I recently attended a Bed and Breakfast State Association conference. This was a show not hosted or affiliated with PAII or Select Registry, but which will otherwise remain nameless. What was most surprising to me was how seemingly disconnected the conference organizers were from the rest of the Innkeeping industry. It was as if this association has remained, the “biggest and most organized association in the country” – as the opening speaker declared- simply because they had ignored the existence of any other associations or organizations. I could spend more time pointing out the various shortcomings of the show overall, but suffice it to say that ultimately it was run like an out-of-date Inn where employees had taken over and the Innkeeper was nowhere to be found.
The real point here is that in this tenuous time in our history as an industry (and I think we can proudly call ourselves that now), we need to be working together both on the Inn-level and the Association level to bolster ourselves and increase our visibility in the greater hospitality market. Associations should be openly communicating with each other and combining resources to draw as many attendees to regional and national conferences as possible. This strengthens all organizations involved by attracting better caliber speakers, better exposure for vendors and more workshops, which ends up being good for participants, vendors, speakers and ultimately our industry.
“Better Way to Stay” is OUR maxim. We’re all going to get to use it, but only if we participate in the campaign. This recent conference I went to didn’t even know about it! The enemy is not our neighboring State or National B&B Association; it’s the hotel industry which is doing everything in its almighty power to compete for the same guests we are.