What is Your Town’s First Impression?

Incredible attention to taking care of tourists was what my wife and I witnessed this past week when we attended a National Speakers Association course in Cancun. We had been to Cancun about 10 years ago and were overwhelmed by the changes that we had seen since we were last there. It is a community on the move.

The growth there has been incredible but what really shocked us was the people. They have obviously been well trained on how to offer outstanding service to the many people visiting them. And they do it very well, better than I have ever seen.

Cancun has obviously decided that the best way to grow their tourist trade is to make sure that the front line, people of first contact are the best that they can be. They spend a lot of time and effort making sure that these front line Heros know and understand what little things can make or break a vacation. And, their first class training shows!

Whenever I stop in a town on my travels, I’ll usually ask the first person that I come in contact to tell me about their town. Too often, and sometimes even at Chambers of Commerces I’ll hear, “This is a dead town”, “There’s nothing to do here” or “Man, I can’t wait to get out of here.” Why don’t more communities realize what a turn-off hearing that about your town can be? The first impression of the town is ruined and you can never redo that horrible first impression.

More towns need to study what a place like Cancun is doing to make sure that the first impression your town projects to a new visitor is a very positive one.