I’ve long said that being a member of the Society of Government Meeting Professionals for suppliers is a long term investment. In this association it’s very much about building long relationships and the gripe has been the lack of immediacy of return on that investment. Surely I’ve been a member for longer than a decade now and there are still scores of suppliers with whom I’ve got exceptional relationships but with whom I’ve also yet to book a single room night.
In the last few weeks, however, I’ve been able to make good on this ethereal promise. Destinations I’ve long thought I would be hard pressed to book, I’m suddenly booking. And it’s not through any special push on my part either, it’s all happened rather organically. But since I’ve established such routed relationships in these areas, it’s that much easier to book when the time comes. And it feels that much better.
Thus my advice to planners and suppliers alike is that there’s always value in a contact. You never know when the time will come to make good on the future promise made with that first handshake.