2026 MNTA Education Summit Takeaways
Aerial photo of Lake Winona and Sugar Loaf Bluff.
Top Lessons Learned from the 2026 MNTA Education Summit in Winona, Minnesota
I love the Minnesota tourism industry. That could be my whole post. The people, the opportunities to see and learn about different communities, the passion… I simply love it. The MNTA Education Summit wrapped up late last week in Winona, Minnesota, and here are my takeaways from this conference:
Practice, practice, practice.
Multiple speakers mentioned this and reminded us to simply practice. It’s okay to be bad at something when you start, but it’s important to keep learning. Get some reps in and don’t be so hard on yourself when you're starting (or even when you're far in your journey).Have fun and play more!
Our job in tourism, and also simply as humans, is to play. Remember to play!A rising tide lifts all destinations.
The willingness to mentor and truly wish the best for other people is palpable. While you would imagine destinations compete for visitors, there is a true belief that a rising tide lifts all boats. The content and openness to share what’s working and what’s not working, along with the opportunity to ask the hard questions, is clearly impactful to all.Clarity over cleverness.
In this ever-changing landscape, AI has been leading us in; clarity is more important than cleverness. The AI machines cannot understand your clever marketing campaigns. There is a time and place for them, but when it comes to your website and content, clear and concise answers are best. Don’t make people think (check out my blog on this topic!).Video still reigns Queen.
My job from 2015-2020 was to make videos for Visit Saint Paul, and I love that in 2026, there were still sessions dedicated to the importance of videos to destinations. It has become so much more accessible to the masses, and while I now want a 360 camera to start playing around more, I’m not getting rid of my drone anytime soon!
I’m inspired to make more cool stuff in the real world.
I just want to spend my time making cool things to make people smile. I was inspired to create a clever handout for this conference, so I created 3D Loons for folks to put together. This was my first conference with my own table to promote my business, and I had so much fun dreaming up my handouts, designing, printing, and assembling them. Sometimes, we get so caught up in the digital world, it’s so lovely to take a step back and create something with our hands.Create content that answers clear questions folks consistently have about your community.
Destinations (and I’d argue any business owner) should be the authority with content and videos that answer any sort of question someone might have about your destination or organization. Search engines may be changing how we are found, but the shift into this question/answer-based content strategy is something I’m going to continue diving into for my clients and my own business.“No is not in my vocabulary when it comes to getting important shit done” - Eric Barnard, Winona State.
No need to elaborate, just a reminder to not give up when what you're doing is truly important to you or your community.
Take the long way.
The Great River Road from Saint Paul to Winona is one of my favorite drives in the Midwest. It truly gives Highway 1 vibes (from the stretch I’ve driven through Monterey, California, and in Alaska, on a much smaller scale, of course!) and just truly forces you to slow down and enjoy the drive.
What if we approached some brand and marketing efforts with a compass instead of a rigid map of ROI requirements?
What if some marketing and creative efforts were like a compass instead of a rigid map? I’m really excited to dig into this idea a little further because it truly resonated with me. Measuring brand ROI can be so hard when it comes to solid data numbers, but what if you approached some of your marketing and branding efforts as a compass instead of a map? You know what your brand’s north star values are, and sometimes the most important thing about your content or campaign is that is reinforces those values, though there may not be solid data points to present to your board. Brand sentiment is hard to measure, but easy to feel. It’s hard to map out perfectly, but easy to keep that compass pointing north.
Great River Road Aerial Photography
Click below to view aerial photos taken on my drive from Saint Paul to Minneapolis. I made stops in Prescott, Red Wing, Lake City, and of course Winona! Please do not use or take any of these photographs. Reach out to me directly if you are interested in licensing any of them. Thank you!
Hello there!I’m Emily, a creative director, graphic designer, all-around visual storyteller, and owner of Sondery Studio with 15+ years of experience bringing brands to life for tourism organizations and small businesses. Think of me as the person who turns ideas into experiences: blending brand strategy, print and digital design, experiential moments, videography, photography, web design, and even the perfect piece of swag into one cohesive story.
Having worked across the full spectrum of day-to-day design to the big-picture strategy, nothing lights me up more than watching a brand click into place with clarity and consistency, giving the humans behind the brand the confidence they need to promote their destination or business. I believe brands should feel like something, and I’m here to help yours come alive through every touchpoint with purpose and a little bit of magic.
Some fun facts:
📍 Born in Wisconsin, but currently live in Saint Paul, Minnesota
🧳 Worked for Visit Saint Paul as their in-house creative for 5 years and have been working in the tourism industry ever since
🏄🏼♀️ Owns more paddleboards than she cares to admit… but uses them all!
👧🏼👦🏼🐶 Mama to 2 humans and 1 pup
🪴 Ask me about my garden or my houseplants. Please.
