IAHI Launches Website For Six Continent Franchisees

ATLANTA— In an effort to improve communication between franchisees, Six Continent’s IAHI, the international association of hotel owners and operators, has launched a new website designed to provide members with the latest cost saving ideas and member contact information. Launched this month, the website is a more dynamic model of the group’s previous site, which had stemmed off of sixcontinents.com but provided limited information. “This is much more of an elaborate, stand alone, proactive website,” said George Glover, chairman of the board of directors/IAHI and chairman/CEO of BayStar Hotel Group. “The initiative grew out of the board’s desire to communicate more readily to members and to market to non-members.” The new website features an online version of the IAHI Owner magazine; headlines and stories featuring members and suppliers; INN-PAC, which updates legislative news and public activities; board and committee meeting updates; and membership information. The site will also feature an online library of the organization’s email newsletter, which launched around the same time as the site and is distributed to approximately 1,700 franchise owners. The newsletters feature articles and interviews with Six Continents owners, detailing cost saving ideas, revenue generating methods, and updates about Six Continent programs. “The most important thing about the site, is that we provide a link for an owner of a Holiday Inn in Idaho to get in touch with board members, or regional members. And as they share information they’ll all become strengthened and more profitable,” said Glover. He said one of his goals this year as president of IAHI was, “to increase communication within the franchise community. This organization has been around for 50 years, and given the downturn economy, but not just for that, I feel we should provide owners with as much information as we can to improve their business.” Glover also said he has several plans to evolve the site going forward, including the addition of a link from IAHI’s site to the organization’s primary charity— Give Kids The World. Started by a hotelier in Orlando, the charity serves 5,000 families of terminally ill children each year, and provides them with free hotel stays and free admission into Disney World themeparks. The link is expected to appear on the site within the next 45 days. IAHI is also going to being linking to websites of some of its associate members, offering special value propositions to the organization, such as special incentives from AT&T.