DMC stands for Destination Management Company. You have probably heard about this kind of service companies linked to tourism activities.
A DMC can offer ―among other features― the following services:
- Reception at airports, harbours, stations, etc. and transport.
- Tours (touristic, gastronomical, thematic, etc.)
- Accommodation management.
- Events (localization, setting, entertainment, additional activities, gifts, etc.)
At this point, you might be wondering: “But I can get the same services from a tour operator or a convention bureau…”
What is the difference between a DMC and other tour operators?
We will try to make clear why and when you should contact a DMC. To that end, let us see the features that define a Destination Management Company:
Experience is the key
The first characteristic that stands out is a deep knowledge of the destination and ample experience working on it. Since DMCs always operate at their territory, they treasure both information and experience that can prove to be of great value when time comes to take decisions about activities that take place outside our territory. We will try to explain how important this point is through an analogy.
Imagine that you have a friend or relative who has lived for years at the same place, Ibiza, for example. Imagine that you are planning your wedding and you want to stay a few days on that island. Now imagine that you go to a travel agency ―yes, they still exist!― and they suggest you a hotel, a few trips and some restaurants. Would you not talk to that relative or friend who has been living in the island for years to make sure that the advice you got at the travel agency is what best suits you? If that relative or friend told you that a restaurant is not so good or that the price the agency is offering is excessive, who would you believe? In other words, who do you think has more and better information?
In our opinion, this is the main reason why you should trust a DMC (make sure it is a local DMC!) to take care of the organization of any event outside your city.
Quantity and quality
Another differentiating feature of DMCs is the quantity and quality of resources at their disposal. Since a local DMC always works at its territory, experience and knowledge grant it a lot of alliances with several local suppliers. This situation leads to:
- More precise offers. As we have mentioned, a DMC knows perfectly well the local offers and, depending on your needs, it can guide you to the supplier that can satisfy them in a more satisfying way.
- More room to negotiate. Thanks to the turnover and the alliances all DMCs stablish in their territory, they can always get way more competitive prices for your event.
Local taste
During an interview for Forbes Life, Mitchell Crosby, CEO of JMC Charleston, a Destination Management Company based in Charleston (South Carolina) referred to this local taste saying: “We try to give visitors a feel of the real city. As a Destination Management Company dealing with people from all over the country, we want to make sure that guests understand the traditions, values, and way of life that makes Charleston so special.”
In our opinion, this is one of the key factors to determine if an event will be successful. As we have mentioned before, a DMC knows perfectly well the environment where it operates. Thanks to this expertise, their implication in our event will give it that touch that helps participants to feel the local reality of a destination and experience its gastronomy, culture, traditions and attractions. All from a local point of view. In short, we will manage to give our event that elegant touch and local taste that will make it unique.
A single interlocutor
Imagine that you are planning an event outside your area. You will probably envision long hours googling on your computer, infinite and never ending phone calls and painfully long e-mail chains with agencies, hotels, rental car services, restaurants, etc.
Now imagine that you have a single interlocutor who has all the features we have described up to this point, factors we could summarize as knowledge, experience, room to negotiate and a competitive offer. Imagine that you can leave all the field work and the organization of your event on this interlocutor’s hands while you invest all the hours you were going to spend on your computer and on the phone to take care of details that are closer to you and really depend on you.
Finally, imagine that participants of your event are totally satisfied and pleasantly surprised.
For all these reasons, we believe that forming an alliance with a DMC when organizing events outside your area is strategically necessary.
The following infographic summarizes why choosing a DMC is so important:
If you wish to get more information on the subject or suggest a topic for future posts, or if you want to tell us about your experience, please leave a message below.