Visit’s Plano’s Marketing Manager, Millerann Moya and Convention Servicing and Group Housing Coordinator Shane Sorenson have earned the Texas Destination Marketer credential. Both recipients were honored at the Texas Association of Convention and Visitor Bureau’s (TACVB) Annual Conference held in El Paso on August 18.
The TDM certification denotes excellence in the convention and visitor bureau industry. Professionals earn the certification upon completion of the Texas Destination Marketing Certificate program. The program is meant to build an educational framework for marketing Texas as a destination both for tourism and business.
It includes eight distinct areas of knowledge, including Texas heritage/cultural tourism, administration/finance, communications/technology, group sales, group servicing, marketing, tourism sales and visitor services. Once a professional completes 27 credits, he or she earns a certificate of completion.
Program participants must complete at least six of the eight areas of knowledge in order to receive the TDM designation. The program is administered by the TACVB staff and board of directors; the advisory committee oversees the program’s development and participant’s progress.
Moya and Sorenson join several of their Visit Plano colleagues as the newest executives to earn the credential. Moya has served as Visit Plano and Plano Centre’s marketing manager since May 2011, while Sorenson has been with Visit Plano since March 2014.
“Both Millerann and Shane bring a high degree of professionalism to their jobs and an enthusiasm that not only propels Visit Plano toward its marketing goals, but also energizes our industry as a whole.” says Mark Thompson, director of Visit Plano.
An alumnus of Texas Tech University, Moya holds a degree in public relations and a minor in English. She is a Certified Tourism Ambassador and a Texas Travel Industry Association Certified Tourism Executive. Moya is a member of both TACVB and TTIA and serves on the Dallas Fort Worth Area Tourism Council’s Media Committee.
Sorenson is also a Certified Tourism Ambassador and member of TACVB, TTIA and to the Event Service Professionals Association. He will serve as education chair on the TACVB Education Committee for the Midwinter 2017 conference.
