CHOC Talk 1st Half June 2018
CONTENTS

Chairman Letter
Fall Regional Information
Committee Updates
Legislative Process in Action
Summer is Here
Are you ready to WOW your guest?
Many of us will begin the busiest season of the year. You will be welcoming a wide array of guests. A positive lasting impression for these guests will yield a substantial ROI from increased bookings at a higher ADR with lower expenses. 

One of the primary ways to achieve this is by engaging your guests through a team focused culture focused on problem resolution/service recovery, a preventative maintenance program and regular room inspections.  
  1. Team Focused - When the culture in your hotel is team focused, this will result in a positive work environment.  Such an environment will focus on the important things, such as training and guest service.  In addition, lower turnover will also improve your bottom line.  
2.    Problem Resolution/service recovery – A team focused culture will not only improve your guest experience, but the positive environment will also have a positive impact on problem resolution.  Every guest problem is an opportunity to showcase your team’s problem-solving ability and effective problem resolution/service recovery will also result in a lasting positive impression for that guest. 
  3.  Preventative Maintenance – A room that smells good and is in working condition will be another positive step in the making a lasting guest impression.   This can be achieved through a proactive preventative maintenance programs where the paint is kept fresh, the air-condition is clean, the carpets and grout are clean, the drains are in working condition, the lights work, the furniture is touched up and the paint is fresh.  Choice has resources for a preventative maintenance checklist and you can also discuss the same with your Choice Area Director.  
4.    Room Inspections .  You inspect what you expect.  Simply stated, regular room inspections are essential for a consistently positive lasting guest experience.  

There are so many good resources at CHOICEU and through your Area Directors on creating a positive stay experience. I suggest that you sit down with your Area Director and your operations team to brainstorm on ideas to increase guest satisfaction, top ten issues at your hotel, how to gain more reviews and ensure that each guest arrives happy and leaves star-struck.   For a blog post on how TripAdvisor ranks hotels, see   http://www.traveltripper.com/blog/how-does-tripadvisor-rank-hotels/ .

The hotel business, in some ways, is a simple business that boils down to being consistently clean and friendly.  I believe that the aforementioned tips will be helpful in achieving a long lasting positive guest experience not only this summer but throughout the years.  
  
2018 CHOC Chair
Jyoti Sarolia
Selected Committee Updates
National Travel and Tourism Week 2018
Choice Hotel Owners Council of North and South Carolina (Region 3) celebrated National Tourism Week by visiting with each of the official state Welcome Centers. It provided an excellent opportunity to showcase each of the Choice brands that are represented by CHOC. RAB and CHOC expressed appreciation to our Welcome Center tourism partners by giving them reusable lunch bags and water bottles. 
Picture: (top) Dwayne Bowes, CHOC member, with Fairplay Welcome Center; (middle) NC Welcome Center; (bottom)Hirak Patel, R3 RAB member with Fort Mill SC Welcome Center

CHOC Fall Regional Dates and Locations Announced!

September 30-October 2 Denver, CO Regions 10,11 & 12
October 7- 9th Baltimore, MD Regions 4,5 & 6
October 21-23rd Myrtle Beach, SC Regions 1,2,3 & 7
October 28-30 Minneapolis, MN Regions 8,9 &13

This is an election year for odd numbered regions! For more information on elections, visit the CHOC Website.
Legislative Process in Action
Region 3
Choice Hotels Owners Council of North and South Carolina represented CHOC members at the South Carolina Hospitality Day in Columbia, SC. Region 3 CHOC Delegates and RAB members networked with Legislators about workforce initiatives that affect the hotel industry and also thanked Legislators for fully funding South Carolina Parks, Recreation and Tourism.
Left:  Sam Agee, R3 Vice Director, Senator Glenn Reese and Patricia Porter, R3 RAB Member 
Right: Dillip Patel, CHOC Member & Patricia Porter, RAB Member Welcoming Legislators
Region 7
CHOC Region 7 Vice Director Darshana Patel participated in the AAHOA Legislative Summit in Washington DC meeting with several legislators and discussing legislation, which impacts the hospitality industry.
Region 8
The Illinois Hotel and Lodging Association (IHLA) once again partnered with the Illinois Council of Convention & Visitor Bureaus (ICCVB) and the Illinois Restaurant Associat ion (IRA) on 2018 LOBBY DAY which was held in Springfield, Illinois on May 16 & 17. The partnership with ICCVB and IRA provides a unique opportunity to show the strength, the breadth and the unity of the hospitality and tourism industry to Members of the 100th Illinois General Assembly. 

Right: CHOC Region 8 RAB member Fendi Efendi and Region 8 Delegate Andy Patel
Left: CHOC Region 8 members with lobby group on IL state capitol stairs
Region 12
Region 12 participated in a joint legislative Summit organized by CHLA and AAHOA. The morning started with informative speeches by officials from the California Chamber of Commerce, The U.S. Travel Association, AAHOA and CHLA.  CHLA and AAHOA created a very fruitful opportunity by having preset appointments with the legislators, thus enabling the participants quality time with all the local representatives in their offices. 
To the winners of 100,000CP Points from the CHOC Business Session at Convention!
For the first time ever, CHOC gave away ONE MILLION CP Points (100,000 each to 10 winners). Did you know 100,000 points is enough for a 7-Day Vacation!?!?!? Don't miss next years CHOC Business Session!
Do you know who your RVP is?
*Please note the map is not exact as some states are served by more than one RVP
Email the CHOC Staff:
Director of Events, Technology, and Communications
Regional Administrator
Regions 3,4,5,9,11, 12 & 13
Regional Administrator
Regions 1,2,6,7,8 & 10