CVB members of Destinations International's Large Market Roundtable, including Choose Chicago — which represents McCormick Place, above — led the drive to create the DBA toolkit.
Destinations International has launched its Destination Booking Agreement toolkit, which was designed to establish mutually agreeable terms for both destinations and planners and their organizations for citywide events. The DBA toolkit allows each CVB to customize the agreements to their respective destination's needs.
While planners typically sign contracts with venues, hotels and suppliers for citywide events, they don't always have agreements with the CVBs themselves. The DBAs are designed to fill the void, and protect both the CVBs and planners in the event of last-minute cancellations.
The DBA development was driven by members of Destination's International’s Large Market Roundtable, which consists of 31 large-market DMOs.
"The need for CVBs and business events strategists to come together to
create best practices for destination booking agreement guidelines has
been an ongoing conversation for our industry," said Don Welsh,
president and CEO of Destinations International. "Destinations
International’s Large Market Roundtable has done great work to take the
lead on this thought leadership that will ultimately enhance our entire
industry moving forward."
Junior Tauvaa, chief sales officer, Visit Anaheim, a member of the Large Market Rountable, added, "DBAs allow destinations to clearly articulate and itemize dates, rates, space and any incentives or concessions offered to clients to secure their business."
Dustin Arnheim, senior vice president of sales and services at Choose Chicago, another CVB in the roundtable, pointed out the value to planners as well. "It is imperative that our customers feel equally protected within our agreements – from securing dates to making concessions legally binding. I also see the DBA as an important communication tool. There continues to be significant turnover in our industry. Capturing the destination organization’s commitments in the DBA prevents anything from being lost or misinterpreted when new staff come on board."