Sheila's Guide To The Good Stuff

Washing with clean safe water (courtesy Passports with Purpose)

How often as a traveler have you gone to a country where you were warned not to drink the water, not to swallow any when you brush your teeth and not to get any in your mouth as you shower?

Many of us do not give much thought to the miracle of a clean, reliable water source. Turn the tap and the stuff’s just there for us, right? Wrong. For so much of the world it is never that easy, but we can help make the situation a little better. Here’s how….

This year’s Passports with Purpose travel blogging community fundraiser is partnering with Water.org to raise US$100,000 (yep, that’s six figures, but we’ll get it done) to build five water wells in two communities – Boucan Carre and Mirebalais – in Haiti.

Last year, Passports raised enough money (mostly in US$10 increments) to build two libraries in Zambia in partnership with Room to Read. This year, our partner is Water.org for the wells.

I’m a huge fan of #PwP because you can see exactly where your money goes. Projects are clear, concrete and tangible. Even better, the PwP volunteer crew (which includes several dear friends of mine from the travel blogosphere) goes to see them when they’re done and reports back, giving a real sense of connection and satisfaction.

Joining in as a host blogger for Passports is my own small contribution to both helping a good cause, and shining a light on the special destination that has generously donated a prize for me to feature here.

How it works….

In addition to the great offer I’m showcasing below, you can browse through this full list of travel-related prizes and bid for chances to win whichever ones appeal to you.  At the end of the fundraiser – it runs through December 11, 2012 – one winner of each prize will be randomly selected from all of those who have bid for it.

A $10 donation per bid is suggested, but if you don’t want to make a donation, mail one self addressed stamped envelope to: Passports with Purpose, P.O. Box 16102, Seattle WA 98116.  Include the name of the prize you are entering to win.

A huge thank you to the Tunica CVB (Convention and Visitors Bureau) who sponsored the 2012 prize package featured here on Sheila’s Guide:  a fabulous getaway to Mississippi’s Gateway to the Blues and the South’s Casino Capital in the Delta (south of Memphis) which is stuffed with all of these goodies:

**  A two-night stay at one of (take your pick!) NINE Harrah’s casino resort hotels or the Mid-South RV Park, plus
**  Buffet for two (breakfast, lunch or dinner) at either Paula Deen’s Buffet at Harrah’s Tunica or the Village Square Buffet at Horseshoe Casino and Hotel Tunica, and
**  Dinner for two (US$100 Dining Dollars) at one of three Tunica fine dining/steakhouse restaurants, and
**  Admission for two at the Funny Bone Comedy Club at Harrah’s Tunica, and
**  Admission to the Tunica RiverPark and Museum, right on the Mississippi.

NOTE:  Transportation to and from Tunica, MS and while in Tunica not included. Hotel offer valid Sunday – Friday, advance reservations required. Not valid on Holidays or special event days. Offer expires March 29, 2013 (so hop to it if you win.)

I’ve spent a little time in Tunica and the northern section of the Blues Highway where it’s located; there is lots to see and do whether you want to stay in the casinos or resort areas, or wander a little further away to nearby blues landmarks and juke joints.

And may I just say, the Paula Deen Buffet is stuff-yourself-to-the-eyeballs yummy!

Are you ready to buy a chance at this prize, or any other to help fund the construction of those wells?

For a chance to win, go here to the PwP Prize List/Donate page and follow the directions.

What happens in Haiti when a new well goes in? A celebration like this one….

I’d also like to thank the generous sponsors of Passports with Purpose 2012:

• Platinum: Expedia
• Gold: TripIt
• Silver: TBEX travel blogging conference
• Bronze: HomeAway, TravellersPoint, HostelBookers, Go with Oh

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As I write this, my husband is watching a show that aired on TV last Thursday, but with our cable company’s DVR box, he’s watching it on the following Tuesday.

He likes the show “Elementary,” but he wants to watch it when HE wants to watch it.

Your customer, your visitor, your guest has more control over his or her environment than ever before.

Sure, organizations can keep stuffing their customers into whatever box that the organization prefers, but they are on a fool’s errand.

People want what they want when they want it.

Give it to them.

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Who stayed in Denver’s elegant Brown Palace Hotel on Monday, March 9, 1896?

Musician John Philip Sousa, the man who composed The Stars and Stripes Forever among many other marches and famous songs.

One of the hotel historians brought the original guest register book to a speaker’s reception right before the TBEX travel blogging conference, and I couldn’t resist grabbing a photo of the famous name.

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You know how it is when you carry a lot of electronic and electrical gizmos.

Phone.

Laptop.

Tablet/iPad.

Music player/iPod.

Camera.

Video Camera.

We’ve all done it….the Bend-Look-Crawl-The-Floor dance as we poke around an unfamiliar hotel room, trying to find outlets to charge everything overnight before heading back out into the fray.

The floor lamp always loses and must sacrifice its outlet for your phone/camera/whatever.

On a recent trip to the Chicago Southland area (about 30 minutes outside the city) I found a new amenity in my room at the Comfort Inn and Conference Centre in the Village of Orland Park – a big ‘ol multiplug charging station on the bedside table. The super-friendly front desk person told me as I checked in that they were being installed throughout all Comfort Inn properties.

I don’t see this as only a business traveler amenity, either; have you traveled with my 12-year-old son lately? We have to arm-wrestle for outlets.

This is the kind of thoughtful touch that more hotels should provide. It goes nicely with the free WiFi and free breakfast that almost every mid-range US hotel chain now offers, which means that for me, full service hotels aren’t worth my money but the mid-range ones like Comfort Inn, Hampton Inn, etc. offer great value.

Disclosure:  I was a guest of the Chicago Southland CVB (Convention and Visitors Bureau) during this one-night stay, but I don’t think that’s why the front desk lady was so bubbly and helpful. The staff person on duty the next morning said she’s always like that.

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A good breakfast makes me happy.

Good coffee to go with it; even better.

Fresh “Juice of the Day” – a bright red, cheery watermelon concoction without seeds or pulp – means I’m smiling and humming and chirping to myself pretty much for hours.

Thanks, Seri Pacific Hotel in Kuala Lumpur, and the MITBCA (Malaysia International Tourism Bloggers Conference and Awards) for a glass of heaven.

(I added this to Wanderfood Wednesday on the Wanderlust and Lipstick blog.)

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Does your organization have a plan in place for content creation and social media monitoring during holidays and weekends?

You know….that time when people travel to your destination, stay in your hotel, look for things to do, places to eat, etc.?

Is someone “answering the social media phone” during those times?

Customer Service

The social web is a place to put content, sure, but it is also becoming a place where you must be ready to provide customer service.

Visitors and guests expect that someone will answer their questions and respond to them even when it’s your “day off.” It’s not much fun for the destination marketer or hotelier but it is what it is; you’ve got to plan for it.

Working one person to death on social media because everyone else waves their hands helplessly and says, “Oh, but I’m not a techie!” is horse manure.

I’d say, cross-train your staff in social media for tourism to build a deeper bench.

Answer The Social Media Phone

Holidays and weekends are a massive opportunity to:

1)  Make solid connections with new visitors.

2)  Reconnect with and welcome those former locals who are returning home for a visit.

3)  Reconnect with and welcome repeat visitors who are not new to your destination/hotel, but ARE new to your Facebook Page, Twitter account or blog.

4)  Chat online with those “expats” who aren’t physically in town but are talking on social media about their memories of you; they would love it if you’d say hello in response.

You can build a whole army of supporters who will go back home and sing your praises, online and off.

Or, you could “not answer the phone.”

Your call.

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I’m not a professional meeting planner and don’t particularly want to become one, but since joining the National Board of Directors for the AWC (Association for Women in Communications) I’ve found myself on a team that is researching venues and options for a possible event.

It seems as though a lot of people I know have unexpectedly found themselves in the event planning business, pulling together conferences because it’s fun and professionally rewarding….and because sometimes, if you don’t volunteer to do it, it won’t happen.

Liz Strauss brought her blog’s online community together offline for the first SOBCon in 2007, Becky McCray organized the first State of NOW/140 Conference SmallTown in 2010 and my teacher husband Chris Fancher ran the first EdCamp Manor education unconference in 2011.

The takeaway for places that host meetings is that anyone can become a meeting planner these days, rather like anyone can be an online publisher.

People like me may not have experience in the business, but we have definite ideas of what we want and don’t want.

My Two Concerns As A Meeting Planner

Now that the planning shoe is on my foot, here’s what I’m looking for….

1)  Cheap. Cheap. Cheap.  We are steering clear of hotels and “going indie” to keep costs low.

The sense is that with hotels, you can get a good deal for rooms (conference and attendee rooms) but then you’ll fork over for every other little expense after that, including extension cords.

May not always be true, but that’s the perception among many.

The true value of a conference is the people who attend, not how fancy a hotel can get plating up a rubber chicken lunch with a green bean side.  Expensive food and beverage costs will eat us alive, so yes, we’ll take a decent box lunch in lieu of “the usual” meals.

Whenever I start freaking out about whether this meeting will come together, I tell myself that if all else fails, I will sit in a hotel room with a pitcher of margaritas and we’ll have a conference with whoever shows up.

I know that it will be great. Seriously.

2)  Free wireless internet access. Conferences these days are not only happening within the four walls of the host venue; they are being shared continuously, worldwide, through the social web via laptops and smartphones.

An entire community has formed around BlogWorld and New Media Expo, for example, and the chatter keeps going year-round. Community members both at the event and watching it from afar expect to be able to communicate continuously.

WiFi is becoming a major sticking point as more and more meetings have people live-blogging, live-tweeting and otherwise wanting to be online. Host hotels charge through the nose for it, in your room and in the conference venue, and it’s often crappy to boot.

People are tired of putting up with that – WiFi is now the number one hotel amenity that people want, and the sooner conference venues wake up to this insatiable demand, the better.

What Does a Cheapo, Connected Conference Look Like?

For our tentative event, we might….

….use available space on an urban college campus near public transportation, have at least part of the event be an unconference in barcamp/podcamp style, get a sponsor to provide some sort of simple/box lunch and have attendees get their own hotels.

We want people to be able to fly in and out easily, get to the hotel and the venue on public transportation and spend a minimal amount on food.  Get there, get settled and get on with communicating and connecting.

We want attendees to walk away saying, “Wow, I met so many interesting people and learned a lot, plus it didn’t cost me much, either. No frills, but who cares – it was great!”

We’ve broken the code that “great” does NOT necessarily mean “expensive.”

What can you, the meeting venue, do for people like us?

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After a thoroughly enjoyable day speaking and participating in Dell’s pre-SXSW Unconference for Small Business, I was asked at the after party why we at Tourism Currents feel so strongly that technology and social media can be helpful for tourism and hospitality.

Here’s my answer (despite bronchitis!) in less than 2 minutes:

(Direct link to the video on Dell’s Vimeo channel if you can’t see the embed box below)

Thanks, Dell, for bringing us into your “house” to talk business and make new friends.

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The building that now houses the hip Magnolia Hotel in Dallas used to be the headquarters for Mobil Oil.

A big red Pegasus neon sign (the Magnolia Oil and then the Mobil Oil corporate symbol) rotated atop the building and was a Dallas landmark for years. It was down for awhile, but has since been reconstructed and re-installed.

Other touches of Mobil are found throughout the building, including stunning Pegasus medallions like the one in the photo above; there is one centered on every elevator door off of the hotel’s lobby.

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Yes, Facebook is bringing its new Timeline feature over to business and brand Pages. This was expected to happen sometime after Timeline came to personal Facebook profiles.

Yes, the explanatory posts are already hot-n-heavy for how to prepare for Page changes.

One change that everyone notes is that Page Admins won’t have a choice of landing tabs (for Welcome landing pages or marketing campaigns of various sorts.) Like-ers will go straight to your Wall.

I’m not convinced that much of any of this really matters (yes, I’m an Admin for many Pages) and here is why :

1)  Most activity and interaction with your community takes place on the News Feed, and hardly ever on your Wall once your new supporter presses that Like button.  Your presence on the News Feed is driven by the EdgeRank of each of your updates, which is a bit of a crapshoot similar to SEO for search engines.  Basically, the Wall is really not that important except for initial impressions.

2)  Most failures I see on Facebook Pages have everything to do with lack of interaction, no strategic planning and abandoned Pages with no updates for months, and little to do with how your Page is tricked out. Brands and businesses get on Facebook without a plan, can’t figure out how or why to build or sustain community, and then they flame out. There isn’t a Page tweak in the world that can save them.

3)  I fundamentally do not care about Facebook.  Any significant effort expended there benefits founder Mark Zuckerberg’s newly-IPO’d pockets, not mine. All of the 1,000+ lovely Like-ers on our Tourism Currents Page could go “poof!” tomorrow and we’d have no say in it. The only data and community that we have any control over are our Tourism Currents clients and our email list.  We are VERY careful to only allow double opt-in subscribers to our list, and we are super-picky about what we send to them. The fact that they’ve shared their email address means a lot to us. Growing that list – plus improving and enriching our website, online course offerings and monthly newsletter – are what we do care about, because we have complete control over all of it.

Never let your interaction with customers, visitors or guests be controlled by someone or something that is out of your hands. The day Mr. Zuckerberg’s machinations drive the success or failure of my business is the day my business partner Becky McCray should shoot me over a cliff, Thelma and Louise style.

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