A Strategic Analysis of Convention and Visitors Event Venue Opportunities For DMO Marketing
Executive Summary
The Challenge: A major destination Marketing Organization (DMO) needed a comprehensive strategic analysis to understand its event and venue market and enhance its appeal to high-value events and conventions.
- The Approach: Turas Media conducted a detailed feasibility study, analyzing the core infrastructure, competitive landscape, unique venues, and the fundamental economics that drive event profitability.
- The Findings: The competitive analysis revealed that the destination’s primary advantage is its unrivaled, integrated ecosystem of venues.
- The Outcome: Our report provided a strategic roadmap and data-driven foundation for success, enabling the destination to attract and host a wide range of event types.
The Challenge: Beyond Static Infrastructure
The success of convention centers and Destination Marketing organizations is no longer defined solely by the size of their convention center. It depends on the dynamic, interconnected, and multifaceted event ecosystem it offers. A major destination engaged Turas Media to move beyond a simple inventory of its venues and provide a comprehensive strategic analysis. The goal was to understand its core infrastructure, unique venues, and the fundamental economics that drive profitability to secure its position as a premier destination for a wide range of events and conventions.
Our Approach: A Data-Driven Ecosystem Analysis
Turas Media’s approach was to deliver a robust, actionable report that served as a blueprint for strategic planning and business development. We provided an in-depth market research and analysis across three key areas to empower the destination to enhance its value proposition.
Market Intelligence: Turas Media began by meticulously mapping out the competitive landscape, analyzing major players within a 50-mile radius of the central convention district. This involved gaining an in-depth understanding of the capabilities of major players, such as the City's Convention Center and its interconnected ecosystem, as well as the unique offerings of non-traditional venues.
Strategic Positioning: We enabled the destination to identify and articulate a compelling value proposition by understanding how to leverage specific assets—such as natural landscapes, integrated recreational activities, and versatile indoor/outdoor spaces—to stand out in a competitive market. The demographic analysis also discusses the evolving preferences of convention and event attendees who are increasingly seeking more immersive, nature-based, and activity-based experiences. We also identified critical gaps in its event venue offerings and pinpointed strategic opportunities for improvement through the development of new venues.
- We enabled the destination to identify and articulate a compelling value proposition by understanding how to leverage specific assets—such as natural landscapes, integrated recreational activities, and versatile indoor/outdoor spaces—to stand out in a competitive market.
- We also identified critical gaps in its event venue offerings and pinpointed strategic opportunities for improvement through the development of new venues.
Business Development: To ensure sustained profitability, Turas Media provided a deep understanding of the economics of different event segments. Our analysis included a review of pricing models, profitability benchmarks, and key revenue drivers across various event types, including large-scale corporate functions, weddings, and pre-wedding parties. This financial insight is essential for developing robust and profitable business strategies.
Key Findings: The Unrivaled Power of an Integrated Ecosystem
Our competitive analysis unequivocally confirmed that the destination's primary competitive advantage lies in the powerful synergy between its core facilities.
Unparalleled Connectivity: The central Convention Center is seamlessly integrated with an extensive network of directly connected venues. A unique underground passage links the main center with a nearby stadium, and an extensive network of enclosed skywalks connects multiple hotels with over 749,000 square feet of exhibit space. This unparalleled connectivity minimizes logistical complexities and provides a seamless, weather-protected experience for attendees.
Mega-Event Capacity: The combination of a massive convention center with a large, adjacent stadium offers a formidable capability to host "mega-events" that require both extensive exhibition space and colossal seating capacity for tens of thousands of attendees. The seamless flow between these two venues for opening sessions, trade shows, and entertainment is a powerful selling point.
A Diverse Venue Portfolio: The destination's strength lies in its extensive and diverse inventory. It extends beyond the downtown core to include a vast fairgrounds and a wide array of non-traditional, immersive, nature-based, and unique venues. This portfolio allows the city to host specialized, large-scale, and multi-faceted events that might be limited by a traditional convention center footprint, attracting events for a more diverse audience.
The Outcome: A Strategic Foundation for Growth
The final report enabled the destination to move forward with confidence and a clear direction. It provided the essential intelligence needed to identify its unique strengths and pinpoint specific opportunities to attract high-value events. By enabling data-driven marketing and sales strategies, the report empowered the destination to craft a compelling value proposition and highlight its key differentiators to a broader range of event organizers.