What began as an idea from a franchisee at one of La Quinta’s first brand council meetings has evolved into the company’s newly defined culture and the debut of its brand customer service experience, “Here For You.”

CEO Wayne Goldberg and just about every executive who spoke during La Quinta’s annual conference this week told the approximately 1,200 attendees they were all “here for you.” It was the message of the event held at the Boca Raton Resort & Club in Florida.

“’Here For You’ must become a way of life for everyone at La Quinta,” Goldberg explained during the opening general session.

Chief Development Officer Raj Trivedi later added “success is less about numbers and more about culture—creating a culture of growth, inspiration, but also of support and compassion.”

La Quinta’s goal for “Here For You” is to have all employees—from the GM down to part-time help—look at everything from the perspective of the guest. A simple scene acted out on stage during a general session on Monday showed how several seemingly small things could add up to a bad guest experience: a broken curb, a tangled web of wiring underneath the guestroom desk or a well-intentioned front-desk agent rushing through his script.

“You’re scanning for clues as to how a guest might perceive his or her La Quinta experience,” Goldberg told the crowd of owners and general managers. “Clue scanning is a unique way for each of us to become more aware of the way our hotels look, the way we talk, the way we dress and the way our guests perceive our actions.”

Chief Operating Officer Angelo Lombardi said it wasn’t just about fixing mistakes, but “turning neutrals into positives.”

Training began at the event and will continue throughout the year to make sure all employees at both corporate and franchised locations understand the new objective. La Quinta owns 398 properties, meaning more than half the system is franchised, a huge shift since the company only began franchising 10 years ago.

The brand council—a team of elected franchisees and corporate executives—was created in late 2008 to blend the two sides of the business. As a result of the suggestion during one of the first council meetings, La Quinta began research with focus groups and eventually hired an outside firm to help define its culture.

Goldberg described the newly defined core values (people, passion, integrity, excellence and unique) during the opening session. The values led to “Here For You.”

“Here For You represents the future of this brand and is a culmination of all our efforts to help you win your battle, street corner by street corner,” Trivedi said. “It has the potential to make La Quinta the Nordstrom of the hotel industry in terms of our guest services and delivery of a consistently high quality experience.”

La Quinta executives believe the success of the new program won’t just lead to increased guest satisfaction, but also in growing the brand. La Quinta expects to open 50 hotels in the U.S. this year and has 164 in the pipeline. Another six will open in Mexico and Central America this year and expansion into South America will soon follow, Trivedi said.

Additional highlights from the conference and interviews with the executive team:

• La Quinta is installing 50,000 new 32-inch Samsung flat-screen TVs with 37 channels (21 in HD) at all 398 corporate-owned properties (at a cost of $40 million, said CFO Temple Weiss) by the beginning of summer. Execs hopes franchisees will follow suit by the end of the year, and hard deadlines will be set at some point. The TVs also allow guests easy access to plug in their own content.

• Murry Cathlina, evp of design & construction, said La Quinta is wrapping up an international prototype for the growth in Central and South America. It includes less rooms and a “mixed-use” area in the lobby for dining and a lounge. He said that space is critical there, and would also be offered to U.S. franchises in more urban areas.

• Actor Fred Willard is the new voice of the brand in its 2011 TV and radio spots, with the theme “Taking Care of Business.” The humorous spots are aimed at male business travelers and play on clichés like “bringing the heat” and “kicking butt and taking names.” Chief marketing officer Julie Cary said “Here For You” was not currently planned for any customer-facing marketing, but it had been mentioned and could be a possibility in the future.

• Goldberg said La Quinta and fellow Blackstone hotel companies Hilton and Extended Stay were putting together an innovation summit with their respective chief information officers to discuss potential synergies. Extended Stay Hotels CEO Gary DeLapp was special guest of Goldberg’s at the conference. Goldberg said they had already discussed possible purchasing opportunities, but the trio of Blackstone companies would without a doubt remain completely separate.

• Goldberg was very bullish on the industry’s recovery this year, and felt it might not be a record year for lodging, but it would be very “good” overall and “great for La Quinta.”

• La Quinta didn’t hold a conference last year because of the recession. Next year’s event will be in New Orleans.