Conventional wisdom says go for the geeks.

• Position: Triangle

Raleigh doesn't have Miami's sunshine and beaches, New York's cultural come-hithers or Las Vegas' glitzy casinos and shows. "We're not a glam city," says Roger Krupa, director of the Raleigh's new $221 million convention center. But it has something else going for it: geek appeal. The Triangle is rich in universities, research and development, so the convention center is trying to attract gatherings with an educational bent. "It only makes sense that you go after business that fits," says Laurie Okun, director of sales and marketing.

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She has enlisted the aid of Triangle executives and university administrators to recruit groups likely to be impressed by Raleigh's brainy bona fides and the building itself. The 1,800-member Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education, for example, had planned to hold its biennial meeting the month in Pittsburgh but booked Raleigh instead, impressed by the convention center's eco-friendly architecture. It's expecting Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.

Basic arithmetic--especially subtraction--helps, too. The convention center has an incentive fund of about $350,000, generated by a countywide tax on hotel rooms and restaurant meals. In mid-October, less than two months after it opened, $166,720 in discounts...