Business Coaching

BP CEO Tony Hayward is getting serious flack for not handling BP's situation well.

The BP oil spill is finally under control. The well is capped and oil is no longer gushing into the gulf. In fact, most of the oil has been cleaned up and most beaches on the gulf coast are clean and open for business.

Unfortunately, the beaches are too open. So open they are virtually empty and with just a few weeks left before summer travel season ends, businesses are struggling to make ends meet.

The extensive media coverage has been a double edged sword for residents of the gulf coast. The attention has ensured that BP worked as quickly and efficiently as possible in cleaning up the spill. On the other hand, all of that attention has kept tourists away, as most assumed that the beaches were virtually destroyed by the spill.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

Sure, there are tarballs, but for the most part, the cleanup has gone well and beaches all over the gulf coast look as pristine as they ever have. But there aren’t any tourists to enjoy those beaches.

In early spring, it looked like the area was poised for a big summer. But after the spill, things went south very quickly.

For example, in May and June, the Inn on Destin Harbor lost $102,000 worth of reservations, and it didn’t get better in July. The Inn usually expects 90% occupancy in July, but this year, the occupancy was off by over 30% and they’ve had to cut their prices to fill rooms.

That is the story for businesses throughout the gulf coast, which, like most tourism communities, rely on seasonal visitors to make enough money to get through the rest of the year.

The BP spill and its aftermath should serve as a wakeup call to communities that rely on tourism throughout the United States.

Communities and businesses that count on tourists need to find different streams of revenue and seek ways to draw visitors no matter what happens.

What can your community take ensure you aren’t adversely affected by the forces of nature? What steps have you taken so your business can weather adversity?