FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Maggie Aland
Phone: 202-739-9765
Email: maland@columbiabooks.com

Washington, DC (June 8, 2016) - Columbia Books & Information Services (CBIS) is excited to announce that its ambitious data enhancement partnership with Destination Marketing Association International (DMAI) has placed second in the “Best New Success Story” category of the SIPAwards, presented this week at the Specialized Information Publishers Association annual conference in Washington.

DMAI approached CBIS in late 2014 seeking assistance in the management and enhancement of their existing data product EmpowerMINT (MINT), which is a prospecting and research tool for the destination marketing industry.  CBIS, having an extensive meetings database from its MeetingPlannerLists, Association Meeting & Event Planners, and AssociationExecs products, was uniquely positioned to assist.  

“This was an ambitious new enterprise for Columbia Books, and one of the best opportunities we had to utilize our investment in technology and internal talent,” stated Duncan Bell, Director of Editorial & Data Services at CBIS. “The MINT project is prototypical of the sort of relationships we hope to achieve as we continue to build the custom data services business.”

This enterprise required joint efforts from CBIS and DMAI to integrate complex database back-end systems, a complete understanding of DMAI’s requirements, and minute attention to detail in matching, appending, and researching over 30,000 organization records and 90,000 contact records.  When everything had been done, DMAI was able to launch its newly enhanced meetings database, MINT+, in January of 2016.

The user response to the newly enhanced MINT+ database has been phenomenal.  “Our partnership with [Columbia Books] allowed for extensive cleaning during the data match, and thousands of orgs, contact and meetings records were added to the database, and with their on-going partnership in data verification and hygiene, we now have MINT+!” says Rachel Benedick, Vice President of Sales and Service, Visit Denver.  “The best of both worlds:  DMOs working together to build our brand and relevance and a great partner to fill in the information gaps and keep records verified and accurate.”

About Columbia Books and Information Services
Columbia Books & Information Services (CBIS) is a leading provider of compliance information, training and in-depth data across a range of subject areas including associations, nonprofits, grants, government relations, federal contracting, FDA, energy, paint contracting and meeting planning.  For more than 40 years CBIS has provided users with compliance resources and training, print directories, online databases, and customized data delivery. 

About Destination Marketing Association International
Destination Marketing Association International (DMAI) is the world’s largest and most reliable resource for official Destination Marketing Organizations (DMOs), also called convention and visitors bureaus (CVBs) or tourism boards. A passionate advocate for our members, DMAI is dedicated to improving the effectiveness of more than 4,100 professionals from nearly 600 destinations in approximately 15 countries. We provide our members — professionals, industry partners, students and educators — the most cutting-edge educational enrichment, networking opportunities and travel marketing benefits available.