ELFA RodewayOwners ELFA ROA Regional Directors

Spring Spring2012 2012 WINTER WINTER 2010 2010 Econo EconoLodge LodgeFranchisee FranchiseeAssociation Association Ross Ross Almo,CHA Almo,CHA Executive Director Rodeway Rodeway Inn InnFranchisee FranchiseeAssociation Association Executive Director Econo Lodge Econo Lodge Franchisee Franchisee Association Association Rodeway Inn Rodeway Inn Franchisee Franchisee Association Ross RossAlmo, Almo, CHA CHA Association ELFA ELFAPresidential PresidentialAddress AddressFrom FromMahendra MahendraZZPatel Patel Executive Executive Director Director 51 51 US US Route Route 44 Mendon, VT 05701-9652 Mendon, VT 05701-9652 Phone: Phone: (802) (802) 786-2260 786-2260 Fax: (802) 786-5237 4293 US Route Route44East East Fax:4293 (802)US 786-5237 Email: Email: Econokillington@aol.com Econokillington@aol.com SSPPEEC CIIA ALL PPO OIIN NT TSS O OFF IIN NT TEERREESST T Mendon, Mendon,VT VT05701– 05701–6806 6806 P: P:802-786– 802-786–2260 2260 F:F:802–786802–786-5237 5237 New NewChoice Choice Hotels.com Hotels.comisis here—here—-see see page page C: C:802-345-6692 802-345-6692 SPECIAL SPECIAL 55 for POINT POINT SS formore more E: E:Killingtonlodge@aol.com Killingtonlodge@aol.com information information PAGE: PAGE: Remember Rememberto to VISIT VISIT ELFA.org ELFA.org RodewayOwners.com RodewayOwners.com ELFA ROA Regional Directors ELFA ELFABoard BoardofofDirectors Directors ELFA Regional Directors President: President: Mahendra MahendraPatel Patel(732)329-4555 (732)329-4555Ext. Ext.307 307 ELFA Regional Directors President: Natu99Patel Vice Vice President President and andRegion Region Director:Katen Katen(803) Patel Patel328-2000 (503) (503)504-5566 504-5566 President: Natu Director: Patel (803) 328-2000 Vice President and Region 9 Director: Treasurer Treasurer and andRegion Region 88Director: Director: Amish AmishPatel Patel(618) (618)664-3030 664-3030 Vice President and Region 9 Director: Katen Patel (503) 504-5566 Katen Patel (503) 504-5566 Secretary Secretaryand andRegion Region66Director: Director:Mike MikeAdams Adams(716)825-1400 (716)825-1400 Treasurer and Region 13 Director: TreasurerPast andPresident– Region 13 Natu Director: Immediate Immediate Past President– Natu Patel (803)328-2000 Patel (803)328-2000 Hasu Patel: (816) 464-5082 Hasu Patel: (816) 464-5082 Region11Director: Director: OPEN OPEN Region Secretary and Region 6 Director: Secretary and Region 6 Director: MikeDesai Adams (716) 825-1400 Region22Director: Director:Manish Manish (334)745-3115 745-3115 Region (334) MikeDesai Adams (716) 825-1400 Immediate Past President and(843) Region 6 Director: Region 3 Director: Pete Patel (843) 797-8200 Region 3 Director: Pete Patel 797-8200 Immediate Past President and Region 6 Director: Mahendra Patel855-3116 (732) 329-4555 Region44Director: Director:Kal KalMasters Masters(757) (757) Region Mahendra Patel855-3116 (732) 329-4555 Past President: Leonard Richardson (757) Region Director:Alka Region 55Director: AlkaLeonard Patel(609) (609) 927-3220(757)491-3195 Patel 927-3220 Past President: Richardson 491-3195 Region 1 Director: Bharat Patel (941) 962-3882 Region Mike Adams (716)825-1400 825-1400 Region 66Director: Mike Adams (716) Region 1Director: Director: Bharat Patel (941) 962-3882 Director:Dave Manish Desai (334) 745-3115 Region772Director: Region Patel(931) (931)293-2111 293-2111 Region Patel Director:Dave Manish Desai (334) 745-3115 Region 2Director: Region 3 Director: Pete Patel (843) 797-8200 Region 3Director: Director: PetePatel Patel(618) (843) 797-8200 Region Amrish Patel (618)664-3030 664-3030 Region 88Director: Amrish Region 4 Director: Kal Master (757) 855-3116 Region Katen Patel (503)504-5566 504-5566 Region Patel (503) Region99Director: 4Director: Director:Katen Kal Master (757) 855-3116 Region 5 Director: Mahendra Patel (732) 329-4555 Region1010 5Director: Director: Mahendra Patel (732) 329-4555 Region Director:Aroon Aroon Patel(936) (936)295-6401 295-6401 Region Patel Region 6 Director: Mike Adams (716) 825-1400 Region Director:Dilip Dilip Vekaria (505)722-3800 Vekaria (505)722-3800 Region Region1111 6Director: Director: Mike Adams (716) 825-1400 Region 7 Director: Dave Patel (931) 293-2111 Region1212 7Director: Director: Dave Patel (931) 293-2111 Region Director:Vikas Vikas Patel (408)984-3364 Region Patel (408)984-3364 Region 8 Director: Amrish Patel (618) 664-3030 Region DirectorHasu Hasu Patel(816)-464-5082 (816)-464-5082 Region Patel Region1313 8Director Director: Amrish Patel (618) 664-3030 Region 9 Director: Katen Patel (503) 504-5566 Region 9 Director: Katen Patel (503) 504-5566 (901) 684-1234 Region 10 Director: Gary Koester: (901) 684-1234 Region 10 Director: Gary Koester: Region 11 Director: Dilip Vekaria (502) 722-3800 Region 11 Director: Dilip Vekaria (502) 722-3800 Region 12 Director: Sila Patel (310) 398-1651 Region 12 Director: Sila Patel (310) 398-1651 Region 13 Director: Hasu Patel: (816) 464-5082 Letter from the ELFA President Welcome! Welcome! ROC ROC Council Council Board Board ofofDirectors Directors ROA Regional Directors ROA Regional Directors Chairman: Chairman: Neil Neil Bhakta(760) (760)746-0441 746-0441 President: NeilBhakta Bhakta (760) 746-0441 President: Neil Bhakta (760) 746-0441 Vice Vice Chairman: Chairman: Amit Amit Patel Patel(386) (386)255-3617 255-3617 Past President: Kay Collier-Pittman (865) 453-2526 Past President: Kay Collier-Pittman (865) 453-2526 Past Past Chairman: Chairman: KayCollier-Pittman Collier-Pittman(203) (865) (865) 453-2526 453-2526 Region 1 Director: Kay Dinu Patel 481-4528 Region 1 Director: Dinu Patel (203) 481-4528 Northeast Northeast Region1:1:Dinu DinuPatel Patel(203) (203)481-4528 481-4528 Region 2Region Director: Amit Patel (386)453-8959 Region 2 Director: Amit Patel (386)453-8959 Southeast Southeast Region Region ll ll : : Rajal Rajal Patel Patel (407) (407) 504-1079 504-1079 Region 3 Director: Sam Bhakta (785) 841-8410 Region 3 Director: Sam Bhakta (785) 841-8410 Central Central Region Region llllll: : David DavidHoll Holl(308) (308)698-2810 698-2810 Region 4 Director: OPEN Region 4 Director: OPEN West WestRegion RegionlV: lV: Manoj ManojPatel Patel(626) (626)969-7957 969-7957 33 nominate nominateyour your hoteliers fellow fellow hoteliers ROA ROAPresidential Presidential for forAPEX APEX Address Address 33 awards—— awards——see see page for FREE FREE Call Call7Forwarding page 7Forwarding formore more information information 44&&55Convention Convention2012 2012 77 8 8 99 Want Wantto tokeep keep on on Choice Choice University topUniversity of the indus- top of the industry—page try—-see see page99 Hospitality Hospitality Check-up Check-up for FREE Trade for FREE Trade Guest Guest Publications Publications Reimbursements Reimbursements 10 10 Technology Technology 12 12&&13 13Social SocialMedia Media 14 14 Coop Coop The The articles articlesininthis thispublication publicationare areindependently independentlywritten written and andare arenot notnecessarily necessarilythe theopinions opinionsofofELFA/ROA ELFA/ROAboard. board. informationprior priortotoany anyinitiation. initiation.ELFA/ ELFA/ Please Pleaseverify verifyinformation ROAtake takeno noresponsibility responsibilityfor formisinformation misinformationwe wedo do ROA howeverapologize apologize for foranything anythingincorrect incorrectororerrors. errors. however I Iwould wouldlike liketo tothank thank whoatateveryone everyonewho tended tendedthe theConvenConvenII would like to all ELFA would likeyear to welcome welcome tion tion last last year and andall ELFA Members Members and and Allied Allied Vendors Vendors and and elected elected me meItItas as PresiPresiAssociations. was great Associations. was great chalchallenge this year the dent dent ofELFA ELFA for lenge of this year for forfor the AssociaAssociations Joint Committees: Allied tions Joint Committees: Allied 2011-2013. 2011-2013. I I would would Vendors, Vendors, QAR QAR and and Standards, Standards, Room Condition Task Force, also also like to tothank thank my Roomlike Condition Taskmy Force, Technology, Marketing ReserTechnology, Marketingand and ReserBoard Board members members for for vation, vation, Coop, Coop, PR PR and and MemberMembertheir their support support and and loyloyship, ship, Education Education and and Meetings, Meetings, Bylaws and Elections. I alty. alty. Bylaws and Elections. I applaud applaud and congratulate all ELFA Direcand congratulate all ELFA DirecMy My goal goal is is to to inintors who worked so hard putting tors who worked so hard puttingin in their to attend meetings crease crease our membermembertheir time timeour to attend meetings away away from families to highship ship by bymarketing, marketing, not not fromtheir their families todeliver deliver highest benefits to our members and est benefits to our members and only only the the hotels, hotels, but but our Brand our Brand Outlook -- ELFA The industry isis anticialso also the the ELFA organiorganiOutlook The industry anticipating interest rates to go up pating interest rates to go up this this zation. zation. By By doing doing so, so, year. year. Housing Housing and and moderate moderate comcomwe we increase increase the the mercial mercial landing landing may may be be available. available. Please all loan documents strength strength of our posiPlease read readof allour loanposidocuments very or let attorney very carefully carefully or let your your attorney tion. tion. This Thistolong long lasting lasting explain explain them them to you. you. IfIf you you buy buy aa motel please negotiate the terms effort effort of of marketing marketing motel please negotiate the terms and with Franchiand conditions conditions with the the Franchiwould would increase increase the the sor. sor. power powerof ofour ourvoice voice and andenable enableus usto to make makethe thenecessary necessary and andneeded neededchanges. changes. After Aftertaking takinginto intoacac2010 Started off with another count, count, all allof ofthe theanother curcur2010 Started off with Rodeway rebuild project rent rent owner’s owner’s conforconRodewayInn, Inn, rebuild projectfor Rebuilding Together’s 15th annual Rebuilding Together’s 15th annual cerns, cerns, we wewill willunun- in kickoff event occurred kickoff charity charitymake event occurred doubtedly doubtedly make concon-in the thecity cityof ofthe theSuper SuperBowl Bowlto to sistent sistent efforts effortsto tonanarevitalize revitalizecommunities communitiesininneed. need. This with CHOC tionally tionally advertise advertise the Thisyear yearalong along withCHI, CHI,the CHOC and ELFA we worked together Econo Econo Lodge Lodge Brand. Brand. and ELFA we worked together on on fixing up ininthe fixing upfive fivehouses houses theCocoCocoIn Intoday's today's economy economy nut of This nutGrove Grovearea area ofMiami. Miami. Thisisisaa everyone everyone has has been been great exposure for Choice great exposure for ChoiceHotels faceing faceing aadecline decline ininHotels and andRodeway RodewayInn Innat atan an enormous enormous sporting revenue, revenue, but butto tonenesporting event! event! gate gatethe theeffect effectof ofthe the aareduced reducedrate rateof of 149.00, 149.00,. . economical economicalweight weighton on The Thedesignated designatedlocations locationsenenthe theEcono EconoLodge Lodge sures suresthat thatthe themajority majorityof ofthe the group, group,my mygoal goalisisto to Economy EconomyBrands Brandslive livewithin within Board, Banks and Lenders. Allied Vendor please Board, BanksThis andSBA SBA Lenders. Alliedpublicize VendorProgramProgramplease help help publicize our our hoho200 200 miles. miles. This is is an an effort effort to to Funds visits Fundsare arecurrently currentlyavailable availablefor for visitsELFA.org ELFA.orgwhere wherevendor vendor tels tels by byand setting setting higher higher reduce reduce your yourcost costas and and traveltravelboth well specials discounts bothtemporary temporaryloans loansas wellas as specialsand discountsare arespotspotlighted with long term Loan requirestandards standards at atyou affordaffording time. time. Town Town Hall Hall meetings meetings lightedto toprovide provide you withvarivari- ing long termloans. loans. Loan requirements are very oriented so ous Brand specific ments verydetail detailof oriented so ousEconomy Economy Brand specificprodprod-will able able prices prices throughthroughwill be beaare asource source of education education allow ucts allowplenty plentyof oftime timeto tocomplete complete uctsand andservices. services. ELFA ELFAand andits its the process. additional inforAllied striving out. out. Iwant wantare to toalways create create aa ininGIS GIS and andFor related related networknetworkthe process. For additional inforAlliedIVendors Vendors are always striving mation go to ELFA’s members during mation goto toSBA.gov SBA.gov toassist assist ELFA’s members during ing new new and and exciting exciting imiming topics. topics. these Expedia thesetough toughtimes. times. Expedia –Hotwire –Hotwire -- After After long long age age for forour our hotels. hotels. We We have havea a vendor vendor program program negations negations Choice Choice has has signed signed aa three year contract ELFA’s ELFA’scurrent currentcomcom- that that was was established by byour our three yearestablished contract with with Expedia. Expedia. The contract Choice franchisees The contract Choice franchisees munication municationmethods methods past past president president that thatoffers offersour our offers offers aa new new opaque opaque rate rate program program should shouldbe bereaching reaching members members options options for for mainmainI send my thanks to with Hotwire. with Hotwire. I send my thanks to Choice’s Senior Management. each eachand andeveryone everyoneof of taining taining their their properties, properties, rereChoice’s Senior Management. Team & ELFA, ROA & Team & ELFA, ROA & CHOC CHOCaa you. you.We Wewant wantto toenen- ducing ducing costs costs and and offering offering Associations Associations LRA Inspection --As sure surethat thateveryone’s everyone’s great great guest experience. experience. LRAguest Inspection Aswe weroll rollinto into 2010 more properties have been 2010 more properties have been concerns concernsare aregiven given The The newest newest vendor vendor is is inspected. inspected. Choice Choice will will provide provide equal equalattention attentionand and Maintenance Maintenance USA. USA. Visit Visit ELFA with an overview ELFA with an overview of of Brand Brand performance by convention support. support. These Theseconcon- ELFA.org ELFA.org for for additional inforinforperformance byadditional convention and and Natu Patel Room Patel Room Condition Condition Inspections Inspections cerns cernsare areNatu taken taken to to mation mation weigh President weigh heavily heavily on on the the 36 36 Points. Points. Presidentfor The day to day business Board Boardmeetings meetings for My My team team of of Officers, Officers, ReReThe day to day business of of cleancleaning areas most often Stimulation Moneyreview, review, discussion discussion gional Directors Directors and and our ExExing the the areas guests guests mostour often Stimulation Money-IsIsavailable available gional judge will push your property up through your Region Development judge will push your property up through your Region Development and andresolutions resolutionsthat that ecutive ecutive Director, Director,Ross RossAlmo Almo the thescale. scale. Continued page 2adwill willbenefit benefitthe themajormajor- and andI Iare areworking working on onononTV TV Continued pagead2 ity ityof ofthe thecommunity. community. vertising vertisingand andcost costreduction reduction Using Usingmy myprevious previous with withthe thehelp helpof ofBPC’s. BPC’s.We We years yearsof ofexperience experienceinin are areworking workingdiligently diligentlyto tohelp help QAR Update; After our first round Please visit our brand page on this this organization, I Iam am each each and and every member member opQAR organization, Update; After our first round Please visitevery our brand page on opof has Choice to utilize determined determined to toutilize erate aaCentral successful successful business. business. ofinspections inspectionsChoice Choice hasbeen been erate Choice Central toget getfamiliar familiar able identify the top with our QAR now ableto toknowledge identifysome someof of the top ournew new QARform form now this this knowledge to to take take Iwith Iwish wish to tothank thank all all of ofmy my miss standards for Rodeway Inn being used for inspection. The miss standards for Rodeway Inn being used for inspection. The this this Brand Brand to to new new officers officers and and chair chair persons persons for for which whichinclude: include:Nightstand, Nightstand,HVAC, HVAC, majority majorityof ofweight weightisisnow nowbeing being heights! heights! their their hard hard work workand and dedicadedicaBathtub, focused Bathtub,Bedding, Bedding,Desk-Chair Desk-Chairfor for focusedon oncleanliness cleanliness and androom room Desk-Chair, Parking condition. It’s a great idea to I Cleanliness. ICleanliness. have haveworked worked dilidilition tion in in helping helping me me achieve achieve Desk-Chair, Parking condition. It’s a great idea towalk walk area, Bathtub, Bedthrough your own with gently gently on on2012 2012 Town Town the goals goals that that defined defined for for area,Doors/walls, Doors/walls, Bathtub, Bed- the through your ownI Iproperty property with ding for Condition. As these are a printout of QAR form. This ding for Condition. As these are this a printout of QAR form. This Hall Hall Meetings. Meetings. One One this Association. Association. the where of hoensures theareas areas wheremost most of our our hoensuresthat thatthere therewill willnot notbe beany any day day meetings meetings will will be be tels need improvement, please pay surprises and you won’t be caught tels need improvement, please pay surprises and you won’t be caught held heldattention at at10 10locations locations I Ihope hope to toregarding see seeall all of of you youat at extra off any extra attentionto off guard guardregarding anyitems. items. to these theseareas. areas. across acrossthe thecountry countryatat Convention Conventionin inContinued Las Las Vegas. Vegas. on page 2 Continued on page 2 Letter from ROA President

PAGE 2 Report-out from Past President - Natu Patel Dear all members. It was almost 1 year ago I became past president. My helping nature and caring for ELFA and its members helped to create a better brand. Econo Lodge is always my aim. To fulfill my goals and satisfy your expectations. This will not work without all members input. It is very important that if you are not a member, become one now. This will make a more solid ELFA association and help members to create a stronger voice. Guests and their travel behaviors constantly change as well as the economy. The old slogan “do the best you can” was never more true. We must also backup our leaders to assist us in the direction to be better. Scholarship-ELFAS’ scholarship program and their requirements and applications are posted on elfa.org. Vender program- ELFA has an excellent member saving program put together to gather the history of ELFA and save 10 to 22% for members along with some free gifts. Nationwide go to elfa.org to see those Venders specifically assisting the economy brand hotels. Fall Regional Meeting- This year we are still working out the plan for our Fall regional meeting for Economy brands. The new Town Hall meetings will have at least 10 meetings a year and cover a lot of area. The beauty of these meetings is they will be mostly only one day travel for participants. More education classes geared to the Economy brands with small groups and great speakers. Awards will be given out to qualified properties. It is easy to get an award, just go to choice central and read about the different awards available if you are perfect in Standard LTR and brand standards. The ELFA board works with Craig Mustard our brand leader and Brenda Riley in education. Lunch and snacks will be included. We have heard your voice and we are determined to save you money. CALL CENTER UPDATE 2012 started off with plenty of excitement for Choice’s Customer Care and Reservations department. With a new year ahead of us, what better way to start off than with a celebration! Throughout February and early March the Customer Care and Reservations enterprise recognized our top reservation sales associates in our annual Night of the Million Stars celebrations. These events allow Choice’s leadership team to recognize our best and most consistent performers. The theme of the celebrations in the Grand Junction and Minot centers was the Oscars (Academy Awards) , complete with the fanfare of script, music, humor, and mock awards. With decorations of black, gold and silver balloons, associates enjoyed a red carpet, along with Oscar statues, huge movie cameras and a slide show highlighting the honorees. The Grand Junction center celebrated 14 associates who reserved a grand total of 17,288,312.98 in revenue! The Minot center celebrated 75 associates who reserved a grand total of 28,000,000.00 in revenue! In addition, we recognized more than 20 associates who demonstrated their commitment to Choice’s Values and Principles with our annual Star Achiever awards. These associates were nominated by their peers for exemplifying the best of the best. Finally, bringing it home for the Choice centers, our Toronto, Canada location celebrated 7 Million Dollar producers who reserved a grand total of 10,789,613.94 in revenue. We are so proud of our fantastic associates in all of the Choice centers who work so hard to “Show you the Money”!! In the partner centers we had much to recognize as well. In our Albuquerque center, a Valentine’s Day themed Night of a Million Stars celebration was held in early February. We recognized 11 associates who reserved a grand total of 12,517,678.25 in reservation revenue. After the awards, dinner & dancing was enjoyed by all. Our El Salvador partner center also held an Oscar themed Night of a Million Stars celebration. Complete with an emcee for the evening, presenters, and video screens captured the events for all to see throughout the room. There were a total of 14 associates recognized bringing in a grand total of 8,970,000 From our Partner Centers in Albuquerque, New Mexico and San Salvador, El Salvador to our Virtual Sales sites in Minot, North Dakota, Toronto, Canada and Grand Junction, Colorado a great time was enjoyed by all. As we have mentioned previously, an important part of our capacity strategy in Customer Care and Reservations is our partnership with our nearshore reservations centers in Central America. Late in 2011 we reviewed our position, seeking the most effective way to drive conversion and quality while still maintaining overall efficiency. This analysis prompted a migration of our GenRes volume from Panama to a new site in Managua, Nicaragua. While the decision was a difficult one, Managua took their first GenRes call as of February 27, 2012. The outstanding team at this site has been showing great signs of becoming a top producing contact center for Choice. With 5 weeks now under their belts, they have handled over 29,000 calls, signed up over 2.5% of new Choice Privileges members and they are trending upwards in conversion and revenue per call. By the end of May, the Managua site will be fully staffed and ready to handle the higher level of call volume that we see in our busy summer season. Finally, the week of April 2nd the Customer Care and Reservation team will be hosting a contact center tour with key members of the Choice Hotels Owners Council at our new Managua, Nicaragua location. Stay tuned for further updates on this visit and other happenings from the Customer Care and Reservation department in the Summer newsletter.

PAGE ROA PRES IDENT 3 N E I L B H A K TA I am looking forward to personally meeting and talking to many Rodeway Owner/Operator/ GM at Choice’s Annual Convention. Please mark your calendar to attend Rodeway Brand Session and Association meeting Thursday, May 17th 1:30pm – 3:00pm Southseas C / D room. The Rodeway Owners Association met in early March. GIS and LTR scores are improving across the nation. We need to continue to emphasize our clean rooms with everything in good repair. Also, providing a great guest service is the key to achieving high LTR and service scores. Note; if your GIS scores fall below the established thresholds a mandatory LRA consultation will be enforced at 1,700 cost to you. Your Board continuously communicates with Choice’s Call Center team concerning quality of service at the South American Call Centers. We made several test calls and provided Choice with our results and suggestions. The Board continues to ask Choice to conduct additional and more in-depth training to improve agent service with an objective of closing more room sales. I do want to remind you about staying current with the new ADA rules and requirements. As most of you are aware, the new pool lift requirement date of March 15th has received a 60 day extension. There are various resources available with links on Choice Central for franchisees wanting to learn more about this hot and controversial topic. Fall Meetings for the year 2012. ROA and ELFA are working in unison with Choice Hotels to plan Economy Brands Only (Rodeway and Econo Lodge) Fall Meetings. We are planning TEN, one day meeting throughout the US. Locations/Cities selected are going to be within 2 to 3 hour driving distance from at least 60% of the economy brand hotels. This will eliminate a need for to stay overnight. This one day Fall Town Hall Meetings will be designed specifically for economy brands . Meeting will also consist of a half day of educational seminars coordinated by Choice Hotels. Most importantly, a price reduction from 299 for last years Fall Regional to 149 for the Economy Brands Town Hall Meeting. Both ROA and ELFA have been working hard to organize these Association sponsored meetings. Additional details will be announced soon. Please continue to check for updates on Choice Central, your GM email account and mail. Also, please stay tuned for details about new and exciting Coop Program for the Economy brands. If you are not a member of Coop please sign up during Convention We are currently working on revamping our Rodeway Owners web site to include more resources, updated information etc. Be sure to attend our Rodeway Session at the convention to learn about these new exciting developments. Hope to see many of you in Vegas . Neil (Nilesh) Bhakta Call Forwarding – Try it For a Month! As a hotelier, this is a scene that has undoubtedly played out many times in your hotel’s lobby. Enter a tired family who has been driving all day. The children are thrilled to be out of the car and have turned your hotel lobby into a playground and all their parents want to do is check-in and get the children to the pool. Your front desk clerk has two callers on hold who want to check rates and availability for the weekend and the family has already been waiting for five minutes. What happens next will likely determine not only the overall satisfaction of the traveling family, but whether the callers on the phone receive the service and information they need to make the decision to book your hotel. How can you make sure that everyone is satisfied and you are generating as much revenue as possible from this common situation? Choice’s Call Forwarding program may be the answer! Call Forwarding provides you with a virtual front desk staffed with revenue-based agents who are trained to sell the services and amenities of your hotel while driving the highest rate possible. The program is simple and can be used at any hotel. CONT on Page 11

PAGE 4 Convention Registration Open Registration for Choice’s 58th Annual Convention, May 1517, 2012, at the beautiful Mandalay Bay Resort and Convention Center in Las Vegas is open! Be sure to check your email and visit ChoiceCentral.com for the latest event and registration information. As Choice returns to Las Vegas, make plans to join your fellow franchisees for three days of education, networking, and celebration. Highlights include the Corporate Business Session, Marketplace, hundreds of educational sessions, plus new and exciting events to make your time in Las Vegas valuable and memorable. Please note the correct Convention dates are May 15-17 – the original dates were May 22-24, but were moved to accommodate our space requirements. We look forward to seeing you in Las Vegas, May 15-17, 2012. CHOICE HOTELS ANNUAL CONVENTION It’s hard to believe that the 58th Annual Choice Hotels Convention is a month away! From May 15-17, Choice franchisees around the country will gather in Las Vegas for 3 days of fun, networking, and most importantly learning. Mark your calendars, because this year’s convention will host a wide range of educational opportunities specifically designed to develop your professional skill set, improve your hotel operations, and grow your economy brand property. Making a profit is our primary desire as a franchisee. Don’t miss out on the many educational offerings designed to teach you how to grow your bottom line. Scheduled topics at this year’s Convention include effective sales tips that require only 15 minutes of your time a day, negotiation techniques to help you offer better rates for yourself and your customer, and strategies on where and how to find profitable relationships in your community. As owners, we also have a unique viewpoint to the business and require a different understanding of hotel operations. Make sure to check out the many educational sessions designed specifically for you as an owner. Two interesting panel discussions

Econo Lodge Franchisee Association Rodeway Inn Franchisee Association ELFA Board of Directors President: Mahendra Patel (732)329-4555 Ext. 307 Vice President and Region 9 Director: Katen Patel (503) 504-5566 Treasurer and Region 8 Director: Amish Patel (618) 664-3030 Secretary and Region 6 Director: Mike Adams (716)825-1400