Are you capturing the hospitality/tourism industry in your area? If not, you should be! The opportunities are there just waiting for you to take advantage of them. Although travel and budgets are down as a result of the economy, there is still a demand for: welcome gifts, speaker gifts, attendees gifts, door prizes, centerpieces and favors.

One universal commonality is pride for one’s home town. The most popular design that was requested for most meeting and convention gifts were gifts that showcased the unique flavors of our individual cities. Not only do regional gifts show city pride and promote local businesses, but they also are helping the environment.

Sourcing close to home, and creating locally-designed gifts in re-usable containers, reduces the carbon footprints involved in getting the products into stores. Being environmentally conscious is no longer considered just a fashionable trend. It is necessary for businesses to be responsible to their clients.

Prices vary with most in the $25.00 to $65.00 per gift range. The number of gifts per convention ranges from as few as 25 gifts to as many as 500 gifts per meeting.

The hospitality / tourism industry consists of both leisure and business travel. There are gifting occasions in leisure, travel, such as the gift basket for someone staying in a hotel who is celebrating a birthday, anniversary, or other special occasion. The majority of opportunities are for business travel.

Gift Designers are the allies of the tourism industry. The ability to provide the supplies and support services to make them look good but we have to make them aware of our business and what we can do for them. Creating strong relationships is essential. They have to know you, know they can trust you to provide quality products and services. Their reputation is at stake and if you fail to perform as expected, you can write this industry off your marketing list.

Endless Possibilities

The possibilities of serving this industry are endless. We are only limited by our imagination.

The tourism industry represents more than just hotels, although they are usually our primary customers. When you think tourism, think of local attractions, other lodging facilities, tour companies, transportation companies, caterers, visitor publications, destination marketing organizations, special events planners, restaurants, and even shopping areas throughout a region.

Realistically, we are now also limited by a distressed economy. It is no secret that business travel has been demonized and has come under attack in the media and Congress. This includes the backlash from the headlines in the media of extravagant corporate events but these events are the rarity rather than the average. Nine in ten meeting planners stated that their meeting budgets were being cut due to general economic conditions‖ while more than one-third cited image / publicity/ public–policy considerations as a reason they expect to book fewer meetings in 2010.

According to the US Department of Commerce Office of Travel and Tourism Industries, real travel and tourism spending‖ is still below its 2007 third quarter peak. This has suppressed the demand for travel and tourism related goods and services and sent prices spiraling to the lowest point on record, declining nearly 16%. Katarina, owner of A Basket Case in Nashville, Tennessee adds that she has experienced "not a decrease in orders but maybe a decrease in the price of what they will spend per basket."

All is not doom and gloom, however if we recognize the value of travel and tourism to local, state, and national economies. Briefly, The Business Travel Association, US Travel Association, The Convention Industry Council and others in the hospitality / tourism industry realize that the economic impact of meetings, events, and travel are critical to American jobs. Corporate and government business travel is being viewed as an investment and not just an expense. Across all industries, the average return on investment was roughly $15.00 for every $1.00 spent on business travel.

Economics was not the best course in college. However, it is important to comprehend the basics: Sales of products and services are what drive the US economy. The success of every business in America depends on its ability to continue and grow sales of its products and sales.

According to The National Business Travel Association, business travel ―creates $244 Billion in spending, 2.4 Million American jobs and $39 Billion in tax revenue at the federal, state and local level. The meeting and events component is responsible for 15% of all travel and spending and generates one million jobs. Tourism is an economic engine. Tourism makes a difference.

Several factors contribute to a company‘s choice of meeting location. Today, businesses working within a tight budget base these decisions on affordability, geography (closer to home office) and even possibly fewer days for the event. We cannot control the economy so we, as gift basket entrepreneurs, must evolve to accommodate it.

How Do You Market To This Industry?

So how should you market your gifting company to the hospitality industry? Just like marketing to the corporate world, it all comes down to networking and creating personal relationships with members within the industry. We must position ourselves as the ―expert‖ gift professional and the ―go-to guy when they are looking for the established person to help them with their gift giving needs for their client‘s upcoming meeting and convention. If you can prove to them that you can make them look good while staying within their budget, you‘ll have their business.

There are a number of hospitality associations that you can join in order to network with the industry. In fact when you first start looking at the available associations available, it is Alphabet Soup! CVC, CVB,MPI, HSMAI, NCA, ISES, NACE to name a few and that does not include all the local associations. You should visit a meeting of the association that interests you to see if it is a ―fit‖ for you and your company. Remember not to spread yourself too thin, as you want to make the most of your membership. Get involved, join a committee, and meet the other members outside the meeting. No association will work for you if you do not get involved.

Don‘t overlook local networking opportunities, even if not directly related to the hospitality / tourism industry. Weekly luncheon networking events and Chamber of Commerce memberships offer great opportunities to the motivated gift entrepreneur. Referrals do work.