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Business Tourism - A force for good?

Comment

The government is at last talking business tourism and there are signs that 2012 could be a turning point for the industry which has been flat-lining for the last three years. The Tourism Alliance, Business Events Partnership and others have made a breakthrough with the endorsement of the events industry as good for British business by several government ministers including David Cameron, the prime minister, Jeremy Hunt, culture secretary and John Penrose, minister for tourism. Clearly recognition that the MICE sector is a business generator and indications that there is a new impetus to promote the events industry to domestic and overseas markets. Time will tell...

Meantime below are some ideas to add value and generate interest in your business and news of Venues with Great Potential which is developing new initiatives to attract bookings.

News from

Cedar Court Grand Hotel

Great Potential appointed for international marketing of York's five star Cedar Court Grand Hotel.

York's first five star hotel has appointed Great Potential to deliver a new campaign to attract overseas business visitors to the hotel. The campaign will target inbound bookers of meetings, incentive packages and high-level groups with special interests in York and Yorkshire. "The Cedar Court Grand Hotel is an historic & interesting building in its own right and this new campaign will include partnerships with VisitYork and many of the City's historic attractions such as York Minster Conference Centre at St William's College, Bedern Hall and others." comments GP managing director, John Gallery.

Independent, interesting,
In partnership:

Venues with Great Potential at 2012 Trade Shows

Venues with Great Potential will be at several trade shows in 2012 and is set to ensure the year is very positive for the hotels and venues in membership. The consultancy will be at the following shows:

Group Travel Buyer Roadshow Manchester Monday 30th January 2012

26th April 2012

Meet us at any of the above & please feel free to email to set an appointment.

See you at the shows!

johngallery@greatpotential.co.uk

John Gallery

Happy New Year - Resolution for a Revolution?

The global financial turmoil of 2011 is behind us but what lies ahead for the hotel, venue and tourism world? Will 2012 be better, worse, the same or have we now moved into a new paradigm that changes how we do business?

The festive break and the start of a new calendar is always a good time for considering the future and re-setting the values we hold about family, work and life in general. New Year resolutions, getting fitter, planning ahead and putting family before work come to mind but how long does this good intent last?

The New Year for hotels and venues will certainly be challenging and the start of 2012 might just be the time to think about the values we hold in business, to revolutionise it, to make that paradigm shift and change it for the better.

Five thoughts to focus upon below:

Analyse each profit centre in the business. Calculate how much time, effort and money is spent on each area; which is the most profitable; what will make it more profitable; how can it be modified?; if an area is not profitable what needs to happen to make it so or should it be stopped altogether?
What are the REAL costs of each department? How can these costs be reduced? If a focus is put on something to determine the real cost it is amazing how costs can be reduced.
Undertake a sales and marketing health check. The famous comment 'half of my advertising works, I wish I knew which half' no longer applies. There are more methods than ever available to measure the outcomes of sales and marketing activity. Google Analytics is just the start. Tracking systems for all areas of business can be employed including website and call tracking, conversion attribution, tactical targeted campaigns and so on...
Is training for sales and cost control included in the business plan? So many opportunities are lost because employees are not trained to have a positive sales attitude and 'sales prevention' prevails. Similarly, the costs of a business slide upwards because there is a lack of awareness of the cost of equipment, breakages, poor staff planning and so on....
Question why each activity is producing the outcomes. Is it luck, judgement or planning and setting goals in advance that make it work? More likely the latter.

Make the paradigm shift today - "If you always do what you always did, you will always get what you always got!"

Click here for more information.

Independents and Management Contracts

Managing hotels and tourism businesses has become either simpler or more complicated, depending on your perspective. Clearly there are some businesses that have simple models which deliver results.

A great example in the hotel accommodation sector is the lodge-style hotel operations that are managed through large estate management concepts, central reservations systems and online booking tools. The simplicity is that the administration is taken away from the operational staff who concentrate purely on their arriving clients, take care of the day-to-day needs of these guests and let someone else at 'head office' worry about getting the customers to come through the door.

The large operators are well-known (Premier Inn, Travel Lodge, Holiday Inn Express etc...) and they have used their 'brand-muscle' to achieve market share.

Customer expectation is easier to manage as the properties are all very similar and the 'formula' eradicates duplication, sets a common standard across all sites and the price (allegedly) reflects this. These brands are rather like the supermarkets with large-scale purchasing power; across the board offers available; low unit costs; high volume booking patterns and non-personal approach to attracting business. The two market leaders have the largest bedroom estate in the UK and predictions are for more growth.

This market however seems to be changing as more and more customers seek out and use online networks to learn about the hotels that other people have tried and commented upon. Whilst some hoteliers dislike Trip Advisor and other review sites, they are here to stay and perhaps can become a benefit that independent hoteliers have yet to spot. Utilising these powerful online engines is perhaps more an opportunity than threat and could simplify doing business with customers in future and to meet the challenges of lodge operators.

Harnessing online customer interaction and onsite management can be organised so that the independent hotel owner can re-focus the business. To re-align how their property is run, use some of the principals of the large-scale operators by working with a marketing and/or management company that can understand their business and develop a partnership to increase volumes and profits. There is no shame in asking for help and by doing it in a way that makes the business more streamlined, more cost-effective and to be able to punch above its weight, owners can match the 'big boys' at their own game.

Better to be in business in partnership than to be out of business alone...

See management contract options Click Here

Win More Business in 2012

Win More Business in 2012 by becoming a partner of Venues with Great Potential. We have been marketing venues, hotels, destinations and tourism attractions since 1999. We have extensive data-bases of real buyers; digital marketing expertise; provide representation and some great PR. Why not see how your venue can be part of this and take advantage of a special offer for 2012?

Reach More Buyers for Less in 2012

Venues with Great Potential

York Eco Business Centre, Amy Johnson Way, Clifton Moor, York, Y030 4AG. UK
Telephone: +44 0845 838 6338 FAX: +44 0845 838 6378
(Calls are at local rates)

International: +44 (0) 1904 607530

English Tourism Week