Beth Olson, director of sales at Visit Santa Barbara, has been honored with a Smart Women in Meetings Award from Smart Meetings, a meetings industry publisher and resource for event professionals.
Now in its 10th year, the Smart Women in Meetings Award has become a benchmark in the hospitality industry, honoring women whose leadership and impact elevate the meetings profession.
This year’s nomination process drew the largest response in the award’s history, with Olson among just 100 women from around the world selected for this distinguished accolade, the organization said.
“I was honored and delighted to find out I was selected as a Smart Woman in Meetings,” Olson said. “The most fulfilling part of my career has been seeing people with whom I’ve worked and who I mentored grow and succeed, and many of these current and former colleagues are here in Santa Barbara.
“Hospitality is a rewarding and exciting career, and this award just reinforces the value we bring to our community as industry professionals.”
The award celebrates women who contribute to the meetings industry through their skills and unique abilities.
Recipients are honored across six categories, and Olson was recognized in the Industry Leaders category. She accepted the award recently at the Smart Woman Summit awards gala in Tampa, Florida.
Olson has served as director of sales at Visit Santa Barbara since joining the organization in 2019. She oversees Visit Santa Barbara’s sales strategy and leads a team dedicated to increasing visitation to the Santa Barbara South Coast by growing group business, travel trade and leisure stays at a diverse range of hotels and resorts.
Olson earned a Certified Destination Management Executive in 2023 from Destinations International. It is recognized as the tourism industry’s highest individual educational achievement.
She has 37 years of hospitality experience in Santa Barbara, having held multiple roles in hotel operations and hotel sales, including 14 years as director of sales and marketing at Fess Parker Resort (now Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort).
Olson also previously held positions at Relevé Unlimited and PRA Destination Management. She earned a bachelor’s degree in political science and international relations at UC Santa Barbara.
Visit Santa Barbara is a nonprofit 501(c)(6) organization jointly funded by the South Coast Tourism Business Improvement District and a membership of hospitality-related businesses, as well as grants from the City of Santa Barbara and the County of Santa Barbara.
Annual spending by travelers to the South Coast totals more than $2.24 billion, supporting some 15,000 jobs and generating more than $82.9 million in yearly tax revenues, according tourism market research firm Future Partners.