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Travel Insider: 10 Unattractive Truths About Incentive Travel Planning
October 26, 2009
By Brian Martenis
The simple truth is that those of us that plan incentive travel are little more than servants to program participants. True, we negotiate hotel contracts with the skill of Donald Trump, deal with airlines as ruthlessly as any Fortune 500 CEO, and plan unique and unforgettable events with the creativity of Jackie Kennedy. But when you are in incentive travel planning, certain unattractive truths appear and, to be honest, it is part of the job to pretend they don’t exist.
1. Even if you are in charge of the most sophisticated incentive travel program, you often find yourself being the grunt for those on a power trip. The truth is that some people take great pleasure in abusing staff; you are not seen as a professional by them. You are nothing more than the guy or gal who is there to serve them. Your job is to see to it that they get the right room at the hotel, the right meal on the plane. I remember, back in the days before cell phones, getting screamed at by a participant in a hotel overseas because he did not get a message about an important phone call. Naturally it was my fault. The ugly reality is that participants need someone to vent to, and you are it.
2. Have you ever heard a hotel say “I’m sorry”? Not very often. The unattractive truth is you might get an “I apologize,” and the reality is that hotels are privy to the fact that some people will never be pleased and that they can only do so much. We in the incentive travel and hospitality business know that better than anyone.
The harsh reality is we might "apologize" for their dissatisfaction, but we are not sorry. If we have ever pleased everyone in the group at check-in, at each meal function, and on every tour, we better check and see if we died and went to heaven. It is your job to best satisfy the participant and, take it from me, after 30 years in this business, some people think it is a sport to frazzle you. You must always be on guard against those who never take the room offered or who require special seating every time. The joke is that I have many times downgraded a client's hotel room. The ugly truth is that he was not looking for anything more than just making me change his room.
3. Another truly unattractive reality of incentive travel planning involves the food functions. You are as responsible as the chefs in the kitchen. I always look over menus and, whenever possible, taste-test them, although this is not always a guarantee for success. The sad reality is that most “middle of the road” American groups confuse quantity with quality. They also tend to love buffets. Personally, I love things served to me with style. I don’t like “chow lines,” waiting in queue and juggling plates. I have seen ridiculously long lines and heaps of food carried back to tables without embarrassment.
4. Natural or manmade disasters, as well as the weather, are entirely your fault. When I had very unusual cloud cover in Switzerland, I heard that I chose, without thinking, to run the program during Switzerland’s “cloudy season.” I have been called uninformed and thoughtless many times.
Generally, when you run incentive travel programs with the same group of people time after time, they get to know you and trust your judgment. Unfortunately, not every group knows you, and when something goes wrong or when something does not go to expectations, you are the fall guy. You are a star when it’s great and a bum when it’s not, and that is simply the way it is.
5. Never assume you understand the nature of people and never assume their reactions to situations. I can write an entire book on this subject alone! A very uncomfortable aspect of planning incentive travel programs is that you usually negotiate hotel rooms on single- or double-occupancy rates. It therefore behooves you to double up any single qualifiers you might have. This must be explained to them in advance, and I can tell you no one has ever thanked me for the opportunity to share a room with a stranger.
I always offer any single-occupancy charge, and the reaction has been at times very negative. Once I had a Barbados participant who was recently widowed and needed a pick-me-up. There was another single woman, also a widow, and I thought they would be perfect roommates. After the first night, one of them informed me that the arrangement would not work. The new widow cried all the time, and the complainant “did not come to Barbados to be a counselor and you should have been more thoughtful of my feelings.” Ouch!
6. Always be prepared for clients being jetlagged, grouchy, or drunk. It happens a lot on incentive travel programs. If you are charged with a couple hundred people on a five- or six-day program, it just stands to reason excess will take place and the results will be less than pleasant.
7. Prepare yourself for true rudeness from time to time. I personally have a problem with people who are chronically late or early. You will have those who try to snag tables prior to the final dinner dance and even rearrange chairs! Clusters of friends will linger at the cocktail reception long after the rest of the group has been seated for dinner, and they will wonder why they can’t all sit together.
When getting everybody into motorcoaches, the early birds will have been impatiently waiting since 7:15 a.m. for an 8 a.m. departure. At 8:15, you finally have the last coach to depart, but Mr. and Mrs. Chutzpah will stroll up and ask if it would be all right to grab a quick breakfast before departing!
8. There's more to it than the “Ugly American.” In some countries Americans are simply not viewed in a positive light, but when I speak with tour operators, they say other nationalities are much more difficult to get along with. Personally, people are people no matter where they’re from, and there will always be personality clashes, misunderstandings, and negativity.
9. One of the main ugly truths concerning incentive travel planning is that the actual running of the program is not much fun. It is early mornings and late nights. It is putting their needs before yours and smiling no matter what. I make it a policy to never be in a bad mood and to never let them see me sweat. You are getting paid to entertain and to provide once-in-a-lifetime experiences. Period. Make them seamless and as perfect as you can. Keep your problems to yourself; the participants don’t need to know.
10. Face the fact that you never get the appreciation or respect you deserve. Like any illusion, the clients do not see your negotiations with hotels, airlines, and destination companies. They do not know about the sleepless nights. They do not understand airline contract commitments and hotel contracts and how strict and binding they are. The unattractive truth is that you are viewed as “the good-times guy" or “the gal on the perpetual vacation” and “one of the luckiest people in the world.”
The Bottom Line: I aimed to point out certain truths about incentive travel planning, and I realize I make the job sound horrific. But that is not true. It is one of the most varied and difficult jobs in the world, and although it can be thankless, it can be one of the most fulfilling endeavors one can undertake.
I am privileged to be in a profession that literally makes dreams come true. It’s really the best job in the world. For me, it’s my passion, and I feel blessed to be able to do it well. You just need to be prepared to work hard, work smart, know the profession, and be ready for almost anything. You just need to be a savvy businessperson, as well as a clever and gracious host.
Incentive online columnist Brian Martenis is managing director of Incentive Worldwide Travel. After 10 years as sales promotion director for one company and 19 years as sales incentives manager for another, he brings to the company nearly 30 years of designing and implementing successful incentive travel programs all over the world. Brian is passionate about every aspect of his programs and is often asked to write and speak about incentives, incentive travel, and motivation. He can be reached at brianm@incentivewt.com.
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