Does Relationship Selling Still Make Sense in a Digital World?

With so many options for building business online, some DMCs (destination management companies) are questioning whether the status quo — attending 3 or 4 meetings and trade shows a year and hoping that relationships will grow from there — is becoming outdated.

Sofia Santamaria, co-founder of DMC Accelerator, thinks so. “They are relying on other people to build their business. I find it insane to think that if you attend this many lunches and dinners in a year, it will bring you this many contacts.”

She has spent the past couple of months interviewing agencies about how they choose DMCs, and believes the industry’s business model of relationship-building is outdated. “Buyers continue only to work with suppliers they know personally and miss out on all the other companies out there.”

Others who have been around for a while, like Benoit Sauvage, who founded Connect DMC 27 years ago to service programs in the Dominican Republic and Mexico, disagree and say it’s essential to have a solid ground partner, especially when traveling outside the U.S.

“Trust is reinforced by shared experiences. Walking a site together, solving a challenge together, having honest conversations over time. People want to work with people they trust and like.”

Preferred Providers Only

Part of the challenge for fledgling DMCs is that the buying patterns of agencies are well established: Most work off a list of preferred providers and have agreements with the various DMC consortiums. It can take an independent DMC years to make it onto those lists — even if they have fresh, creative ideas to offer.

Annette Gregg, CEO of the Society for Incentive Travel Excellence, which has 640 DMCs in its membership, recalls her days as a planner at a financial services company, where they worked with only one agency. Suggesting anyone outside of that agency’s preferred vendor list “would throw a wrench into the system,” she said. “If you have 1,000 meetings to plan, your planners don’t have the time to work with someone not on the list. I just think it comes down to time.”

Meanwhile, DMC consortiums continue to buy up companies, and mergers such as Cohera’s recent one of two powerhouse DMCs (360 Destination Group and CSI DMC), are narrowing the field even more.  

Santamaria sees these consortiums as an extension of the relationship paradigm. “This narrative is embedded into the industry: There has to be an entity that connects people. This is the only way for you to have the reach and representation in different parts of the world. You won’t be booked if you are not part of a network — end of story.”

Consortium membership isn’t always the answer either. “I’ve had DMCs tell me that regarding certain partners they're working with,” she said. “It doesn't make sense to pay that fee and it is just not working for them any more.”

But even if a small, lesser-known DMC might offer a better deal, planners are hesitant to trust their program with someone who maybe is not as skilled, Gregg says. “So they’re going to keep going back to tried-and-true unless they can find a recommendation from a fellow planner, or from a community they belong to, such as Club Ichi or ELX.”

Shifts in Decision-Making

However, Val Delaney, executive vice president of the Association of Destination Management Executives, which has 240 DMC members, sees a shift in the way planners and agencies source and evaluate DMCs. Zoom calls, referrals, digital portfolios, and virtual destination tours  are now standard parts of the vetting process. “In many cases, they are more than sufficient to determine whether a DMC should receive an RFP or advance in the selection process,” she said.

Daniela Bikoulis, director of Metropolitan DMC & Event Management, an owner-managed DMC in Greece, has seen more new corporate and third-party business in the last couple of years after investing in her company’s online presence. “Requests come via our website and social media, particularly LinkedIn, from people who have not met us personally. More than ever, we are converting business from new accounts who found us online.”

Ultimately, this is not an “old way versus new way” conversation, says Delaney. “Relationships still matter, but relationships today are built in more ways than ever before. The most successful DMCs — large or small — are those that combine professional credibility, digital visibility, and authentic relationship-building to earn business.”