Dear Dr. Acom,

I’m a CSM at a convention and visitors bureau. One of my meeting planner clients called me for help with a “room block pirate.” It seems one of the hotels in my city has contacted her board members and tried to get them to stay at that hotel, which is not part of the contracted block. I’m not sure what my responsibility is in this situation. What do you think, Doctor?

-Shiver Me Timbers

Dear Shiver,

Pirating room blocks is becoming more widespread. Cities that overbuilt hotel inventory are hurting for business and the economic recession has contributed to the urgent need for more bookings. As a bureau CSM, you have to walk a fine line between keeping your hotels happy and being an advocate for your clients. Now would be a good time to develop a policy and procedure for your CS staff to follow, because this situation will probably get worse before it gets better. Your role could be to educate hotels in your city on the consequences of pirating. If a convention ends up in an attrition situation because of hotel pirates, then it reflects poorly on the city and hurts your ability to rebook the convention.

Dr. ACOM

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