When Bob Donovan's wife accompanied him to a meeting in Tucson last year, she wanted to visit a private museum a friend had recommended. But the museum was so private that nobody they met in the city was familiar with it. When Donovan asked at the front desk of his hotel for directions to the obscure attraction, instead of offering an apologetic "I don't know," the attendant asked Donovan to give him a little time to find out.

Within an hour, the attendant called Donovan's room: He had researched the question and had all the information ready for his guests.

Just a happy coincidence to find a service-focused front desk attendant when one was needed? Not likely. The eager-to-serve worker was likely a graduate of the Certified Tourism Ambassador™ (CTA) program, which was adopted by the Tucson CVB last spring. "Not all cities have anything like that," said Donovan, vice president of meetings and travel services for the American Hospital Association (AHA). "Front-line service is extremely important, and nationwide, there seems to be a lack of proactivity, of people willing to go the extra yard, of people willing to please you. It really just takes a little bit of training [for front-line personnel] and that makes the city better, makes people happier, makes more groups come, and makes for a more desirable destination."

Developed by Mickey Schaefer & Associates LLC and administered by the company's subsidiary Tourism Ambassador Institute™, the CTA program is a certification program focused on "mobilizing a destination's front line to turn every visitor encounter into a positive experience," said Mickey Schaefer, CAE, longtime industry leader and president of Mickey Schaefer & Associates LLC, a strategic management consulting firm. "With today's enhanced competition for meetings and tourism, destinations will need to work harder than ever to differentiate themselves. It's not enough just to get them there with extensive marketing dollars. It's equally as important that the front line is educated on the destination's product and is motivated to welcome them and exceed their expectations at every opportunity."

The CTA initiative works not only to elevate the level of customer service in a destination but to also create a community of front line workers from all the stakeholders in that destination - tour operators, shuttle companies, restaurants, hotels, hospitals, even banks. By earning the CTA designation, front-line employees and volunteers learn product knowledge about the destination and develop greater pride in their role in the city's tourism industry. The intended result is a better visitor experience, leading to increased return visits and more business for the destination.

Here's how the new certification program is affecting important groups of stakeholders: front-line workers, convention bureaus, and meeting planners.

The Front Line
In order to earn the CTA designation, a front-line employee or volunteer must complete the required pre-class reading and exercises, attend a half-day class, and pass the CTA examination. The readings and the class materials are highly customized for each destination and cover information about the economic impact of tourism, branding, and how a CVB works; history, culture, and attractions of the destination; how to find and use resources; and how to deliver service that exceeds customers' expectations.

After passing the exam, graduates can use the CTA designation behind their names (for instance, John Smith, CTA) and wear a CTA gold lapel pin. But like any professional certification, CTAs must continue their education to maintain certification. To earn the required 50 points per year, CTAs can visit area attractions, read recommended articles, attend CTA networking events, volunteer, or attend tourism-related conferences. As part of a national certification program with annual renewal, those who earn the designation (CTAs) stay connected via CTANetwork.com, a specially-designed online community that not only brings them closer together, but also keeps them up-to-date, while ensuring consistent messaging at the front line. As a result, the CTAs develop connections with each other and the greater industry, helping to further the destination's brand of service across the city.

For David Fantle, vice president of public relations for VISIT Milwaukee, the most surprising aspect of the CTA initiative has been "the incredible pride our front-line guest service employees have for Milwaukee and the job they are doing," he said. "The CTA curriculum gives them greater perspective on the significant economic impact we make in the Milwaukee area and how it also enhances the quality of life for those who call this area home."

"Thank you for making us more aware of what a great city we have and how we can improve it for everyone with our knowledge of all the great things we have here," wrote one CTA in a survey recently conducted in Kansas City, where the second year of the program was recently completed. According to survey results, 74 percent of participating employers and 80 percent of CTAs in Kansas City responded that they are satisfied or extremely satisfied with the program. Eighty-seven percent of employers said that their employees' retaining the designation is important to their company, and only 5 percent of Kansas City CTAs indicated they do not plan to renew their designation.

The program has launched in Kansas City, Tucson, Greater Phoenix, Milwaukee, and Lexington, Ky., with Spokane, Baltimore, Washington D.C., and Cincinnati under development. More than 30 other CVBs have expressed interest in the program, and among those expressing strong interest are Anaheim, Gettysburg, Orlando, and Dallas-Ft. Worth. By the end of this year, Schaefer estimates that there will be 6,000 CTAs contributing to the visitor experience in various destinations across the country.

The Bureau
For CVBs, offering the CTA designation - and winning buy-in from destination stakeholders - helps ensure that visitors truly experience the brand being sold. "We're spending thousands of dollars promoting our destination," said Vicki Doyle, vice president of partner development and visitor services at the Metropolitan Tucson CVB. "But the people who deliver the promise we're making on our brand are on the front line."

Many bureaus gear up for a big convention or event, educating personnel across the city about the visiting group, "but the ones I've talked to say they'd like to have their front lines mobilized permanently," Schaefer says. "It's a natural evolution of the role of the CVB."

For instance, in Lexington, Ky., CVB President David Lord said he has wanted to implement a hospitality training program for years. With the World Equestrian Games to be held in the city in 2010 (the first time the United States will host the games), it became important to follow through with those plans sooner rather than later. "Although we are not implementing this solely for the Games, it certainly is an added incentive for us to get this program off the ground now so we'll have people properly trained for that event," Lord said. "We have all types of people waiting to become a CTA, including our local Board of Realtors, the Bluegrass Airport, area attractions, and hotel staff."

In other cities, the CTA program offers an opportunity to differentiate themselves from the competition. "The meetings industry has just been so competitive and our budget size just does not allow us to advertise and market as much as we would, like so we are concentrating more on the deliverables to a meeting planner and his or her delegation," said Harry Sladich, president/CEO of the Spokane Regional CVB. "I really feel that for a second-tier city, we must work extra hard to make sure a planner feels comfortable enough to book our city. By implementing these types of programs, they can be assured that we know what we are doing and that their meeting will be a success. Happy attendees make for a happy meeting planner."

While CTA is still a new program in most of the cities that have adopted it, bureaus are already reporting positive results. "[We've witnessed] a lot of energy and positive comments from the graduates," said Milwaukee's Fantle. "People thought they really knew Milwaukee until they went through the curriculum and discovered so much more about the city. It's this kind of added knowledge that can be passed on to our visitors to enhance their experience here. When we can tell meeting planners that we now have an army of concierges ready to greet their delegates, that's a total positive."

The Meeting Planner
"Kansas City is already able to quantify business booked as a result of the program's implementation," says Schaefer. "When all things are equal in the site selection process, being a "CTA City" tips the scale."

Like AHA's Donovan, meeting planners have begun to take notice of the stepped-up service offered in CTA cities. "From my personal experience the difference was noted by taxi drivers and their knowledge of the city to include restaurants, day trips, nightlife and shopping," said Amy Phillips, meeting professional for the American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA), who has held small meetings in Kansas City and Tucson since they became CTA cities. "I was impressed that they knew what it meant to be a meeting professional and the impact we could have by bringing a meeting to their city."

"Front-line service is critical for the success of a meeting," added Terri Breining, CMP, president of Concepts Worldwide, Inc., a strategic meeting management firm. "If meeting participants are greeted with someone who is surly, uninterested, or misinformed, it impacts their entire experience and will color their evaluation of the city and the meeting. One of our primary objectives is to ensure that all participants have a rich, pleasant, educational experience at the meeting. If a single front-line person diminishes the experience and puts those objectives at risk, it is a concern."

As for the CTA program, Breining believes it can not only improve service in certain destinations, but it can improve the meetings industry. "I believe it will raise the bar for service levels across the board, and I believe it will also raise awareness of the meeting industry by those that might have previously looked at meetings as strictly a sub-set of tourism," she said. "The meeting industry benefits when we are recognized as a separate and important element of business - not just tourism. The CTA program will help with making that distinction."

While AAPA's Phillips isn't yet selecting sites based on the CTA program, "it certainly is a benefit," she said. "More and more we hear from our members that they are looking for an 'experience' when attending meetings. It really helps to meet in cities where the community and front-line personnel are excited, proud, and knowledgeable about their region."

For more information on the CTA Program, go to www.CTANetwork.com.

Contributing Editor Nancy Mann Jackson is a freelance writer in Birmingham, Ala.