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Six Principles for Creating the Ultimate Customer Experience - By Dr. Rick Johnson

Service excellence starts with Inside Sales? Since customers buy expectations when they do business with your company, Inside Sales must be skilled at building sales relationships.

Remember, 'Perceived Value Drives Customer Expectation' - 'Performance Value Drives Customer Satisfaction'. So exactly what does that mean?

It means that the higher you drive a customer's perceived value of you and your company, the closer you come to creating competitive advantage. This all starts with the relationship built by Outside Sales but just as importantly, the relationship built by Inside Sales.

Caution, don't drive customer expectations so high that you can not perform. That would be like shooting yourself in the foot.

Here are some common expectations of Inside Sales:

- Product and applications knowledge, so they can answer questions during most customer calls versus transferring calls to others or having to call back with answers.

- Customers expect Inside Sales to ask questions to learn the customer's needs and interests, problems experienced, and types of customers they serve so Inside Sales can help customers reach good buying decisions. Become skilled at the art of questioning

- Provide accurate pricing, inventory, and delivery information so the customer can depend on it.

- Keep customers informed about new products, special promotions, and company policies that affect the business relationship.

- Provide timely follow-up to customer questions, timely solutions to problems, and timely complaint handling to ensure customer satisfaction.

- Demonstrate a service excellence attitude that proves you value the customer's business.

- Possess a sales mentality to help match the right products and the right services to customer needs.

Inside Sales is the primary day-to-day interface with the customer. By far, the majority of customer contacts are with the Inside Sales organization. From the customer's perspective, Inside Sales is the firing line where job performance proves the company's commitment to service excellence.

The actual tasks performed by an Inside Sales person vary widely from one company to the next. Job responsibilities depend upon industry experience, product knowledge, and can depend upon company size. The smaller the firm, the greater the tendency for Inside Sales to 'wear many hats. The larger the company, the greater the potential for specialization where Inside Sales handle inbound calls and follow-up, with others doing purchasing, mailings, quotes, or providing technical support, for example. No matter the level of specialization or lack of it, every inbound call and customer contact is an opportunity to enhance your sales relationship and prove you deserve a customer's business.

Six Key Principles

PRINCIPLE #1: PAY ATTENTION TO THE DETAILS.

The truth about customers is: they are just like us! They like dealing with people who sound like they are smiling, who appear to enjoy their jobs, and who make customers want to deal with them. The perfectly processed and delivered order experience can be marred by a less then enthusiastic attitude. Though Inside Sales handles many calls each day, every call should demonstrate an energetic and positive 'can do' attitude. Don't underestimate the power of your tone or voice on the telephone. Like it or not, we judge others and customers judge us that way. Do you sound harried, bored, bothered or too busy to care? Or does your voice project an attitude that makes customers want to talk with you?

PRINCIPLE #2: QUALITY PRODUCTS AND QUALITY SERVICE BEGIN WITH QUALITY THINKING!

Customer service consists of a series of 'moments of truth' your customers experience with your company. Every person in the organization - even those you may not think of as customer service personnel - has the ability to make a positive impact on customer relations. This could be the way the telephone is answered, to your use of Voice Mail, to error-free orders, accurate billings, realistic promises made and kept, to the integrity of the information you provide, these are all moments of truth that affect sales relationships.

Customers expect Inside Sales to help them do business with your company, to solve problems, to coordinate with other people and departments. "What's the reason for the price difference between this order and my last one?" "Who should I talk with about a billing problem?" "How should I handle this return?" "Do you have a catalog you can mail me?" "Can you send me a sample of that?" "Can I get freight paid on that order?" Quality thinking means focusing on the customer's needs and making sure those needs are met.

PRINCIPLE #3: Make it 'Easy to do Business'!

You have probably heard of the KISS principle: keep-it-simple-stupid. As funny as it may sound, it is really just good business practice. When customers find it easy to do business with you, they keep coming back for more. There is no secret to what keeps customers coming back for more, thereby contributing to the growth and profitability of your company. It's all about service and creating the ultimate customer experience.

Consider what it takes to gain a new customer. Prospecting for new accounts is the most costly of all selling tasks, yet new business is the lifeblood of the company and must be sought. Time must be invested into finding new customers, getting acquainted with their needs, selling them on the benefits of doing business with your company versus a competitor, and eventually getting that first order. By the time the first order is received, the company's investment of time and related costs typically mean there is no profit in the sale. It can take several orders just to break even on the prospecting investment after which the relationship ¬ presuming it is maintained ¬ becomes profitable to you and your company. Remember, if you don't take care of the customer --- Somebody else will!!

PRINCIPLE #4: Do It Right - Do It Right The First Time!

What does an order taking error cost your company? How about the cost of a return goods authorization because the customer got the wrong product? What does an order pricing error cost? What is the real opportunity cost of a lost customer due to poor quality customer service?

Each time an order is handled more than once, handling costs increase through what is called cost-redundancy, i.e., doing the same task over again, only this time doing it right. An error can mean the order must be corrected and re-entered, a credit may need to be issued, another delivery must be made, the wrong product must be returned, and both you and your customer are inconvenienced.

Quality errors such as these can result in the ultimate loss to the company: a lost account. The real loss to the company is not just the value of the order in question. It is the life-long value the customer represents to the company presuming you did maintain repeat business with the customer.

Many times quality errors that cause accounts to become inactive go unnoticed for some time by the company. No one realizes the customer is gone and no one works to get the customer back.

PRINCIPLE #5: Understand Your Value Propositions

What is the difference between your company and your competition? When that question is asked of some Inside Sales people, a common answer is: "We're about the same. We all have about the same products. Sometimes we have something in stock that the competition doesn't, so that's one difference I can think of."

Every company needs to determine their value propositions! These are the 'unique propositions' that set your company apart from the competition. Creating the Ultimate Customer Experience means you must employ your vale propositions. Customers buy expectations when they do business with you, not products which can be purchased from any number of sources. They buy the expectation of getting the right products, shipped to the right place, at the right time, as ordered. They buy the expectation of dealing with someone who understands their needs and can match products and services to meet them. They buy the expectation that your products and product knowledge will help them make good buying decisions. They buy the expectation that doing business with you will somehow benefit them and help them achieve not only their purchasing objectives but many other objectives as well. They buy the expectation that doing business with you will make their jobs easier and solve their problems. Inside Sales is in a key position to demonstrate the company's value propositions and personal value propositions to help create the 'Ultimate Customer Experience'.

PRINCIPLE #6: EVERY JOB IS A SELF-PORTRAIT OF THOSE WHO DID IT!

Whether taking an order, preparing a quote, sending a sample, handling a complaint, or coordinating with other internal customers (did you know others inside the company are your internal customers?), paying attention to the details, doing timely follow-up, respecting the other person's time as well as your own all create a professional "self-portrait." There is no question customers rely upon Inside Sales, that the Inside Sales role is critical to meeting customer expectations, achieving service excellence, and building lasting relationships with customers. When you focus on the customer and treat every task as the "self-portrait" it represents, you prove your commitment to service excellence.


Check out Rick's new CD series and workbook 'Unlocking the Secrets to Amazing Sales' @ http://www.ceostrategist.com/resources-store/unlocking-the-secrets-to-amazing-sales-incredible-profits.html It is a must addition for your sales training initiatives. Order today and get a bonus copy of Rick's book 'Turning Lone Wolves into Lead Wolves ----56 ideas to maximize sales.

Thanks to PF& Associates for their contribution to the content in this article.

www.ceostrategist.com - Sign up to receive 'The Howl' a free monthly newsletter that addresses real world industry issues. - Straight talk about today's issues. Rick Johnson, expert speaker, wholesale distribution's 'Leadership Strategist', founder of CEO Strategist, LLC a firm that helps clients create and maintain competitive advantage. Need a speaker for your next event, E-mail rick@ceostrategist.com. Don't forget to check out the Lead Wolf Series that can help you put more profit into your business.

What the Heck is Hotel Website PageRank, Anyway? A Hotel Marketers Guide to Understanding Website PageRank - By Neil Salerno

Among the many terms often mentioned among web site knowledgeable people is PageRank. In reality, it has great importance, although I don't think there is a popular consensus for why it is so important to a web site, nor how it functions.

I thought it might be helpful to provide a marketer's view, rather than a pure technical view, of PageRank, what it is, why it's important, and what you can do to improve it. Some of the technical portions of this article have been redacted from various technical sources.

It is interesting to note that PageRank was developed at Stanford University by Larry Page (hence the name Page-Rank) and later by Sergey Brin as part of a research project involving his new search engine. In 1998, Page and Brin founded Google, which became the most popular search engine ever developed.

There are several definitions of PageRank, some more technical than others. Since I prefer simple to technical, here is the best I've found.

PageRank is a numeric value that represents how important a page is on the web. Google considers that when one page links to another page, it is effectively casting a vote for the other page. Google feels the more votes that are cast for a page, the more important that page must be. Also, the importance of the page that is casting the vote determines how important the vote itself is. Google calculates a page's importance from the quantity and quality of the votes cast for it.

I'd like to add, at this point, that there are unscrupulous site developers and marketers who prefer to find ways to fool or trick search spiders or searchbots rather than to follow search engine guidelines to improve site results. In its wisdom, Google is coming down hard on unprincipled site developers and marketers who would sacrifice the rules, in favor of creative design. Be sure that you are not working with one of these individuals.

PageRank points-out the importance of links or 'votes' for a web page. There are three basic types of links to consider: Dangling Links, Out-Bound Links, and In-Bound Links. Google also considers 'relevancy' to be very important to evaluating links for PageRank.

Dangling Links

A Dangling link is a link to a page that has no links going from it, or a link to a page that Google hasn't indexed. In both cases, Google removes the links shortly after the start of its calculations and reinstates them shortly before the calculations are finished. In this way, their affect on the PageRank of other pages is minimal.

Although it may be functionally acceptable to link to pages within the site without those pages linking out again, it is bad for PageRank. It is pointless wasting PageRank unnecessarily, so always make sure that every page in the site links out to at least one other page in the site.

You have all experienced dangling links, ever get to a page with no way to leave without the back button or closing the page? Don't let your booking engine create a dangling link on your site. Since a booking engine is an out-Bound link, never place the booking engine search on your home page, no matter how great the idea may sound.

In-Bound Links

In-Bound links are the golden objectives to build your site's PageRank. In-Bound links, (links into the site from the outside) are one way to increase a site's total PageRank. Where the links come from doesn't matter.

The linking page's PageRank, however, is important, but so is the number of links going from that page. For instance, if you are the only link from a page that has a low PageRank, you will receive little benefit, whereas a link from a high ranking page, with another 99 links from it, it will increase your page's ranking substantially.

Link relevancy is also very important when choosing In-Bound links. Only choose travel or hospitality related links to your hotel web site. Link 'farms' and otherwise paid links can be considered spamdexing and your site could be banned by search engines as a result. When choosing a marketing partner for your site, make them provide all the details of their link program.

Out-Bound Links

Out-Bound links are a drain on a site's total PageRank. They leak PageRank. To counter the drain, make sure that these links are reciprocated. Take care when choosing where to exchange links. It is important to note that outbound links should never be placed on a page on which you would like to build PageRank (e.g. home page).

PageRank is very important to the popularity and performance of your site. If your site has been online for more than 120 days and is unranked, or has a ranking of less than 4/10, your site needs work.

Links are the key to good PageRank. Every hotel web site needs to develop a good link strategy.


Contact:
Neil Salerno, CHME, CHA
Hotel Marketing Coach
www.hotelmarketingcoach.com
NeilS@hotelmarketingcoach.com

Driving REVPAR in the Current Economy: The Shift from Managing Demand to Generating Demand - By Carol Verret

In the past eighteen months, demand has remained relatively flat while rate has increased by between 7% in 2007 and almost 9% in 2006. The consumer that seemed so resilient to rising hotel rates has 'collapsed', in the words of Bernie Sternlicht, Chairman and CEO of Starwood, pressured by rising gas prices and the resulting cost of goods, not to mention the loss of equity in their largest investment, their homes. (BTNOnline, June 2, 2008))

Three 'lions' of the industry, speaking at the recent hotel investment conference in New York, indicated that they expected eighteen more months of softness in the hotel industry. J.W. Marriott, Bernie Sternlicht of Starwood and Jonathan Grey with Blackstone (owners of Hilton Corp.) all saw a protracted period of soft demand for the next eighteen months that will make it difficult to move rates, a fact that is already reflected in the smaller percentage increases in ADR. (BTNOnline, June 2. 2008)

PKF sees a bottom in the current cycle around November 2008 with recovery beginning in the first quarter of 2009. (Mark Woodworth, June, 2008) However, that prediction was made prior to the announcement by the airlines regarding massive cuts in capacity, United is parking 100 airplanes, increasing fares and additional fees like those for checked luggage.

Recently, I had the privilege of speaking and facilitating a discussion at a meeting called by a hotel company to assemble their GMs, Revenue Managers and Directors of Sales to brainstorm on ways of increasing revenue in the last half of 2008. They normally have meetings in the fall to plan for '09 but felt that they needed to plan for the second half of '08 before they could begin to plan for '09.

There is a reason that GDS transactions in the Americas have decreased by 7% in the first quarter of 2008 on Galileo (Travel Management, May 14, 2008) while Expedia has reported an 8% increase and StarCite RFP requests have increased by almost 7% as of April YTD. Planners across all segments have turned to the internet to find the best value for their vacation, their company and their meetings!

The focus is back on the hotel sales and marketing department to generate more demand to pick up the slack. It's time to flex that 'prospecting' muscle:

- Analyze current marketing strategies. Before reacting with new strategies from a position of 'panic', step back, take a deep breath and analyze what is currently deployed, especially if these were the strategies in the Marketing Plan for '08 that was developed prior to Q4 2007. How well are the ad strategies and ecommerce initiatives working - measure against both last year and anticipated results for this year YTD. Are the segments that were targeted in decline, should redeployment with a new message be targeted at market segments with potential in the current economy versus the relatively robust economy of pre Q4 '07? Market sectors such as Financials, should be deemphasized, they are not going to be big revenue generators for a while. Consumer goods also have rough spots - retail and anything to do with home improvements are soft. Tip: USA Today has a page in the Money section every Monday that will tell you which stock market segments are up and which are down.

- Retool the Hotel Sales Department Deployment. How is the sales department organized now -- is it by market segment, geography, etc.? Look at the trends in corporate travel, many companies are paring back travel due to cost but some are continuing and increasing travel to maintain their current customer relationships. Who are they and in which sectors of the economy? In the meeting sector, large meetings that have been experiencing high attrition rates are fracturing into small regional meetings due to cost. If the department is organized by geography, pull back those that are focused on the most distant markets and deploy them in drilling down into areas closer to the hotel.

- Rethink the Hotel's Value Proposition. What is the message on the hotel web site and all the places where there are listings in the areas you need to be in? Don't lower the rate structure but populate your message with value ads, packages that build in features the consumer considers of value. For example, for the leisure traveler that may be staying closer to home, package a 'weekend' getaway with a spa experience or a 'family package' to include kid friendly features such as passes to the local children's museum that may entice regional, state or local travelers. The rule of thumb is the destination must be within 'one tank of gas'. For the meetings market, offer a meeting package with per person price options.

- Be where the customer can find you! If the leisure customer doesn't know you or even if they do, they are likely to go the OTAs to see what's out there in terms of not only rate but packages, value ads, etc. They then may go the web site - make sure that your offers and pricing is transparent across all channels. Go to the web site and research what key words are being used to find you and what are the referring sites or pages. Meeting planners are under pressure to demonstrate that they have done their due diligence to their stakeholders. What is your online presence on meeting planner and RFP sites like StarCite?

Hotel sales Super Stars will be made in this economy by their ingenuity and resilience producing demand for their hotels. Don't be afraid to try new strategies and approaches - if one doesn't work, amylase why and move on. Those hotels that come out this economic downturn, will be the ones best positioned to increase rates when the economy recovers.

(Join us in Phoenix July 24 at the Radisson Airport North for 'I Hate Cold Calls' sales training open to all members of the hotel sales community - click here for more info.)

Carol Verret and Associates is offering a series of public hotel sales seminars nationwide this year in response to growing demand from the hotel community. For more information on where they are to be held or how your hotel or management company can sponsor one, email Carol at carol@carolverret.com or call (303) 618-4065.

Carol Verret And Associates Consulting and Training offers training services and consulting in the areas of sales, revenue management and customer service primarily but not exclusively to the hospitality industry. To find out more about the company click on www.carolverret.com. To contact Carol send her an email at carol@carolverret.com or she can be reached by cell phone (303) 618-4065. Visit www.hotelsalesblog.com.

Marriott's 'QuickGroup' Online Booking Provides Instant Rates and Availability for Small Groups

Want a convenient way to compare room prices and hotel locations for your next small group, even if that is at 1:00 am -- just go to Marriott's QuickGroup booking site on Marriott.com.

The site allows small group customers to enter dates and city locations and check availability around the world for group room blocks between 10 and 25 rooms for up to seven nights. Customers can compare group room rates at participating Marriott, Renaissance, JW Marriott, Courtyard, Residence Inn, SpringHill Suites, Fairfield Inn and TownePlace Suites hotels in a particular area, making it easy to shop several options and instantly book a block of rooms online.

Meeting planners and customers have instant access to space dimensions and floor plans of the hotel's meeting space. Marriott plans to allow meeting and banquet rooms to be bookable online in the near future. For more information or to book rooms for small groups, log onto marriottmeetings.com.

This new online booking tool also provides benefits for the bride who needs to find accommodations for out of town wedding guests and for the "soccer" parent responsible for organizing the team's out of town tournament accommodations.

"We sell the way the customer wants to buy and more and more, people, including small group planners and social business planners want the convenience of buying online 24 hours a day, seven days a week," said David Marriott, senior vice president, global sales.

Marriott.com also has electronic tools available to assist meeting planners in finding the perfect space to fit their needs and budget. These include space and budget calculators, online rooming and group lists, custom web pages for groups, and step-by-step guides on everything from planning to post-meeting follow up.

The Cachet Of Hospitality Is The Ultimate Brand - By J. Ragsdale Hendrie

Folks, we've got it, and others want it. The term, Hospitality, evokes certain emotions and expectations, and we are the practitioners who make it work. We fulfill the dreams and deliver the goods. Hospitality is a most worthy cachet, and we cannot afford to lose that edge.

Cachet, you say. What does that actually mean? By definition, a cachet is a sign showing something which is genuine, authentic or of superior quality - a mark of distinction and prestige. In this age of Experience, that is exactly what we are relaying to our audience.

Sometimes, all you have to do is mention a name. Vermont, as a destination, appeals to your senses - bucolic, tidy, clapboard villages, green mountains and verdant valleys - how life should be, whereas Maine presents itself as a state of mind - independent, varied landscape, hardy souls, tasty crustaceans. In the Caribbean, Anguilla, BWI stands for white sand beaches, - pure, natural, a Paradise. Las Vegas, on the other hand, speaks to the naughty side - bright lights, gaudy tableau, flaunting some skin and some luck. All four are highly evocative, appealing to our emotions, senses and desire for adventure. Images planted, dreams launched!

Naturally, Big Business has clamored for the same type of cachet. For Ford Motor Company, Quality is Job One. Coke is the Real Thing. Bernie & Phyl's Furniture - 'quality, comfort and price - that's nice'. Tiffany is the gold standard, you simply are not chic without a Prada product, and Campbells Soup is 'umh, good'! Cachets can run amok, as well, with Starbucks the most recent example. As soon as major expansion began, the Company, which was selling the Experience rather than the coffee, began the erosion of its Brand. There is no cachet in a hotel lobby or distinction with expansion plans for a world-wide presence of 40,000 stores. You just become another cup of coffee. Even the CEO, Howard Schultz, knows he must recapture the 'soul' of the Brand and return the 'romance and theater' to Starbucks.

So, exactly what is Hospitality about, what are we selling, what is that special cachet? Firstly, we accommodate, feed and entertain the world. Each of us, no matter the role or the business type, knows instinctively in our heart that to perform successfully we must have product, service and facility in top form. We deal with the public - our Visitor, guest, or patron - the Consumer, just like us, who have expectations, for we have painted quite an appealing picture of what their Experience with us could be - our marketing dollars at work. Now, we need to deliver.

The ultimate Hospitality cachet is our delivery, often times, gracefully under fire. A warm smile and welcome, attending to needs, high service standards and execution, affirmation that the ongoing Experience is working, and a sincere thank you. This is all accomplished with a certain style, passion, respect and dedication. Simply, it is how we all wish to be treated in that perfect world.

In our trade, the realities always challenge that tri-pod of Hospitality: product, service and facility. We seek transparency and excellence, but frequently settle for less. Brand integrity is tricky business, and once you lose your cachet, you are toast, not even lightly buttered.

We spend an enormous amount of time and money attracting those Guests to our Destinations and venues. We are effusive with our promotional language, describing an Experience which simply may not exist. Most Destination Marketing Officials do not understand that their role does not end with the promotion, they need to direct the community enculturation and integration effort, too. Everyone is part of that effort, needs to be engaged, oriented and trained, and become essential to that Experience projected. Oregon has done an especially wonderful job at this, as has the Pocono Mountain Vacation Bureau. Others sprinkle a little money and half-hearted efforts to this enculturation aspect, wipe their hands and say they have done their part. Not good enough! The parts equal the sum of the Experience.

At the local level in our accommodations, restaurants, attractions, and retail stores, we try very hard. Many succeed with sparse resources. Excellence is an investment. It requires time and commitment. We share our passion and direction with our staff, who may not reflect either our standards or appreciation of the business. We do the best we can with little money, trying to attract talent, retaining our personnel through continuous training and development and competitive wages and benefits and, yes, respecting the differences. We strive to present the finest in product, ever mindful of our amenities, our food preparation and overall performance standards. With our facilities we know the power of First and Lasting Impressions - we continually renovate, innovate and enhance.

We are the cachet of Hospitality, we perpetuate that essence. For us, there is no mystique. We live it every day, this is what our Guests seek. Around the world, other businesses have discovered that Superb Customer Service is the only barometer for Performance success. Whether it be Health Care, retail operations, like banks and grocery stores, even big business and manufacturers like General Motors - the Customer is King. And, that Customer needs to be lavished, attended to, listened to, respected and thanked. For generations we have embraced authenticity and care for our Guests. We know what the Hospitality Experience should be. We know the ingredients, which make our calling distinctive. Be proud of the tradition!

The author, J. Ragsdale Hendrie, believes that Remarkable Hospitality is the portal to the Guest Experience and offers solutions through www.hospitalityperformance.com.

email: jrhendrie@aol.com
phone: 978-346-4387

Meeting Planners - Resigned To A Seller's Market - By Robert Mandelbaum

Given the strength of the U.S. lodging market, it is no surprise that meeting planners appear to have accepted the fact that is it a seller's market. Meeting planners have not abandoned their efforts to control their budgets. However, rising room rates, attrition clauses, and second-tier cities are no longer the hot button issues they once were.

Yes, the improving fiscal health of corporations and associations has put less pressure on meeting planners to curb their costs. However, based on our analysis of the attitude of meeting planners, as well as our discussions with hotel sales personnel, the expected shift in bargaining power from buyer to seller is well in evidence in 2007.

These observations were reached based on a survey of meeting planners conducted by PKF Hospitality Research (PKF-HR) on behalf of ConventionSouth magazine. PKF-HR received survey responses from a total of 121 meeting planners with an average of 13 years in the profession. Although the survey focused on meetings held within the southern states, the sample of respondents consisted of planners located throughout the nation. Association planners comprised 37.8 percent of the survey sample, followed by corporate planners (20.2 percent), independent (14.3 percent), government/non-profit (11.8 percent), and other (16.0 percent).

Slightly More

Based on meeting planner expectations for the number of events, attendance, and expenditures, we believe that the meetings market will look slightly better for hotels in 2008.

Slightly more than 50.0 percent of the planners surveyed will be organizing the same number of meetings in 2008 then they did in 2007, with another 39.8 percent expecting an increase in the number of meetings planned. The outlook for exhibitions in 2008 is more stable. Close to 78.0 percent of the respondents are planning the same number of exhibitions in 2008 as they planned in 2007.

Attendance patterns are expected to parallel event trends. Nearly 60 percent of the meeting planners are noticing flat attendance at their meetings, while 26.8 percent are observing more attendees than expected.

With the number of events and attendance expected to experience a slight increase, it follows that planners are also expecting to spend more in 2008. Due to increased meeting activity, as well as rising costs, just over half (50.4 percent) of the meeting planners are budgeting for greater expenditures at their meetings in 2008, with 39.8 percent expecting their outlays to remain the same as they were in 2007.

Cost Controls

PKF-HR is forecasting U.S. hotel room rates to rise 4.2 percent in 2008, the fifth consecutive year of growth above inflation. Given the fact that most U.S. markets are achieving occupancy levels above their long-term average, it is not surprising that only 10.6 percent of the meeting planners surveyed are attempting to control their costs by cutting hotel room rates. Instead, they are looking towards lowering the dollars spent on food and beverage (21.3 percent), audio/visual (16.6 percent), and off-site events, and parties (12.8 percent) to manage their budgets.

Other indicators that meeting planners have succumbed to tough market conditions include the reduced use of second-tier cites and the growing acceptance of onerous attrition clauses. From 2004 through 2006, the percent of meeting planners asked to consider a second- or third-tier city in an effort to control costs rose from 31.5 percent to 40.3 percent. In 2007, we observed the first decline in this statistic. Only 30.8 percent of the planners in this year's survey indicated they were receiving pressure to select a less expensive meeting destination.

Just under half (49.5 percent) of the respondents stated that attrition clauses affected their site selection process in 2007. This was down from 57.3 percent in 2006. We believe this is yet another indicator of the superior negotiating leverage hotel management now possesses.

Likes and Dislikes

While meeting planners may have conceded their negotiating leverage, they do expect high levels of service for the price premiums they are paying. As expected, the availability of meeting space was rated as the most important criteria mentioned when selecting a meeting site. At number two was service standards, followed by the price of the meeting space, number of available hotel rooms, and the price of the hotel rooms.

Fortunately, the event sites appear to be meeting most planners' service expectations. In 2007, the majority (69.6 percent) of planners surveyed felt they received the same level of satisfactory service that they encountered in 2006. On the positive side, 20.5 percent believed service levels had improved last year, while 9.8 percent had an inferior experience. Of those planners that were less satisfied in 2007 than they were in 2006, 53.8 percent sought a resolution to their bad service experience. Fortunately, 92.7 percent of those that sought restitution were happy with the end result.

When selecting hotels and meeting sites, it appears that planners desire a combination of amenities and services that will allow their attendees to conduct a productive meeting and enjoy the experience as well. Among all the different types of hotels, resort properties were favored over large urban hotels and conference centers. A fitness room and a 24-hour business center ranked as the second and third most important overall hotel amenities. On-site food and beverage was number one.

Further illustrating the concept of 'work and play', coffee makers and work desks were ranked as the most important in-room amenities. In recognition of the promotional efforts of the major hotel chains, luxury bedding was rated as more than 'somewhat important' as a guest room amenity. This is greater than the rating given to mini-bars and in-room exercise equipment.

The Cycle

Lodging is a cyclical industry, yet PKF-HR is forecasting an extended period of 'better than average' growth in revenues and profits. While this is good news for U.S. hotel owners and operators, it does not bode well for meeting planners.

Hotel sales personnel should certainly maximize the financial benefits of the leverage they currently possess. However, they must also recognize that meeting planners are demanding a high level of service that is consistent with the premium prices they are paying. In the near-term, with price losing its importance with meeting planners, the quality level of services and amenities is now the differentiating factor in the meeting site selection process. In the long-term, when the next lodging industry recession eventually hits and pricing becomes competitive, the quality of service you deliver today will pay off in the future.

Robert Mandelbaum is the Director of Research Information Services for PKF Hospitality Research (www.pkfc.com). Special thanks to Kristen McIntosh, vice president and editor of ConventionSouth, for sponsoring the survey. This article was published in the December 2007 issue of Lodging magazine.

Newmarket International and Worktopia Enable Direct Online Connectivity Between Meeting Planners and Suppliers

Newmarket signs Worktopia as its newest MeetingBrokerSM enabled channel partner
Newmarket International, Inc., the leader in sales and catering software solutions for the hospitality industry, and Worktopia, a global reservation system for simple meetings for up to 100 people, announced their partnership today. The partnership will enable booking requests from meeting planners using Worktopia to be distributed directly to those venues with Newmarket's MeetingBrokerSM solution. MeetingBroker, an innovative web-based lead management solution, automates lead distribution, response and management for buyers and suppliers, allowing suppliers to respond faster to leads and win more business.

'Worktopia is pleased to offer its corporate customers the ability to search and book meeting space with direct online connectivity to our partner hotels via MeetingBroker,' said Brian McCabe, Executive Vice President, Business Development, Worktopia, Inc.

Worktopia reaches planners though distribution relationships with online corporate booking tools and procurement systems, travel management companies, conference agencies and direct corporate relationships. The company helps thousands of corporate meeting planners, travel and conference agents book simple meetings for up to 100 attendees. Reports estimate that two-thirds of all meetings have fewer than 50 attendees, and that segment accounts for $24 billion in spending per year. Now RFPs and leads sent through Worktopia can be immediately distributed to MeetingBroker-enabled venues electronically. Venues can then quickly respond to the opportunity, helping to increase their win percentage.

'Worktopia is a great addition to our portfolio of MeetingBroker channel partners available to our hospitality customers,' said Marty Denning, Business Development Director, Newmarket International, Inc. 'Worktopia is giving our customers access to those meeting planners and corporate buyers wanting to book simple meetings fast. Since data shows that these small meetings typically are booked with less lead time, Worktopia also helps market unsold space.'

Currently, MeetingBroker, with over 3,000 installations worldwide, sends 30,000 RFPs from meeting planners each month. These RFPs represent more than $240 million dollars in new business a month for subscribing hospitality providers and will continue to grow. With the addition of the Worktopia channel, Newmarket's customers will benefit from greater awareness and converted business in the growing small meetings online market segment.

About Worktopia
Worktopia, Inc. offers meeting procurement solutions that allow meeting planners to search, compare and acquire simple meetings online in hotels, conference centers, business centers and airport lounges in 65 countries. The Worktopia(R) meeting space booking engine can be found at www.worktopia.com, and in private label versions on hotel, airline and other third party web sites. For more information, visit www.worktopia.com.

About Newmarket International
Newmarket International, Inc. (www.newmarketinc.com) is the leader in delivering sales, group catering and event software solutions to the global hospitality and entertainment industries. Newmarket International's suite of business solutions can be found in hotels, casinos, restaurants, visitor bureaus, stadiums, meeting arenas and convention centers throughout the world. Newmarket International has over 70,000 users worldwide, with over 10,000 installations in over 110 countries. Newmarket International is headquartered in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, with international offices in Cologne (Germany), London, Shanghai, Singapore and Sydney.

U.S. Airline Industry Headed Toward 'Catastrophe' at Current Oil Prices

Several Airlines Likely to Fail, Affordable, Frequent Air Travel and Jobs at Risk

At current oil prices, several large and small U.S. airlines will default on their obligations to creditors beginning at the end of 2008 and early 2009, according to a study issued today by AirlineForecasts, LLC and the Business Travel Coalition. The study shows that $130/barrel oil prices will increase yearly airline costs by $30 billion, while airlines will be able to generate only $4 billion in fare increases and incremental fees. The implication of this alarming trend is that several large and small airlines will ultimately end up in bankruptcy, and of those, some will be forced to liquidate.

For a full copy of the study, go to http://tinyurl.com/6qhh99

"If oil prices stay anywhere near $130/barrel, all major legacy airlines will be in default on various debt covenants by the end of 2008 or early 2009," the study conducted by AirlineForecasts for BTC states. "U.S. commercial aviation is in full blown crisis and heading toward a catastrophe."

"Airlines are the primary source of inter-city transportation, critical to national and local economic development, the flow of human capital, movement of just-in-time parts for manufacturing, perishable food and other goods critical to our economy," the study says. "With airlines gravely threatened, so is our economic well-being."

Findings:

- The top 10 U.S. airlines will spend almost $25 billion in higher fuel costs this year over last year when jet fuel averaged $2.11 per gallon. Fuel hedge benefits could offset $5 to $6 billion of the increased fuel costs.

- Earnings for the group, when one-time reorganization charges are removed, were less than $4 billion in 2007, the only year of profitability this decade. The group could lose as much as $9 billion over the next 12 months if the current range of oil prices holds.

- Industry fares will have to increase at least 20% -- across the board and on average -- just to cover the dramatic gap-up in fuel costs from 2007. This is not possible given the level of uneconomic seat capacity in the system today.

- The upshot of higher fares is less traffic, and given a reasonable estimate of price elasticity, the industry will eventually be forced to shrink its seat capacity by 15% to 20%. However, there is no guarantee that a transition to a smaller, more expensive (for the consumer) airline industry would be successful and sustainable.

- Airlines have the ability to raise some cash, and moreover, suppliers such as aircraft manufacturers, leasing companies and travel management companies will have an incentive to support large airlines that provide a stream of value. Nevertheless, without a swift reduction in the price of fuel, the industry is headed toward a massive failure that will result in more bankruptcies, including liquidations.

"The U.S. airlines, and those who depend on them, are watching with growing alarm as their cash reserves fall precipitously toward zero as the price of oil, already at unsustainable levels, continuously spikes into uncharted territory," the study says. "These airlines have never faced a darker future."

"Brand name legacy carriers that we and American communities from coast to coast have depended upon for decades to provide us with affordable, frequent air service are running out of cash, and therefore, toward a date with bankruptcy and liquidation," the report warns.

"Airlines can attempt to radically shrink the industry," the study states. "But given the competitive situation they face, it's highly unlikely that they will have the ability to reduce capacity to levels that will allow all of them to survive. Instead, absent direct policy intervention, the likelihood is several airlines will fail."

"Stabilizing this ailing industry must become a national policy priority," the report states. "Many Members of Congress, federal regulatory officials, state legislators and Governors have yet to fully appreciate the devastating impact an oil-crippled airline industry will wreak on our culture and our national and local economies."

Domestic Travel to Rise to 2.005 Billion Person-Trips in 2008

International Arrivals to Advance by 4.4% - U.S. Travel Resilient Despite Economic Challenges

Global Insight, the world's leading company for economic and financial analysis and forecasting, today released the second quarter 2008 update of U.S. Travel Insights, predicting a slight year-over-year increase in the total number of domestic Person-Trips, and a higher spike in international arrivals. U.S. Travel Insights forecasts domestic leisure and business travel, international arrivals and visitor spending, and is built in partnership with D.K. Shifflet & Associates, the foremost authority on U.S. travel volumes, visitor spending, and trip behavior.

Domestic Travel

Total U.S. domestic Person-Trips are expected to reach a seasonally unadjusted 489 million in the second quarter of 2008, up from 487 million (+0.4%) in same period last year. Domestic Person-Trips registered 444 million in the first quarter. Leisure travel, which comprises about 76% of all domestic Person-Trips, will grow by 0.8% in the second quarter, while business travel is expected to contract by the same percentage. Better-than- expected economic growth in the first half of 2008 is the primary driver of this continued, albeit small, expansion.

"Rising travel inflation, particularly for transportation, has not yet dampened Americans' desire to travel, although it is causing significant cost- cutting changes in trip behavior," said Douglas Shifflet, Chairman and CEO of D.K. Shifflet and Associates.

Looking ahead to the third quarter of 2008, domestic leisure Person-Trips will reach 437 million. Business travelers will contribute an additional 132 million Person-Trips. This represents growth over the same quarter a year ago of 1.1% and -0.4%, respectively. Leisure Person-Trips will be bolstered in the latter half of the year by Americans spending at least part of their tax rebate on travel. The divergence of leisure and business travel demonstrates differing trip motivation. Holidaymakers and those who are off to visit family and friends have thus far been undeterred by the slowing economy and rising oil prices. On the other hand, business travel is under rising pressure due to corporate cost control and the availability of improved alternatives such as Web meetings and conference calls.

Domestic travel reached 1,999 million Person-Trips in 2007. This represented a slight decline from 2006 (-0.1%), despite robust fourth quarter performance in both leisure and business travel. U.S. Travel Insights expects full year 2008 to reach 2,005 million Person-Trips, a 0.3% increase over 2007. Unfortunately, 2009 looks to be a more challenging year as both leisure and business are expected to backslide. The slowing economy and lingering influence of rising oil prices will finally take their toll. Total Person- Trips will decline by -0.4% to 1,996 million. Leisure travel will see its first decline since 2003.

Travel spending growth will begin to slow in 2008, down from the inflation-fueled rates of 2006 and 2007. Total domestic visitor spending will rise by 3.6% this year, followed by an increase of only 0.9% in 2009. Changing trip behavior such as substituting domestic for international trips, trading down in hotel quality, foregoing in-trip shopping or entertainment spending, shorter stays, and visiting destinations closer to home have all helped to maintain the traveler's ability to go while coping with rising travel costs and economic woes.

"Rising hotel rates, gasoline prices, and air fares have thus far been met by changing trip behavior rather than a decision to stay home. This is strong evidence of the surprising resiliency of travel, particularly leisure trips," said Kenneth McGill, Managing Director of Global Insight's Travel & Tourism Service Group.

The domestic traveler will finally see some relief from rising travel costs in the latter half of 2008 and 2009. The U.S. Travel Insights' Travel Price Index (TPI) predicts trip inflation of about 2.7% for the last three quarters of 2008. Travel costs will slow further in 2009 to an average 1.6% increase for the year.

"Virtually every cost component of the TPI will begin to moderate over the next two years, including fuel costs," said Jennifer Fuller, Director at Global Insight and principal author of U.S. Travel Insights. "Slowing demand and rising supplies will take some of the heat off of hotel rates, gasoline prices, and other trip costs."

U.S. International Arrivals

International arrivals to the U.S. from Europe, Canada, and Mexico have been remarkable over the past four quarters. Total arrivals will surpass 59.2 million in 2008, representing growth of 4.4% over last year and coming off an increase of 11.3% versus 2006. Through the first two months of 2008, international arrivals are up 6.4% over the same period a year ago. The rising value of foreign currencies against the dollar, their relatively strong and stable economies, and a renewed interest in destination USA have all combined to create a perfect storm of international visitation. Moreover, U.S. Travel Insights expects that trend to continue through 2009 as foreign visitors register 62.1 million trips, a 4.8% improvement over this year.

The U.S.'s most important source markets -- Canada, Mexico, United Kingdom, and Japan -- are all showing growth as foreign visitors come to key destinations such as New York, Orlando, Washington, D.C., and Las Vegas to play, shop, visit friends/family, and gamble. Japan arrivals are expected to rebound in 2008 after two consecutive years of decline, advancing 5.7% to 3.7 million arrivals. Canada and Mexico arrival growth slows after two years of double-digit advances, but remains at a very respectable 4.1% and 3.6%, respectively.

The Greatest Hotel People I Have Never Met...and the lessons I learned from them - By Neil Salerno

Writing articles, as often as I do, has opened up a completely new world of communication for me. I truly value the wonderful feedback and encouraging comments, I have received, from the many great hoteliers that I have never met.

My writings have allowed me to communicate with hoteliers running every type of hotel, large and small, corporate, convention, and resort, in so many markets throughout the world.

I am thankful to have had so many of my writings published in online and print publications around the world. I truly believe that we all learn and progress through the process of communication and through the expression of our knowledge, experiences, and beliefs. Remember, "Be who you are and say what you feel... for those who mind, don't matter and those who matter, don't mind."

The Internet is the perfect conduit for hoteliers to communicate with each other and with the guests we serve. It gives us the ability to expose our hotels to the global travel marketplace easily and affordably. During the past few years, we all learned that it is necessary to use new marketing methods and practices in order to be effective in this unique online marketplace, many traditional hotel marketing practices do not apply to the Internet.

When looking back, it makes me realize how much our industry has changed since I entered it in the late 60's, it made me realize that the quality of one's experience, and what we learn, is far more meaningful than the length of one's career, many hoteliers just do not accept change. Rapid changes, in the way we do business in the hospitality industry, have forced good hoteliers to embrace the Internet, communicate, and learn new techniques.

I have learned so much from the great people in our industry, lessons learned from reading their articles, getting reader feedback from my articles, and hearing hotelier's concerns. The message here is that our natural ability to learn from one another is essential to our progress.

Lessons Learned

With the increasing speed of connections to the Internet, I find myself changing my view of flash elements on hotel web sites. Download speeds have increased dramatically and it now makes some uses of flash and movement practical for hotel web sites. I still caution about the excessive use of flash, remember, search engines still cannot read flash. Entire sites, made with flash, are still taboo for hotels. It may look cool, but it makes your hotel virtually invisible on the Internet..

I hear from hoteliers, every week, who express frustration and disappointment with their web site and its failure to perform to their expectations. It is all too common to see hotel web sites, which were designed by companies that have no clue about hotel sales and marketing, have a lack of understanding how generic search works, or even worse, over-charge hoteliers for their services.

There are several good hotel Internet marketing firms, which can do an excellent job of developing business for hotels on the Internet. Look for hotel marketing experience, not just with the salesperson representing the company, but also with the person who will do the designing and marketing of your site. The return-on-investment for a well-designed site is quick and certain.

Web 2.0 Dialogue

Perhaps the most notorious topic continues to be the current and future role of Web 2.0 social media in hotel marketing. Many hotel marketers stay mesmerized by the huge numbers, which the Web 2.0 movement has generated, although some experts feel that the popularity of web 2.0 has already peaked. They see news, movies, even political statements wildly viewed by millions of people and they salivate about the marketing possibilities for our industry.

I got into the mix when I wrote a couple of articles, in response to several I read, which featured proposals to "monitor the Web 2.0 social media to see what consumers are saying about your hotel on the Internet". The arrogance of this statement immediately struck me. A service like this might be helpful for hotel brands with national or international implications, but a waste of time for individual hotels.

It is hard to imagine that there would be significant user-generated comments published on general social media sites, targeting an individual hotel, assuming that any significant number of people would ever read them. Hotels may be a primary subject on the minds of hoteliers, but that is hardly true for the public as a whole.

There is no doubt that general social media is a boon to normal retail sales, items or services of interest to the general consumer. Hotels, however, are reactive sales entities, consumers have little interest in our products unless they have a reason to travel and need a place to stay.

On the other hand, every hotel should be monitoring travel social media like TripAdvisor.com, but the most one can do is to post an answer to any negative comment in response. The fact is that the vast majority of consumer comments on TripAdvisor are positive. Checking the few travel social media sites can and should be done by every hotel.

The Internet is Still Evolving

One of the advantages of spending hours on the Internet to analyze hotel web sites is that it gives me the ability to see some of the unique and creative techniques used by knowledgeable designers. Unfortunately, I also get to expose the marketing errors and poor design techniques of web site developers who do not understand online hotel marketing.

As the Internet evolves, we need to adjust and change with it. As hoteliers realized the magic of generic search to populate hotel web sites, we mastered key word search and created link strategies to capture new site visitors. But, search is only half the job. Recently, I proffered a new area of concentration, which I call Hotel Website Design 2.0.

By any name, Design 2.0 places an emphasis on the 'sales' design of hotel web sites to convert more visitors into reservations. This involves the writing of site text and image placement emphasizing the three primary sales factors of location, facilities, and area attractions, what a site says and how it says it. These are the primary selling principles for hotels, online or offline.

Hotel web site designers that simply present the hotel's facilities, amenities, and services, with little mention of the hotel's location and area business/leisure attractions just do not understand hotel marketing. As I have said many times before, with few exceptions, consumers decide to visit an area, then choose a place to stay. It matters little if the hotel is truly amazing if it is not located near to where they want or need to be.

To borrow a technique from web 2.0 social media, we suggest that hotels begin to include guest comments and the means to add comments, to their sites.. At checkout, the front desk can then direct guests to the hotel site to complete a comment card, for management review and later a posting on the web site. Comments, which are posted on TripAdvisor or other social sites, can even be labeled 'as seen on TripAdvisor.com', further satisfying consumer desire for third-party endorsements.

Learn From the Experiences of Others

Communication is the key to progress and innovation. I strongly suggest that every hotelier subscribe to a few of the many great online sites with articles specifically published for hoteliers. Whether or not you agree with the writer, you will benefit from digesting a different viewpoint. Our industry is constantly evolving and changing, we can all learn from each other.

Contact:
Neil Salerno, CHME, CHA
Hotel Marketing Coach
www.hotelmarketingcoach.com
NeilS@hotelmarketingcoach.com