Elizabeth Clark Achieves Travel Marketing Professional Certification from Southeast Tourism Society
Hickory, NC (September 11, 2024) – Elizabeth Clark, TMP, Marketing Coordinator at the Hickory Metro Convention Center & Visitors Bureau (Visit Hickory NC) has completed the three-year program of the Southeast Tourism Society Marketing College and earned certification as a Travel Marketing Professional (TMP).
Clark helps to coordinate the implementation of HMCC's brand through eye-catching content both in the meetings and events industry, as well as to visitors, to bring awareness of the Hickory Metro region as an exciting and inviting destination. Social media presence, destination guide creation, PR/Media site visits, client retention, and other items are among the many items Clark helps with. The goal of the Hickory Metro Convention Center and Visitors Bureau is to continue to gain awareness of the Hickory area to host meetings, conventions, sporting events, and more along with promoting the destination as a great place to visit and explore.
Clark was among 81 STS Marketing College graduates in the class of 2024, including 18 Festival & Event Planners (FEP). The graduates were announced at the STS Connections Conference in Auburn, Alabama in September. The program began in 1992 and has produced more than 1,488 TMPs.
STS Marketing College uses facilities at Mercer University in Macon, Georgia. Industry professionals from a variety of tourism sectors volunteer their time to teach the classes. They include convention and visitor’s bureau executives, public relations practitioners, sales and marketing consultants and research experts.
“STS is enhancing the professional skills of tourism professionals throughout the Southeast,” said Monica Smith, President and CEO of STS. “Earning TMP certification is a combination of classroom work and special projects. Becoming a TMP takes dedication.”
Study topics include tourism advertising, syndicated research, crisis management, special events marketing, media relations, heritage tourism, tourism sales, and community/rural tourism. In addition to classroom work, students must complete projects that relate to their employment.
“Our curriculum is practical. The knowledge students gain can be put to immediate use in their organizations,” Smith said.
“We are proud of Elizabeth completing this rigorous three-year program with fellow tourism marketing professionals across the southeast,” said Mandy Pitts Hildebrand, Hickory Metro Convention Center and Visitors Bureau CEO. “As our community grows, visitor impact increases and it is imperative that our team has all the knowledge needed when it comes to marketing to visitors - whether it be for leisure, sports, meetings, shopping, and more.”
Elizabeth is the second person to complete this 3-year program. Sarah Davis Jones, Hickory Metro Convention Center and Visitors Bureau Director of Sales and Marketing, graduated in 2022.
About Southeast Tourism Society (STS)
Southeast Tourism Society (STS) is a not-for-profit membership association dedicated to the development of travel and tourism professionals and organizations within the Southeast region. The association’s mission is to empower a diverse network of tourism professionals through education, advocacy, recognition, and networking. Member states include Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia.
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Contact:
Tonja Ray-Smith, TMP, FEP
Director of Marketing & Communications
770-355-4002
