Louisville, Kentucky Nearly Doubles Year-Over-Year Event Volume, Hits 94.9 Percent Growth in July
Knowland | August 21, 2024
Sales & Marketing
Why Hotels Shouldn’t Rely on ROAS to Measure the Success of a Campaign
Tina Markowitz | February 28, 2024
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France Experiences Surge in Travel Demand Ahead of 2024 Summer Olympics With Americans Leading the Charge
Sojern | February 27, 2024
SAN FRANCISCO – 27 February 2024 – Sojern, the leading digital marketing platform built for travel, today shares its latest travel data* ahead of the 2024 Summer Olympics. Slated to be held in Paris, France from 26 July - 11 August 2024, the summer Olympic games will bring together 10,500 athletes from 206 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) that represent nations from all over the world. The games will be the biggest event ever organized in France. Between the Super Bowl, Olympics, European Championship, and other major sporting events, ad spending is projected to reach $61 billion this year alone. Not only do these events bolst...
SOCi Report: 52% of Marketers Cite Privacy as Top Concern in AI Adoption for Hotels
SOCi | February 22, 2024
Study of nearly 320 marketers finds 40% have no “clear and actionable plan” in place for AI integration SAN DIEGO – February 22, 2024 – SOCi Inc., the leading CoMarketing Cloud Platform for multi-location enterprises, today released Part IV of its AI Marketing Transformation Index. The comprehensive report offers insights into the current implementation of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and forecasts its trajectory in the marketing industry. SOCi's commissioned study of more than 300 digital marketers provides further understanding of AI utilization in marketing and future plans for its use. Part IV focuses on whether or not clear...
Commingle360 Converts Social Media Posts into Hotel Revenue
Lodging Interactive | February 21, 2024
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AI + Hotels = A Digital Marketing Machine
ShiftDigital | February 20, 2024
AI is poised to help hoteliers make the complex engine of digital marketing a more efficient, proactive, well-oiled system. Managing a hotel is a balancing act of daily operations, guest satisfaction, and revenue growth, further complicated by a fast-paced digital marketing landscape. With countless strategies and channels to master, keeping up becomes a daunting challenge for even the savviest digital marketers. That’s why forward-thinking hotel marketers are embracing artificial intelligence (AI). Serving as a multi-purpose tool, AI helps streamline digital marketing efforts—from enhancing customer personalization to generating b...
Google Hotel Ads Bid Strategies Update: How Will It Impact Your Campaigns?
Cendyn | February 19, 2024
In the ever-evolving landscape of online advertising, staying ahead of the curve is paramount for businesses looking to maximize their revenue while also adapting to changes in user privacy expectations. With Google’s recent announcement regarding updates to its Hotel Ads bidding models, hoteliers face a pivotal moment in their metasearch advertising strategies. Let’s delve into what these changes mean and how hotels can navigate this transition effectively. Google Hotel Ads commission-based models to sunset The upcoming changes, slated to take effect on April 30, 2024, mark a significant shift away from commission-based bid strate...
Lodging Interactive Announces 2023 Hotel Christmas Tree Competition Winner
Lodging Interactive | February 15, 2024
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StudentUniverse Releases Their Annual State of Student Travel Report Revealing Key Trends Amongst Gen Z Travelers
StudentUniverse | February 14, 2024
This Year StudentUniverse Delves into the Importance of Traveling for One’s Mental Well-Being, the Impact of AI, Top Destinations for 2024, Embracing Sustainability, and Inspirational Travel Platforms Waltham, Mass. (February 14, 2024) – StudentUniverse, a Flight Centre Travel Group company and the world’s largest student and youth travel marketplace, today released its annual The State of Student & Youth Travel Report delving into the latest travel sentiments amongst those aged 18-25. The report reveals some interesting trends amongst Gen Z travelers including a preference for taking “dry vacations” and a concern for the...
5 Reasons to Reevaluate Your Metasearch Marketing
GCommerce | February 14, 2024
TAs are gaining share, which means less profitable business, missed opportunities to connect with your guests, and losing out on valuable 1st party data. What can you do? Start by looking at your marketing channels that drive the most direct bookings. Metasearch is #1 and is the primary battleground to win back share from the OTAs. Start taking back your direct bookings with our playbook - 5 Reasons to Reevaluate Your Metasearch Marketing Strategies. ...
Secondary Markets Beat the Top 25 in Meeting and Events Growth in January, Knowland Reports
KNOWLAND | February 8, 2024
Lexington leads secondary markets, while Nashville heads the Top 25 ARLINGTON, Va. — Feb. 8, 2024 — Knowland, the world’s leading provider of data-as-a-service insights on meetings and events for hospitality, reported meetings and events in secondary markets outpaced the traditional Top 25 markets in January. Most notably, the highest growth Top 25 market, Nashville, was up 16.1 percent, while top growth secondary market city, Lexington, Ky., had a 76.4 percent uptick in meetings and events for the month. This exposes a trend that indicates meeting planners are sometimes opting for secondary destinations to reduce costs. This d...
The 2024 Group Business Forecast: Trends to Help Hotels Capitalize on the Back-to-In-Person Boom
Mike Pavicich | February 6, 2024
By Mike Pavicich Group business is back in a big way. In-person events are returning to their pre-COVID normal pace. In 2024, 81 percent of meetings will have an in-person component in them. A recent study by Deloitte anticipates that by 2024, business travel spending will return to its level before the pandemic. This view is echoed in Accor's data, which shows in their latest survey regarding client business travel that 57 percent of those surveyed anticipate a budget increase for travel in 2024 compared to 2023. With this influx of in-person gatherings, in 2024, event technology is projected to become even more critical, providing k...
2024 Digital Marketing Trends and Predictions by GCommerce Solutions
GCommerce | February 1, 2024
From AI, to new social media platforms, to continued privacy regulations and a push for 1st party data, we continue to see a rapid rate of change in the digital space. 🌐✨ The future of digital marketing is here, and we can't wait to share our exclusive insights and predictions for 2024. Get the full scoop here. 📚🔍...
Leveraging Tech to Drive Employee Motivation, Guest Delight and Revenue
Joe Vargas | January 31, 2024
By Joe Vargas While there are many technologies you can invest in that provide a competitive edge, there is one resource that is infinitely valuable that you don't want to overlook: your people. Guest satisfaction is one of the key drivers of success for any hotelier, determining repeat customers and, in turn, your bottom line. While guest-centered initiatives, like expanding your amenities, are often the focus of customer loyalty, employee well-being and job fulfillment are also critically important. The feeling of being surrounded by an engaged work culture is palpable for guests, and happy employees are more likely to deliver ex...
Nearly 50 Percent of Meeting Planners Dissatisfied With Costs, According to 2024 State of the Meetings Industry Report
KNOWLAND | January 31, 2024
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HSMAI To Honor GCommerce Solutions With Three Adrian Awards for Outstanding Travel Marketing
GCommerce Solutions | January 29, 2024
Park City, Utah, January 29, 2024 – GCommerce Solutions will be honored for travel marketing excellence by the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International (HSMAI) at the annual Adrian Awards Celebration Award winners to be celebrated at an in-person event at the New York Marriott Marquis, on February 13, 2024. The Adrian Awards, now in their 67th year, are the largest and most prestigious competition in global travel marketing. For 2023, Adrian Awards are being presented for highlighting the stories of remarkable campaigns, ads, and experiences that sparked a love for travel, igniting a desire for exploration in travel...
U.S. Group Revenue Recovery in Q4 Hits 110 Percent According to Hospitality Group and Business Performance Index by Knowland and Amadeus
KNOWLAND | January 25, 2024
Group business up across key metrics in 4Q2023, providing stability for hotels going into 2024 ARLINGTON, Va. — Jan. 25, 2024 — Knowland, the world’s leading provider of data-as-a-service insights on meetings and events for hospitality, and Amadeus, a global leader in hospitality technology, today present the metrics from the companies’ Hospitality Group and Business Performance Index (the “Index”). The fourth quarter of 2023 demonstrated that group business in 10 of the top markets in the U.S. has recovered 110 percent compared to the same time in 2019. Group bookings are calculated using occupancy and average daily rate (A...
Amadeus Report in Collaboration With UN Tourism Shows Confident Start to 2024 for Travel in the Americas
Amadeus | January 24, 2024
Air capacity is well over 100% of 2023 volumes across all regions, demonstrating increased opportunities for travel January 24, 2024 - A new report released today by Amadeus in collaboration with UN Tourism shows a positive trend for air travel and hospitality in the Americas at the start of 2024. Air capacity has increased significantly for January to April 2024 The report - Travel Insights 2024: Focus on the Americas - finds the industry is prepared for a strong start to the year, with air capacity in the region up by 20% over the first four months of the year when compared to the same period of 2023. Released today, the report d...
7 Ways QR Codes Can Revolutionize the Hotel Guest Experience in 2024
Sharat Potharaju | January 22, 2024
By Sharat Potharaju Modern hotel guests expect efficient, personalized, and tech-enabled services throughout their stays. Nearly 40% of travelers would even opt for entirely self-service accommodations and no staff interactions except by request. Innovative technologies, like QR codes, present the perfect solution to meet and exceed rising expectations while driving revenue and loyalty. A simple smartphone scan bridges the physical and digital, unlocking convenience, customization, and satisfaction from check-in to check-out. To revolutionize the guest experience in 2024, consider these seven QR code use cases. Speed up check-in a...
Are Social Media Influencers Bad Travel Agents? [NEW Study]
Max Woolf | January 22, 2024
By Max Woolf Consider this: The “travel” hashtag on TikTok has amassed over 26.3M posts and 217.8B views. With those numbers, it’s no stretch to say that social media influencers have become the new crop of travel agents. But— While many provide valuable insights on destinations, attractions, and foods, this summer has seen a wave of backlash. Take, for instance, a woman who said that some people “deserve jail time” for glossing over the Amalfi Coast’s logistical hassles. So, we decided to reach out to 1,000+ Americans to gauge their perceptions of influencers in the context of travel advice. Scroll dow...
Lodging Interactive’s CoMMingle360 Transforms Hotel Social Media Into Powerful Wedding Sales Opportunities
Lodging Interactive | January 17, 2024
CoMMingle360 enables hotels to be everywhere their prospects are and to engage and sell to them through an omnichannel approach. Lodging Interactive, an award-winning digital marketing, reputation management, and social media engagement agency exclusively serving the hospitality industry since 2001, announced today the next phase of its CoMMingle360 omnichannel marketing service for the hospitality industry. Commingle360 enables hotels to generate group event revenue opportunities and direct bookings through their social media channels 24/7. “CoMMingle360 enables hotels to be everywhere their prospects are and to engage with them thro...
Sojern Named Finalist in the Hotel Digital Marketing Category in the 2024 HotelTechAwards
Sojern | January 11, 2024
SAN FRANCISCO – 11 January, 2024 – Sojern, the leading digital marketing platform built for travel, has been named a finalist in the Best Hotel Digital Marketing Agency category globally by Hotel Tech Report in the 2024 HotelTechAwards. Each year 2.5 million hotel industry professionals use HotelTechReport.com to make informed technology purchasing decisions. The HotelTechAwards indicate the best hotel software products across every category based on customer feedback and key proprietary data signals such as integration compatibility, organizational health, market share, partner network strength, and customer support quality. "Being...
San Diego Seizes Top Spot for Year-Over-Year Growth in Group Business for December
KNOWLAND | January 10, 2024
Pharmaceutical and Charity/Non-Profit industries lead in four out of the five top markets ARLINGTON, Va. — Jan. 10, 2024 — Knowland, the world’s leading provider of data-as-a-service insights on meetings and events for hospitality, released the top market performance numbers for December, citing San Diego as having the highest meeting volume improvement with 29.2 percent year-over-year (YoY) growth. Coming in a close second was San Francisco, where event volume increased 21.5 percent, a positive sign the industry is bouncing back in the cities by the bay. This data is sourced from Knowland’s sales intelligence platform and desig...
Smart Strategies, Big Wins: Transforming Group Sales With Data Insights
Mike Pavicich | January 9, 2024
By Mike Pavicich Data analytics can play a crucial role in identifying potential group sales opportunities for hotels. By analyzing large volumes of data, such as customer preferences, booking patterns, competitors, and market trends, hotels can gain valuable insights into the demand for group bookings. In fact, hotels that use data analytics strategies have seen a 20% increase in group sales and reduced their group sales acquisition costs by 25%. Platforms like SalesAndCatering.com’s STS Cloud, with robust reporting and business intelligence capabilities, are transforming not just the way hotels interpret group sales performance bu...
Amadeus’ Media Solution for DMOs Now Available in the Americas
Amadeus | January 8, 2024
Amadeus’ own digital advertising platform & services, unique to the travel industry, have launched in the Americas, building on proven success in the EMEA region. January 8, 2024 – As Amadeus for Destinations continues its expansion in the Americas, Amadeus’ Media Solutions, which provides Destination Management Organizations (DMOs) and Convention & Visitor Bureaus (CVBs) with a holistic view of their digital advertising campaigns, has also expanded this year into the region. After having successfully operated in the Europe/Middle East/Africa (EMEA) region for over 2 years, Amadeus is now delivering the same level of service to...