Rising Expectations

I've just returned from a trip to the Middle East where I witnessed first hand some of the new resorts that are in development there. There are certainly some spectacular examples of the finest fixtures and materials that money can buy(and there is no shortage of money in this region).

Not all of the "wow" factors cost tons of money, though. In my guest room, by my desk the hotel provided a little business amenity kit with tape, binder clips, a mini stapler, an eraser along with other little business essentials. I haven't seen this in a US hotel ... and it made a big impression on me. Sometimes it really is the little things that make a difference. And finding the little things that matter require thinking like the customer.

Marketing Awards

The Hawaii Chapter of the American Marketing Association is about to celebrate its Marketer of the Year Awards. By every measure, this last year was a tough year. Yet, there are some companies that not only weathered the storm, but prospered. They did it by taking action and managing their own destiny while other less successful companies retrenched in the face of adversity.

I'm reminded of an old saying. There are those that make things happen. And there are those who watch things happen. And, finally, there are those poor souls who wonder what happened.

The winning companies are those who made things happen, despite long odds.

Congratulations to ...
Marriott Resorts Hawaii
Bank of Hawaii
Aloha Air Cargo
Outrigger Duke Kahanamoku Foundation.

What a Waste

Our family has planned a European vacation this year including a few days in Brussels. Since we've never been to Brussels, I went to their website and requested a travel guide that they offered. A few weeks later, the printed guide came by mail. The Belgian tourism office spent quite a sum sending the material by post.

I spent a leisurely evening browsing through the material ... and suddenly realized that the calendar of events and site information that they had sent were for 2009. And this is March, 2010.

It's a shame that Belgium tourism wasted the money on postage. It's frustrating that I spent a little time reviewing events that are in the past before realizing the error. Overall, what a waste. They would have saved a lot of money ... and been more customer friendly if they had just included a simple 2010 calendar of events with a url for a current website.

You have to wonder if anyone in these bureaucratic offices are reviewing what gets sent to customers. Maybe they had a large stock of 2009 materials that they wanted to deplete before cracking open the 2010 stuff?