August was a month to remember all the ways our story contributes to our character. Join us for a look back on the high-impact publications, events, and collaborations of the month in the latest installment of The Monthly Rewind.
August was off to the races from the get-go, quite literally, as we sent three My Place HQ team members to join our friends from My Place Altoona, My Place Ankeny at the 29th Annual My Place Hotels 360 Knoxville Nationals Presented by Great Southern Bank, August 1-3, in Knoxville, Iowa.
With an opportunity to connect with racing fans from all around the world and spread brand awareness, My Place Director of Brand Loyalty Irene Roberts, Sales Support Administrator Lanie Hall, and Intern Grace Jensen left their My Place mark on Knoxville and returned home with a greater appreciation for sprint car racing.
On August 5th, we announced that we would be partnering with the Asian American Hotel Owners Association (AAHOA) for their first ever Upper Midwest Town Hall in our home state of South Dakota.
The Town Hall will convene regional hoteliers on September 17th in Sioux Falls, SD. We’re excited to join our friends from AAHOA and the South Dakota Hotel & Lodging Association for this opportunity to discuss, collaborate, and network.
The day following our big announcement with AAHOA we enjoyed two more benchmarks, the first being the release of a featured piece on My Place President/CEO Ryan Rivett written by Randyl Drummer of CoStar News! CoStar is the #1 Commercial Real Estate site with more than 9 million registered members.
Ryan Rivett has founded and launched a new hotel chain as a franchise, is wrapping up construction of his 50th property in just eight years and has racked up almost 15 years in the lodging industry. And he’s only 36.
Randyl Drummer, “Q&A: Chief Executive Builds on Success of Grandfather’s Super 8 Motels With New Chain”, August 2019
Click here to check out Ryan’s CoStar News feature!
On the same day, we found ourselves traveling to the beautiful state of Wisconsin to celebrate the Grand Opening of the state’s very first My Place Hotel in the welcoming community of Mount Pleasant.
Our time spent in Mount Pleasant was more than pleasant, to say the least, and left us with quite a sweet taste of the newest members of the My Place Family as we celebrated the opening of Wisconsin’s newest hotel alongside our friends and community members.
The following day, My Place HQ’s very own Jay Kirschenmann offered blog readers a glimpse of our Marketing and Social Media Department’s adventures in Influencer Marketing in the inaugural installment of our new blog series, The Guest Post.
Click here to take a look at Jay’s article!
In the article, Jay explores the impact of strategically identifying opportunities to spread brand awareness to influential audiences by partnering with notable social media influencers.
The next day, August 8th, the My Place HQ Team traveled to the historic state of Virginia to celebrate the Groundbreaking of the state’s very first My Place Hotel in King George.
Joined by our friends from Cornerstone Hospitality LLC., community members, and the President of the American Hotel & Lodging Association Chip Rogers, our time in Virginia was remarkable and has us quite excited to return for My Place King George’s Grand Opening, next Spring.
The following day, My Place Hotels was highlighted in the Extended Stay Segment Report of Hotel Business Magazine on August 9th. In the article (written by CJ Arlotta), My Place EVP of Franchise Sales Terry Kline and The Highland Group’s Mark Skinner discuss the fact that evolving guests and technology increasingly define the extended-stay segment of our industry and brand.
Click here to check out the article!
We made another high-impact splash on August 12th, as the industry received the first look at Ryan’s latest appearance in LODGING Magazine.
From childhood memories steeped in the hospitality industry to inking a partnership with AHLA, and scaling our brand to nearly 50 hotels, Ryan’s feature, All Fun and Franchising, offers readers a look into our unique and compelling leader.
The following day, My Place HQ’s Lanie Hall and Grace Jensen shared a recap of their unforgettable experience at the 29th Annual My Place Hotels 360 Knoxville Nationals at the beginning of the month.
In the article, titled From Racing to Rewarded: Reflecting on the 2019 My Place Hotels 360 Knoxville Nationals, the pair share their favorite moments from their time in Iowa and expand on the value of brand representation as we continue to ink major partnerships across the US.
The month continued with more first-hand accounts as we shared our recaps of the Grand Opening of My Place Mt. Pleasant and the Groundbreaking of My Place King George.
Hitting on the same day, the two posts were among our most popular of the entire month.
On August 15th, a group of team members from My Place HQ and My Place Aberdeen, SD came together to volunteer their time at the 2019 Brown County Fair as they served beverages to concert attendees on behalf of the Aberdeen Boys and Girls Club.
The following day, our long-awaited 2019 Corporate Profile was shared in the August issue of Hotel Management, highlighting why there’s never been a better time to build My Place.
A few days later, we shared one of our most inspiring Layover Q&A’s to-date, The Layover: Q&A with Terry Kline!
We were extremely proud to share Terry’s Q&A with our readers as it offered a more intimate glimpse into the outstanding experience and personal life of a man we all want to know better.
On August 22nd, we shared our most extensive blog recap to date as we near the opening of our 50th hotel in our fifth year of franchising.
With an emphasis on the milestones that got us to where we are today and the pillars of our brand who were there to guide us every step of the way, every major moment of our five years in franchising was highlighted in From Five to 50: Five Years of Franchising.
On August 26th, My Place SVP of Brand Management Sarah Dinger enjoyed the honor of having her own article published in the September Issue of Today’s Hotelier.
In the article, titled “Investing in the Guest Experience,” Sarah unpacks the importance of improving what guests love most about My Place, how those improvements are adding value to our offering as a whole, and where much of that value is.
On August 28th, Ryan (Rivett) had the privilege to speak in front of a large group of notable leaders and entrepreneurs from our hometown of Aberdeen as a part of the town’s 1 Million Cups program.
Before August could come to an end, we introduced the latest installment of The Layover, featuring our beloved day one employee and all-around powerhouse, Sarah Dinger!
While the month was so full of perspective from the leaders of My Place, August 29th marked Ron Rivett’s official entrance to the Twitterverse!
With the promise of regular insights and stories–perhaps untold–join us in welcoming Ron by following and tweeting him @RonRivett!
August was a month to remember and celebrate the love, support, and progress throughout our growing franchise network. As September begins, we have a lot to look forward to. Here are a few highlights:
- Attending the 2019 AAHOA North Central – Indianapolis Regional Conference & Trade Show, Sept. 5
- Attending AHLA’s Legislative Action Summit in Washington DC, Sept. 10-11
- Attending/Sponsoring the AAHOA Upper Midwest Regional Town Hall on Sept. 17 in Sioux Falls, SD
- Joining our friends from across the industry at The Lodging Conference, Sept. 23-26, in Phoenix, AZ
- Attending the grand opening of our 49th hotel in Hurricane, Utah, as well as opening hotels #50, #51, and #52!
