Criticisms of Excess Help Polish Image of Midde America

With all the furor over lavish trips and bonuses to AIG executives, there seems to be a growing sense that middle America destinations are getting a second look by travel planners. One executive in the travel incentive industry with whom I spoke recently said many U.S. cities could benefit from a reluctance by corporations to jet their executives and other top producers to international locales and might look at more value-laden U.S. destinations . And some cities, like Pittsburgh are embracing fiscal soundness over flash in their marketing efforts.

http://www.postgazette.com/pg/09086/958705-53.stm

Another Effect of AIG fallout

It's not just corporate meetings that are being curtailed. This time it's getting personal. A friend of mine from another American Marketing Association chapter in the east told me last week he lost his job in research at a family-owned business with a national reputation for setting up exotic vacations for C-level executives (things like safaris and fly fishing expeditions). He told me this is the first time in the company's 40-year history that furloughs have happened. Part of it is credited to the economic slowdown but the other part is related to public perception and how investors are now being critical of how and where high priced CEOs are spending their salaries on far flung destinations.