What Is IBT?• Does your staff know what IBT means?• Does your staff know who your IBT Sales Manager is?• Do they know what the IBT Manager does?• Do they know who your big IBT accounts are?

Educate your staff on the importance of IBT for your hotel

• Have your IBT Sales Manager attend department meetings to explain what IBT means.

• Your staff should now who your top IBT accounts are for the year and how much them mean to the success of the hotel and job security of each employee.

• Train your Department Supervisors to train employees on how their department affects the success of the IBT market segment for your hotel. Make it fun with Q&A and giveaways.

• Have your IBT Sales Manager make regular visits to department stand ups.

Now it the time to confirm your Hotels IBT Advisory Board

• The IBT Advisory Board is a unique group of personally selected travel managers in your back yard that meet on a quarterly basis to exchange ideas and build relationships with you and your hotel. • Advisory boards are exclusive and not common practice with your comp set therefore they give your hotel market advantages.

• Select your board now at the end of RFP season and plan your first meeting.

• Holding quarterly meetings allows you to keep your finger on the pulse of current and future travel trends within the industry form the travelers point of view.

• Your clients feel a since of responsibility to your hotel creating a loyal customer base from this market segment.

• An invite should have a simple professional description to grab the board’s attention and a clear itinerary.

• Keep board meetings and events focused and no longer than a couple hours after working hours. Travel Managers have limited time and patience.

• Keep meetings creative such as during an Iron Chef cooking event or with a relevant guest speaker over dinner.

• This board will lead to additional business for your hotel such as group meetings and/or social events.

• Client response: Thank you so much for your hospitality and a fabulous evening! I keep thinking how wonderful it is to enjoy the company of my colleagues and hotel partner while having a meaningful discussion about trends in travel. I am very lucky to be part of the Advisory Board. Sherry Parsons, Sr. Executive Assistant/Avaya, Santa Clara, CA.

IBT & ACCOUNTINGIBT Perspective:

• The accounting contact for the client is not the same contact for the Sales Manager, therefore it is important that both accounting departments (hotel & client) are in contact with one another.

• For the hotel accounting contact, this communication with the IBT accounts ensures accurate billing and the invoices are processed on time.

• The hotel’s accounting personnel also is another way of penetrating the account.

• Using the hotel’s suppliers list is a great prospecting tool to qualify new business opportunities.Accounting Perspective:

• Having copies of the agreements of accounts assists whenever there are specific billing instructions, ie: Direct billing, credit card agreements, vouchers, etc.

• Direct contact with accounting at the other end, ensures they submit the appropriate paper work, such as tax exemptions, specific invoicing instructions that the customer may have, etc.Account Perspective:

• Having a direct contact at the hotel, assists when the BT Manager is away and they may have any questions about the billing, discrepancies, etc.

IBT Impact on Housekeeping

Residence Inn by Marriott, PleasantonMarcie Senter

THE ROOM – “the sanctuary from the rigors of business travel”A great overall experience for the guest goes above & beyond the cleanliness and condition of the room. Personal touches and attention to detail can go a long way. It can make a great impact on our guest perception of housekeeping services.

Bathroom Area Suggestions• Arrange amenities in order of bottle height• Organize vanity & place all amenities on clean hand towel• Replace lids & caps on bottles & cans• Place toothbrush/razor on a neatly folded wash cloth• Hang wet clothing on shower rod

Bedroom Area Suggestions• Organize personal belongings• Straighten & organize newspapers, magazines and other important documents (Don’t ever through anything way)• Close shear drapes and & closet doors• Place iron and board in to stored position• Neatly arrange shoes & neatly fold/arrange clothing on beds, sofa or chairs• Closets neat & have sufficient amount of hangers (eight or more)• Underneath the bed is free of dust & debris or even past guest belongs• Alarm clock with the correct time displayed and that is off (there’s nothing waking up suddenly at 2 AM)

Other Things To Consider• Train your housekeepers to put themselves in the place of the traveler• Remind your housekeepers that the majority of the guest experience is spent in the room, sleeping, working, relaxing & watching TV.• Pride is in the details and these personal touches shows the guests that the staff genuinely cares.• Always communicate maintenance issues with engineering & the front desk department

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THE GUEST – our passion is to help guest thriveHousekeeping attendants can be the brand ambassadors of the hotel. A friendly, helpful and knowledgeable attendant can elevate a guest overall all experience.

• Be Friendly, approachable and accessible- Promptly welcome and greet each guest by using the guest name, a warm smile & making eye contact- Speak in a clear, audible manner and be mindful of facial expressions, body language & tone of voice- Exhibit a sincere desire to accommodate the guest- Dress professionally– always be well groomed with clean uniform and name tag

• Be Helpful and share information- Be aware of your hotel and how to give directions to hotel areas restaurants, fitness center, meeting rooms etc.- Be informed on current & new hotel amenities (mobile check-in, shuttle service, pet policy, rewards program- Know about the local area where to eat, attractions, and special events

• Be Knowledgeable and interested in taking care of the guest- Share information about repeat business travelers in your daily huddle/stand-up so housekeepers can learn about their special needs- Housekeepers can hand out Social Media Cards with hotel’s contact information – Facebook, Twitter & Trip advisor- Housekeepers can leave welcome note with their name on it with some type of treat.

- Thank you note with a brief questionnaire for arriving guest that asks about their preferences for beverages, snacks, future travel dates & referrals. With information personalized welcome gifts can be created, front desk or sales can follow up future reservations & referrals.

- Deliver and leave special treats in the guest room (bake good, ice cream, wine etc.)- Go over guest survey with a the team and celebrate win and training on areas of improvement.

IBT Impact on Banquets & Meetings

Hilton Boca Raton Suites

Scarlet Weiss

Corporate Holiday Party Social Event Referrals (weddings, family

reunions, high school and college reunions, bar/bat

mitzvah, birthdays, etc) Awards Dinners & Winners Circle Events Local School Affiliations for Fundraisers, End

of Year Events and Athletic Banquets Off-site Coffee, Lunch and Afternoon Breaks

to Showcase Banquets Creativity and Penetrate IBT Accounts=WIN WIN

Banquets & IBT Customers

Small Pop Up Business Meetings to Fill in Need Dates and Space

Penetrate Corporate Accounts for Sales Meetings, Training Meetings (HR), Financial /Budget

Meetings New Customer Meeting and Events Product Review/Showcase , Exhibit and Tradeshow

Meetings New Hire Interview Meetings New Store, Building, Restaurant Opening Meetings

and Job Fairs

MEETINGS & IBT CUSTOMERS

IBT & Front Desk Sacramento Marriott Rancho Cordova

Robbie Garcia

Front Desk makes an impact on IBT• Creating a lasting first impression

• Customer service which helps retain and encourage increased business from the guest by efficiently and courteously satisfying their needs with respect to speedy check in, proper set up of billing, posting of rewards and listening to requests.

• Reliability with consistent performance that meets the expectations of our guests all the time.

• Timely resolution with issues or questions. Agents need to ensure issues are resolved to the customers' satisfaction and eliminate reoccurring issues.

• Know our repeat guests and make them feel valued and welcome.For IBT travelers we are their home away from home and an extended family.

Team Work

They are a huge part of our key to success in securing & maintaining IBT accounts!

Communication is key on both sides:

IBT should attend the front office daily stand up

Look through daily arrival list and discuss guests that could turn into target accounts

Create a list of questions for front desk agents to ask during the check in process to determineprojects, long term stays, additional colleagues traveling to the area and company they are with

Have a daily pass on log between front desk and IBT IBT – VIP Arrivals, special requests, welcome letters/arrival gifts for target accounts, birthdays, anniversary or special occasions & special billing proceduresFront Desk – Target accounts for follow up, special requests for future visit, any information uncovered on

existing accounts, possible issues

Ensure front desk has a list of all IBT accounts with market code, rate and amenities included in rate

Food & BeverageWinning Hearts & Minds Through the Tummy

• "One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well." - Virginia Woolf

• Follow Tradition over Trend• Focus on Guest Buying Habits• Make Memorable Experiences• Offer a Diversity of Tastes• Be a Reason for Guest to Return

Halo effect or crown of thorns?