The Tricycle of Guest Service Excellence: A Perfect Model For Remarkable Experiences
Doug Kennedy | October 4th, 2024
Spokane Tribe Resort & Casino Partners With Travel Outlook to Elevate Guest Service Experience
Travel Outlook, The Premier Hotel Call Center™ | October 2nd, 2024
Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resort Names Jim Curtis Director of Sales and Marketing
the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resort | February 17, 2020
Lake Buena Vista, Fla. – Feb. 17, 2020 – The Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resort has announced Jim Curtis as director of sales & marketing for the entire complex. He will lead all sales and marketing for the 2,270-room resort with 333,000 square feet of meeting space, including the resort’s upcoming expansion, The Cove at the Walt Disney World Swan, a 349-room, 14-story tower scheduled to open in 2021. Included among his responsibilities are group sales, creative marketing, field marketing, internet and public relations. Curtis has over 30 years of sales experience in the hospitality industry, representing convention hot...
AJ Capital Partners Acquires Macdonald Marine Hotel & Spa in North Berwick, Scotland
AJ Capital Partners | February 17, 2020
Chicago-based real estate developer purchases second property in Scotland with plans to renovate and reopen with updated guest rooms and food and beverage offerings Chicago, Ill. – Adventurous Journeys (AJ) Capital Partners announced today that it has acquired the Macdonald Marine Hotel & Spa in North Berwick, Scotland. The 83-key hotel will undergo extensive renovations starting in fall 2020. Once completed in spring 2021, the reimagined hotel will debut with 89- keys, two food and beverage concepts, expansive meeting and event space and an indoor-outdoor spa and fitness center. “Our team is humbled by the opportunity to create...
Six Habitudes of Hotel Sales Success™
Doug Kennedy | February 17, 2020
By Doug Kennedy As my workshop participants and frequent readers know, I often talk about the new era of “Silent Selling,” where most correspondence is happening via email, app message or text. My recent train-the-the trainer articles have focused on a “tech for touch” approach for hotel sales success, so this month I’m focusing more on the “touch” part. Following are Six Habitudes of Hotel Sales Success™ to use when engaging sales prospects, clients, and meeting/function planners, where in person, over the phone, or via written correspondence. Many readers will first wonder, “What is a “habitude?” Merriam-Webst...
Jackson-Shaw Selects Crescent Hotels & Resorts to Manage AC Hotel Fort Worth Opening Fall 2020
AC Hotel Fort Worth | February 17, 2020
FORT WORTH (Feb. 17, 2020) – AC Hotel Fort Worth, a key addition to Tarrant County’s hospitality market, has hit some key milestones on its way to a planned early fall 2020 opening. This includes the selection of its leadership team – operating company, general manager and director of sales and marketing. The 252-room, 16-story AC Hotel Fort Worth is owned and developed by Jackson-Shaw, a national real estate company headquartered in North Texas. “Jackson-Shaw is excited to welcome Crescent Hotels & Resorts as AC Hotel Fort Worth’s management company, industry veteran Aaron R. Oquendo as general manager and Jillian Lehmann as...
Enhance Your Social Media Strategy With This One Tip
Pipeline Social Media | February 17, 2020
By Maiya Wall / Pipeline Social Media We have been devouring all of the New Year’s themed blogs that predict what trends and practices will be the new to-do in the world of social media. We’ve been taking it all in and deciding what new practices and perspectives will help us serve our clients best. If we can throw our ring into the hat, we have one suggestion for something hotels can do to boost engagement—post more. It doesn’t sound revolutionary, but let us explain. We have onboarded hundreds of clients and the one thing that they have in common 99% of the time is this—they were not posting enough. Our critiques are often n...
Julie Barrow Appointed Director of Sales & Marketing for Washington Duke Inn & Golf Club and JB Duke Hotel
Washington Duke Inn & Golf Club | February 17, 2020
DURHAM, N.C., Feb. 17, 2020 – Washington Duke Inn & Golf Club and JB Duke Hotel, two premier, AAA Four Diamond luxury properties located on the campus of Duke University, recently announced Julie Barrow as the new area director of sales and marketing. A hospitality leader with more than 25 years of experience, most recently with Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, Barrow will lead the sales, marketing, revenue management and public relations efforts for both the Washington Duke Inn & Golf Club and JB Duke Hotel. Accomplished in multiple areas of hotel management, Barrow’s responsibilities have included room sales in all segments; ...
Hospitality Financial Leadership – We’re Getting You a Bigger Plane – A Tribute to JP
David Lund | February 17, 2020
By David Lund I was scheduled to speak at a conference in Wisconsin in late April of 2016. While I was preparing for my speech, I learned of my father-in-law’s hospitalization due to pneumonia. Johanne was working that week in San Francisco. JP was 82 and had been struggling a bit of late. He was legally blind and had a heart condition. The drugs they needed to give him to fight the pneumonia were going to affect his heart medication, so it didn’t look good. Johanne decided to go see her father and I changed my flight back from Wisconsin to go to Quebec City after my speaking engagement which was now a week away. A few short d...
Cendyn Appoints New Leadership for Project Management and Digital Marketing
Cendyn | February 17, 2020
February 17, 2020 – Boca Raton, FL – Cendyn, the leading innovator in CRM, sales and revenue strategy for the hospitality industry, announced today the appointment of Chandrah Raleigh as Vice President of Project Management and Tina Markowitz as Vice President, Digital Media & Analytics. Chandrah Raleigh, who has over 16 years’ experience in IT project management, will be responsible for leading Cendyn’s cross-functional project teams, accelerating excellence in key areas like speeding time to market, streamlining cross-organizational processes and providing clear visibility for all client stakeholders. Raleigh was most recentl...
TravelNet Solutions and Doug Kennedy Announce Upcoming Webinar for February 21st
TravelNet Solutions | February 17, 2020
Cottage Grove, Minn.- As part of its ongoing commitment to education and training, TravelNet Solutions is pleased to announce their next sponsored webinar with Doug Kennedy, the lodging industry’s most experienced sales and guest service trainer. The webinar titled “Turn Your Inbound Reservations Team Into Sales Hunters!” will take place at 11:00 am CT on February 21st, 2020. To register click here. In this webcast, Doug will present ideas for transitioning reservation agents from their “farmer” role into a new role as “sales hunters!” Presented are: Sample dialogue for turning inbound calls that cannot be closed into ...
Charlestowne Hotels Appoints Three New General Managers
Charlestowne Hotels | February 14, 2020
CHARLESTON, S.C. (February 14, 2020) – Charlestowne Hotels, a leading hospitality management company, proudly announces the appointment of three new general managers: Sam Atwood, general manager at The Atlantic Hotel & Spa in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida; Sean Copley, general manager at The Bristol Hotel in Bristol, Virginia and Todd Buchko, general manager at Origin Raleigh. The three additions coincide with Charlestowne Hotels’ continued growth of talent and increased geographic footprint. “Our hotel teams are the backbone to our continued success,” Gavin Philipp, Charlestowne’s vice president of operations, says. “When we...
Is Service Excellence the New Marketing?
Hospitality Insights | February 14, 2020
With service excellence being an abstract concept and a soft target, you may be reluctant to invest in it, but it pays for itself in many ways. The drama of television advertising… A captivating opening image followed by a series of emotive visuals. Strategically emphatic sound delivering rhetorically suave messages, with intonation so on point, it makes the hair on your arms stand up. Immersive, hooking viewers to a notion. Awakening a dormant desire or conjuring up a new one. Consumers subconsciously reaching for their wallets as they absolutely must have this essential device. How could they possibly have lived without it? And how doe...
MGM Resorts, MGM Growth Properties and Blackstone REIT Complete Acquisition of MGM Grand Las Vegas and Mandalay Bay Real Estate for $4.6 Billion
MGM Resorts International | February 14, 2020
MGM Resorts Executes Long-Term Lease with Joint Venture for Both Properties LAS VEGAS and NEW YORK, Feb. 14, 2020 -- MGM Resorts International ("MGM Resorts") (NYSE: MGM), MGM Growth Properties LLC ("MGP") (NYSE: MGP) and Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust ("BREIT") today announced the closing of the previously announced transaction for a joint venture formed between MGP and BREIT to acquire the Las Vegas real estate assets of the MGM Grand and Mandalay Bay for $4.6 billion. In addition, BREIT has purchased approximately 4.9 million MGP Class A shares at a price of $30.67 per share. In connection with the completion of the transacti...
The Worst Thing That Happens Is Your Customer Loves You
Shep Hyken | February 14, 2020
What if the worst thing a customer ever said about you was, “I love you!”? Even on a bad day, you’re still so good that they love you! Are you that good? Do customers love you even when there’s a problem or complaint? Here are six ways to make customers love you no matter what! Become customer-focused. This means that in addition to creating an amazing customer experience, every decision keeps the customer in mind. It doesn’t mean every decision will make the customer happy, but the customer is always kept in mind when any type of change is made, from price to changes in features to new and even discontinued products. Be ...
Q4 Year End 2019 U.S. Lodging Market Update
Daniel Lesser | February 14, 2020
By Daniel Lesser After a tumultuous 4Q18, 2019 was a climb of the wall of worry as at several points many believed the grind higher was going to come to a halt, which did not occur. Although America’s financial system has been buffeted by a slowing global economy and the U.S. instigated trade war with China, it has been buoyed by the lowest unemployment levels during the past 50 years, and rising incomes which have fueled consumer spending and a generally optimistic sentiment. Although the U.S. economy is on solid footing, the longest period of expansion in its history places the nation in unchartered territory. The recent signing of a P...
Women in Tourism & Hospitality Conference Announces 2020 Honorees
Women in Tourism & Hospitality (W.I.T.H.) | February 14, 2020
San Diego– February 14, 2020 — Women in Tourism & Hospitality (W.I.T.H.) is proud to announce its impactful and inspiring 2020 Honorees. This community of exceptional, ambitious women are the hospitality and tourism industry’s visionaries, leaders, go-getters and futurists who are radically transforming the hotel and tourism landscape. Clara Carter, President and founder of the Multi-Cultural Convention Services Network, a meeting management firm, and also the founder of W.I.T.H., will host its inaugural conference March 19 through 20 at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel San Diego-Mission Valley, to include the 5th Annual W.I.T.H. Aw...
Enseo & Catapult Tech Launch IoT Smart Guest Room of Future With Mexico City’s Fiesta Americana
Enseo | February 14, 2020
Richardson, TX – February 14, 2020 – The Fiesta Americana Viaducto Aeropuerto Hotel in Mexico City recently opened its doors and treated guests to a full suite of Enseo’s innovative smart hotel room technology. From streaming entertainment options to remotely managing their entire room from their own mobile devices, guests were ushered into an experience unlike any other. Owned by FibraHotel and managed by Posadas Hotels, Fiesta Americana had a specific goal in mind: provide the guest room of the future in their hotels to create a unique, connected in-room experience for their guests while also conserving energy usage. To enable this...
MGM Resorts’ Chairman and CEO, Jim Murren, to Step Down
MGM Resorts International | February 13, 2020
LAS VEGAS, Feb. 12, 2020 -- MGM Resorts International (NYSE:MGM) ("MGM Resorts" or the "Company") today announced that Jim Murren, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, has informed the Company's Board of Directors that he will step down from his position as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Company prior to the expiration of his contract. Mr. Murren will continue to serve in his current leadership roles until a successor is appointed. The Board has formed a committee of independent directors to conduct the search process. The committee is working with a nationally recognized executive search firm to promptly identify and evaluate ...
Vision Hospitality Group and Blue Ridge Hotel Break Ground on Hampton Inn by Hilton in Blue Ridge, Georgia
Vision Hospitality Group, Inc. | February 13, 2020
BLUE RIDGE, Georgia – February 13, 2020 – Vision Hospitality Group, Inc., in partnership with Blue Ridge Hotel, LLC announced the groundbreaking of the Hampton Inn by Hilton Blue Ridge, Georgia, which is anticipated to deliver a lodging experience new to the Blue Ridge area in early 2021. The hotel will offer 1,200 square feet of meeting space and the city’s only rooftop bar and event space at the foothills of the iconic Blue Ridge Mountains. The 109-room hotel is located on West Main Street in the heart of downtown Blue Ridge, tucked between a mix of local breweries, wineries, eclectic eateries and a collection of specialty retai...
Pebblebrook Hotel Trust and Margaritaville Enterprises Bringing Margaritaville Hotel to San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter
Margaritaville | February 13, 2020
BETHESDA, Md.--February 13, 2020-- Today, Pebblebrook Hotel Trust (NYSE: PEB, “Pebblebrook” or “the Company”) and Margaritaville Enterprises LLC announced the global lifestyle brand’s second west coast resort, The Margaritaville Hotel San Diego Gaslamp Quarter. The property is expected to open in 2021 in downtown San Diego, California. Located in the heart of the Gaslamp Quarter, just blocks from Petco Park and the San Diego Convention Center, the hotel will feature 235 guest rooms as well as signature Margaritaville food and beverage concepts. Travelers can immerse themselves in the excitement of the city while staying in a trul...
Health Movement Leads to Growth in Hotel Spas
Mark VanStekelenburg and Jenna Finkelstein | February 13, 2020
By Mark VanStekelenburg and Jenna Finkelstein In 2007, CBRE introduced Trends® in the Hotel Spa Industry in response to the spa industry’s rapid expansion within hotels and resorts and its relevance to hotels’ bottom lines. For the second time in the history of the publication, spa revenue increased at a higher rate than rooms revenue and total operating revenue. During 2018, the 159 hotels in our survey sample of achieved a 3.7 percent growth in RevPAR, which led to a 3.8 percent rise in total operating revenue. Concurrently, spa department revenue increased by 4.8 percent. With RevPAR forecast to increase less than 1.5 percent throu...
Radisson Hotel Group Signs First Hotel in Khulna, Bangladesh’s Third Largest City
Radisson Hotel Group | February 13, 2020
Radisson Hotel Group continues to expand in South Asia’s exciting destinations with the signing of its first hotel in Khulna, the third largest city in Bangladesh and a major hub for trade and tourism. Scheduled to open in Q3, 2023, Radisson Hotel Khulna is a brand new upscale hotel nestled in a prime location 2.5km from the center of this dynamic second tier port city, close to the main business areas. Khulna is also the gateway to the Sundarbans Forest Reserve, the world’s largest mangrove forest and the home of the Bengal tiger. Radisson Hotel Khulna will feature 150 contemporary rooms and suites, an all-day dining restaurant, a ...
GHM Plants Chedi Flag in the Maldives
MFAR | February 13, 2020
SINGAPORE (Feb. 13, 2020) — GHM has announced plans to launch The Chedi Kudavillingili, its first resort in the Maldives, later this year. The 99-villa property will feature 36 overwater villas, a 150-metre-long central pool and desirable proximity to the Malé International Airport, a 25-minute speedboat ride away. Located on a 1-kilometre coral island called Kudavillingili, The Chedi Kudavillingili is shaped by a global team of design talents working closely with the GHM team. Maldivian architecture anchors the resort’s overarching aesthetic appeal, with complementary interior design and landscaping from Singapore and a lighting sche...
Hotel Projects Starting in the Next 12 Months Are at an All-Time High in Latin America
Lodging Econometrics | February 13, 2020
February 13, 2020 – PORTSMOUTH, NH - According to the recent Lodging Econometrics (LE) Latin America construction pipeline report, analysts at LE state that the total construction pipeline stands at 711 projects/128,453 rooms, a 2% decline in projects and 3% increase in rooms, year-over-year (YOY). There are 329 projects/58,315 rooms presently under construction and projects scheduled to start construction in the next 12 months are at an all-time high with 214 projects/43,050 rooms. Projects in the early planning stage stand at 168 projects/27,088 rooms. New projects announced into the pipeline during 2019 were up 2% by projects, but...
BirchStreet Systems Hires Key Strategic Executive Chris Orr as Chief Operating Officer
BirchStreet Systems | February 13, 2020
Seasoned executive focused on delivering successful outcomes BirchStreet customers and partners. With more than 25 years of experience, Orr has a consistent track record of creating and scaling complex operational teams across organizations while delivering optimal success to internal and external stakeholders. At Birchstreet, Orr will champion, orchestrate and advance Customer Success and Customer Support, as well delivering immediate value and great experience for customers and their locations. “Chris is a strategic executive and a visionary leader,” said Steve Markle, CEO at BirchStreet Systems, “He is also ready and able to...
