Customer Spotlight: Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau
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How GMCVB powers strategic insights for Miami’s dynamic tourism market
About GMCVB
The Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau (GMCVB) is a key player driving tourism to Miami-Dade County. Funded predominantly by local tourism taxes, GMCVB supports over 1,000 regional partners – including hotels, event organizers, and local authorities. They promote Miami as a leading global destination, actively working to attract international visitors, conventions, sporting events, and cultural tourism, while also navigating the complex dynamics of hotels, cruises, and short-term rentals.
Andrew Wobensmith, Director of Research & Business Intelligence, is tasked with providing critical insights that help stakeholders across Miami make strategic decisions – whether it’s a hotel manager adjusting rates, local politicians promoting economic growth, or even the Miami Beach Police Department optimizing staffing levels.
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Navigating complex tourism insights
Tourism in Miami is unlike anywhere else. As Andrew explains, “We’re one of the heaviest international destinations in the country.” This complexity, combined with rapidly shifting tourism patterns – accelerated by the pandemic – makes Miami a uniquely challenging market to understand.
Andrew’s role is pivotal in providing accurate, timely data to GMCVB’s diverse stakeholders. Hotels, cruise lines, short-term rentals, and local authorities all depend on his insights. “Success for me means making stakeholders happy by giving them answers to solve their questions,” he notes.
Filling crucial data gaps with Lighthouse
Before partnering with Lighthouse, GMCVB struggled with incomplete and unreliable data sources for short-term rentals. Andrew shares a vivid example from 2020: “When the pandemic hit, we discovered how poor our previous short-term rental data was. It was giving us information as if we were having a record year when no one was even here.”
GMCVB needed trustworthy, accurate short-term rental data without the prohibitive cost of some competitors. Lighthouse provided a clear solution: reliable, transparent, and cost-effective data. Andrew appreciates the intuitive nature of Lighthouse data, as it aligns closely with well-established metrics from hotel industry data, giving him confidence in the insights he provides to his stakeholders.
“We know Lighthouse data is accurate because we’re comparing it to other trusted sources, and it always holds up.”
Enhancing stakeholder understanding with integrated data
Andrew emphasizes that having reliable short-term rental data from Lighthouse enables him to deliver a clearer, more comprehensive picture of Miami’s lodging landscape. Hotels are a primary focus, but ignoring short-term rentals would mean missing crucial dynamics in visitor behavior and market shifts.
“Short-term rentals are growing faster than hotels,” Andrew notes, highlighting that despite some stakeholders’ concerns, it’s critical to track this trend accurately. Lighthouse data enables GMCVB to anticipate market changes and ensures that stakeholders are always well-informed.
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Unique insights driving operational decisions
One particularly striking application of Lighthouse data is GMCVB’s collaboration with the Miami Beach Police Department. Andrew explains:
“Every week, I provide short-term rental and hotel occupancy data to the Miami Beach Police Department. They use this to predict periods of higher demand and adjust their staffing accordingly. It surprised me how much they depend on this data – it's become essential for their operational planning.”
This strategic use of tourism data highlights an unexpected but crucial community benefit, emphasizing the broader impact and value of accurate tourism insights.
Tangible outcomes and broader impact
The trust and accuracy of Lighthouse data translates directly into GMCVB’s ability to deliver on stakeholder needs. Andrew frequently uses this data to validate or refute stakeholder concerns about market shifts. He emphasizes that the clarity provided by Lighthouse enables more informed discussions about market dynamics and helps prevent unfounded speculation.
Additionally, by accurately tracking and sharing data trends, GMCVB supports local authorities in resource allocation, enabling a proactive rather than reactive approach to tourism management.
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Exceptional customer support and partnership
Andrew emphasizes that customer support plays a significant role in his positive experience with Lighthouse. He specifically calls out his long-term relationships with the Lighthouse team as being central to his ongoing satisfaction
“Lighthouse’s team is proactive, responsive, and extremely pleasant to work with. Their expertise and customer care are reasons why we continue working with them – personal relationships matter, and these relationships add immense value.”
Advice to other DMOs considering Lighthouse
For destination marketing organizations evaluating data providers, Andrew offers straightforward advice based on experience:
“Lighthouse’s product is good, reliable, and very importantly, cost-effective. It fits within our budget and our needs. If you need accurate, affordable short-term rental data that holds up to scrutiny, Lighthouse is an excellent choice.”
Looking forward
Reflecting on the broader role of data in destination marketing and the essential nature of his work in supporting Miami’s thriving tourism economy, Andrew recognizes the intrinsic value of reliable insights, not just in economic terms but in community impact:
“Our success is driven by meeting stakeholder needs. If our stakeholders trust our data, that’s our return on investment. Lighthouse enables us to provide reliable insights, building confidence in our decisions and actions.”
