In marketing the Thomas & Mack Centre (TMC), located at the University of Nevada – Las Vegas, almost as much effort has gone into marketing the building to the employees as has gone into marketing the building to the public. TMC's General Manager Pat Christenson drove the initiative on the belief that internal marketing is as important as external marketing.

Pat Christenson discerned that: ‘At TMC, service is really our only goal.’ To achieve this aim, Christenson set about developing an extensive internal marketing to motivate employees and raise service results. Christenson named the initiative as ‘We Can Make a Difference’. Christenson's internal marketing plan began with the development of a mission statement, which set the goal for the centre and its workers.

Mission Statement:

‘To the Las Vegas community and its guests we provide diverse, distinct events with quality professional services while progressively managing a clean, safe, well maintained and self-supporting facility.’

The mission statement embodied what Christenson strongly believes in, but he appreciates that for it to mean anything it is his responsibility to ensure that his employees believe in it too. ‘If your people aren't in tune with what you expect, then it's all for naught’ he said. ‘We decided that we were going to turn the marketing plan inward; we're going to focus on the employees.’

To help with the initiative, Christenson found an ally in M. L. Smith, a professor at the University's School of Hotel Administration. Smith helped with the design of the programme, and acted as motivator and facilitator of training. The goal of internal marketing was simply to exceed customer expectations.

TMC's internal marketing initiative is captured in the activities and steps described below.

Start at the top

Christenson emphasizes that internal marketing programmes have to start at the top of the management ladder. ‘It starts at you and above you. You need to make the commitment and get a commitment from your boss – a commitment to time and resources. If you have that commitment and you start, no matter what your resources are it will pay off.’

Involve everyone

Christenson suggests involving everyone is very important: ‘Don't you write the plan, get the people who do the jobs involved. They probably have a better understanding of what needs to be done.’

By getting employees to input into the plan, it is more than likely that they become committed to it by their own accord. Full-time employees are not the only ones who need to be involved. Guests, clients, part-time workers and contracted workers can all contribute. They are all very useful in helping to identify which areas need attention and what are the best motivating tools.

Know yourself (understand your strengths and weaknesses)

A key stage in TMC's internal marketing plan was to take a close look at itself. This allowed TMC to find out who they really were; what was the building's history, its legacy, its competition and the perception of its service, its potential?

By looking at the history of the building, its perception and its performance record, it became possible for managers to have a better idea of what the goals should be and how to achieve them. In this way, problems are identified and opportunities fleshed out. Only after this appreciation can mission statements or objectives be developed.

Strategic objectives and actions

After determining the mission, a strategy needs to be designed and a clear action programme defined. The action programme can include schedules, budgets, assignments and other details. Once a plan is in place, it needs to be monitored, feedback needs to be obtained and it needs to be reviewed regularly.

Christenson identified a number of organizational objectives for TMC employees. He wanted to motivate them by providing them with a positive work environment, establish corporate commitment, incorporate ongoing training and develop a strong reward programme. His insight was based on the realization that how he treats his employees determines how they treat their customers.

To achieve this, a number of internal marketing actions were developed, as outlined below.

Communicating

Christenson started to hold a monthly staff breakfast, where key issues and objectives are addressed. The breakfasts were attended by an average of 125 employees. ‘We give information. We update what's going on. They like to know, and that way we don't have to deal with rumours’ said Christenson.

The breakfasts also motivate employees by including recognition and rewards. The breakfasts are made into fun events. ‘We encourage creative presentations’ stated Christenson. ‘We really do have a lot of fun. We try to keep this business as fun as possible.’

Additionally, a quarterly newsletter is used to spread praise and information. It is a high quality colour brochure, which is sent to every employee. It was used to convey the message that they are important.

Training and competence building

The internal marketing programme stresses competence enhancement. TMC runs training sessions on such topics as guest services, leadership and communication. Learning modules were also developed for more specific topics such as alcohol training, disability awareness training and working during the Grand National Rodeo.

Being part of the ‘family’

In order to foster understanding, senior staff takes time to work alongside juniors. For example, they have worked as ushers, and even do shifts in the parking lot.

Recognizing and rewarding

Employees are recognized for their outstanding work, with nominations for the Spirit of Service award. Five nominations lead to a pin, which many employees wear proudly. ‘If there is something that they do that is phenomenal, they'll get the pin right away’ says Christenson. Along with the pin comes another reward, dinner for two.

Rewards are customized to employees. For example, when the cleanup crew did a spectacular job, as a reward, they and their families were the invited guests in a VIP suite for a circus show. The ticketing office was once treated to dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe, and each got a cafe T-shirt.

Employees are also rewarded for the hard work by being paid well. ‘One thing that I think is important is to be fair in payment’ says Christenson. ‘When we have been successful, we need to pass it on. We also don't extend people over their bounds. We hire the right amount of people and pay them well and give them a positive work environment.’

Active listening

Employee suggestions are highly encouraged, and for every suggestion that is implemented, an employee gets two free tickets to the TMC event of his or her choice. The suggestion of the month gets dinner for two at a local restaurant.

Measuring and acting

Feedback is crucial for improvement. Managers need to conduct internal market research to complement external market research. They need to talk to their guests as well as treat their employees like guests. They need to listen to the needs of both. It is important to get multiple angles of feedback because even if it appears that employees are doing excellent work, guest perceptions, employee self-perceptions and management perception of the job that employees can and often do vary significantly. Using multiple feedback makes for a more complete understanding, and thereby leads to better improvement actions.

Outcomes

The goal of an internal marketing programme was not just to make employees happy, but also to make the employees happy about their jobs so that they will do them well.

The sector is highly competitive and consumers are not just sophisticated but have a lot of choice. This makes them highly demanding. As Smith highlighted: ‘Everything in our business is tied to service. Service is king. The focus has changed from the product to how you make me feel when I come for the product.’

And Smith goes on to note: ‘Quality service deals with the quality guest experience. Providing service is an art. Providing service profitably is a science. Cutting costs is not going to help you create excellence.’

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