By Dale J. Venturini
President & CEO, Rhode Island Hospitality and Tourism Association
The current economic climate with rising gas and oil prices, unprecedented electricity rate hikes, and fewer and fewer jobs available does not bring out the best in us. In fact, quite the opposite it seems; the worst of times brings out the worst in people.
We are living in a ‘gotcha’ society, trying to survive and rise above the social and economic discord by finger pointing at others. And, what better way to differentiate ourselves and ease the mental pain than to talk about each others shortcomings.
And, in the current political environment, the Presidential race is offering its fair share of finger pointing, borderline slanderous comments and a healthy or unhealthy dose of instilling mistrust in the American people. We are constantly being divided, asked to make a choice, asked to make an important and sound judgment based often times on what is not actually fact or truth. Nowhere is this point better illustrated than in politics.
However, every industry seems full of rumor, innuendo and speculation. And, our industry is no exception. How many business owners have you heard are going out of business? Who was affected by a tainted tomato or pepper supply? Whose employees were targeted by Immigration Customs Enforcement? The true answers are seldom what we are hearing.
As an industry, we are fighting harder than ever for those discretionary dollars in our restaurants, hotels and entertainment venues. The sad truth is that the gas pumps, the electric company and anticipated heating costs for the winter are really factoring into the way Americans are spending their money. And, we’re all holding on much more tightly to each dollar.
In these hard economic times, however, people are still getting married, they are still going out to dinner – probably less, but they are - and they are still traveling. However, potential customers are more willing to do business through referrals from friends and associates. Nobody wants to feel like they are paying too much, are getting a bad deal or are being taken advantage of.
We are fortunate to have an amazing industry network. I am on the phone daily with restaurant owners, hotel GMs, photographers and entertainers. Now is the time to come together and maximize our network; to reinforce the culture of community that our industry is so well-known for. When a valued customer asks for help planning his daughter’s wedding – refer him to a member of your industry that you know and trust. Network at association meetings more – now is really the time to keep those bonds with your hospitality peers.
One of our members, a photographer, took the time to email me and let me know how attending industry meetings helped him book wedding business and refer additional business. Through association meetings, he was able to maximize his network to the gain of quite a few members, from transportation, to lighting, to a venue, to a caterer, etc. He maintains that if he was not as involved in industry meetings and networking, he would not have gotten the original referral from a member and thereby would not have been able to pass business along to several of his peers.
Now is the time when we really do need to stop finger pointing and speculating on our industry’s demise. The only way to weather this financial climate is to embrace each other, to maximize our peer network and to do our best to provide a quality hospitality experience. We can do this through service and referral. We can do this through added value if not pricing. We can do this through loyalty programs. We can do this – but, we have to do it together.
President & CEO, Rhode Island Hospitality and Tourism Association
The current economic climate with rising gas and oil prices, unprecedented electricity rate hikes, and fewer and fewer jobs available does not bring out the best in us. In fact, quite the opposite it seems; the worst of times brings out the worst in people.
We are living in a ‘gotcha’ society, trying to survive and rise above the social and economic discord by finger pointing at others. And, what better way to differentiate ourselves and ease the mental pain than to talk about each others shortcomings.
And, in the current political environment, the Presidential race is offering its fair share of finger pointing, borderline slanderous comments and a healthy or unhealthy dose of instilling mistrust in the American people. We are constantly being divided, asked to make a choice, asked to make an important and sound judgment based often times on what is not actually fact or truth. Nowhere is this point better illustrated than in politics.
However, every industry seems full of rumor, innuendo and speculation. And, our industry is no exception. How many business owners have you heard are going out of business? Who was affected by a tainted tomato or pepper supply? Whose employees were targeted by Immigration Customs Enforcement? The true answers are seldom what we are hearing.
As an industry, we are fighting harder than ever for those discretionary dollars in our restaurants, hotels and entertainment venues. The sad truth is that the gas pumps, the electric company and anticipated heating costs for the winter are really factoring into the way Americans are spending their money. And, we’re all holding on much more tightly to each dollar.
In these hard economic times, however, people are still getting married, they are still going out to dinner – probably less, but they are - and they are still traveling. However, potential customers are more willing to do business through referrals from friends and associates. Nobody wants to feel like they are paying too much, are getting a bad deal or are being taken advantage of.
We are fortunate to have an amazing industry network. I am on the phone daily with restaurant owners, hotel GMs, photographers and entertainers. Now is the time to come together and maximize our network; to reinforce the culture of community that our industry is so well-known for. When a valued customer asks for help planning his daughter’s wedding – refer him to a member of your industry that you know and trust. Network at association meetings more – now is really the time to keep those bonds with your hospitality peers.
One of our members, a photographer, took the time to email me and let me know how attending industry meetings helped him book wedding business and refer additional business. Through association meetings, he was able to maximize his network to the gain of quite a few members, from transportation, to lighting, to a venue, to a caterer, etc. He maintains that if he was not as involved in industry meetings and networking, he would not have gotten the original referral from a member and thereby would not have been able to pass business along to several of his peers.
Now is the time when we really do need to stop finger pointing and speculating on our industry’s demise. The only way to weather this financial climate is to embrace each other, to maximize our peer network and to do our best to provide a quality hospitality experience. We can do this through service and referral. We can do this through added value if not pricing. We can do this through loyalty programs. We can do this – but, we have to do it together.
