Siegel Sez: Not Your Father’s Power Socket
September 3rd, 2021
The Most Important Hotel “Salesperson” Right Now Is Working Behind Your Front Desk
Doug Kennedy | July 22nd, 2020
Front Desk Training Can Help Secure More Direct Bookings
Doug Kennedy | February 4, 2015
By Doug Kennedy February 4, 2015 As hotel managers look to reduce the costs of customer acquisition by focusing on direct bookings, one often overlooked resource is the front desk team working in your lobby right now. The frontline colleagues staffing the reception desk are interacting with guests every day and have numerous opportunities to help lock-in more direct bookings. Here are some suggestions and training techniques. As a starting place, make sure the frontline colleagues understand the costs of various distribution channels. Those I talk to in my workshops tend to grossly underestimate the distribution costs their hotel is p...
Just Published: The ADA Compliance and Defense Guide — Free Download
Martin H. Orlick | February 4, 2015
By Jim Butler and the Global Hospitality Group® 04 February, 2015 Click here for the latest articles on ADA Compliance & Defense. New Resource: The ADA Compliance and Defense Guide Download your free copy now! The Global Hospitality Group® of Jeffer Mangels Butler & Mitchell LLP (JMBM) is pleased to announce the latest publication in our We Wrote the Book™ series : The ADA Compliance and Defense Guide, a practical handbook for owners and operators of hotels, restaurants, golf courses, spas and sports facilities, banks and other financial institutions, retail stores, shopping centers, theaters, sports arenas, and other p...
From Slowtelier to Intrapreneur
Larry Mogelonsky | February 4, 2015
by Larry Mogelonsky, MBA, P. Eng. (www.lma.ca) The hotel industry isn't exactly known for operating faster than a speeding bullet. Even in independent properties, there are many layers of management to funnel change and multiple operational departments that must be coordinated to make any transition effective. In other words, when it comes to executing a strategic plan, many hoteliers might as well be known as slowteliers. Pardon the cheesy portmanteau. Don't let this be you! With the current pace of new initiatives, hotel organizations (independent as well as chain) must learn to mimic the agility of a tech startup or an entrepreneuria...
A Tale of Heralded Change
Georges Panayotis | February 3, 2015
by Georges Panayotis The hotel industry has come to an important turning point in its evolution. It is both a sign of its maturity and that of a necessity to reexamine itself. In each of the trades that constitute the foundation of the hotel economy: Development, Management, Marketing, Distribution and Finance, traditional hotel groups are now working with –challenged by?– powerful partners that limit their maneuvering capability and make them compromise. At the same time, newcomers to the industry rise up with a dynamism and boldness that challenge established businesses. Obliged to control all trades at once, these start-ups prog...
Nobody Asked Me, But… No. 136; Hotel History: Hotel Albert (1883)
Stanley Turkel, CMHS | February 2, 2015
My New Book: "Hotel Mavens: Lucius M. Boomer, George C. Boldt and Oscar of the Waldorf" By Stanley Turkel, CMHS 1. Hotel History: Hotel Albert: "The Downtown Algonquin" * The original twelve-story Hotel Albert, a red-brick and cast-iron balcony structure, still stands on the southwest corner of University Place and 11th Street in Greenwich Village. It is now a residential cooperative. But the history of the Albert is much more complicated than the simple recitation above. We are fortunate to have an extensive, recently-published (April 2011) history of the Hotel Albert prepared by Anthony W. Robins, architectural historian, of Thompson ...
Retirement Must Spur Mentoring
Larry Mogelonsky | January 28, 2015
by Larry Mogelonsky, MBA, P. Eng. (www.lma.ca) Now in my 60s, part of what keeps me young (apart from the hair-loss-inducing challenges of rearing my millennial progeny) is the learning that comes from keeping up with changes in our industry, be they technological, financial, service-oriented or from a creative application standpoint. To me, the thought of continuous learning is a critical driver and a constant source of brain activation. Mark my words: the day you stop learning is the day you die. And the ability to pass on this new learning - as well as the application of 30+ years working as a hotelier - through articles, newsletters...
Tourism Enriched by Diversity
Georges Panayotis | January 26, 2015
by Georges Panayotis Mankind is supposed to leave behind its animal origins and gain in terms of "humanity" with each generation, meaning it must learn from the past and experience to accept the cohabitation of origins, ethnic groups, races, cultures... And yet, the daily denial is scathing! The hordes have not disappeared, although their nature and means of destruction have changed. The quasi tribal battles from one housing project to the next, one mountain to the next, one shore to the next never truly come to an end. Globalization has led to the belief that the entire planet would get along on a common waveband of values or universal...
Beware of Departmental Siloing
Larry Mogelonsky | January 21, 2015
By Larry Mogelonsky, MBA, P. Eng. (www.lma.ca) I want you to think about your day-to-day life as a hotelier, whether rank or title you hold. What department do you belong to? How often do you chat with members of other units? Are there any people on your team who are particularly 'tuned into' the coming and going of other departments or subdivisions? 'Departmental siloing' is the term I used to describe the tunnel vision that often sets in when there is a lack of communications between different departments. This often happens when an organization has reached a large size, so much so that there are already too many intradepartmental rel...
Is Luxury Always Timeless?
Georges Panayotis | January 19, 2015
By Georges Panayotis At a time when we are seriously questioning the real values that lie behind behavior, the hotel industry is returning the experience to its place of honor as it justifies the customer's choice of this or that particular category. This idea of the experience, which is increasingly indispensable regardless of the level of the offer, becomes absolutely necessary when we enter the luxury segment. By nature, luxury must stimulate desire, envy and surprise. But today brands offer a multitude of areas of expression. The choices tend either towards a more intimate, more accessible, less arrogant and less intimidating luxury...
Where Have Vision, Vocation and Motivation Gone?
Georges Panayotis | January 14, 2015
by Georges Panayotis Does the hotel industry still have a future? One might wonder since each day a new sharing economy website tries to divest it, to dispossess it of its vocation as a professionalized place for accommodating travelers. While these sites are clearly successful, this may be because they have pinpointed their weaknesses that are exacerbated by habit. Even if it may be illusory, sharing a table, place settings and the bathroom with a real Parisian, New Yorker or Barcelonan... who will provides the keys to his city and neighborhood, has become the latest thing. This shift of values is, however, one of the founding pillars ...
Nobody Asked Me, But… No. 135 Hotel History: Hotel Nacional de Cuba (1930)
Stanley Turkel, CMHS | January 14, 2015
My New Book: "Hotel Mavens: Lucius M. Boomer, George C. Boldt and Oscar of the Waldorf" By Stanley Turkel, CMHS 1. Hotel History: Hotel Nacional de Cuba In April 2000, my wife, Professor Rima Sokoloff, and I visited Cuba with an educational study group. Our weeklong trip included visits to beaches, farms, cigar factory, schools, reforestation project, hospitals, historic sites and a Passover seder at a Havana synagogue. I subsequently wrote about our trip in Lodging Hospitality magazine (August 2000) "Cuba: The Caribbean's Hottest Destination": The streets are apparently safe and relatively free of crime; no beggars, no homeless but l...
The Three Pillars of Hotel Customer Service
Larry Mogelonsky | January 14, 2015
By Larry Mogelonsky, MBA, P. Eng. (www.lma.ca) Every good salesperson or individual working in guest service knows about guest expectations: you must first meet, and then exceed. This presupposes that you are actually able to meet a customer's expectations, because if you cannot, then it goes without saying that you will disappoint. However, meeting is just okay - mediocre at best. Being okay is not enough. Too many other hotels are already capable of this, so you aren't differentiating yourself from the herd. By exceeding expectations, you will surprise and delight your guests, both positive sentiments to have for your hotel. I want yo...
Content Marketing Slush Piles
Larry Mogelonsky | January 7, 2015
By Larry Mogelonsky, MBA, P. Eng. (www.lma.ca) With so much emphasis on the sharing and distribution of content, we tend to neglect the content itself. The most important aspect of content marketing is not the sharing, but the raw content itself - every idea, concept, sticky fun fact or quirky nugget of value that you give your fans in return for their continued appreciation. It comes down to the value you give, and providing this every week is a daunting task. Introducing the Slush Pile Approach The best I can do is share with you the method I use to keep the content marketing pipeline flowing. It's called The Slush Pile Approach. Gene...
ADA Defense Lawyer: New ADA Standards for Website Accessibility
Jim Butler | January 7, 2015
By Jim Butler and the Global Hospitality Group® 07 January 2015 Click here for the latest articles on ADA Compliance & Defense. ADA Issues on Websites: Department of Justice Poised to Adopt Accessible Website Standards Since at least 2000, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has been advocating standardized website development and content to promote access to blind and low vision internet users. In 2013, the DOJ withdrew its proposed Advanced Notice of Proposed Rule Making (ANPRM) which would have established standardized internet protocols by adopting the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0. In 2006, we reported ...
Best Practices for Hotel Telephone Mystery Shopping
Doug Kennedy | January 5, 2015
by Doug Kennedy If your hotel or call center is like most in the industry, chances are that you experienced a notable resurgence in phone inquiries for hotel reservations. Part of this might be attributed to the increase in demand, but there are other factors at play. One factor is that many of those who search for availability in a mobile device or smartphone "click to call" instead of booking with their thumbs. Another factor is what I call "Value-driven Deal Seekers" call to try to negotiate a better deal. As a result, it is a great time to refocus your reservations or front desk staff's attention on converting more inquiries into bo...
Upselling Good, Drip Pricing Bad
Larry Mogelonsky | December 23, 2014
By Larry Mogelonsky, MBA, P. Eng. (www.lma.ca) We all have a conception of what's implied by 'upselling'. Drip pricing is a little less understood, so bare with me through a broad definition. It's the practice of removing services out of what would normally be included in the regular nightly rate then offering them for an additional surcharge. Hence, the prices 'drip' from a customer's wallet as opposed to flushing out in the form of a single line item on the final bill. To look at it in black and white: drip pricing is bad; upselling is good. Getting into examples of drip pricing is where we need to properly distinguish both these term...
F&B: No Pleasure, No Future
Georges Panayotis | December 23, 2014
by Georges Panayotis Not so long ago, the arrival of McDonald's in an emerging country epitomized that country's opening up to the modern world, entering a new phase in its economic development. The globalization of the hamburger giant, which helped it boost performance, also largely contributed to a banalization of its product, and today to the possible beginning of a rejection. For six months, sector sales have been down worldwide because the lack of renewals in supply led consumers -even the most faithful- to shy away from a company and consumption modes that did not keep step with their needs. America's fast-food segment thought it ...
Hotel Lawyer on HMAs: “The Shrinking Terms of Hotel Management Agreements”
Mark S. Adams | December 23, 2014
By Jim Butler and the Global Hospitality Group® 23 December 2014 Click here for the latest articles on Hotel Management Agreements. A version of this article first appeared in Hotel Business Review in December 2014, and this article is reprinted with permission from www.hotelexecutive.com. The shrinking terms of hotel management agreements Better bargaining position for hotel owners on HMAs by Jim Butler and Mark S. Adams | Hotel Lawyers The relationship between hotel owners and managers continues to evolve. Hotel management agreements historically were long-term. Fifty to sixty year terms were common. However, in the last few years, h...
Nobody Asked Me, But… No. 134; Hotel History: The Knickerbocker Hotel (1906)
Stanley Turkel, CMHS | December 22, 2014
My New Book: "Hotel Mavens: Lucius M. Boomer, George C. Boldt and Oscar of the Waldorf"; 2014 Historian of the Year By Stanley Turkel, CMHS 1. Hotel History: The Knickerbocker Hotel (1906) Did you read that the old Knickerbocker Hotel (1906-1921) is about to open again as a hotel on February 12, 2015? This historic building opened as the Knickerbocker Hotel in 1906 with 556 rooms. Developers J.E. and A.L. Pennock originally financed the building in 1903 and retained architects Bruce Price and Marvin & Davis. Only one year later, John Jacob Astor IV, who owned the land, took over the troubled project. The interiors were redesigned by...
Where Are Your ‘Wow’ Moments?
Larry Mogelonsky | December 17, 2014
By Larry Mogelonsky, MBA, P. Eng. (www.lma.ca) Did you ever notice that it is the little, unexpected nuances that grab your attention? From the world of statistics comes the normal curve of outcome distribution, also known as a bell curve because of its shape on a 2D graph. This simple curve identifies that, for most circumstances, the result is going to be somewhere in the middle, the hump of the curve so to speak. That is the expected. It is the two 'tails' of the curve - those outcomes that have deviated from the standard - that standout and differentiate your property for better or for worse. Dwelling on the 'for better', it's these...
Rethinking Products to Draw Closer Ties
Georges Panayotis | December 16, 2014
by Georges Panayotis Whether it's a car or a telephone, staging the launch of each new commodity heightens the consumer's anticipation of innovations. The idea is to create an emotional shock around a brand and stimulate closer ties with its followers. What is true for these sectors is true for all aspects of everyday life and the hotel industry is no exception. Forty years ago or so, its transformation was driven by the arrival of concepts, developed broad scale by inspired pioneers, resulting in a community of users seduced by innovation with each new arrival on the market. And then, years after, it became necessary to better manage a...
Hotel Marketing Tips For Better Managing 800 Numbers
Doug Kennedy | December 12, 2014
By Doug Kennedy December 12, 2014 While much of the focus of hotel marketing these days is on managing electronic channels, there is still a significant amount of business coming in via voice channels. What's more, with the interplay of voice and electronic channels many who search online call to book, while others who call end up booking online. Even those who search and then book exclusively online often call just to reconfirm that the reservation came through. Therefore it is important for hotel marketers to effectively manage their 800 numbers. Here are some tips. * Move beyond having just one "legacy" 800 number. Many hotels stil...
Developing Your Sense of Departure
Larry Mogelonsky | December 10, 2014
By Larry Mogelonsky, MBA, P. Eng. (www.lma.ca) Most hoteliers intrinsically understand the concept of a sense of arrival. Broadly defined, this is that glorious moment (or what's intended to be glorious) when a guest arrives at the threshold of your establishment. The goal of this 'sense of place' is to quite literally bedazzle your arriving guest from the get-go to reaffirm their hotel selection. I am confident that most of you reading this have spent hours in planning committee meetings discussing this very topic. Your doormen are attired with distinctive uniforms designed to create a point of differentiation from the very moment a gu...
Hotel Financing: JMBM’s Preferred EB-5 Construction Financing Program for Top Developers & Projects
Jonathan Bloch | December 9, 2014
By Jim Butler and the Global Hospitality Group® 09 December 2014 Click here for the latest articles on EB-5 Financing. JMBM is sourcing low-cost mezzanine capital for new construction through EB-5 financing for its top developer-clients. To qualify for this program, the borrower must be an experienced developer with a superb track record, a superior reputation and a great project. If you don't meet those threshold requirements, then don't read any further, because this program does not apply to you. If you are still reading, the question is: "Can you benefit from mezzanine financing with an all-in cost to you of approximately 6 ...
