Destination Roadmapping

Some communities spend years trying to turn downtown into the star attraction while visitors are actually coming for the lake, the sports complex, the trails, the rodeo, or the hospital

In this episode of Destination Roadmapping, Vicky Soderberg digs into one of the hardest truths in tourism strategy: just because downtown matters emotionally to residents doesn’t mean it’s what drives visitor behavior.

This episode explores:

• Why communities misidentify their true visitor anchor
• The difference between community identity and visitor flow
• Why downtown may work better as an “enhancer” instead of the primary draw
• How to connect downtown naturally into the visitor experience
• Practical ways to capture spending from sports tourism, outdoor recreation, and other visitor markets

Because tourism success isn’t about forcing visitors to care about downtown.

It’s about making the entire experience flow naturally enough that people stay longer, spend more, and actually want to come back.

Thanks for listening!

Look for new episodes each Wednesday wherever you get your podcasts, and in the meantime...

Connect with Vicky on LinkedIn

Some communities are building tourism experiences for visitors they WISH they had instead of the visitors already showing up.

And that disconnect creates problems fast.

In this episode of Destination Roadmapping, we’re unpacking what happens when tourism planning becomes too aspirational:

•  designing for “ideal” travelers instead of actual visitors
•  overlooking practical visitor needs 
•  chasing upscale branding while basics are still broken, and 
• ignoring the opportunities already sitting right in front of you 

Because visitor behavior tells the truth.

If your destination struggles with short stays, low exploration, weak downtown engagement, or visitors who never quite connect with the community, this episode is for you.

Small towns do not need to become someone else to build stronger tourism.

They need to understand who they already serve and build from there.

Thanks for listening!

Look for new episodes each Wednesday wherever you get your podcasts, and in the meantime...

Connect with Vicky on LinkedIn

What makes visitors stay longer in a community?

It may not be your attractions, your branding, or your event calendar.

It might be something much simpler: Shade. Seating. Snacks.

In this episode of Destination Roadmapping, Vicky breaks down one of the most overlooked parts of visitor experience design, the comfort needs that quietly determine whether people linger, explore, spend money, or leave.

Because visitors don’t only leave when they’re finished. They often leave because they’re hot, tired, and hungry.

This episode explores:

• Why comfort drives visitor behavior 
• How communities accidentally create “exit points” 
• The hidden role seating plays in making people feel welcome 
• Why snack and drink options matter more than many towns realize 
• Practical ways to turn pass-through traffic into longer stays 

If your downtown struggles to keep visitors engaged, this episode may explain why.

Thanks for listening!

Look for new episodes each Wednesday wherever you get your podcasts, and in the meantime...

Connect with Vicky on LinkedIn

If your vendors are complaining about low traffic, but your event felt busy, you don’t have an attendance problem.

You have a layout problem.

In this episode of Destination Roadmapping, we’re digging into The Booth Maze. The all-too-common setup where attendees walk your event and somehow miss half your vendors.

Not because they didn’t want to see them.
Because your layout made it easy to miss them.

We break down:

•  Why booth placement alone isn’t the issue, movement is 
•  How food vendors can accidentally stop traffic instead of driving it 
•  What happens when food lines and seating aren’t planned properly 
•  Why some vendors get all the exposure and others get skipped 
•  Practical ways to design booth flow so attendees naturally see more 

Because when your layout makes people guess where to go next, they stop exploring and that decision quietly impacts your vendors, your sales, and your overall event success.

Thanks for listening!

Look for new episodes each Wednesday wherever you get your podcasts, and in the meantime...

Connect with Vicky on LinkedIn

Are people visiting your town or just passing through it?

Many communities see constant traffic and assume that means tourism is healthy. Cars are moving. Gas stations are busy. Drive-thrus stay packed.

But pass-through traffic and visitor engagement are not the same thing.

In this episode of Destination Roadmapping, we’re unpacking the difference between being on the route and being part of the trip, and why so many communities mistake convenience stops for tourism success.

We cover:

•  How to tell if your town is functioning as a pass-through stop 
•  Why pass-through traffic can create a false sense of tourism performance 
•  The difference between serving travelers and attracting visitors 
•  Why local pride does not always equal visitor appeal 
•  How better experience design can turn quick stops into meaningful stays 

If your town gets traffic but not traction, this episode is for you.

Thanks for listening!

Look for new episodes each Wednesday wherever you get your podcasts, and in the meantime...

Connect with Vicky on LinkedIn

What if the thing you think makes your event “family-friendly" is actually holding it back?

In this episode of Destination Roadmapping, we’re challenging one of the most automatic decisions in event planning: The Kids Zone.

Most events have one.
 Most planners feel like they should.

But what if removing it actually improves the experience for families, vendors, and your overall event flow?

This episode breaks down:

•  Why kids zones often create separation instead of connection 
•  What parents are actually experiencing (and why it affects spending) 
•  How one design decision shapes movement, engagement, and energy 
•  A practical, step-by-step way to redesign your event without a kids zone 

You’ll walk away with a completely different lens:

Not “What do we have for kids?”
 But “How does a family experience this event as a family?”

Because when you get that right, everything works better.

Thanks for listening!

Look for new episodes each Wednesday wherever you get your podcasts, and in the meantime...

Connect with Vicky on LinkedIn

Some of the best experiences in your community might be the hardest for visitors to step into.

Not because they’re bad.
 Because they’re built on familiarity.

In this episode, we’re unpacking the “locals only” vibe. The feeling visitors get when everything works, as long as they already know how it works.

And here’s the twist:
 That local feel? It’s not the problem.

It’s actually what people want.

The problem is when visitors can see it, but can’t step into it.

We break down:
 • What the “locals only” vibe really is (and why it’s not always a bad thing)
 • How to recognize when visitors are hovering on the outside instead of engaging
 • Why people don’t come back, even when they say they liked it
 • Simple ways to make your experience easier to step into without losing what makes it feel local

Because the goal isn’t to make your town less authentic.

It’s to make it easier for someone new to feel like they belong in it.

Thanks for listening!

Look for new episodes each Wednesday wherever you get your podcasts, and in the meantime...

Connect with Vicky on LinkedIn

We’ve all experienced it.

The meeting ends. Everyone nods. “Great discussion.” Chairs slide back.

And then the real conversation starts, in the hallway, in the parking lot.

In this episode of Destination Roadmapping, we’re unpacking “the meeting after the meeting," why it happens, what it signals about your team dynamics, and how it quietly undermines your tourism plans and events.

Because when people don’t feel comfortable speaking in the room, the meeting becomes a performance instead of a working session.

And that’s where things start to break.

You’ll learn:

•  Why polite agreement during meetings turns into messy execution later 
•  The three biggest reasons real conversations get pushed outside the room 
•  The difference between unanimous agreement and real agreement (and why it matters) 
•  Simple ways to structure meetings so people actually say what they’re thinking 

We all like to debrief with afterwards. That part won’t change.

But if the important conversations only happen after the meeting, your plans are built on half the information.

And that’s when good ideas start to wobble.

If you want stronger events, better collaboration, and decisions that actually stick, it starts with making space for honest conversation, before the chairs get stacked.

Thanks for listening!

Look for new episodes each Wednesday wherever you get your podcasts, and in the meantime...

Connect with Vicky on LinkedIn

Tourism seasons rarely unfold exactly the way we expect. Gas prices shift, travel habits change, weather refuses to cooperate, and sometimes a random 12-second video sends visitors somewhere you never saw coming.

In this episode of Destination Roadmapping, we revisit the idea from Episode 20, the “What If” plan for events and apply it to an entire tourism season. Because just like events, destinations need to be ready for the unexpected.

We’ll explore several forces that could shape the 2026 tourism season, including travel price fatigue, shrinking travel radiuses, the “cute downtown” plateau, and the rapidly changing ways visitors discover places.

But we’ll also play a little devil’s advocate.

What if tourism planning can’t predict the biggest disruptions?
 What if travelers simply take fewer trips?
 What if the real answer isn’t more strategy, but better fundamentals?

Instead of trying to control every possible variable, the communities that succeed are usually the ones that build destinations flexible enough to adapt when things change.

Because tourism seasons, like the wind, don’t always blow the way we expect.

The goal isn’t predicting the weather.

It’s building a destination that sails well no matter which direction the wind comes from.

If you care about creating experiences that make visitors stay longer, spend more, and come back again, this episode will give you a fresh way to think about uncertainty in tourism.

Small towns don’t win by predicting everything.
They win by being ready for anything.

Thanks for listening!

Look for new episodes each Wednesday wherever you get your podcasts, and in the meantime...

Connect with Vicky on LinkedIn

Most small-town events are incredibly organized.

But they’re organized for the committee, not the crowd.

If your layout makes sense to the board but confuses first-timers
 If vendors are placed based on history instead of flow
 If guests need a volunteer just to figure out where to start

You may have designed an insider event.

In this episode, we break down:

• The difference between Planner Brain and Guest Brain
• How proximity bias quietly sabotages experience
• Why “fairness” often kills flow
• The hidden economic cost
• A simple walk-through audit you can use immediately

Because guests don’t care how hard you worked.

They care how it felt.

If you want people to stay longer, spend more, and be happy to drive two hours to come back again, this episode is your reset.

Thanks for listening!

Look for new episodes each Wednesday wherever you get your podcasts, and in the meantime...

Connect with Vicky on LinkedIn