vendor relationships. Plus, the story behind DMO Jam — the new application-only peer program born out of two years of CMO Jam. Subscribe to our ⁠⁠⁠⁠newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠! The ⁠⁠⁠⁠Destination Marketing Podcast⁠⁠⁠⁠ is a part of the ⁠⁠⁠⁠Destination Marketing Podcast Network⁠⁠⁠⁠. It is hosted by Adam Stoker and produced by Brand Revolt. If you are interested in any of Brand Revolt’s services, please email ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.thebrandrevolt.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. To learn more about the Destination Marketing Podcast network and to listen to our other shows, please visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.thedmpn.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. If you are interested in joining the network, please email ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Travel Nevada CMO Keelie Cox joins the show to break down "Get a Little Out There," the destination's five-episode series with free solo climber Alex Honnold — from the initial pitch and contracting logistics to the numbers behind it: 1.75 billion earned media impressions and over four million hours watched. Keelie shares why owning the content rights mattered, how the project got approved on a tight timeline, and why Travel Nevada chose a long-term content partnership over a one-off celebrity spot. She also talks through how the CMO team decides which corners of Nevada to spotlight and what she'd tell any destination marketer considering a similarly ambitious bet.Subscribe to our ⁠⁠⁠⁠newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠!The ⁠⁠⁠⁠Destination Marketing Podcast⁠⁠⁠⁠ is a part of the ⁠⁠⁠⁠Destination Marketing Podcast Network⁠⁠⁠⁠. It is hosted by Adam Stoker and produced by Brand Revolt. If you are interested in any of Brand Revolt’s services, please email ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.thebrandrevolt.com⁠⁠⁠⁠.To learn more about the Destination Marketing Podcast network and to listen to our other shows, please visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.thedmpn.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. If you are interested in joining the network, please email ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Tori Davis, President & CEO of Experience Ruston, Louisiana, joins Adam Stoker to talk about her path from marketing intern to DMO CEO, and the "three I's" framework she's using to guide the destination — Impact, Investment, and Identity. She and Adam also dig into how Ruston is preparing for Louisiana's first Buc-ee's, using it as a gateway rather than a distraction from the rest of what the destination offers. Plus, Adam opens the show with a look at how the World Cup is proving that live sports and events can build international trust and travel demand that outlasts economic and political headlines. Subscribe to our ⁠⁠⁠⁠newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠! The ⁠⁠⁠⁠Destination Marketing Podcast⁠⁠⁠⁠ is a part of the ⁠⁠⁠⁠Destination Marketing Podcast Network⁠⁠⁠⁠. It is hosted by Adam Stoker and produced by Brand Revolt. If you are interested in any of Brand Revolt’s services, please email ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.thebrandrevolt.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. To learn more about the Destination Marketing Podcast network and to listen to our other shows, please visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.thedmpn.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. If you are interested in joining the network, please email ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Adam sits down with Lance Fite, VP of Sports at Visit Mesa, to unpack how sports tourism became Mesa's biggest tourism driver, booking 60,000–80,000 room nights a year. Lance shares his path from pro basketball to DMO leadership, the story behind Arizona Athletic Grounds (a 280-acre sports complex years in the making), and why youth sports keep the lights on between marquee events. Adam opens with a monologue on why DMOs are hiring for the wrong things in the AI era. Subscribe to our ⁠⁠⁠⁠newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠! The ⁠⁠⁠⁠Destination Marketing Podcast⁠⁠⁠⁠ is a part of the ⁠⁠⁠⁠Destination Marketing Podcast Network⁠⁠⁠⁠. It is hosted by Adam Stoker and produced by Brand Revolt. If you are interested in any of Brand Revolt’s services, please email ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.thebrandrevolt.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. To learn more about the Destination Marketing Podcast network and to listen to our other shows, please visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.thedmpn.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. If you are interested in joining the network, please email ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Adam sits down with Lance Fite, VP of Sports at Visit Mesa, to unpack how sports tourism became Mesa's biggest tourism driver, booking 60,000–80,000 room nights a year. Lance shares his path from pro basketball to DMO leadership, the story behind Arizona Athletic Grounds (a 280-acre sports complex years in the making), and why youth sports keep the lights on between marquee events. Adam opens with a monologue on why DMOs are hiring for the wrong things in the AI era. Subscribe to our ⁠⁠⁠⁠newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠! The ⁠⁠⁠⁠Destination Marketing Podcast⁠⁠⁠⁠ is a part of the ⁠⁠⁠⁠Destination Marketing Podcast Network⁠⁠⁠⁠. It is hosted by Adam Stoker and produced by Brand Revolt. If you are interested in any of Brand Revolt’s services, please email ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.thebrandrevolt.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. To learn more about the Destination Marketing Podcast network and to listen to our other shows, please visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.thedmpn.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. If you are interested in joining the network, please email ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Adam Stoker talks with Will Wright, managing partner of UK-based Destination Core, about the content-centric, owned-media-first website platform they've quietly built together. They dig into why traditional destination websites function as glorified directories, how their first joint client, Play Golf Myrtle Beach, put the concept to the test, and why the best DMOs now win by answering travelers' questions and inspiring them, rather than just chasing bottom-of-funnel metrics. Subscribe to our ⁠⁠⁠⁠newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠! The ⁠⁠⁠⁠Destination Marketing Podcast⁠⁠⁠⁠ is a part of the ⁠⁠⁠⁠Destination Marketing Podcast Network⁠⁠⁠⁠. It is hosted by Adam Stoker and produced by Brand Revolt. If you are interested in any of Brand Revolt’s services, please email ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.thebrandrevolt.com⁠⁠⁠⁠.To learn more about the Destination Marketing Podcast network and to listen to our other shows, please visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.thedmpn.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. If you are interested in joining the network, please email ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠.