More than 90% of North America’s top 50 meetings destinations rely on Simpleview as the go-to solution with the most trusted tools in the industry. Trusted by more than 1,000 destinations, more than 400 million visitors discover destinations each year on websites powered by Simpleview.
Confidently keeping up with the ever-evolving industry and economy, Simpleview boasts a global portfolio of best-in-class products, services, and partners — including ICCA, Tourism Economics, and ASM Global.
220 Solutions was formed in 2001 from a shared vision among Ryan George, Bill Simpson, and Scott Wood, and supported by a loan from Ryan’s father. Travel industry veteran Rich Reasons, owner of cvbTV, also played a vital role in establishing the company’s direction. Joining forces, their collective vision kicked off a new era in destination marketing.
In 2002, they introduced the first web-based customer relationship management (CRM) system exclusively designed for DMOs. Fun fact: Visit Lauderdale was the company’s first client and remains a loyal customer to this day.
Simpleview was officially created when 220 Solutions and cvbTV merged in 2007, comprising 100 clients.
In 2010, Simpleview acquired New Media Gateway and its portfolio of clients, which included large North American destinations. Simpleview gained its first customer outside of North America in 2011, when Malaysia signed on for CRM services. In 2014, Simpleview acquired Pittsburgh-based Software Management, Inc., adding 92 DMOs to its client base. Over a period of three years, Simpleview opened offices in the United Kingdom and Mexico City.
A series of acquisitions took place to help better serve Simpleview clients. Notable milestone mergers included:
• 2Synergize, LLC, a consulting agency, was created to specialize in the DMO sales industry, with a laser-focus on helping destinations gain a competitive edge in the conventions, meetings, and events markets.
• The acquisition of Jackrabbit Systems enabled DMOs to offer direct booking to local lodging partners.
•Eventsforce was acquired to provide DMOs, planners, and marketers with an intuitive, all-in-one solution that scales to meet ever-changing event technology needs.
• MINT+, the world’s largest meetings database, was created in a joint venture with Destinations International.
On September 5, 2024, Granicus, a global leader in government experience technologies and services, announced its official acquisition of Simpleview.
For more than 20 years, Granicus and Simpleview have each operated under the common belief that the creative application of digital solutions can lift all members of the community by deeply understanding and engaging with the diverse interests, needs, and aspirations of all stakeholders.
With the addition of Simpleview, Granicus now serves more than 6,500 organizations worldwide with a workforce of approximately 2,000 employees. This joint force empowers Simpleview to remain at the forefront of the destination marketing industry and help DMOs boost tourism, engage and support stakeholders, and win bids for meetings and events with the industry’s most trusted CRM, CMS, and integrated marketing services.
“Joining Granicus gives the Simpleview team the exciting opportunity to reinforce our commitment to our customers as a partner providing transformative technologies and services that fuel community health,” said Ryan George, CEO of Simpleview. “Together, the companies now have the ability to reach and engage with more than 400 million current and future residents, visitors, and businesses to create connected communities that support places where individuals want to visit, meet, live, work, play and invest.”
Moving forward, our journey is clear: We’ll remain at the forefront of the destination marketing industry and help DMOs boost tourism, engage and support stakeholders, and win bids for meetings and events with the industry’s most trusted CRM, CMS, and integrated marketing services.
