Should the GM have his/her own accounts? YES. Today, the more urgent nature of our business has pushed the general manager from "overseer" and "supervisor of the sales director" to a heavily involved sales manager in his/her own right. Today's GM attends weekly sales meetings, personally greets meeting planners when they visit the hotel, reviews marketing plans and sales goals, and attends the daily revenue meetings as well.

But should the general manager also be personally responsible for managing specific hotel accounts? Last month, at a Hospitality Sales and Marketing International session conducted in New York, it was advised that general managers take responsibility for two specific accounts: first, their own franchise and the myriad of marketing opportunities presented by their hotels' brand; and second, the alternate distribution systems and electronic outlets hotels are now learning how to manage.

Some comments on these suggestions: How often do general managers read through the manuals provided by their brand to better understand the opportunities given to them? If the GM only had that kind of time and attention to give. Someone needs to review these opportunities and insure that the hotel is capitalizing on them. Secondly, someone needs to manage and pay keen attention on a daily basis to the all-important electronic alternate distribution systems. If the GM has the focus and time, wonderful.

In addition, consider this: The GM should manage two local sales accounts and they should be two key prospects. You know - the ones who give most of their business to your competitor, and rejects your sales managers every time they try to schedule an appointment. It's this "big hit," so to speak, that the GM can take under his or her own wing, and serve as the account person.

Why should the GM take on two key local accounts?

  • The general manager will quickly understand how challenging it is to contact customers and schedule appointments, and be more understanding of what your sales executives face;
  • The GM will gain a greater understanding of the competitive set as he or she learns about the travel behavior and patterns of key prospects;
  • The sales team will view the general manager as "serving in the trenches" and fighting for the business, just like the rest of the team;
  • A key executive can serve as a reality check when sales goals are being established and appreciate what it might be like to work with goals that are unrealistic;
  • The impact of the GM calling on a customer is powerful and goes a long way;
  • A GM calling on a customer also sets your hotel apart from others and tells your customer that their business is important and you will work that much harder to insure their satisfaction;
  • When a General Manager successfully lands a piece of business, his or her own level of personal satisfaction will soar, and the hotel will imporove with a renewed sense of personal productivity!

We all know how challenging it can be for a sales team to initiate calls, schedule site inspections, and ask for business, while at the same time continuing to search for new accounts. But when the General Manager takes an active role and challenges himself to take on two accounts, it sets a great example for the team, uplifting them and showing that he or she is on their side, facing the same challenges and feeling of satisfaction when someone hits that home-run.

HVS Marketing Communications can work with your company to assess how this new way of doing busines is accomplished. Our sales and property assessments review how work is being done and where changes can be made to allow the time for a renewed sales effort.

Leora Lanz teachs two courses this Fall at Long sland's Hofstra University, through the College of Continuing Education. The courses are listed under Business Professional Development and Professional Designations, "How to Succeed in Business." These two courses will be presented again in the Spring.

Your Comprehensive Sales & Marketing Plan, (already completed): If you currently work in the hotel industry, or if you practice marketing and want to understand how to apply it specifically to the hotel (hospitality world), this course is intended to insure that you assemble a comprehensive yet strategic and efficient sales action and marketing plan. How to get the most out of your current customer base, improving your knowledge of e-marketing; recognizing the importance of GDS advertising, the challenge of the alternate distribution systems - the course is intended to have you comfortable in developing and fine tuning your current strategies

Public Relations in Your Marketing Mix, Thursday, November 6, 2003, 6-9pm: Do hoteliers truly understand the nuances and sophistication of press relations and publicity? How does it benefit your hotel or hospitality product? How do you remain creative to get your message publicized, while always staying fresh, or even re-inventing what has worked in the past. Examples of hotel public relations campaigns and ideas will be shared...

For more information and registration for the two courses, log onto

Leora Lanz who serves as HVS International's Director of Marketing, has been with the firm since 1999. She also spearheads HVS' Marketing Communications consulting service. For nearly ten years, Leora served as the Director of Public Relations and Advertising for the Sheraton Hotels of New York (and New Jersey), and ultimately, the Starwood Hotels of New York. In that capacity, she managed the public relations efforts for the renaming, repositioning, rebranding, and grand openings of numerous properties through international exposure. Prior to her tenure with Sheraton, Leora served for five years as the Director of Public Relations for the Greater Boston Convention & Visitors Bureau. During her graduate school years, she also worked in the marketing communications department for the then-new Four Seasons Hotel, Boston.

HVS International is a hospitality services firm providing industry skill and knowledge worldwide. The organization and its specialists possess a wide range of expertise and offer market feasibility studies, valuations, strategic analyses, development planning, and litigation support. Additionally, HVS International supplies unique knowledge in the areas of executive search, investment banking, environmental sustainability, timeshare consulting, food and beverage operations, interior design, gaming, technology strategies, organizational assessments, operational management, strategy development, convention facilities consulting, marketing communications, property tax appeals and investment consulting. Since 1980, HVS International has provided hospitality services to more than 10,000 hotels throughout the world. Principals and associates of the firm have authored textbooks and thousands of articles regarding all aspects of the hospitality industry. Click here for more...

Stephen Rushmore
President
516-248-8828, ext. 278
HVS