Meetings: Minnesota's Hospitality Journal

Hospitality Around the World: State of the Industry

Each month, Hospitality Around the World will look outside of Minnesota and share hospitality news from the rest of the United States and beyond.

In our winter issue, out now, we presented the results of our eighth annual State of the Industry survey, based on the responses of local hospitality professionals. We paired that data with information we collected about the state of hospitality across America and the world to show some comparisons. Here's a look at some of what we learned about the state of the industry outside our borders.

• In the United States, travel and tourism generates $758.7 billion in domestic and international travel spending and supports 7.4 million jobs (U.S. Travel Association, Power of Travel, 2011).
• The strongest travel markets are Detroit, Charlotte, Houston, Seattle and Philadelphia, according to TravelClick's North American Hospitality Review (Oct. 2011).
• Domestic and international travelers to Minnesota spent $10.3 million in 2009 compared to Missouri at $11.5M, Illinois at $27M, New York at $48.2M, Wisconsin at $9M, Washington state at $11.6M, California at 89.2M and Colorado at $13M (U.S. Travel Association, Power of Travel, 2011).
• In the Americas, Occupancy is up 4.2%, Average Daily Rate (ADR) is up 3.9% and Revenue Per Available Room (RevPAR) is up 8.3%. In Europe, Occupancy is up 3.3%, ADR is up 11% and RevPAR is up 14.7%. In the Middle East/Africa, Occupancy is down 7.3%, ADR is up 5.7% and RevPAR is down 2%. In Asia Pacific, Occupancy is down 0.1%, ADR is up 11.3% and RevPAR is up 11.2% (Year to date Oct. 2011 vs. Oct. 2010, Smith Travel Research Global Hotel Review, Nov. 2011).

Learn more by reading the entire feature in our digital edition.

--Ellie M. Bayrd
Associate Editor

8th Annual State of the Industry Results

The results from our 8th annual State of the Industry Report are now in print and online. I would like to thank again all of those meeting planners and vendors who took time to complete the survey. So what is the state of our industry? I think it depends on what business you are in if you are a planner, and how you define success if you are a vendor, such as a hotelier or restauranteur.

From a planner's perspective, cautious optimism might be a good way to describe feelings about the industry. More than half of planners (54 percent) believe the meetings and hospitality industry will improve slightly in the coming year, up from 49 percent the year before. Nonetheless, they are working on tighter budgets, trying to do more with less. The number of planners whose budgets actually increased during the preceding year went down from nearly two-thirds of respondents in 2010 to just one-quarter of them in 2011, while the number of planners who had to cut their budgets increased from 10 percent in 2010 to 23 percent in 2011. For vendors, hoteliers in particular, the current economic conditions offer a bit of a Catch-22. While more business travelers are staying in hotels and average daily rates are starting to increase--both good metrics of course--some worry that rising costs could keep some events and attendees on the sidelines until the economy recovers even more. I'm not sure I believe that entirely, but we would love to hear your thoughts. Comment or send us an email and let us know what you are thinking about as you begin 2012.

--Joel Schettler
Editor 

Yearly Roundup 2011: From the Magazine

Editors' Note: Every December we compile blog posts that reflect back and feature the news that stuck out to us over the past 12 months. We have no special alliances with these items; we've formed the lists around our personal thoughts and opinions.

     

If you missed an issue, we've got the highlights of a year for Meetings: Minnesota's Hospitality Journal:

+ The Hospitality Industry Our annual State of the Industry issue explored the status of the industry in the face of the slow-growing economy and showcased what we learned from our annual State of the Industry Survey.

+ What You Should Know: In the feature, "Something for Everyone," we looked at the types of attendees you might see at events and how you can reach them, plus discussed the varying learning styles for attendees. Local chefs talked about their restaurants, catering events and more in "Master Chefs Tell Their Stories." Do you strive to be creative and start something new? Meet the indivituals we called "Niche Finders" and hear their stories of success. Get to know a growing trend in "Understanding Hybrid Events." We talked to local educational institutions offering degree and certificate programs for hospitality professionals about how you can keep learning while working in "Your Education ... Continued."

+ Learning from Example: Look back at the first Event Camp Twin Cities and what they learned from this unique event in Meeting Accomplished. Case Studies: "Experienced Collaboration" looked at an event for Boston Scientific and ways to collaborate and be creative for a large event; "Introducing the Companies Inside" looked at Life Time Fitness' branding launch event and ways to revitalize an event. How To stories: "Events With a Purpose" shared how you can give back at your events; "The Smart Approach to Fun" shared some tips on the strategic use of entertainment for events.

+ Venue Highlight: We took you inside the Van Dusen Mansion, the ballroom of the renovated Hazeltine National Golf Club, the Nicollet Island Pavillion, and the new Jeune Lune space. Plus, our summer issue showcased many properties in the suburbs.

+ What They Said: Our Q&As, profiles, In the Lead and Peers interviews introduced some amazing individuals and what they are doing for the industry. Wendi Moore-Buysse shared how social media has shaped her career, Elisabeth Bahra welcomed her new planning company, bella social. Bill Morrissey shared his perspective on the industry, based on his years of experience. Dave Looby talked about the transitions for Visit Minneapolis North, now Minneapolis Northwest. Amanda Parsons talked about the renovations in store for the Grand Hotel as it became a Kimpton property. Dan McElroy explained why he took on leadership of Hospitality Minnesota. Lee Ehmke previewed the Minnesota Zoo's summer of renovations. Barb Oswell talked about promoting properties up north. Trevor Pearson shared his enthusiasm for ice sculpting. The staff of Brave New Workshop welcomed us to the new venue and shared what they can do for events. Julie Ann Schmidt talked about her passion for helping others in the industry. Andrea Kopfmann shared how she helps nonprofit events with the Walser Foundation.

Explore our archive for more in-depth stories and profiles.

What caught your attention in the magazine this year?

--Ellie M. Bayrd
Associate Editor

Reminder: State of the Industry Survey Deadline

Good morning, readers. This Friday marks the conclusion of our annual State of the Industry Survey. Anyone involved in the local hospitality industry is encouraged to complete the survey. That means full and part time planners and vendors/suppliers. It should take just about 10 minutes of your time. We ask questions about your career and the changes you've faced in the past year. The results of the survey are printed in our winter issue. So, what are you waiting for? Click on over and share your thoughts.

* Those who complete either the planner or vendor survey will be eligible to win a $100 gift certificate to one of these five local restaurants: Gianni’s, Fogo De Chao, Jax Café, Tria or Sea Change.

Thanks,
The Editors

Leading the Way

A general assumption could be made that during difficult economic times, hospitality may be one of the last industries in our economy to show recovery. Data, out today, shows the opposite might be the case, at least for exhibitions.  

The Center for Exhibition Industry Research (CEIR) released semiannual data showing that the exhibition industry is performing better than the overall economy as a whole. From the CEIR:

The overall exhibition industry gained 2.4% during the first half of 2011 outperforming the overall U.S. economy as compared to GDP only increasing 1.9% over the same period. Given the current fluctuant state of the global economy, this is positive news for the exhibition industry ...

The exhibition industry finally emerged from the Great Recession and saw an impressive rebound in the second half of 2010, gaining 4.4% from a year ago. The latter was stronger than an increase of 3.3% in real GDP. After the impressive rebound in the second half of 2010 of 4.2%, the growth of the CEIR Index in the first six months of 2011 steadied to 2.4% in spite of the U.S. economy weakening. Overall, the exhibition industry outperformed the economy as real GDP gained only 1.9% year-on-year and payroll employment was relatively flat."

CEIR will expand on its research and make predictions through 2013 at it's upcoming event, CEIR Predict, which will take place Sept. 15, in New York. 

As you may already know, Meetings: Minnesota's Hospitality Journal is conducting its own industry survey. We would love to hear what you think.

-Joel Schettler
Editor 

5 Things We Learned From Last Year's Survey

Still haven't taken our eighth annual State of the Industry survey? Well, what are you waiting for? This is a chance for you to share how your job changes from year to year and think about what's ahead for the next year. When we share the results in our winter issue, you can see how your experience compares locally. Please consider giving us 10 minutes of your time and clicking on over to take either the planner or vendor survey.

Here are five things the survey results showed us last year:

1) Most vendors believed that revenues would increase slightly (62 percent) in the coming year.

 
2) Only 26 percent of planners were required to report ROI.

State of the Industry: Chance to Win

There are plenty of reasons for you to devote 10 or so minutes of your time to taking our annual State of the Industry Survey. You contribute to data collected about our local hospitality industry. You get to reflect on your own career and find out how your experiences compare to others. Another reason is the chance to win a $100 gift certificate to a local restaurant (Gianni’s, Fogo De Chao, Jax Café, Tria or Sea Change). So, click on through to our State of the Industry Survey (Planner and Vendor) and share your thoughts with us. The survey is for anyone working in our local hospitality industry, whether full or part time. We'll take the data we collect and your comments and present the results in our winter issue. And maybe you'll win a dinner out on us.

Thanks!
--The Editors
@MeetingsMHJ, #mnsoi

Summer is Here: Our Latest Issue

Summer the season arrived a few weeks ago officially, but our summer issue just arrived this week. Check it out:

• Our cover story looks toward "The Suburbs" and showcases some venues.
• Our feature "Niche Finders" spotlights some great minds in the hospitality industry.
• We introduce the Minnesota Zoo's Lee Ehmke, Metro Ice Sculptures' Trevor Pearson and Odyssey Resorts' Barb Oswell.
• Our Case Study goes inside an event with metroConnections and Life Time Fitness.
• Plus so much more ...

And don't forget: There's just a week left to nominate for our Vision Awards (due by July 15). Our State of the Industry Survey is now live (complete for a chance to win a $100 restaurant gift certificate).

--Ellie M. Bayrd
Associate Editor

Time to Share: The State of the Industry Survey

Each year we launch our State of the Industry Survey and ask those who work in Minnesota's hospitality industry to share their experiences. It's a chance for you to share how your career has changed in the last year, identify trends, report how budgets have changed, look back on the types of meetings and events you've planned, etc. We'll take the data we collect, put it in the context of the hospitality industry nationally and present the results to you in our winter issue. So, please take 10 minute and click on over to take our survey. We offer a version for planners and another for vendors. We look forward to hearing from you.

--The Editors
Twitter: @MeetingsMHJ, #mnsoi

State of the Industry: Is Customer Service Dead?

As I was compiling our State of the Industry survey data for our winter issue, I was reading through the comments to the questions we ask at the end, particularly: Share any comments you have on Minnesota's meeting and hospitality industry (trends, policy issues, opportunities). And, I was pretty surprised at the negative comments about customer service in the industry. Survey respondents could say anything here, and several chose to call out the poor service they've received around town.

Here are a few (anonymous) comments:

From planners:
"I am seeing a downsizing of employees at many properties and thus the attention to customer service seems to be drained."

"It's unfortunate that customer service is so poor at most venues. "No" is often the response, and mostly they don't care about the business they have. I have to watch the venue like a hawk because they don't perform like they say they will... It's consistent throughout most venues. When the venue is notified of the errors, they don't accept responsibility for their actions."

"I have been shocked by the slow response time, or no response at all, from some service providers. Having been in the industry prior to becoming a meeting planner, this is especially disturbing to me.

From vendors:
"I am concerned about planners not being as respectful about partnering with vendors. In my history, I have never been in a situation [like this] where e-mails or calls are chronically not returned. I truly don't think planners realize that suppliers are just as busy as they are and they need to be sensitive to this. We need to partner to move forward and be successful together."

What do you think? No naming names, but are you, planners or vendors, experiencing something similar? Are we just so overworked to care about customer service? Or, do you think this is hogwash and you've never received better service than now? Tell us your stories; we'd love to hear from both sides.

-- Amanda Fretheim Gates
Managing Editor