Viral marketing. It's all the rage today, and sometimes it seems like everybody's going viral. But what exactly is viral marketing? How does it work? And when should you try to employ it? Contrary to popular belief, viral marketing has been around forever. It's basically word-of-mouth, only instead of the "virus" spreading through conversation it's spread through user groups, websites, email, instant messaging and a host of other technologies. READ MORE

Research can be a hotel marketer's best friend or his worst enemy. It all depends on who's driving. I'd like to offer six thoughts that will help you keep research from grabbing the wheel and sending your brand over a cliff. There are things you can measure and things you can't. Don't mix them up. How much do you love your wife? What's the value of poetry? What is a life worth? Ask most people these questions and you'll either get a funny look or a metaphysical discussion. Some things just can't be quantified. Yet in marketing we often act as if everything can. READ MORE

Achieving a higher level of education and industry awareness opens many doors for a career. The meeting industry is no exception to this rule. To that end, the CMP designation says a lot to your clients. It reflects a commitment to excellence and demonstrates the CMP designate as someone who is a well-informed partner and resource in the meeting planning process. READ MORE

Those of us who represent hotels or convention centers should know that promoting attendance for a conference, convention or tradeshow-without getting to know those you're trying to lure, is like playing poker blindfolded: You can bet all you want, but you won't win anything. The same holds true for "pre-promoting" these events. Pre-promoting is more than just providing copies of your facility's brochure, or promoting the main attractions and sites to see in your host city. Pre-promoting is also about asking yourself the following questions: Who? Where? What? When? Why? - and How? READ MORE

As the holidays approach and another year comes to a close, it's only natural to reflect on what we have, or maybe more appropriately, what we have received. In the business arena, careers are enriched and rewarded in a variety of ways. For those of us in the hospitality industry, a person's successful career path is not enhanced and bolstered in a vacuum. Rather, it is a product of knowledge mixed with many varied and diverse relationships. For the Convention Services Manager (CSM), a convention bureau, hotel, convention center, or arena/special facility employee, one's career growth can be stunted without the receipt of a few "gifts." For those who have found ACOM (Association for Convention Operations Management), these gifts just keep on giving. Since its "The Season," consider the following gifts that organizations, like ACOM, provide 365 days a year: READ MORE

More time to think creatively. Less repetitive work to complete. The ability to establish better relationships with your customers and suppliers. Who in the meetings industry would not want to say they can achieve these on a regular basis? Thanks to the commitment of leaders from several different industry organizations united through the Convention Industry Council (CIC), the Accepted Practices Exchange (APEX) provides professionals working in the meetings industry with much-needed resources and standards. But after the integration of APEX into our daily work lives, how useful is it? When is it referred to most and what parts still need work? READ MORE

You know the routine. You've got a meeting to plan, along with a specified timeframe and budget to make everything come together. You're always on time and on budget, but...could you save even more time and money? Of course you can. Just as consumers are urged by financial-savvy experts to forego that morning cup of coffee at the convenience store to save a few hundred dollars by year's end, experts involved with corporate meeting planning believe there are a variety of cost-savings efforts that can not only keep you on budget, but below budget. Here's a closer look at what you can do to help save on your next corporate meeting. READ MORE

Before Spanish Ships landed in America, cacao beans were already being used as currency to trade for other products in the area that today is known as Mexico. Mayans and Aztecs also used cacao beans to make a special beverage that only the most important governors were allowed to drink. The Mayans called this cold energizing beverage Xocoatl, which is the origin of the name chocolate. For me, as a Mexican citizen, it is an honor to write an article about pairing chocolate with different beverages. Although some stories say that chocolate originated in South America, many others indicate that Mexico was the birthplace and cradle of the entire chocolate industry. And of course this article was also a pleasure, since to research it in depth required tasting innumerable samples of chocolates and wine. READ MORE

Throughout the world we are living in a period of experimentation, when many winemakers are breaking all the rules of wine-making. Though I agree that progress and finding new styles is important, we need to give our clients enough information to let them know that sometimes what they are tasting is completely different from the typical characteristics of the grape variety and/or the region it comes from, so they won't be confused. READ MORE

Cigars-where to begin when there is so much to say about them? I was studying for my sommelier's diploma while working in the Hotel de Paris in Monte Carlo when the world of cigars first opened to me. From the balcony of the hotel I could watch Ferraris and Lamborghinis arriving at the Casino, people wearing fashionable clothes, drinking the best wines and spirits, and very often complementing the experience with a long cigar. It was paradise for someone who was learning and wanted a taste of the best. READ MORE

It is not always necessary to have an extremely large selection of wines to have a successful business and happy clients. Do you recall how many wines were on the last wine list you read? Did you read them all? As a wine client, was it really important to you to sort through an enormously lengthy wine list before selecting the one you would order? For most people, it is not. In the last five years I have lost many dinner partners because of my passion for reading and asking about everything on the menus and wine lists. Sometimes menus-and especially the wine selections-are so extensive that they can be painful for our dinner companions. Certainly, those of us in the food & beverage business are fascinated with seeing creative new ideas and new information, but it can be exhausting for the layman who just wants to enjoy a good meal, complemented by a nice bottle of wine, without spending thirty minutes on the selection. READ MORE

The move by international fashion labels into the hospitality industry is a logical extension of the strong brand awareness accorded high profile designers and their fashion brands. Fashion designers can greatly enhance a property by lending the cachet and prestige of their brand name as well as through their design talents. Recently, a jury in Maryland in the United States District Court for the District of Maryland found for the owner and held that Ritz Carlton (and Marriot International) had breached in hotel management agreement and its fiduciary duty by building a new Bulgari-branded hotel only seven kilometers from the Ritz Carlton Bali Resort & Spa under which Ritz Carlton served as an agent. READ MORE

Effectively managing requests for proposals (RFPs) is an important process that can get fumbled by even the most capable hotel general managers and sales departments. Since this time of year is "RFP season", now is a good time to review your RFP procedures. Of course, you should be receiving and responding to RFPs throughout the year-but because many travel management organizations plan on a calendar-year schedule, you will receive most RFPs for the upcoming year during July through September. If your hotel wants business in the group, corporate transient, government or incentive segments, you need to be actively engaged in the RFP process. Here are 12 ways to be sure that you are: READ MORE

Can you really manage your competition? Well, you can certainly manage your competitive relations and the impact your competitors have on your business. And, in good times and bad, there are ways for you to always come out on top. Start by being realistic about who your competition is. Too often we like to flatter ourselves by imagining that we directly compete with hotels far more luxurious and packed full of more services than our own. A guideline that I use is that if a nearby hotel's rates are usually within 30% of mine-higher or lower-they are a direct competitor. And that means I need to treat them as a competitor. Here's how with seven ways to manage the competition: READ MORE

Immediately after a catastrophic event such as Hurricane Katrina, the thoughts of hotel owners and operators go in many directions. First priority is the safety of the guests and employees. Once the human situation is secure, attention then turns to rebuilding the facilities and services of the hotel and getting "back to business." READ MORE