The value of local tourism is what Phil Bruno, President of the experiential marketing firm Treat ‘em Right, teaches others. Phil graduated from St. Louis University with a degree in Travel, Tourism, and Transportation. After working for about 20 years for Fortune 500 companies, he came back to his hometown of St. Louis, Missouri.
Phil is a world-class consultant, trainer, and speaker specializing in helping large and small organizations in travel, tourism, and hospitality. Through his online e-learning courses in twenty different cities, he has trained over 40,000 graduates.
Customized Solution
Residents of cities don’t necessarily know what there is for visitors to see and do. Treat ‘em Right visits your destination to uncover opportunities for enhancement and improvement. Based on first-hand research, they design a customized solution to help you extend the stay and pay of your customers.
Exceed Expectations
Treat ‘em Right helps you deliver state-of-the-art experiences that exceed visitor’s expectations. They work with stakeholders and experience providers by sharing the latest tools and training to benefit anyone who interacts with guests. Phil has demonstrated that better training leads to higher employee satisfaction and higher visitor ratings.
Personalized Experience
According to Phil, you must offer something that is memorable and outside the range of the normal experience. In the service industries, it’s the little things that add up to create the personalized experience that visitors want to blog, brag, and most importantly – return to your destination. Treat ‘em Right trains every member of your hospitality community to go the extra mile so guests feel noticed, appreciated, and valued.
Video Training
His training teaches valuable communication skills and educates people about different management styles. When you focus on putting quality into people, the industry becomes better. He develops video training, in conjunction with local convention and visitors’ bureaus, to educate employees on their local areas. There is a test after each video lesson. The city will send employees a certificate after they complete the course. The goal is to share their city’s brand promise with its hospitality and tourism employees.
Some of Phil’s Clients:
- Destination Cleveland
- National Park Service
- Niagara Falls USA
- Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau
- Louis Cardinals
- The Gateway Arch
- The Ritz-Carlton
- The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Museum
Brand Awareness
Destination marketing is now converting to destination management organizations. As a result, the focus is much more community involved. Convention and Visitors’ Bureaus bring brand awareness to their communities. Coming to town is considered “being on brand.” The goal is to exceed the expectations of visitors by offering an incredible brand experience.
Advocacy
Much of Phil’s work is focused on advocacy for the tourism industry. Many people do not realize how much the tourism industry does to lower their taxes. Each household saves money each year because of the tourism industry. Phil is focused on educating communities about what tourism does by bringing money to their economy.
Blogging and Social Media
Another great way to inform visitors is to feature local businesses and destinations in blog posts and on social media. Then when people search for a city and an activity or place, perhaps one of your blog posts will show up! That is a benefit of providing regular blog content.
Treat ‘em Right
I appreciate Phil speaking with me about his work. To learn more about Mr. Bruno and his company Treat ‘em Right, visit his website. I know Phil’s destination marketing videos are helping thousands of people. Business professionals can educate their clients about their area in conversation. After asking them what they like to do, feel free to share local recommendations based on their interests. Appreciate the value of local tourism!
