Board member-approved: Visit Quad Cities uses Simpleview CRM & Extranet to show value to the BOD

Expand your Simpleview CRM horizons and your board of directors (BOD) will thank you — just ask Dave Herrell, the President and CEO of Visit Quad Cities.

Herrell is the king of efficiency. Recognizing that all reporting for his destination marketing organization (DMO) is done in Simpleview CRM and the CRM Extranet, he developed an “always-on” dashboard for the BOD. The dashboard within the CRM includes access to: 

• A wide range of digital materials and industry materials, like U.S. Travel’s legislative agenda, or pertinent material for board awareness
• Organized board packets, meeting minutes, board presentations, audits, 990s, and everything the BOD members need visibility to
• Folders organized by fiscal year that have set owner/viewer permissions just like other data in the CRM 
• CRM Extranet to give board members access to the convention center calendar to know what groups the Visit Quad Cities staff has worked on to bring to the community.

Giving the BOD access to Simpleview CRM has many benefits. Still, some outshine the rest: the board members have access to the materials no matter where or when they need them, they have an opportunity to see the power of the CRM in action, and they get a better understanding of why Visit Quad Cities has invested in this platform. 

Herrell and his team can also see what the BOD members have reviewed, which he says is a great way to demonstrate transparency and say, “All of our material is available to you at any time that you want to access it.” Partners can go back to view previous fiscal years, get calendar notifications, and be notified when their Visit Quad Cities board of directors packet has been uploaded onto the Simpleview CRM. 

It’s important to Herrell that his BOD sees the DMO taking steps to make their service and term on the board efficient and effective. New board members receive a login password, attend an orientation, and get trained on the reporting capabilities available. “The system is now the culture of how we interact and they rely on that cadence to receive materials,” said Herrell. “It is something that took a little time, but it's been fantastic.”

“Simpleview CRM is utilized across the organization, rather than investing in technology specifically for the board. We brought the board into the culture of the professional staff organization with our CRM and provided them the opportunity to use the tool in a variety of ways.” — Dave Herrell, President and CEO, Visit Quad Cities.