The Impact of AI on Destination Marketing featuring Discover Puerto Rico

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In the third and final episode of our Mindtrip mini-series, we sit down with Discover Puerto Rico’s CMO, Storm Tussey to see how AI is reshaping trip planning - making it easier, smarter, and more personal while keeping culture and community at the heart of the journey.

Our conversation explores how the destination uses AI to turn inspiration into real itineraries - helping travelers move from “where should I go?” to “here’s my perfect trip.” From safety questions to salsa lessons, from coffee haciendas to eco-adventures, we unpack a practical framework for personalization that respects the island’s identity and lifts up small, local businesses.

Then, Mindtrip’s CMO, Michelle Denogean joins to share what they’re seeing across destinations: how conversational trip planning surfaces hidden gems, why human storytelling still matters, and how AI-driven insights are helping DMOs refine content, fill information gaps, and connect more deeply with travelers.

If you’re rethinking how to market destinations in the age of AI—or simply want to see what smarter, more human-centered trip planning looks like - this episode offers both inspiration and actionable ideas for the road ahead.

We hope you enjoyed this series! For more information, please visit Mindtrip.

Don't forget to oin us at our AI Summit next week for a panel discussion “How DMOs Are Being Transformed By AI,” hosted by Matthew Gardner from Travel Massive London. If you’re listening after October 28–29, watch on our YouTube channel: Travel Trends Podcast.

The #1 B2B Travel Podcast Globally. Over 100 Episodes. Listeners in 125 countries. New Episodes Every Weds.

https://www.traveltrendspodcast.com/

Episode Transcript

SPEAKER_00 (00:03):
And travel was picked because it's such a
considered purchase and it's sofragmented and so siloed that
what they saw was thisopportunity to bring the entire
end-to-end travel journeytogether.

SPEAKER_02 (00:19):
Hello, everyone, welcome back to our special
three-part series of traveltrends where we focused on the
impact of AI on destinationmarketing.
This is your host, DanChristian, and today in part
three, we're gonna bring youStorm Tussey, the CMO of
Discover Puerto Rico.
We kicked off this series, asmany of you know, with Jeanette
Roush from Brand USA.

(00:40):
And then last week we spoke toLynn Carpenter from Visit
California, and there was oneadditional person I wanted to
make sure we brought into thisseries, and that is the CMO of
Mind Trip, Michelle.
And she's actually gonna bejoining us at the end of this
episode because she has so muchto share on the future of
tourism marketing based on theexperience of this platform with

(01:02):
multiple destination marketingorganizations.
Now, in today's episode, you'regonna hear first from Storm
Tussey from Discover PuertoRico.
Storm has an extensivebackground in the travel
industry, so she has a greatdeal of insights and perspective
to be able to share, andespecially now with where the
industry is headed in the faceof AI.
So I look forward to bringingher into the conversation.

(01:23):
And I just wanted to quicklymention that Storm, Jeanette,
and Michelle will be joining usat our AI Summit next week.
I hope you have the chance tojoin us as well.
They're gonna have an amazingpanel hosted by my friend
Matthew Gardner from TravelMassive London.
If you're listening to thisafter October 28th and 29th, you
can actually find it on ourYouTube channel right away.

(01:44):
So be sure to check out TravelTrends Podcast on YouTube and
clips and highlights from thisepisode on Instagram and
LinkedIn.
Thanks again to Mindtrip for thepartnership with this series.
Now let's bring in Storm Tusseyfrom Discover Puerto Rico.
Welcome, Storm.
Thanks so much for joining us.

SPEAKER_01 (02:00):
Thanks so much for having me.
We're really happy to be here.

SPEAKER_02 (02:02):
Absolutely.
So tell us a little bit aboutyour role.
Discover Puerto Rico.
People heard about yourbackground in the beginning.
You've been in the travelindustry for a number of years.
You worked with HerterGerten.
Tell us how you got to this roleat Discover Puerto Rico and a
little bit of your background inthe travel industry.

SPEAKER_01 (02:17):
Yeah, so I've been in and out of the travel
industry most of my life.
You know, I have a passion fordestinations as well as for
adventure travel.
And so when they started lookingfor an ACMO for Puerto Rico, uh,
you know, the recruiter reachedout to me and started talking to
me.
And I already had an affinityfor the island.
What people don't know aboutPuerto Rico is this island has

(02:38):
everything you could possiblywant.
It has gastronomy, it hashistory, it has fashion, it has,
it has beautiful, amazingbeaches.
It's one of the only places youcan snorkel and scoob, snorkel,
scuba, and surf 365 days a year,where you have the only tropical
rainforest in the world, um,where you can go mountain biking
and rock climbing.

(02:58):
Um, and then you also have theseamazing caves.
And so when they startedlooking, I was like, well, I do
love adventure and I do love allthis other stuff.
I would be happy to come andrepresent the people at Puerto
Rico.
And what's really great aboutPuerto Rico is the, I always say
it's the place where your spiritcomes alive.
There's a lot of uh negativityin the world right now.

(03:19):
Uh yet when you come to theisland, you don't feel any
negativity.
Everybody is so welcoming and soinviting.
So it's impossible not to loveit here.
Um, so when they said, hey, we'dlove you to join, I was like,
who wouldn't say yes to PuertoRico?
So that's how I ended up here.

SPEAKER_02 (03:35):
I totally understand.
Uh just a note to our listeners,I had the privilege to travel to
Puerto Rico last year for thefirst time.
I was there for a board meeting.
I sit on a board, a companycalled Nicer Travel that's based
in Puerto Rico, and I had themost extraordinary time, San
Juan being the oldest city inAmerica.
And obviously, there's more touh Puerto Rico than San Juan,
but it's such a beautiful placein the world.

(03:55):
And I knew so little aboutPuerto Rico before I traveled
there, so I want to make surethat all of our listeners
understand its place in theworld.
And the one question that Ialways came up against is that
so is Puerto Rico a state?
You know, is uh Puerto Ricansare Americans?
How does that all work?
And I know I did my research atthe time and it's a territory,
but tell everyone about wherePuerto Rico is on the map as

(04:16):
people are quickly googling andchecking out discoverPorto
Rico.com.
But tell everyone where PuertoRico is and how it connects to
the United States.

SPEAKER_01 (04:23):
Yeah, so Puerto Rico is, I would say, the entry point
to the Caribbean.
So we are an island in theCaribbean.
Um we are a common what the whatmost people say is we are a
commonwealth.
Um so we are an unincorporatedUS territory.
Um so we belong to the US, um,we're considered an integral, an
integral part of it.
Um, but our relationship issomewhat of a complex one with

(04:45):
like historical, political, andsocial dimensions.
So we are Puerto Ricans are UScitizens.
Um, however, uh, and we can movefreely between the island and
the mainland um without apassport.
However, we don't get the umPuerto Ricans don't get the
right to vote in a USpresidental election while
residing on the islands.
Um we have a non-votingrepresentative in the US

(05:05):
Congress, um, and we can vote incommittees, but not on the House
floor.
So it's a little bit con it's alittle bit complicated.
And if you listen to the musicof the Puerto Ricans, um you'll
hear a lot of conversation aboutwhat it's like to be a
Commonwealth and part of theUnited States.

SPEAKER_02 (05:23):
Yeah, no, it's a fascinating bit of history, and
I definitely encourage everyoneto read up a bit more about it.
But I, you know, Discover PuertoRico is, of course, the tourism
board or destination managementorganization.
And when we were coming up withthis series in partnership with
our friends over at Mind Trip,we very much focused on the idea
of how tourism boards are beingimpacted by AI and leveraging AI

(05:45):
to be successful in 2025 andbeyond.
And so with this series, we werevery keen to understand the
world of DMOs and tourismboards, which is not a
background and expertise for me,but it certainly is for you
given your background.
So tell everyone a little bitmore about Discover Puerto Rico,
the organization itself, andsort of what your priorities and
mandates are.

SPEAKER_01 (06:05):
Yeah, so you know, Discover Puerto Rico is the
island's destination marketingorganization.
So we're really charged withpositioning Puerto Rico globally
as a leisure and businessdestination.
Um, what I do is I reallyleverage the insights, the
storytelling, and the technologyfor how we drive our mission
forward.
Um, our goal is really to notonly amplify Puerto Rico's
unique brand story globally, butalso to connect travelers and

(06:29):
make sure that we're deliveringtangible, measurable results
that drive economic growth forour local partners.
Um for us, it's about acommitment to celebrating Puerto
Rican culture and ensuringtourism creates that economic
impact.
Um, we aren't measured solely byvisitors' numbers, which a lot
of companies are, um, but whatwe're measured by is also by the
prosperity of our localpartners, the artisans, the

(06:51):
small business owners, and the78 municipalities who are the
heartbeat of the island.
We're dedicated to ensuring thegrowth is sustainable,
preserving that very culture andnatural beauty that draws people
to Puerto Rico, and reallymaking sure that we're
constantly innovating to helptravelers embrace that Barriqua
spirit and turn inspiration intodirect bookings to benefit.

SPEAKER_02 (07:12):
Well, what's interesting to me about DMOs and
tourism boards is that there's acomplexity, as I've come to
understand it, between you knowworking with the local community
and all the different uhconstituents within an island
like Puerto Rico and then alsoworking with travelers to help
understand the destination.
So maybe let's start a littlebit on the island side, given
you know, you've got an amazinghistory, a beautiful island.

(07:34):
How do you make sure that youare accurately representing the
community and being able tobring travel to the island in
the right way, if you will?

SPEAKER_01 (07:43):
Yeah, so for us, there's only one way to um help
the island, and that's to be thefirst, best, and only in our
world.
So it's not just a slogan, it'sa mandate.
We really work hard toexperiment with emerging
technologies from AI andimmersive storytelling to design
campaigns that travelers can'tfind anywhere else to ensure
that Puerto Rico just isn't uhin a conversation, but is really

(08:05):
leading it.
We really believe the future oftourism isn't really just about
a vacation, but it's about apurposeful experience that
benefits both the traveler aswell as the community that
supports that traveler.

SPEAKER_02 (08:19):
Well, you mentioned about supporting the traveler.
Obviously, today, more so thanever, technology, and I know
technology and marketing is abig part of your background.
So when you look at anorganization, especially you've
just joined recently, uh, but anorganization like Discover
Puerto Rico, you know, you'vegot this incredible story to
tell, and you're trying toconnect to global travelers who
are now, you know, they've beenusing online resources now for

(08:40):
more than 20 years.
They've also been leveragingsocial media and what people are
saying about their experience toPuerto Rico.
So very keen to understand howDiscover Puerto Rico looks at
technology and thenspecifically, of course, AI and
how that's changing the consumerjourney from your perspective.

SPEAKER_01 (08:57):
Yeah, so you know, because we're always looking for
innovation, we really approachthings it from a curious
perspective.
Um, and how we've really done iswe have shifted from promoting
the destination to re um justpromoting it as an idea to
really curating and facilitatingthe visitor journey.
So for us, it's about leadingthe transition from just being

(09:17):
aware of the destination toreally building a sustainable
strategy that creates tangiblevalues for both the community
that we represent and for thetravelers that come to our to
our location.
And so with AI, we're reallyusing that to personalize at
scale, providing real-timesupport, um, helping us make the
customer, the guest, um have aneasier time fully planning their

(09:41):
um planning their time on theisland and making sure that it's
no longer just aboutinspiration, but it's really
about driving action within thedestinations ecosystem.
And a big part of thatcustomization with AI is also
highlighting and educating ourlocal communities and partners,
our artisans, our smallbusiness, our hoteliers, um, our

(10:03):
restaurants, just to make surethat they then can make sure
that they're able to service theguest a little bit easier and
help the guests also choose theright places that meets their
needs in a more authenticfashion, instead of just being
like, oh, I saw on TikTok thisone guy said this restaurant was
good, but I don't really likefish, so that's maybe not the

(10:25):
best restaurant for me.
We want to help you find whatyou want on the island in the
easiest way possible so that youhave the best experience here.

SPEAKER_02 (10:36):
Well, the thing that's I find really fascinating
about destination marketing,having worked with tour
operators a number of years, wewere always working with DMOs or
tourism boards when we wereopening up a new destination and
partnering with them to makesure we got the right product
and the right experience.
But that was very much a B2Bmentality with us developing
product to sell into newdestinations and working with

(10:56):
those tourism boards.
I know one of the big shiftsthat we've seen with uh our AI
summit, and uh and I'vecertainly seen as someone that's
uh you know, continues to be apractitioner in this
practitioner in this field oftravel marketing and technology,
is just how significantly AI ischanging the customer journey.
I mean, some of the things thatwe've talked about in our
podcast is just it's amazing tosee how many people are now

(11:18):
using AI to plan their trips, tobuild out itineraries, and then
ultimately arrive at a partnerbooking and ready to book.
Like the conversion rates areactually substantially higher
for someone who has done theirresearch using AI tools, which
is incredible.
So I guess when you think aboutthat today, you know, 2025 going
into 2026.

(11:40):
How have you approached that interms of the tools you've
implemented and some of theinitiatives that you're
undertaking to make sure thatPuerto Rico remains very
relevant in an age where we usedto have to focus on search
engine optimization and now wehave to focus on AI
optimization?

SPEAKER_01 (11:54):
Yeah, so for us, we're we're really not just
focusing on the tools, but we'refocusing on the customer
journey, right?
So all customers, all guests,they fall into really one of
four journeys and they'reintrinsic motivators for why
they're looking to take avacation.
And so for us, it's about movingfrom one size fits all marketing
to really adaptive journeys.
Based off of what that what thatuser, what that guest is really

(12:17):
looking for.
Traditional navigation islimiting, right?
Let's just be real.
Traditional navigation islimiting.
Um, so AI allows us to surfacethe deep editorial content, our
hidden gems, our culturalstories, working with our
partners to better showcasetheir products in a
conversational and intuitiveway.
And it takes travelers beyondthe home page and directly in

(12:40):
that personalized discovery.
You know, at the beginning ofour conversation, I mentioned
all the cool adventure thingsthat Puerto Rico has.
I don't even get to the culturethings, the art, the music, the
theme, the dance.
Um, you know, there's so muchhere that it can sometimes be
overwhelming.
And so if we can actually use AItools to um scale and make sure

(13:01):
that if somebody asks for salsadancing or coffee haciendos or
eco adventures, that they umthat they get surfaced,
authentic partner-drivenrecommendations or even
customer-generated, um, youknow, user-generated responses,
um, ensuring that the traveler'sfirst interaction really
reflects the Puerto Ricanculture and that sense of

(13:22):
welcoming and inviting you tolive by.

SPEAKER_02 (13:26):
Well, so you brought up something I actually have um
that I'm really keen to knowfrom your perspective, which is
that you know, when you'rebuilding out a website, you have
the choice of navigation, toyour point about that, and
you're trying to figure out thecustomer journey.
And the world that we've livedin for many years has been that
people go through searchengines, they go to websites,
and then when they're on theirwebsite, you're trying to give
them the information you thinkthey're looking for and optimize

(13:47):
the UI or the user experiencebased on people's search
behavior.
And you can see that based onyour Google Analytics data and
try to figure out where peopleare spending the most time, or
you want to give them access toinformation that they're
currently not uh finding on thewebsite.
And so you're very concernedabout the user journey, and then
also you've got to got partnersthat are trying to make sure
they're well represented on thewebsite because they want people

(14:10):
to find out about their regionor about um uh the different
activities they have on.
How does that work in a world ofAI?

SPEAKER_01 (14:18):
Uh well, you know, it's not easy.
And I would say uh it's notperfect by any means.
Uh, for us, we've really beenusing Mind Trip, and we found
that that has really beentransformative.
For us, it's not just a chat, itreally is an interactive
planning tool that helps theguests build itineraries, it
integrates our map and the 78municipalities.
Um, it connects directly to thepartner businesses almost as

(14:40):
like a mass aggregator.
Um, and that also lessens thework on the partner.
So we again we have a lot ofartisans, a lot of small single
proprietorships who don't havewebsites.
And so this oftentimes allowsthem to directly connect with a
guest in a more um functionalway, in a less uh work-intensive
way.
And then it also adapts inEnglish and Spanish.

(15:00):
Obviously, Puerto Rico is aSpanish-speaking uh region, um,
but they also speak English.
And so it just makes it a littleeasier, depending on where
you're coming from, to find yournative language so that you have
the best experience.
And again, it just turns thatcasual browsing into an
actionable trip planning.
We've found that those thatinteract with us and interact

(15:21):
with our planning tools, theirtime to their vacation is much
shorter than those that choosetraditional search, which then
it takes them a little longer tobe prepared for their trip.
And so, you know, preparing forthe trip can be exciting, but it
also can be overwhelming.
So if we can make it easier forthem and just so that they can
live in the excitement and beexcited that they get to try,

(15:45):
you know, new dances, new music,beautiful art, new fashion, um,
then it's better for everyone,both the island and the guest.

SPEAKER_02 (15:54):
Well, you mentioned personalization and certainly
AI, so AI definitely startedwith chat experiences and then
content generation.
That's sort of what we've seenover the last, you know, it's
been nearly three years sinceChat GPT came out, which is
crazy when I think about it now.
Yeah.
Three?

SPEAKER_01 (16:09):
It's been three years?
I feel like it was justyesterday.

SPEAKER_02 (16:12):
I know exactly.
November 2022.
I know.
It's like the, you know, nowwe're on Chat GPT-5.
And so many companies werequickly embracing AI tools, as
you well know, for chat.
Chat was like the one of thefirst uh successfully kind of
rolled out uh implementations ofAI, and then everyone was
starting to use it for contentgeneration.
But you mentioned somethingreally interesting around

(16:34):
personalization and theimportance of personalization,
and that's one of the things Iwas keen to understand because
you know, someone can reach outto Discover Puerto Rico through
chat to be able to ask questionsor get it more immediate
feedback, which has always beena challenge for travel
businesses since customersrequire a great degree of hand
holding, especially when they'retrying to select a trip that is

(16:55):
literally likely gonna be thethird biggest expense after a
car or a house is like a trip.
And it's often more importantbecause this is your time off.
Like this is like the one-weekholiday you're gonna get.
So people put so much time,energy into it uh for all the
right reasons.
So when it comes topersonalization, I'm keen to
know how you approach that whenpeople are visiting Discover

(17:17):
Puerto Rico and you are, as amarketer, trying to figure out
that holy grail of one-to-onemarketing, of trying to figure
out, you know, are they afamily, are they a couple?
Because obviously that's one ofthe things I always saw on you
know traditional websites, isyou're trying to cater to all
the different personas thatmight be coming to your website
and give them the information.
So tell us a little bit abouthow you are approaching

(17:37):
personalization, whether it bewith Mindtrip or just overall as
an organization.

SPEAKER_01 (17:41):
I mean, we are using Mind Trip a lot.
I mean, I would say it's thebase of all of our
personalization.
But for us, the biggestchallenge is balancing
innovation with accuracy, right?
So we have to make sure thatwe're training the AI carefully
to reflect both the brand voice,the island voice, and avoid
misinformation and understandingof the culture around us.

(18:03):
And it also allows us to testand create feedback loops, which
are super critical, so that wecan kind of meet that guest
where they are and understandwhere their pain points are.
Safety is a big piece.
People wonder, you know, wherein the Caribbean is safe.
Um, Puerto Rico is super safe.
We're one of the only Caribbeanislands that you can actually
travel around the whole islandand be safe and you don't have

(18:23):
to stay in one location.
Um, and so it has really helpedus repurpose and scale content
efficiently so that people canget the most out of their time
on the island.
And we really work to createmore snackable social posts so
that they can also share it withthe people that they're
traveling with so that they canactually plan together.
Because the thing you'll knowabout, you'll learn about Puerto
Rico is Puerto Rico is a socialarea.

(18:46):
They love talking to people.
It's one of the few places thatyou'll go and you go to the
restaurants, and you know, youalways see people staring at
their phones.
Here, you never see peoplestaring at their phones.
You only see people talking.
And if they see you alone,they're gonna invite you to
their conversation.
Um, and so for us, AI allows usto make it so that you can plan
your holiday or your your umvisit here into something that

(19:10):
you can actually plan with yourfriends.
So not only is the vacationabout your friends, but also the
whole experience of what you'redoing with how you're planning
and how you get there is alsowith your friends.
And we've also been testing, youknow, subject lines and emails.
We've cut time to market umwithout sacrificing creativity.
And we've found ways to reallymake sure that the cultural

(19:30):
resonance um gets lifted out ofthe out of the deep muck of it
and into the top line so thatpeople really have a better
understanding of what to expectwhen they get to the island,
well before they get here.
And then that makes their timeon island easier and better
because it also means thatthey're more socially aware of

(19:51):
what to do and not to do on theisland.
Um, and also how to care for thefragile ecosystem that we live
in, as well as how to have thebest experience here.
And again, there's not a personI've ever met that's come to
Puerto Rico that didn't have aphenomenal time on the island.

SPEAKER_02 (20:09):
Certainly, since you're ahead of the curve in
embracing AI and your backgroundin terms of marketing and
technology, one of the things Iwanted to understand, because
uh, with this series, I want todraw out some highlights for
other DMOs and tourism boardsaround the world that are
looking to figure out theiroverall strategy in terms of
marketing their destinations inthis new age of technology and

(20:30):
AI.
And you mentioned contentgeneration there and how you can
surface content that is going tomake it more meaningful and
interesting for people to beable to book a trip to Puerto
Rico.
And I'm very keen to know howthat translates into your social
media activity or emailmarketing.
How essentially are youleveraging AI beyond, say,

(20:50):
Mindtrip, even the that are youusing other AI platforms
yourself to be able to be ableto produce that content and then
be able to distribute it acrossmultiple channels?

SPEAKER_01 (21:01):
So we actually do AI a little differently, right?
So we don't treat AI as a sideexperiment.
We integrate it into our fullfunnel.
Um we connect it to ourpartners, we measure impact,
we're very into the data.
I I often joke that I'm a madscientist, 50% of my brain is
data, 50% of my brain iscreativity.
Um so that way we treat AIreally as a growth engine tool,

(21:23):
um, not just a shiny object thatjust has people's attention.
Um and when you come at it fromthat mindset, it allows the
table stakes to be a littledifferent.
Um the fact is, is while we'reusing this as a tool, we're not
using AI for AI's sake.
So actually, none of our contenton the website is AI created.
Um we actually have a contentteam and we work with our local

(21:44):
partners as well as we use a lotof UGC to make sure that
everything is authentic andactually written by a human with
a real world experience.
Um, and that's very differentthan a lot of people that are
using AI for content writing.
However, like you said, we thendo use AI to distribute that
information across all of ourdifferent channels and feed it

(22:07):
into that funned off of thechoices that the guest has made
on the website or in CRM ifthey've clicked on something and
started to build their vacation.
Um, so that's kind of wherewe've used AI.
It's also worked really wellwith a lot of our partners that
are using um things like toastor hotelier's booking engines,

(22:31):
um, because it helps connect allthose pieces.
And it's done so automaticallyand dynamically versus us having
to do manual pieces like we hadto do like five years ago.

SPEAKER_02 (22:43):
Well, you you brought up another topic there
actually that I was very keen toask you about, which is data.
Because as marketers, we'reobviously looking at as much
data that will help us makeinformed decisions about
increasing conversion rates.
So it's been something that'svery common for both of us to
look at Google Analytics dataand be able to see the customer
journey and figure out how wecan actually get people to

(23:06):
request a brochure or sign up toour newsletter or ultimately
book a trip or refer to apartner.
But when you're actually lookingat data and insights, as uh as a
mad scientist the other half ofyour time, tell us a little bit
about what data you're lookingat and how you actually leverage
some of those insights to applythem to kind of target your

(23:26):
audience or uh understand new uhmarket trends.

SPEAKER_01 (23:30):
Yeah, so that's a really loaded question.
And if I told you everythingthat I do, then I would lose the
secret to myself.
So I won't tell you everythingthat we do.
Uh what I can tell you is thatwe use data in a lot of
different ways.
Um, so we're really heavy intothe research side and we feed
that research into the way thatwe book advertising.
Um and then when we see peopleclick through through our

(23:51):
advertising onto our website, weactually look at that data
really closely to see what arethey interacting with, what are
they engaging with, what contentthey have.
So that then once we they get tothat content, we can really look
at where they're staying themost so that we can make sure
that we're really answeringthose questions.
Um Mindtrip has some great datathat I can dig into that I use

(24:12):
all the time to make sure that Ireally understand where the
journey is adapting, where thejourney is ending, so I can
figure out the whys of it isending versus why didn't they
completely book.
Um, I'm also really been gettinginto regionalization.
Um, again, I'm rather new tothis role, but I've been using
AI technology and many otherroles.
Um, but we're really gettinginto regionalization here

(24:34):
because our Spanish consumersthat are coming from a Latin
American region are verydifferent than our European
customers, and they're verydifferent than our mainland
customers.
And so we just need to make surethat those guests have the best
experience possible andcustomizing everything based off
of their specific needs and alsotheir wants.

(24:55):
Um, the other thing that we'reseeing is, you know, we see a
lot of multi-generationaltravel.
We see a lot of solo travelersbook through us.
And so we want to make sure thatwe have the right content that
they're looking for and alsopair them with the right partner
because that makes or breaksyour total time on the island.
If you're a solo traveler, wewant to put you and we want to
encourage you to go to alocation that's not only safe,
but that also has other solotravelers so that you find

(25:18):
like-minded people to bond withand have a great experience.
And if you're a family, you wantsomething a little bit maybe
less loud and maybe a littleless dancing until 2 or 3 a.m.
So we want to make sure thatwe're routing you again to those
partners.
Same thing with food.
Um, and so AI has really helpedus a lot with that.

(25:39):
And the data has helped it makethe customer journey a lot
easier.
And then we're seeing that inthe bookings, right?
Our travel to the island hasincreased significantly over the
past two years.
And it's largely because we'vebeen surfacing things and making
it easier for people to feelconfident that they're gonna get
their needs met while they're onthe island.

SPEAKER_02 (26:00):
Well, I appreciate you being open about what
secrets you can provide us andbeing transparent as possible
with your experience.
So, one thing I wanted to askyou on that topic is you've you
know you've shared a couple ofchallenges.
You talked about the fact thatyou need to make sure the
accuracy is there, uh, you'retraining the models, and that's
always something that uh sinceChatGPT came onto the scene, and

(26:23):
I'm using them as just oneexample.
I mean, there's five or sixother major LLMs that many of
our listeners might beutilizing.
And I certainly use I useJasper, which is a paid
platform.
Um, I use Claude, I use Llama, Iuse so there's there's such a
variety of tools, and I alwaysencourage people to try out the
LLM and find the run that'sright for them and their team.

(26:45):
Um, but many people, of course,are familiar with generative AI
by virtue of ChatGPT, and one ofthe things that has always come
up is accuracy.
And so many naysayers are quickto point out when AI doesn't get
it right.
Even with ChatGPT 5 launchingand Sam Altman saying, look,
it's a professor on every topic,and then people were saying
instantly, but it can't do thisand it can't do that.

(27:06):
So I I'm keen to know some ofthe challenges and how you've
either overcome them or some ofthe, you know, for anyone else
looking to go down this path,and this is the reason I asked
this question and I and I makethis point a bit more
emphatically is because theoption of avoiding AI in your
career, your company is like,you know, that's out the window.
You have to find a way toembrace it and become successful

(27:28):
with it.
And so pointing out its flaws,as as so many people have said
to me, this is the dumbest it'llever be.
Like every day it gets smarter,it gets better.
And so tell us a little bit fromyour experience, some of the
challenges you face, how youguys have overcome those.

SPEAKER_01 (27:42):
Yeah, so um, I'm gonna answer your question, but
in a roundabout way.
So you have to be patient withme here.
Um, you know, my advice foranybody that is looking to adopt
AI is you know, start small, butstart now.
Um, because if you don't pilot atool, you don't gather acts uh
insights and you don't let yourstrategy evolve, you don't
really know what you don't know,right?
And so I think that that's thefirst way you should go into AI

(28:02):
is really explorative.
The second thing is, you know,the longer you wait, the further
behind you're gonna be when AIadoption becomes table space.
And we're almost there formarketers, right?
Um and then I'd say, you know,don't chase the shiny object.
That's a big piece for us.
And, you know, there's a lot ofconversation about it.
And it's really easy for theC-suite to get caught up in the
hype.
And it's really important for usto always just come back to what

(28:24):
is our purpose and what is ourgoal, and then use it as a tool
to get to that goal, not as thegoal itself.
And I think that's where a lotof people go wrong.
Um, and the places that I'veworked at that have just chased
every shiny object, you're justconstantly switching strategies
and it just affects your teamand you're just not going to be
as successful.
But if you always know what yourNorth Star is, as you always

(28:47):
know your ultimate goal, and ourultimate goal is to um invite
visitors and invite travelers tothe island to promote economic
development across the island,all 78 municipalities, then we
can start having a realconversation.
And what we have found is therewas a period of time that in a
different company that we usedAI for a lot of our content

(29:07):
creation, and we found that thatwas easy and fast, but it didn't
actually meet the needs of theguest, right?
And so that's part of the reasonwhy Discover Puerto Rico doesn't
use any AI-generated content.
Everything is human-made, andthen we just use AI as a
distribution tool and as ananalyst tool.

(29:27):
That's kind of where we focus.
And it allows us to avoidmisinformation, it allows us to
really understand the guest in adeeper way.
And it also makes sure that ourpartners are getting the service
and the support that they need.
And I would say that now withAI, our data that we feed to our
partners actually improves theirbusiness just as much as it
improves the traveler'sexperience.

(29:48):
So that's a win win for us.

SPEAKER_02 (29:51):
Well, and that thinking forward now, going into
2026 and beyond, I mean, 2030seems like a long way off, but
it's not.
And uh certainly this.
Technology is continuing toevolve and enhance.
And the number of people I'vespoken to that say, you know,
you can't even train or takecourses on this because it's
changing so rapidly.
But at the same time, as amarketer looking at how this

(30:14):
technology can be leveraged, I'mkeen to get your perspective on
where you think we are headed.
And I'll just share one examplewith all of our listeners too.
One of the developments thatgenuinely people are asking is
when uh websites become obsoletein the age of AI, when you all
of a sudden have an agentic AIthat can shop and browse on your
behalf.

(30:34):
But oftentimes those areactually then using the website.
So who are you building thewebsite for now?
Is it for a human or is it forAI?
But we've also been buildingwebsites for many years for the
Google algorithm.
So tell us a little bit on yourview of AI for tourism boards.
What does the future look like?
How are you planning to, youknow, what is the the future of

(30:55):
destination marketing in the ageof AI in the next couple of
years?

SPEAKER_01 (31:00):
Yeah, so it's a really hard question.
And honestly, I don't have ananswer.
Um and I might change my mind ina week.
Um but what I can tell you isthat right now, uh I don't think
websites are gonna go anywhere.
I actually think websites arereally important, um, especially
if you build it with thecustomer or the traveler that

(31:20):
you want in mind.
I think that that's the mostimportant thing.
Also, it's a really greatconnection tool.
And so I think people shouldview um websites and should view
technology as a great connector.
It's a way to help us betterinvolve our relationships
instead of just treating it asum a nice to have, right?

(31:40):
And there are many people thatare like, oh, well, everything's
just gonna be immediate answersand there's not gonna be any
relationships at all.
But we see with the growth ofReddit, with the growth of some
of the more um traditionalchannels that were kind of going
away for a little while, reallyrise.
It shows that that connectivityand that importance of

(32:00):
relationship building is morepower than ever.
And so for us, and very much tosupport the Puerto Rican
culture, for us, it's reallyabout making sure that we're
using destination marketing as away to connect the spirit of
Puerto Rico, the people ofPuerto Rico, the beautiful
artists and crafts and food anddrinks of Puerto Rico to the

(32:23):
rest of the world and let themget a taste of us.
We don't mean live barigua justto as a slogan.
It's a something we trulybelieve in.
We want to ignite your soul.
And the only way to do that isthrough technology until you get
on the island.
Um, so I know that's not theanswer you want.
I know that's not the answer oflike the future is gonna be
awesome and we're gonna havelike jets and robots everywhere.

(32:46):
But I actually think the bestfuture we can have is to truly
let technology be a tool, as Isaid earlier, and not the end
goal.
Because at the end of the day,what makes us come alive, the
reason why we go on vacations isto find connectivity with other
people, to experience newthings, to actually
re-invigorate our spirit.

(33:08):
And tech can't do that.
Only people can.

SPEAKER_02 (33:12):
Yeah, no, it's a really good point.
And I think I appreciate thehonesty in that answer more so
than trying to speculate forsomething that may or may not
come to fruition.
And I think that uh humanoidrobots, I do think there is a
high probability that those aregoing to be in people's homes in
the next 10 years, but all thedifferent outcomes of that are
still to be determined.
But I got a few last questionsfor you, and you've been

(33:32):
incredibly helpful in giving ourlisteners that are genuinely
curious about AI and its roletoday in destination marketing.
So before we finish on PuertoRico itself, I just wanted to
give you one last opportunity toshare any other advice you might
have for DMOs out there that arelooking to adopt AI in their

(33:54):
marketing efforts.

SPEAKER_01 (33:55):
Yeah, um, so the best things that I can tell you
about adopting AI is one, makesure you know who you're doing
doing business with.
You know, one of our greatestsuccess rates has been because
the mind trip team has beenamazing.
I've also worked with uh SatisfyLabs, um, and they are amazing
to work with from a guestrelations perspective.
Um and so I would just say justknow who you're working with is

(34:17):
50% of the battle, right?
Um and then I'd say the next 25%is have really clear goals.
Do not go into AI just for AI'ssake.
Like you have to have reallyclear goals about how you're
going to use it.
And then the last 25% I'd say isknow its limitations.
It is not gonna fix everything.
It is not a silver bullet.
You still have to know yourguests, you still have to know

(34:37):
your commercial intent, youstill have to know um what does
success look like.
And if you don't know that, AI'snot gonna tell you that.
I mean, it could, but you'reprobably gonna fail at it.
Um, and so those are the thingsI'd approach it.
Um I'd also say, you know, go inwith a little, a little doubt, a
little can a little concernbecause there is some AI that's
happening right now that youdon't know the long-term

(34:58):
implications for.
So just be really thoughtfulabout how much data you're
giving them.
You know, we train our databased off of um our knowledge
base.
Uh, we train our off of ourknowledge base, off of uh some
of the interactions that we seeafter we clean all the private
customer information out.
And we're just very thoughtfulin our approach because we want

(35:19):
to protect the travelers thatcome here.
We want to make sure that weonly use data for good.
And we want to make sure thatwe're doing it to solve a
problem for our guests and forour partners.
We're not doing it just to doit.
And so I think if you keep thatin mind, then you'll have
success.
Um again, I have seen somefailures where people are just
like, we're just gonna go aftera gentech and it's gonna fix all

(35:42):
of our problems and it's gonnabe amazing.
And then, like six months later,you know, they've laid off staff
because a gentech is gonna fixit all.
And then uh, you know, sixmonths later, they're like, that
was a really bad decision.
Um, because they did not lay outa plan.
And there was nothing betterthan knowing your partner and
having a really good plan.
And partnership really is themake or break.

(36:04):
And again, mind trip has beenabsolutely phenomenal for us.
And every time we come to themwith like a big problem or like
a crazy idea, they've been socool that to be like, okay, we
don't know, but let us figurethis out and then we'll come
back to you.
And that's great because I'dmuch rather somebody say, let us
figure it out than just kind ofsell me on something without

(36:27):
really knowing how to do it.

SPEAKER_02 (36:29):
Yeah, no, it's a really interesting point.
Whenever I'm asked a similarquestion, I always point to, you
know, find the champion in theorganization that can really
champion AI in your business wasvery similar with the whole
digital uh transformationjourney that many companies have
been going through over the last10, 15 years.
But the part that you mentionedabout finding the right partner
is often the thing that I pointto because unlike in the early

(36:50):
days of the dot-com era, whenyou could turn to a web agency
to build you a website, and thenyou would turn to a digital
marketing agency to help youactually drive more traffic.
We're very much in this newworld where everyone knows they
need to be utilizing AI.
There was an amazing uh studythat was done by TMT Labs, which
is uh Lufthansa's lab based inBerlin.
79% of people who work in thetravel industry are using AI,

(37:13):
but less than 30% have beentrained or actually have so
they're they're trying to figureit out on their own.
And that's that's highlightswhere we find ourselves at the
moment and the importance of adiscussion like this with
someone like yourself that hashad Storm, the you know, the
hands-on experience, and isworking with these tools today.
So I really appreciate yourinsights.
I also wanted to finish byhighlighting Puerto Rico itself

(37:35):
as the a destination to travelto in 2026.
So we've got two last questionsfor you.
One is tell us a little bitabout the marketing activities
you have planned for 2026, someexciting campaigns or
initiatives you have planned fornext year.

SPEAKER_01 (37:51):
Yeah, so uh again, I'm still rather new to this
role, so I don't have all theplans figured out.
What I can tell you is thatwe'll continue expanding Live
Bodyqua.
Um so for us, it's not, again,it's not just a slogan.
It is actually the culture ofPuerto Rico.
And we have great, um we havegreat components to it.

(38:12):
We have continued relationshipsand advocates for it.
Um you see Bad Bunny living,live body qua every single day.
He is clearly body qua.
Um, and so he's reallyrepresenting Puerto Rico and
really selling that lifestyle.
And so it's really our pleasureto continue expanding on that
and helping people understandhow our gastronomy programs can

(38:33):
really ignite your soul.
Um, we have a great rum roadwhere you can have the best rums
in the world.
We are the home of rum.
Um then you also have great art,great music, great culture,
great dance, um, amazingfashion.
Again, I'm gonna pick on BadBunny.
Like you won't find a morefashionable man.
Um, and almost everything hewears is from Puerto Rican
designers, which is reallygreat, at least during his

(38:55):
shows.
Um, and so that's the best partabout Puerto Rico is we just get
to tell these really authenticstories from these local
artisans and help connect thatstory to other people and really
helping them come back to lifeand get in touch with
themselves.
You know, Puerto Rico is reallyinteresting and our campaigns
are really interesting in thefact that most people think that

(39:16):
we're just selling in and Iwe're just selling a place, but
we're not.
We're selling in a way of livingto just embrace yourself as you
are authentically.
Um, you know, people always comehere and they go, oh, well,
we're gonna dance.
Oh, but maybe I can't dancesauce in the best, or maybe I
can't dance plain or a bombbutt.
Well, you know what?
As long as you're having a goodtime, nobody cares if you're

(39:36):
dancing the right steps.
They just care if you're havinga good time, just get on the
dance floor and just money.
Right.
Um, just own your own yourauthenticity, own who you are
and have an amazing time.
And that's that's what we'redoing in 2026, is we're just
celebrating the uniquecharacters of Puerto Rico and
helping people understand howthey can let their uniqueness

(40:00):
shine in this island and how ityou'll find your tribe by doing
that.
And there isn't a better thingto market.

SPEAKER_02 (40:07):
Yeah, I love that.
Well, I was inspired by BadBunny when I was there, and we
had our final dinner function.
I had to wear a collared shirt,and I went into downtown San
Juan and I bought a locallymade, designed golf shirt that
was super bright, very colorful,uh, a local designer, and I was
so proud to wear it to dinnerthat night, and everyone got a
real kick out of it.
And I've been wearing it eversince, and it's just like, yeah,

(40:28):
I thought it's in Puerto Rico.
This is like, it's my PuertoRico shirt.
I'm like, yeah, so I played golfwith it.
I've I've I I love that shirt.
It's hanging in my closet now.
And uh so yeah, no, I the thething I'd love for you to leave
us with, given that I've atleast had the privilege to go to
Puerto Rico once, I can't waitto get back.
Uh leave everyone with threereasons they should travel to

(40:48):
Puerto Rico.

SPEAKER_01 (40:49):
Oh, that's really hard.
Um, so the first reason totravel to Puerto Rico is there
is not a place that you will youwill find yourself more than in
Puerto Rico.
Um the second place is, or thesecond reason is you won't find
a more beautiful island in theworld.
We everything that you want inan island can be found here.
And the third reason is um ifyou like food, we have the best

(41:13):
food.
It is a combination of um Teanu,um of West African, as well as
of Spanish.
And so the combination of thefood, there is no way you can
walk through the streets of OldSan Juan or out in Rincon and
not have have every meal be thebest of your life.
Um, so between those threethings, uh, you will have an

(41:37):
amazing time on this island.
And I should say for fourth, I'mjust sorry, I have to go.
The people of Puerto Rico arethe kindest, most welcoming,
like joyous people you'll evermeet.
They are the only people Itravel 50% of my time.
This is the only place whereeverybody looks you in the eye

(41:58):
and remembers your face.
I lived, I've only lived herefor a month.
And um, within three days, myStarbucks guy totally knows my
order.
I always go out to the littlebodega on the corner for my
lunch.
I walk in and they startpreparing my lunch.
And I mean, it's bad because itshows like how systematic and
regimented I am, but it's goodbecause they recognize me and

(42:21):
they already know that.
And so it makes you feel likehome, almost like a cheers
moment where everybody knowsyour name, even though you're
new to the island.
And so there's nowhere else inthe world you can experience
that.
So that's also a reason to cometo Puerto Rico.

SPEAKER_02 (42:34):
Well, I 100% agree about the food and the cuisine
and some of the innovativeconcepts.
And I'll just leave everyone toone of my one of my tips as well
for my experience, which is theuh Choco Bar, um, Choco Bar
Cortez, which in old San Juan, Ihad never had such a delicious
hot chocolate.
And this is where, you know, notonly is the environment like
it's you know, obviously I wasinspired by social media as

(42:55):
well, but I've also never putcheese on my uh hot chocolate.
But that combination of saltyand sweet, it was like
delicious.
And so I actually brought thathome.
I still have some.
I brought it back for my wifeand kids because it was so
incredible.
I still couldn't fully recreatethe magic of being there, but I
nevertheless I tried, and Istill have some delicious
chocolar hot chocolate in thecupboard.

SPEAKER_01 (43:17):
I love that.
And what a wonderful thing tobring to bring home and get
somebody to experience.
And now you'll forever wantthose two combinations.

SPEAKER_02 (43:25):
Absolutely.
Yeah.
No, thank you so much, Storm.
I've so enjoyed ourconversation.
It's been very inspiring, veryinformative.
Uh, I'd love for you to leave uswith where people can find out
more information about DiscoverPuerto Rico.

SPEAKER_01 (43:36):
For sure.
So uh first, thank you so muchfor having me.
I'm so grateful.
I really enjoy that conversationand getting to know you.
Um what I would say isabsolutely come visit
discoverporto.com.
And then we also havethegreenpath.com, which tells
you a little bit more about thesustainable, uh the sustainable
travel activities that areavailable on in in Puerto Rico.
We have a lot of effort to tryto make sure that we have a full

(43:58):
ESG program across the island sothat um we are thoughtful in
everything that we do with thetravelers when they come here.

SPEAKER_02 (44:05):
Thank you again, Storm.
I wish you all the best for2026, and I look forward to
keeping in touch.

SPEAKER_01 (44:09):
You too.
Thank you so much.
Have a wonderful day.

SPEAKER_02 (44:14):
Well, I hope everyone has enjoyed this
special three-part series.
I have immensely because I amfascinated by the destination
tourism space, and I wasthrilled to bring this series
together with our friends overat Mind Trip.
And at my request, I wanted tobring Michelle, who's the CMO at
Mindtrip, into the conversation,as I mentioned at the beginning
of this recording, because sheis an incredible marketer, and

(44:35):
they have such a fascinatingcompany that's got so much
potential.
And that's one of the reasons Iwanted to do this series, but I
also wanted to bring Michelleonto the podcast so you can
learn more about her andeverything that's going on with
Mind Trip.
So, Michelle, welcome to theTravel Trends Podcast.

SPEAKER_00 (44:48):
Thank you for having me, Dan.

SPEAKER_02 (44:49):
For sure.
Now, Michelle's actually, thisis your second time on our show
because you were part of ourFocus Right event spotlight,
which was a huge highlight, andyou let off that episode.
And we've gotten to know eachother really well the last
couple of years, and you know Ihave a great respect for you as
a marketer, and you know, wejust genuinely get along.
And when we talked about doingthis series, we both had a
shared vision for what'shappening in the industry and

(45:10):
how we could bring it together.
And I'm thrilled the way it did.
So no, no, thank you again forthe partnership, but also for
bringing together such anextraordinary group of guests.
So tell us a little bit how youselected these individuals.
We heard from Janet first fromuh Brand USA, then we heard from
Lynn from Visit uh California,then of course we just finished
up with Storm from DiscoverPuerto Rico.
How did you decide to bringthese three amazing people
together for this discussion?

SPEAKER_00 (45:31):
Yeah, uh, it's a great question.
And um, you know, I think one ofthe things that I am always
focused on is recognizing wherean industry is in its sort of
education of certain topics.
And I think when it comes to AI,and this isn't just
destinations, this is probablythe travel industry and the

(45:54):
whole ecosystem, even thoughit's part of our everyday use
for the most part, it's stillnew from a business standpoint
of how can we leverage it.
And, you know, we have been nowworking with destinations, uh,
if you can believe it or not,it's been about a year.
Um, and what we keep learningover and over again is how much

(46:17):
there is interest in the topicof AI with destinations, but how
scary it still is to a certaindegree as to what to do with it,
when to jump in, how to jump in,how to make sure that we have
brand safety when we do that.
Like there's this whole world ofuncertainty that still exists.

(46:37):
And so strategically pickingsome of these destinations who
have already leaned heavily intoit and are experimenting and
learning every day because I dobelieve that people want to hear
from people just like them.
You know, uh, this is why I wasalways reticent to come on,

(46:57):
because I know people don'treally want to hear from me.
They want to hear from otherdestinations, which they should.
They should be learning fromwhat people in the seat that
they have are doing themselves.
So I couldn't pick a bettercrew.
Um, you know, Jeanette is outthere every single day talking
about AI, not just indestination websites, but just

(47:19):
in the ecosystem uh overall.
And uh Lynn and Storm are someof the first to jump in with
Physic California and DiscoverPuerto Rico.
And so they have more experiencethan most from a time
perspective, leveraging thiswith their um travelers and the
visitors to their websites.

SPEAKER_02 (47:37):
What's really interesting about that,
Michelle, and the reason why Iwas very keen to have you on the
podcast as well, is because eachof those guests have a great
affinity for you and the team atMind Trip.
And actually, I thought it wasimportant for our audience to
understand more about theorganization that they've now
heard from.
They certainly got a lot ofvaluable insights about what's
happening in the destinationmarketing space and AI

(47:58):
specifically, because clearlythat was the theme for this
series.
So when they're talking aboutAI, Mindtrip is a platform that
they're all utilizing.
However, there was so much to begained from the knowledge that
they shared and the fact thatthey had such an affinity for
you and the team, and the factI've had the privilege to get to
know you guys.
I wanted our listeners to betterunderstand the people behind

(48:18):
Mindtrip.
So you obviously are animportant piece of that.
But the rest of the team, thiswas the part that I was so
fascinated when I got to to meetall of you, is the the core team
has worked together before.
So tell everyone a little bitabout that backstory, because I
think that's really interesting.
It stood out to me, but tell usa little about this founding
team behind Mindtrip.
And I think that's a key to thecompany becoming the success it

(48:41):
already is.
But yeah, tell us how you gethow you guys got the band
together.

SPEAKER_00 (48:44):
Yeah, that's a great term, getting the band back
together, really, is what thatis all about.
Uh, but I like to tell peoplethat the team at Mind Trip
doesn't come from the travelspace.
Uh, so we're we're not fromtravel, but we aren't new to
each other, or said a differentway.
The team at Mind Trip is new totravel, but not new to each

(49:06):
other.
And so what I mean by that isthat we have most of us at this
point, because we've grown alittle bit, most of us have
worked together at formercompanies.
A good percentage of the companyactually came from the last
startup that we built and scaledin the automotive space.
So we have all worked togetherfor over a decade.

(49:28):
Some some people, multiplecompanies.
Our CEO, Andy Moss.
Uh, I feel like Mindtrip is acollection of the most
incredible people that he hasever worked with in his career.
Because if you look, there'salways a thread.
Uh, but we're not we're not fromthe travel space, but we're so
familiar with each other that Ithink it helps us as a company

(49:50):
just sort of hit the groundrunning.
So, you know, you asked aboutthe the origin story, right on
the heels of the company that wehad built and uh sold to the
largest uh player in theautomotive space.
The team, mostly our CEO andsome of the engineers, got
together and it was right at thetime that Generative AI was

(50:13):
becoming a thing, right?
So Chat GPT had just hit themarket and everybody was like
experimenting with it, and uhthey were all still kind of
talking together.
I was the foolish one that wentand got recruited elsewhere.
Uh, they all took time off andstarted this company, but um
they started talking about howcan we leverage this new

(50:33):
technology?
How do we build a company thatis AI first using this, knowing
that our superpower as a companyis user experience?
So, how do we build aconsumer-facing user experience
on top of this likeconversational capability?
And travel was picked becauseit's such a considered purchase

(50:53):
and it's so fragmented and sosiloed that what they saw was
this opportunity to bring theentire end-to-end travel journey
together.
So, more than just a chat botfrom the very beginning.
It was like, how do we takeinspiration to planning and uh
building itineraries to booking,to you know, collaborating with

(51:16):
people you're going on the tripwith, to the on-trip experience
and beyond?
Like, how do we just create thisfull life cycle moment uh that
some people refer to as theconnected trip, right?
Like all the way through.
And so that has been the visionand just sort of like how the
product came about.
And what we really are doing,especially with our destination
partners now, because it's westarted as a direct-to-consumer

(51:38):
website, which we still have,and we just launched an iOS app,
but we built Mind Trip forBusiness, which is for currently
for destinations, and that'swhere we started, as a way to
bridge the gap betweeninspiration and action.
So I think that's really justgives you a little bit of the
context of where we are, andwe're still pretty new.

(52:00):
I mean, I think about this allthe time because of how much we
have accomplished, but thecompany's been around public
launch about a year and a halfto consumers and just coming up
on a year for destinations.
So it's not it hasn't been verylong.

SPEAKER_02 (52:18):
No, but in in in AI terms, it's been like two years,
which is you know, Chat GPT hasbeen around for three, and uh
just so much has happened inthis time.
And I think one of theinteresting connections when I
was speaking to Lynn and gettinga chance to meet her, clearly
she knew the team and she got toknow the team early and she's
embraced the platform.
But this is where there was adirect connection between the
innovation and technology, theteam, uh the Mindtrip team being

(52:41):
based in California, all knowingyourself from previous startups.
And I used the example ofcrossing the chasm, you know,
the Jeffrey Moore book, ofcourse, and just that Mindtrip
has effectively, in my mind,crossed that chasm because you
have a fit-for-purpose B2Bsolution that the market is
embracing.
And the point that you justmade, which I wanted to share
with our audience, was very muchthat you did start as B2C, you

(53:03):
raised additional funds andmoved into B2B, you've got great
success and traction now withtourism boards, as we've heard
throughout this series, but thisis only the beginning of where
Mind Trip can go.
And so the I I strongly believe,and I've shared this with you,
that the B2C is still going tobe a really interesting angle
for Mind Trip over the longterm.
But there's other industries andverticals you can move into.

(53:23):
So you've got solid foundationuh and traction now within
tourism boards, and that's onlygoing to grow.
And that's where I was keen tohave you tell us a little bit
about where you guys are headedwith Mind Trip and what some of
the things that people canexpect even beyond tourism
boards.

SPEAKER_00 (53:37):
Yeah.
Uh so you must be like readingour conversations or our Slack
messages or something to knowthat uh a little tease, I
suppose, is that we may or maynot be entering the hospitality
space later this year with MindTrip for Hotels.
So that is going to be sort ofour next entree.

(53:58):
But I do want to acknowledgelike this ecosystem, there's so
many different components inthis ecosystem, and we recognize
like that there is this strongpull to like just bring
everybody together through thepower of AI.
And so we've had lots ofconversations, you know, we're
backed by a couple credit cardcompanies, so you know, there's

(54:19):
conversations happening there,media companies, um, but also
you know, the advisor space isone.
We just got back from theVirtuoso event and uh Gilad
Bernstein's Tech Summit.
So there's so much interestconstantly inbound into Mind
Trip as far as like what can wedo for certain verticals that

(54:40):
this is just really just thebeginning.
And we have a lot of excitingnew things happening on the
consumer side.
And what I love about that iseverything we do on the consumer
side is kind of like eating yourown dog food, right?
We have our own website, so in alot of ways, we're we're testing
these user experiences on ourourselves in our own dime.

(55:00):
And so, but once we have newfeature functionality that
quickly rolls into okay, how canthis work?
Does this apply to our Mind Tripfor Business customers?

SPEAKER_02 (55:10):
And that's so that's what I find fascinating, the way
that you've positioned it forthe B2C and the B2B.
And this is where having someonelike you as a very strong CMO
with the background and thecredentials to be able to get
the right brand message, story,and narrative together for
Mindtrip that resonates with theB2B community.
And that's where I'm confidentthat the B2C will also uh
flourish in time because you didhave uh and still do a large

(55:34):
audience that's utilizing theplatform, but the key was
obviously figuring out how tomonetize it.
And so the the beauty of B2B, ofcourse, is that there's partners
that need this technology andthey're not in a position to be
able to develop this on theirown.
So for me, even knowing thatthat might be a potential that
you're gonna expand beyondtourism boards, hospitality
seems to be a perfect fitbecause so many people are

(55:54):
researching hotels.
And the big theme of ourconversation, uh, as you heard
from these discussions, was howthe customer journey is
changing.
And I'd love to get a few ofyour insights because just like
I asked each of our guests, theyhave the opportunity to look at
their own data on the Mind Tripplatform.
You have the opportunity to lookat all the data on the Mind Trip

(56:15):
platform and see people howpeople are using it.
So I'd love to get some insightsfrom you about how the customer
journey is changing.
What are some of the things thatyou're seeing at Mind Trip with
your customers and even on theB2C side?

SPEAKER_00 (56:26):
Yeah, I think the biggest thing just from a
consumer behavior standpoint isit's fascinating to see how
quickly people are going from,you know, the typical search
engine where it might have beenjust a few keywords like top
hotels in California, um, tothese very long personalized,
you know, questions.

(56:47):
Like I'm traveling toCalifornia, I want to find a
hotel that's dog friendly.
I have a a daughter who, by theway, is a vegetarian.
Like you're getting all of thisin the prompts that people are
putting in when they're startingconversations.
And so just seeing just theamount of detail, I think, is

(57:08):
eye-opening.
I also think that we all need tobe prepared.
And uh, I've had lots ofconversations with folks like
Jeanette and Lynn about this forthe future, because behavior is
shifting.
And when behavior shifts likethis, it means that we need to
be prepared to answer those verycomplex questions that people

(57:29):
are now posing.
Uh, and so one of the things,and I do this on Mind Trip, and
we offer this to our destinationpartners as well, is uh I mine
the chats for insights of thingsthat maybe we don't have a great
answer for yet.
You know, a lot of uh when wework with the destinations, not
only are we using the largelanguage models and we have a

(57:52):
knowledge base that you knowallows us to make this visual
interactive with photos andreviews and all that stuff, but
then we index content, like atthe top of the pyramid is
indexing content and key factsfrom the destinations
themselves.
So there is a lot of differentsources going into answering a
question that somebody has, butwhen we hit one that still can't

(58:13):
be answered with all of that,that is should be like gold to
all of us.
That's like that's like findingthat like speck at the bottom,
that diamond in the rough,right?
Like, whoa, that is somethingthat we don't have content on
that we can own.
And so I think one of the mostinteresting things I have
learned in working with somefree destination partners is

(58:36):
yes, you know, embedding AIincreases time on site and
people are more engaged andthey're building trip plans.
But the insights that you canget from where the content gaps
are, that's really what's goingto be necessary information to
move forward in this like futurethat isn't fully written yet,
but we see glimmers of whereit's going, right?

SPEAKER_02 (58:58):
Yeah.
Well, and then one of the thingsthat stood out to me in these
conversations too is that asthey've implemented this
application, the big shiftbetween building out an existing
website based on search behavioron uh a Google search engine,
for example, and how they landon your website, and you've got
landing pages, you've got a topnavigation, you're trying to
control the user experience.
And what really was highlightedto me throughout these

(59:19):
discussions was the fact thatyou no longer have that control.
You now need to be ready forwhatever the LLM is going to
produce as a result.
And therefore, your time andeffort and visit California and
Lynn's comments were fascinatingin this regard with like four
million pieces of data that theyhave that uh then they can work
with Mind Trip to be able tocurate that.

(59:40):
Because if if it was sochallenging, I know from my
experience for many years tryingto implement a great search
widget within existing websitesbased on these wildcards of what
people would search for.
Things like insurance.
People would just say, I can'tfind on your website, I'll type
in insurance.
And we would then learn fromthat and improve the navigation.
But people are now asking toyour point, lot.
long string queries to try andthey're getting more

(01:00:02):
sophisticated about theirprompts uh in order to get
better results.
And this is a a huge differencebecause all of a sudden you need
to be focused on how do you makesure that your your tourism
board, your travel company, isbeing indexed and represented
the right way for any of theselarge language models.
So this is a huge challenge andundertaking.

(01:00:23):
And obviously even tourismboards working with a partner
like you are learning what'snecessary to be on that journey
and to use a tool to be able togive people the right
recommendations.
And there was one other commenttoo about also if something is
closed, like making sure thatsome of the things that might be
produced to highlight thatactually this does exist, but

(01:00:44):
it's now closed.
And so that users don't getconfused if something gets
produced that they getdisappointed when they find out
later it's closed.
So um so anyway a lot of thatwas really fascinating.
What what are some of the big Iguess I was asking each of them
some of the challenges thatthey've overcome.
What are some of the things thathave stood out to you either
sort of the uh the challenges ofimplementing this or some of the

(01:01:04):
opportunities you've thenrealized of like wait a second
actually we've been thinkingabout this differently and it
actually works even better forthis reason.

SPEAKER_00 (01:01:11):
I'm you know this is where it's all so new I'm
excited to hear your take onthis Paul I think every
challenge is an opportunity soI'm glad you put those two
things together I you know Ithink we have learned as much
from our destination partners asthey have learned from us and
that that truly is what makes ita partnership because we're
constantly learning.

(01:01:32):
So I think when we first gotinto this this world of tourism
boards and destination marketingorganizations, you know we had
our consumer hats on and then wewent over here and we're like
wait a second you have membersand priorities and different
things that we have to take intoconsideration or you know you

(01:01:53):
have very specific goals aroundwhat your destination narrative
needs to be.
And so those uh have really justhonestly all those learnings and
listening have just enhancedwhat we do today.
I think one of the things thatbecame so powerful so quickly
that we implemented wassomething that we called key

(01:02:15):
facts.
And you can think of it like ahammer, right?
So if there's something aboutyour destination that's really
important to you like maybe youknow the um local authentic food
in Puerto Rico because I knowthat that's a key factor that
they have is really important tomake sure that you surface
anytime somebody asks aboutrestaurant recommendations.

(01:02:38):
Like this is an opportunity toput some of those priorities or
maybe your prioritysustainability right like put
those in and make sure that whatyou are highlighting first and
foremost isn't just only whatthe customer is asking for, but
also include some of thosepriorities for the destination.
So we've learned so much aboutwhat it means to manage a

(01:03:01):
destination what it means tohave to manage all those
stakeholders and you know showresponsibility for that.
So it's it's been a really greatand and beautiful exchange and I
I always I'm a big believer ifyou're not if you're not
continuing to learn then youshould just stop.

SPEAKER_02 (01:03:19):
Yeah well especially right now more so than ever so
is kind of owning up to the factthat things are only continuing
to get better because that'swhat I've always I've certainly
heard uh in the last couple ofyears anytime you know there's a
major culture change I've seenthis several times before in my
career because you always havepeople that are going to point
out what doesn't work as opposedto the a hundred things that do

(01:03:39):
work so well.
And so you know the number oftimes I've heard people mention
that Air Canada gave away somefree flights on their chat bot
and therefore we shouldn't haveAI chatbots because and so but
like literally that's acautionary note but it's not a
reason not to embrace technologyand change.
So now given you guys have alsorecently won an award the Fast
Company Most innovative companyof 2025 which is pretty cool

(01:04:02):
because when I was at GAdventures Bruce Poontip really
wanted to win that award we dida number of things.
They eventually got there aftermy time but um that's an
incredible recognition I'm ahuge fan of Fast Company and I
respect their process forselecting organizations.
So the fact that you you guysare new to travel and then you
know are winning awards for yourtechnology and travel, you know,
it's a testament to the team,the processes you guys have

(01:04:24):
built and your backgroundbecause you've adapted very
quickly and are now really uhconquering the travel industry
in a number of different ways.
And that's why I think it'sstill very much early days.
I I want to make sure and I knowyou're not on the sales side
Michelle and I know you werereluctant to come on but I do
want to make sure that any ofour listeners can understand how
they could engage and work withMindtrip.
And one of the things I had saidto Michelle even before we were

(01:04:46):
recording the series because Iwasn't familiar with the
different prices and packagingand options and like who it
because I was like I thinkthere's some people that I know
that might really utilize thisbecause I was at a conference in
Quebec City earlier this yearand the the local tourism board
had asked me like we're thinkingabout using this tool called
Mindtrip.
Do you know anything about it?
I was like yes and they're likedo you know what it costs I'm
like no and not that we have toget into those details today but

(01:05:07):
tell everyone a little bit aboutI know on your website there's
like the basic and there's youknow there's the end uh um the
enterprise option as well butlike give everyone if you
wouldn't mind a bit of anoverview of how companies can
work with you and reach out tothe sales team not to yourself
but to be able to learn moreinformation book a demo.

SPEAKER_00 (01:05:24):
Yes well they're happy they can reach out to me
too I mean we're such a smallteam it'll get it'll get into
the right hand but um you know Ithink one of the things that I
learned because coming into thisindustry first of all as a as a
marketer myself and then workingwith other marketing leaders has
been such a blessing.

(01:05:45):
Actually it was one of thebiggest surprises of everything
was like oh like I speak theirlanguage this makes a lot of
sense.
But but there is a piece oflanguage in uh in tourism boards
and destination marketingorganizations that they're very
used to buying media andcampaigns and maybe not as much
software.

(01:06:06):
And so the way that mind tripworks is it really depends on
the the size of your destinationlike are you a city are you a
county are you a state are you acountry right?
Are you region?
Uh but it also is the thecomplexities of you know are
there certain configurations isthere integrations we need to

(01:06:28):
you know put in place how manylanguages are you going to want
to translate into uh do you justwant on your website do you also
want this you know to functionin a WhatsApp channel like
there's there's a lot ofdifferent uh configurations of
this software so it's all pricedas a software as a service kind
of like a monthly fee like youwould pay for your CRM and other

(01:06:51):
tools even though it is part ofyour digital you know media your
website and so that's how it'spriced and it just it varies it
really does depend.
We do have a basic model that isfor like super small
destinations that uh really wantto get their feet wet into this
and put something on your site.
And then enterprise of course islike we need it translated into

(01:07:15):
10 different languages and wewant it plugged into our CMS
system and indexing this otherwebsite.
You know there's lots ofdifferent things that uh take
time for the team to implement.
Does that answer your question?

SPEAKER_02 (01:07:28):
Yeah it does.
I think the main thing I wantedto ensure I conveyed to our
listeners especially thosesmaller uh to medium size
organizations is that it isaccessible for you as well.
That was the part that stood outto me and I won't mention any
numbers because I'm sure theyultimately also they do change
and you know the but the basicpremium and enterprise plan but
the basic plan is accessible tojust about any organization
based on cost.

(01:07:49):
And then so there's not a reasonthat they shouldn't otherwise
reach out or look to engage withyou in their technology, which
is why I also think it'll workfor other uh verticals in travel
as well.
And then you know the there'sall these opportunities for
customization and we heard somegreat examples of that in these
conversations.
No I just wanted to to make surewe did cover that I thought that
was really important for ourlisteners uh most importantly so

(01:08:10):
thanks for giving a few moredetails on that.
And then just in terms ofconnecting with you, you kindly
obviously mentioned that you areyou know you're very much a
thought leader in this space.
I know you do webinars all thetime and I you know the um the
level of marketing I continue tosee coming out of Mindtrip just
continues to to grow and buildespecially as you guys got your
you know your second round andthe team obviously is small but
growing um so tell us how bestfor people to be able to connect

(01:08:34):
with you or the team if theywant to reach out and learn more
about Mindtrip.

SPEAKER_00 (01:08:38):
Yeah um so there's a couple different ways uh one you
can go to Mindtrip obviously wehave forms and people can fill
out if they want a demo.
If you just want to talk aboutAI and you don't necessarily
want this deep demo and you'renot ready for that yet and you
just want to bounce thingsaround you can reach me at
Michelle at Mindtrip.ai or youcan email my it's usually myself

(01:09:02):
our COO like there's a couple ofus on this at uh business at
mindtrip.ai.
So again we are all soaccessible and available if you
have any questions uh andwherever you are in that like
decision tree is is totallyfine.

SPEAKER_02 (01:09:18):
That's great.
Thank you Michelle and just onething for all of our listeners
too that we are airing this aweek before our AI summit.
So if you're listening to thiswithin that times time frame
make sure that you join us notonly for the AI summit but also
our session on how DMOs arebeing transformed by AI.
We have an exceptional moderatorin Matthew Gardner who is a

(01:09:39):
great friend and heads up travelmassive in London.
So he's going to be moderatingthe session Michelle will be
there and Jeanette as well soyou actually will have a chance
to interact with them live askquestions so don't miss that
opportunity to join our AIsummit, meet the team from
Mindtrip and several of thetourism boards that you've heard
from on this series.

(01:09:59):
And then of course Michelle likeme is at all the major industry
conferences so she'll be back atFocus Right.
And so if you want to reach outto her to find out where she's
going to be in the world makesure to do that.
And Michelle on that note I, youknow I thank you again for this
partnership.
I've so thoroughly enjoyed thisseries and obviously uh I look
forward to seeing you again inperson and at our AI summit and

(01:10:20):
uh seeing you in Californiabecause it focus right's in San
Diego so it's close for youbecause you're based in LA.

SPEAKER_00 (01:10:25):
It is I actually am a graduate of UC San Diego.
That was my undergrad.
So uh it is like coming homebeing in San Diego.
But yes to your point Dan I Iwill be at uh a lot of events
here as we close out the year.
I'll also be at the brand USAtravel week for anybody that
will be there in London.
So happy to engage and uh wouldlove to connect with people.

SPEAKER_02 (01:10:49):
Awesome.
Thanks again Michelle all thebest to you and the team.
We'll see you again soon.
Thank you.
Thanks so much for joining us onthis special three-part series
of travel trends focused on howdestination marketing is being
impacted by AI.
I hope you enjoyed today'sconversation with Storm Tustee,
the CMO of Discover Puerto Ricoand where the conversation
started with Jeanette Roush fromBrand USA and Lynn Carpenter

(01:11:11):
from Visit California.
And thanks again to Michelle forjumping in and joining us as
part of this final episode.
Special thanks to her and to theentire team at Mindtrip for
sponsoring this series that Iwas so keen to bring to life.
I look forward to seeing wherethis conversation goes and if
you want to send any feedbackplease send me an email Dan at
traveltrendspodcast.com.

(01:11:33):
Now don't forget we do have anincredible panel coming next
week at our AI summit that willfeature Storm and Jeanette and
Michelle hosted by my friendMatthew Gardner from Travel
Massive London.
And if you're listening to afterthat don't worry because you can
find it right away on ourYouTube channel at Travel Trends
Podcast as well as clips andhighlights from these
conversations on LinkedIn andInstagram.

(01:11:55):
And to find out more aboutMindtrip, check out mindtrip.ai
thanks again to everyone formaking the time to join us on
this three part series I hopeyou found lots of beneficial
guidance and advice and I reallyhope you joined us for our AI
summit as well.
And until our next series safetravels