Rewriting the Rules of Destination Advocacy
Two days in Sacramento made one thing clear…Destination advocacy isn’t a side function of marketing anymore.
It’s the core focus of destination leadership.
What used to be about defending tourism’s value has evolved into demonstrating it daily. To residents, policymakers, and travelers alike.
The 2025 Destinations International Advocacy Summit brought together the most forward-thinking voices in our industry for strategic, tactical, and candid conversations. Here are eight takeaways that stood out, and why they matter.
1.) Advocacy now starts at home
From Visit Eau Claire’s creative approach to local partnerships to Visit Indy’s ongoing commitment to resident engagement and inclusive storytelling, DMOs are redefining what advocacy looks like.
They’re using marketing infrastructure to improve quality of life for locals instead of just attracting visitors.
When residents feel seen, they become your most credible storytellers. Resident benefit is the most persuasive advocacy there is.
Additional reading:
Check out this article to learn more about how you can make sure locals play an active role in your destination’s success, and how to help them understand the value tourism brings to their community.
2.) Policy and placemaking are becoming inseparable
Consultants from Hunden Partners put it bluntly: “Placemaking is a verb.”
True advocacy means shaping the environment visitors and residents share. Sometimes that means influencing policy before you influence perception—helping create the enabling legislation, funding tools, or zoning flexibility that allow good ideas to happen.
Your next big visitor win might start not with a creative brief, but with a line of policy language.
3.) Data matters, but emotion seals the deal
From Rove to Future Partners, presenters reinforced that data should follow the story, not lead it.
Stakeholders make decisions based on emotion first and logic second. Start with a story that humanizes your impact—then use data to validate it.
As one speaker said, “Put the numbers at the end of the story, not the beginning.” Emotion opens the door. Data earns the trust to walk through it.
And as Amir Eylon of Longwoods International reminded us, data earns its real power when it informs empathy. The latest resident sentiment research showed that destinations engaging in consistent, transparent communication build significantly higher community trust—proof that advocacy is as much about listening as leading.
4.) Local stories carry national weight
Across destinations—from Visit Mesa’s accessibility-forward initiatives to Visit Rapid City’s emphasis on civic collaboration—DMOs are reframing tourism as a community function, not just a marketing one.
Whether it’s developing local event calendars, supporting hospitality workforce pipelines, or showing up at neighborhood meetings, the most effective advocacy is visible at the ground level.
Small wins locally create powerful proof points nationally.
5.) Celebrate the people behind the purpose
One of the most energizing moments of the summit came during the session on Destination Professionals Day—officially recognized by Destinations International on February 19 each year.
The message was clear: If we want policymakers and residents to view our teams as essential to community vitality, we have to celebrate them that way.
Use the day to:
- Showcase your people: Highlight their impact on community and visitor experience.
- Invite recognition: Ask local officials to issue proclamations or participate.
- Tell your story internally and externally: Your staff are ambassadors, economists, storytellers, and civic partners all in one.
When your own people feel proud of the industry they represent, advocacy becomes personal—and unstoppable.
6.) Destination reputation is advocacy in real time
A new study from Destination Analysts and Future Partners explored how travelers perceive destinations facing issues like crime, weather, or politics.
- 87% of U.S. travelers said they’d avoid destinations dealing with one or more of those issues.
- Canadians cited U.S. political tension and safety concerns as key deterrents.
The takeaway: travelers want reassurance, not spin. Ads that show normalcy—families exploring, locals engaging, vibrant streets—perform better than ads that say “We’re safe.”
Authenticity is advocacy. Be transparent about challenges and proactive in communication. Trust builds faster when you tell the truth first.
7.) The new advocacy playbook: Credibility. Timing. Relationships. Optics.
In his final address as Chief Advocacy Officer, Jack Johnson unveiled DI’s forthcoming Advocacy Field Guide, a 10-chapter, ready-to-use framework for every destination.
His four pillars define the new era of influence:
- Credibility: The single most valuable currency; it’s earned, not claimed.
- Timing: Even the best idea fails if introduced at the wrong moment.
- Relationships: The structure everything rests on; broad, ongoing, and authentic.
- Optics: How your work looks matters as much as what it achieves.
As Jack put it, “Advocacy is the invisible dance between credibility, timing, relationships, and optics.”
It’s a framework that will define destination leadership for years to come.
And as Jack retires at the end of the year, it’s inspiring to see this work continue under Andreas Weissenborn, whose thought leadership and passion for connecting advocacy to social impact signal a strong future for the DI community. The organization—and the industry—are in great hands.
8.) The next chapter: Where advocacy meets action
To close the summit, DI announced that beginning in 2026, the Advocacy Summit and Social Impact Summit will join forces under one banner: Destination Impact, debuting in Ottawa, Canada.
The shift reflects our industry’s future: advocacy and impact are inseparable. Issues like workforce, accessibility, sustainability, and resident sentiment aren’t side conversations—they’re the main stage.
Our success will depend on treating them as interconnected drivers of both visitor economy and community health.
Advocacy isn’t reactive anymore
Advocacy is relational, emotional, and deeply human.
The DMOs leading the way are those proving every day that tourism is a public good. They’re transparent. They’re data-driven. And they’re building the kind of trust that no budget line can buy.
That’s what real advocacy looks like. And that’s exactly where our industry is headed.
A huge thank-you to Visit Sacramento for being such gracious hosts—the city was vibrant, walkable, and the opening reception at the California State Railroad Museum was a perfect reminder of how destinations can turn history into experience.
And finally, a shout-out to Josiah Brown, whose energy, humor, and humanity as emcee tied every conversation together and reminded us why this community is so special.
Want to dive into greater detail about any of these insights and how they apply to your DMO? Let’s talk.
