By Alex Vande Bunte

The tough economy seems to be hitting operators of executive coaches and limo buses particularly hard.

As corporate and other budgets are slashed and amenities are passed over to save money, executive coach and limo bus operators report being left by the wayside.

Mark Monroe of Country Coach in Warrenton, Va., is among those who admit the economic climate has been affecting customer readiness to indulge.

"People love what I do but everyone is watching their discretionary spending," says Monroe. "Even corporate customers have cut spending."

Rush Merhab of Star Limo in New Mexico, who benefits from small- to medium-size conferences and events in his area, also has noted a slow downturn since the beginning of the year.

As upscale coaches have begun taking a back seat to cheaper forms of travel, the operators of executive and limo coaches have gone in hot pursuit of new ways to keep their luxury vehicles on the road and their bookings filled.

In some cases, these operators have worked to form new partnerships.

For example, Michael Middaugh of Coach Quarters in Columbus, Ohio, has reached out to many more corporations in his area to keep his business steady. "Weve been working with large companies to park (their) planes and go with the buses," said Middaugh. "A quote for an executive coach always beats a quote for a personal jet."

In New Mexico, Merhab has worked to boost awareness of his services through the Albuquerque and Santa Fe convention and visitor bureaus, as well as getting involved with more affordable destinations, allowing him to offer greater value for his conference traffic. This has helped him sustain his business on par with previous years.

The keystone to keeping the executive coach and limo bus business from falling apart in this economy seems to be to broaden consumer awareness of the operators, their vehicles and their capabilities.

For instance, a partnership with 11 nearby churches has allowed Middaugh to book his coaches for funeral processions, in lieu of a string of cars.

Kevin Wall of Corporate Motorcoach Service in Afton, Minn., has been marketing his coaches as portable offices.

"Transportation can be used as a tool for your business," Wall tells his clients.

He talks of a group that was able to identify and solve an engineering problem while in transit to a meeting where a brainstorming session was scheduled to consider the issue. "There needs to be a new attitude and a new marketing approach to keep customers aware of how cost effective chartering can be," said Wall.

Monroe is seeking to reach out to another very important group: Other motorcoach operators.

Hes asking coach companies to remember their local struggling executive coach provider if and when they come across potential customers looking for that type of service.

In the view of Monroe and others, the current economy demands that all operators use their imagination to foster new business through expanded partnerships and new uses for their fleets.

Vande Bunte is eCommerce Coordinator at BusRates.com. Contact him at alex.vandebunte@busrates.com.