Get certified!
Is 2012 the year you will earn your Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) designation? Have you planned to look into the application requirements, but put it off? Then stop reading this post, click here, and do it!If you need to be convinced as to how it would benefit you as a hospitality sales professional, here are three good reasons:Credibility
I’m a meeting planner, I don’t know you and am not familiar with your property. However, the CMP or other professional designation after your name will have an immediate positive impact on me. As a CMP, I know the amount of time and commitment required to complete the application, study and take the exam. The fact that you made this investment tells me that you are dedicated to your profession and the industry. It will also say the same thing to your boss and general manager.Education
Okay, so you aren’t a meeting planner. How can you be expected to know everything that is on the test? Lucky for you, the exam is based on content in the study manuals. Thoroughly read all recommended publications and you too can have those coveted letters after your name! In doing so you’ll receive well-rounded education in the areas most meeting professionals deal with on a day-to-day basis, which will help you better relate to their needs and book more business.Competitive Advantage
If you’ve got it, flaunt it! Use your designation on your business cards, proposals and other correspondence. Chances are, the sales manager at the property you are competing with isn’t a CMP. And if they are, you’ve got equal standing.Do any of the convention services managers at your property have their CMP? If so, that is a selling point! Let planners know when they are considering your hotel. When I am “turned over” to my CSM, I always experience a fear of the unknown. That fear subsides a bit if I see the person that I will be working with has their professional designation.Starting this year, the CMP exam will transition from paper-based to computer-based, making it more efficient and convenient as well as global. The application period begins January 9, 2012. So what are you waiting for?Image: http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/view_photog.php?photogid=1939
I’m a meeting planner, I don’t know you and am not familiar with your property. However, the CMP or other professional designation after your name will have an immediate positive impact on me. As a CMP, I know the amount of time and commitment required to complete the application, study and take the exam. The fact that you made this investment tells me that you are dedicated to your profession and the industry. It will also say the same thing to your boss and general manager.Education
Okay, so you aren’t a meeting planner. How can you be expected to know everything that is on the test? Lucky for you, the exam is based on content in the study manuals. Thoroughly read all recommended publications and you too can have those coveted letters after your name! In doing so you’ll receive well-rounded education in the areas most meeting professionals deal with on a day-to-day basis, which will help you better relate to their needs and book more business.Competitive Advantage
If you’ve got it, flaunt it! Use your designation on your business cards, proposals and other correspondence. Chances are, the sales manager at the property you are competing with isn’t a CMP. And if they are, you’ve got equal standing.Do any of the convention services managers at your property have their CMP? If so, that is a selling point! Let planners know when they are considering your hotel. When I am “turned over” to my CSM, I always experience a fear of the unknown. That fear subsides a bit if I see the person that I will be working with has their professional designation.Starting this year, the CMP exam will transition from paper-based to computer-based, making it more efficient and convenient as well as global. The application period begins January 9, 2012. So what are you waiting for?Image: http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/view_photog.php?photogid=1939
