A few days after I was hired, Scott asked me to take a personality test. I’m not sure if he liked the results: “helper,” that’s the verdict.
For seventeen years I owned and operated The Village Inn of Woodstock. I loved almost everything about running the inn. Mostly I loved bringing joy to my guests.
All of you innkeepers, hoteliers, managers, really anyone who works in the hospitality industry knows what I’m talking about; there’s nothing like knowing you’ve made a difference in your guests’ lives. Birthdays, anniversaries, honeymoons, weddings, you name it, we’ve been a part of endless milestones and celebrations. I have chills as I write this, thinking back on how many people were touched by the experience that my team helped to create. (And hey, if any of you at The Village Inn of Woodstock are reading this, I sincerely mean it, thank you, you are the best, you rock!)
But we all know how it goes, life changes. It was time for me to move on but I wasn’t nearly ready for retirement. I had a great relationship with so many folks here at White Stone Marketing. I was an extremely happy client for the past seven years. It was a great partnership. White Stone’s expertise coupled with my team’s dedicated efforts worked well, really well.
Fate, destiny, luck, who knows which it was. Allison asked me what I was going to do next. I answered: I’d like to work with you. And that’s just what happened. So here I am, part of this great team. The expertise, skill and genuine care that you all feel as clients – that love – it’s real.
I’m delighted to share my knowledge and experience from my past life with you. My role now is to help you leverage what White Stone offers. I didn’t always do everything that my client rep told me to do. I had the same problems that I have heard from so many of you. The biggest common denominator that I hear is staffing challenges. Believe me, I hear you.
Marketing is a challenge too, and there is constant change and adjustments that need to be made to stay on top of the game. I’ve learned so much in the short time that I’ve been here. The one thing that I can’t stress enough is the importance of social media.
Just to take one platform as an example – Instagram, it matters to your business. Nearly half of Instagram users discover and choose their next travel destination on this channel. I didn’t believe that Instagram was valuable, I was wrong. Embrace it, it can and will make you money. I see it working for our clients, and we haven’t even scratched the surface of what we plan to do here. (Stay tuned!)
Nonstop change, it’s frightening, and it’s a fact. The great news is that you have the expertise of White Stone on your side. I’m looking forward to helping you achieve all the success that you, our fabulous clients, so deserve! Thank you for letting me part of your journey.