The Matthew - John Cabot University Rome Italy December 2021, News

Making a Difference Through Hospitality and Social Media Communication in Rome 

The Institute for Entrepreneurship hosts a lecture by Albergo Etico, an initiative to integrate people with disabilities into the world of tourism.

News

By Valentina Bolado / Contributor

John Cabot University’s Institute for Entrepreneurship hosted a speaker series on Nov. 8 titled, “Albergo Etico di Roma: Communicating Social Entrepreneurship,” where the founder Dr. Antonio Pelosi spoke on social media management through an online Zoom meeting.

Dr. Pelosi is the founder of a non-profit hospitality system in Rome, Albergo Etico, a hotel that caters for guests with disabilities and accommodates accessible tourism. The hotel also offers training and jobs to young disabled people within the hotel to integrate and prepare them for a professional work-life. Of course, each disabled employee has a unique set of skills and talents that can be applied through different jobs in the hotel that best attain their needs. For example, someone with a disability in which they can’t socialize with customers can be trained to work as the cleaning crew or the cooking crew. The Albergo Etico mission is to help “less fortunate people” and include them in the constantly changing and fast-paced world. 

Coming from a long line of hospitality in his family, Dr. Pelosi founded the organization in 2007 after a serious motorcycle accident that left him in a coma for three weeks. He survived what could have been a tragedy and thus was inspired to help those who need a little extra help in life. 

Dr. Pelosi said that the Albergo Etico Project has been mainly promoted through Facebook, Twitter, and Google Reviews, because using these types of social media is an “essential marketing instrument” that allows organizations, especially non-profits, to build a network and community. Building these networks has allowed the hotel to become popular through positive word-of-mouth between customers. Pelosi said in the lecture that these strategies will allow for more recognition across the city, as well as attract more tourists to the hotel.  

The project is currently looking to increase its conversion rate, the percentage of people that visit the website or social media to complete the company’s goal of visitor traffic,  and recruit students or young people with a focus on social impact to join the team.  

For more information, visit www.albergoeticoroma.it/ or its Facebook page.