DOMESTIC CONVENTION SALES: Promotions, Sales Calls, Trade Shows and Events
The team’s proactive efforts resulted in 37 presentations, virtual client sales calls and in-person meetings throughout the month of January. Highlights include:
- AGLOW International
- American Academy of Optometry
- American Physical Therapy Association
- American Speech-Language-Hearing Association
- Association of the United States Army
- Association for Financial Professionals, Inc.
- Bechtel
- Center for Black Equity
- Defense Research Institute (DRI)
- Grantmakers in Health
- Infectious Diseases Society of America
- International City / County Management Association
- IN-Q-TEL
- National Association of School Psychologists
- National Society of Black Engineers
- National Sales Network
- Melaleuca, Inc.
- PAREXEL International Corporation
- Sidley Austin LLP
- Rocket Central
Professional Convention Management Association (PCMA) Convening Leaders (Jan. 11-14, Philadelphia, PA)
DDC Staff: Melissa Riley, Dianna Waldroup, Shirley Del Caprio, Brandon Murray, Morgan Simonet
DDC engaged with existing and prospective clients throughout PCMA Convening Leaders, highlighting the value of hosting meetings and events in Washington, DC. The team leveraged educational sessions, networking opportunities and pre-arranged client meetings to strengthen current relationships and advance sales conversations.
DDC met with the following customers:
- American Physical Therapy Association
- National Society of Black Engineers
- American Association of Physicists in Medicine
- Association for Financial Professionals
- American Academy of Optometry
- American College of Rheumatology
- Congressional Black Caucus Foundation
- Access Intelligence
- Association of Government Accountants
- American Society for Cataract and Refractive Surgery
Corporate Event Marketing Association (CEMA) Regional Dinner (Jan. 12, Philadelphia, PA, Loews Hotel)
DDC Staff: Shirley Del Carpio
DDC co-sponsored a Philadelphia Regional Dinner for CEMA with Cvent. The dinner brought together 20 qualified corporate event marketers to engage in open dialogue, share challenges and take a closer look at the forces ringing loudest in our work today—from budgets to technology.
Customers in attendance included:
- Vanguard
- ADP
- Atlassian
- Bellweather
- Invision
Event Service Professionals Association (ESPA) Annual Meeting (Jan. 25-27, Arlington, TX)
DDC Staff: Dianna Waldroup, Morgan Simonet, Liz Sheridan, Jerry Joseph, Rachel Bomser, Ashley Gloster, Chris Li, Kesly Edouard
ESPA is the only association dedicated to championing event service professionals across North America. DDC’s presence on multiple speaker panels featured both Morgan Simonet in a session on “Leading from the Middle” and Liz Sheridan on “Greener Meetings Without the Guilt Trip.” The team connected with peers from CVBs, hotels and convention centers across the country in a variety of sessions and networking events. They also celebrated Liz’s appointment to the ESPA Board for the 2026-2028 term.
Chief Executive Officer of the Council of Engineering and Scientific Society Executives (CESSE) CEO Meeting (Jan. 25-28, Baltimore, MD)
DDC Staff: Melissa Riley
A premier customer engagement opportunity designed exclusively for STEM society CEOs and executive directors. Hosted by CESSE, this event gathers top-tier executives for education and knowledge exchange and provides the perfect platform for relationship building, education, meeting prospecting and client conversation.
Definite Site Visits
Family Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) (June 5-11, 2026)
- 53,092 peak rooms; 18,149 total rooms; 7,940 attendees
- WEWCC/multiple venues
National Association of Realtors (June 13-18, 2026),
- 5,500 peak rooms; 25,795 total rooms; 8,000 attendees
- WEWCC/multiple venues
American Water Works Association (June 21-24, 2026)
- 5,310 peak rooms; 21,724 total rooms; 12,000 attendees
- Walter E. Washington Convention Center (WEWCC)/multiple venues
Tentative Site Visits
Grantmakers in Health Board Retreat 2026 (March 8-10, 2026)
- 25 on peak, 60 total rooms
- Multiple venues
Ketogenic Foundation (Aug. 3-6, 2026)
- 600 on peak, 1,670 total rooms
- Washington Hilton
URGO 2026 Fall Sales Meeting (Oct. 4-7, 2026)
- 140 on peak, 293 total rooms
- Multiple venues
Aglow International (Oct. 6-14, 2026)
- 350 on peak, 1,374 total rooms
- Capital Hilton
GLOBAL CONVENTION SALES: Sales Calls, Bid Development, Strategic Programming, Familiarization Tours, Site Visits and Tradeshows
With a continued focus on proactive client outreach, personalized touchpoints and international bid development, the team engaged prospective accounts and tentative leads throughout the month of January. Highlights included:
- BCD Meetings & Events
- Clarion Events
- Hyve Group
- International Society of Craniofacial Surgery
- IEEE International Conference on Acoustics, Speech, and Signal Processing
Global Marketplace Week (Jan. 26-30, Washington, DC)
DDC Staff: Tara Miller, Melissa Riley, Megan Fariel, Emma Stubblefield, Brenlynn Falcon-Mase
In collaboration with teams across DDC, the Global Sales team welcomed our international representatives to Washington, DC for a week of strategic engagement and collaboration. The visit included curated destination experiences, a data-driven retreat with the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority and United Airlines and an internal global team retreat focused on opportunities and the road ahead.
The week culminated in the annual Global Marketplace, which welcomed over 400 registered DDC members. The event included a panel moderated by Melissa Riley and featured Tara Miller and Maxine MacPherson of AbleMaxx, our UK MICE representative. The session examined the current state of the business events industry and highlighted the ways DDC addresses challenges and leverages partnerships to remain competitive in 2026.
Tentative Site Visits
Confidential Group (Familiarization site with future year potential)
- 4,100 peak rooms; 23,282 total room nights; 12,500 attendees
- WEWCC/multiple venues
Upcoming Activities:
Domestic Convention Sales
- Destination 360 - CSI DMC New York Fashion Week (Feb. 10-11, New York, NY)
- Association Management Company Institute (AMCI) Annual Meeting (Feb. 10-12, Spokane, WA)
- New York Society of Association Executives (NYSAE) Meet NY (Feb. 24, New York, NY)
Global Convention Sales
BestCities Global Forum (Feb. 5-8, Guadalajara, Mexico)
Check out the full Destination DC Member News to learn more about what's going on this month.
