What Destination Dayton does

Destination Dayton, legally Dayton/Montgomery County Convention and Visitors Bureau, Inc., is the official destination marketing organization (DMO) for Dayton, Ohio and Montgomery County. Founded in 1994 and operating as a 501(c)(6) nonprofit, the organization promotes tourism, conventions, meetings, sports events, and group travel to the region. Its core products include a free mobile app for iOS and Android, a free printed and digital visitors guide, a monthly e-newsletter, the Tourism Academy ambassador training program, and the Wilbear Wright Aviation Trail — a gamified stamp program across 17 aviation heritage sites. The underlying technology is built on the Simpleview CRM and website platform, providing content management, an event calendar, mobile app integration, and email marketing capabilities.

The organization is funded primarily through hotel/motel tax revenues and membership dues from tourism-related businesses, supplemented by partnership arrangements. It operates a segmented direct sales team covering seven verticals: sports, select sports/hobbies/arts/music/associations, government/multicultural/fraternal/religious, corporate/education/military reunions, weddings, and tour & travel. A convention services manager processes RFPs for meetings and events. Marketing channels span a content blog, monthly email newsletter, active social media presence across Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and YouTube, PR and earned media, a video content library, contests and giveaways, and the trained Tourism Ambassador network of approximately 20 part-time visitor information specialists.

Destination Dayton is headquartered at 22 E. Fifth Street, Suite A, Dayton, Ohio, with a secondary presence at the Dayton International Airport Information Station. The organization serves meeting and event planners, sports event organizers, association groups, government and military entities, group tour operators, LGBTQ+ travelers, and individual leisure visitors. Its value proposition is anchored on Dayton's "Birthplace of Aviation" heritage, the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force, the nation's largest paved trail network (350+ miles), and a 100/100 Municipal Equality Index score marketed as a draw for inclusive events.

Name

Destination Dayton

Legal name

Dayton/Montgomery County Convention and Visitors Bureau, Inc.

Website

https://destinationdayton.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Destination Dayton is the official 501(c)(6) destination marketing organization for Dayton, Ohio and Montgomery County, promoting tourism, conventions, meetings, and sports events through visitor guides, a mobile app, Tourism Academy, and a segmented direct sales team.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Dayton

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Revenue model

1. Tourism Promotion Funding: Destination Dayton operates as a Convention & Visitors Bureau funded through hotel/motel tax revenues and membership dues from tourism-related businesses. The organization promotes the Dayton/Montgomery County region to attract visitors, conventions, and events that generate economic impact.
2. Visitor Services Revenue: Provides visitor information services, visitors guide distribution, and operates information stations at Dayton International Airport. Revenue derived from partnership fees and service arrangements.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Destination Dayton is the official destination marketing organization for Dayton, Ohio and Montgomery County, operating as a Convention & Visitors Bureau. It promotes tourism through free consumer-facing resources (mobile app, visitors guide, e-newsletter, contests) and provides B2B sales-supported services (RFP processing, venue sourcing, convention services) to meeting planners, sports event organizers, association groups, and tour operators to drive visitor spending and economic impact in the region.

Product overview

Destination Dayton is the official tourism marketing organization for Dayton, Ohio and Montgomery County, operating as a Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB). The organization offers a portfolio of visitor-facing products including a free mobile app for trip planning, a printed/digital visitors guide, a monthly e-newsletter, a tourism ambassador training program, and promotional programs like the Wilbear Wright Aviation Trail. These offerings are coordinated through the destination's website platform which also facilitates meeting and event planning, sports tourism services, and provides information on local attractions, hotels, restaurants, and events. The organization primarily operates as a marketing and promotional entity rather than a technology product company.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Named customers7 records

Segments6 records

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• LGBT Meeting Professionals Association (LGBT MPA)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerLGBT MPA is a 501(c)(3) organization connecting, advancing, and empowering LGBT+ meeting professionals. Destination Dayton collaborates to attract LGBTQ+ events and meetings to the region, promoting Dayton's inclusive environment and perfect Municipal Equality Index score.

Scale indicators20 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Others

• Brand USA: National destination marketing organization for the United States. Adjacent ecosystem participant that Destination Dayton benefits from but does not directly compete with; serves as a complementary national-level DMO that drives inbound international demand into regional CVB markets like Dayton.
• Simpleview: CRM, website, and digital marketing platform provider specifically built for destination marketing organizations and CVBs. Used by Destination Dayton to power its website, app, and content operations — a critical enabling vendor/technology peer for the CVB operating model.
• Ohio Tourism Industry Association (Ohio's Travel + Tourism Office): State-level tourism industry trade association and advocacy body. Not a direct competitor, but an industry ecosystem participant that Destination Dayton engages with on statewide tourism promotion, lobbying, and cooperative marketing initiatives.

Direct peers

• Detroit Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau (Visit Detroit): Regional CVB for Detroit and Wayne/Oakland/Macomb counties, Michigan. Closely comparable as a legacy industrial Midwest DMO with similar heritage-driven repositioning, automotive/aviation adjacency, and drive-tourism capture focus.
• Visit Cincy (Cincinnati USA Convention & Visitors Bureau): Regional CVB for Cincinnati and Hamilton County, Ohio. Directly comparable as a same-state nonprofit DMO promoting a mid-sized Midwestern metro with comparable mix of heritage, sports, and convention business — and a direct competitor for Ohio association RFPs.
• Experience Columbus (Columbus Sports & Convention Authority / Visit Columbus): Regional DMO for Columbus, Ohio. Directly comparable structure and business model as an Ohio CVB, but with materially larger budget and broader entertainment infrastructure; serves as the primary benchmark competitor for statewide convention RFPs.
• Visit Indy (Indianapolis Convention & Visitors Association): Regional DMO for Indianapolis / Marion County, Indiana. Highly comparable Midwestern CVB with strong sports tourism emphasis, similar segmented sales structure, and overlapping appeal for drive-tourism and association conferences from neighboring states.
• Visit Pittsburgh (VisitPITTSBURGH): Regional DMO for Pittsburgh and Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. Directly comparable as a Rust Belt heritage destination re-positioning around innovation, with similar mix of sports, conventions, and heritage tourism and similar budget scale.
• Destination Cleveland (Cleveland Convention & Visitors Bureau): Regional CVB for Cleveland and Cuyahoga County, Ohio. Closely comparable nonprofit DMO promoting a legacy industrial-heritage Midwestern city, with overlapping sales verticals (sports, conventions, leisure) and similar funding via hotel/lodging taxes.

Broad incumbents

• Choose Chicago: Destination sales organization for Chicago. Larger, broader-incumbent peer operating in the same Midwest tourism/promotion category with overlapping meetings and conventions focus, but at materially greater scale and brand reach.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCQzCQTZDd3pGTssGKn_e3FA
• Facebookfacebook.com/destinationdayton
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/destinationdayton
• Instagraminstagram.com/destinationdayton
• Pinterestpinterest.com/destinationdayton
• Xx.com/daytoncvb

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Destination Dayton