The Tricycle of Guest Service Excellence: A Perfect Model For Remarkable Experiences
Doug Kennedy | October 4, 2024
Crafting a Unique Employer Brand for Today’s Talent Market
Veronika Mercier | August 14, 2024
Smart Strategies
The Retro Motel Trend With Hotel Zazz in Albuquerque
Adam and Larry Mogelonsky | July 10, 2024
With the recent Fourth of July holiday, we bring you a story of true American success in hospitality. The Hotel Zazz in Albuquerque, New Mexico, which opened in Fall 2022, is emblematic of the retro motel trend that has captured the hearts of drive-to-vacationing millennials and Gen Xers, alongside other independents like The Vagabond Hotel in Miami, The Dive Motel in Nashville, Skyview Los Alamos in California and Thunderbird in Marfa, Texas as well as multi-property brands like Bluebird and Urban Cowboy. Right along the famed Route 66, all of the 48 guestrooms are imaginatively decorated with colorful, eclectic finishings while the public s...
Digital Trends in Accommodation: Hotels, Booking.com and DMA
HOTREC | July 8, 2024
The European hotel industry has long been warning of unfair business practices from OTAs. Competition and collaboration are crucial for the hospitality sector, but create challenges that impact prices, operations, and guest experiences. As the largest OTA, Booking.com is now a gatekeeper platform under the DMA. The dominant platform will finally have to comply to the new digital rules. This should allow hotels to offer better prices on their own distribution channels. The results of our 2024 Hotel Distribution Study confirm the need for new digital rules that will ensure fair competition in the hotel accommodation sector. The findings...
Assessing the Digital Infrastructure of Your Hotels
CBRE Hotels | July 3, 2024
By Robert Mandelbaum, John Pomposello, and Adam Barry In 2023, U.S. hotels faced rising operating expenses outpacing revenue growth, resulting in declining profit margins. To combat this, hotels are leveraging technology to enhance efficiency and guest satisfaction. Key areas of technological investment include employee productivity tools, automated guest services, and improved cybersecurity. Analyzing IT expenditures from 4,121 properties, CBRE found that IT costs represented a relatively controlled 1.4% of total operating revenue, despite a 7.4% increase in 2023. Higher IT spending was noted in Resort and Convention hotels due to their e...
New Report Reveals Changing Face of Luxury Travel in Asia Pacific
Marriott International, Inc. | July 2, 2024
The Luxury Group by Marriott International launches extensive research among affluent travelers across six markets 68% spending more on leisure travel with 74% respondents planning an intra-regional holiday within Asia-Pacific (APAC) Australia is the top destination in next 12 months ahead of Japan, with 46% planning to visit Indian HNW are driving luxury travel with 89% Indians planning to spend more in next 12 months High end gastronomy is the primary driver for luxury travel with 88% planning holidays around food Three new personas of luxury traveler defined As the Asia Pacific region continues to be the growth engine f...
H-2B Visas as Quality Solution for Hospitality: Improve Customer Service With a Fully Staffed Team
Suzanne Sukkar | July 2, 2024
By Suzanne Sukkar and Najah Allaham Managing a hotel, keeping it fully staffed, and maintaining a high level of customer service is stressful. Whether it is peak summer travel, football season, skiing at the lodge in the wintertime, or Spring Training, labor shortages and seasonal workforce demands have hospitality managers constantly placing help wanted ads. There is another reliable (concierge level) solution that will put to bed at least one hospitality grievance and that is the H-2B visa program. This program allows hotels to bring in foreign workers for temporary, non-agricultural jobs precisely when you need them most. Whether you nee...
Some Customers Aren’t Worth Doing Business With
Shep Hyken | June 28, 2024
In some of my customer service speeches, I joke that some customers aren’t worth doing business with. The way I position it in the speech is funny, but in reality, it’s pretty serious. Sometimes, a customer isn’t worth doing business with because they are truly a bad customer. The result could be choosing to say, “Goodbye,” and sending them to the competition. While there are many reasons you might end your relationship with a customer, I came up with six obvious ones to get you thinking: Customers who repeatedly return products. This is often the result of a liberal return policy that some customers abuse. Repeat...
Playing Ball: Summertime Isn’t the Only Time to Solicit Sports Tourism & Travel-Team Bookings
Hospitality America | June 27, 2024
Best practices to attract and retain this market segment for year-long profitability By Donna Oglesby There may be no crying in baseball, but hoteliers who are not building relationships with travel sports teams may find themselves shedding a few tears once they realize how much money is being left on the table by not catering to the lucrative sports tourism segment. As a mother of two, I know firsthand how much parents pay annually to support the travel-team circuit and I’ve experienced the pain points when dealing with hotels. That’s why, as director of sales and marketing for two Hospitality America hotels, I began researching how t...
Scoring Big: How Sport Tourism Impacts the Global Hotel Industry
Joe Vargas | June 27, 2024
The sports tourism sector is poised for dramatic growth over the next five years. Understanding this sector and ensuring that your hotel operations are ready is the key to success. By Joe Vargas, SVP & General Manager, Infor Hospitality Sports tourism, as it’s called, is one of the fastest-growing sectors in the travel industry, according to the United Nations World Tourism Organization. Hotel room rates on Super Bowl weekend soared 257% compared to 2023, the biggest year-over-year spike for a first-time host city in NFL history. According to hotel data and analytics firm STR, Southern Nevada’s 172,707 rooms (at 393 hotels) char...
Expedia Report Finds Americans Win the Gold Medal for Taking Fewest Vacation Days in the World
Expedia Group | June 20, 2024
24th Annual Vacation Deprivation Report finds Americans are more vacation deprived than ever; unveils tips from around the world to help U.S. travelers get more out of their time off and save on their next trip According to Expedia’s 24th annual Vacation Deprivation Report,1 released today, roughly half of Americans don’t plan on using all their time off this year (53%), despite receiving just 12 days off annually — the fewest of any country surveyed. Expedia’s report has been analyzing time-off trends around the world for 24 years, and while American vacation deprivation (defined as the feeling of not having enough time off) has...
Attaining Data Maturation From Machine Learning of Hotel Data Sources
ADAM AND LARRY MOGELONSKY | June 19, 2024
By Adam and Larry Mogelonsky Hotels accumulate a lot of data, all of which can be used to uncover hidden patterns for better efficiencies and throughout improvements. Understanding the intricacies of machine learning (ML) and its applications is essential for forward-thinking hoteliers. A key concept to grasp is 'data maturation’, which refers to the necessary period for ML to process and analyze vast amounts of training data. This process allows computers to test variables and identify patterns, ultimately developing algorithms and models that drive business goals. Time is a critical factor in this equation. While machines can process da...
Revenue Management in Real Life: The Art of Saying No
Fabian Bartnick | June 19, 2024
As a seasoned revenue manager and a parent, I've come to realize that the principles of revenue management aren't confined to the boardroom or the hotel lobby—they extend right into our living rooms. Today, let's dive into the art of saying no and draw some amusing correlations between revenue management and real-time parenting with my two little darlings, Rafa (10) and Hayden (9). Setting Boundaries: The Hotel and the Home Imagine your hotel as a bustling kindergarten. Your guests, much like children, have high expectations and boundless energy. As revenue managers (RMs) and general managers (GMs), we often feel like the teachers tryi...
Hotel Lawyer: New Federal Junk Fee Law – The No Hidden FEES Act of 2023 (HR 6543)
Mark S. Adams | June 14, 2024
By Jim Butler and the Global Hospitality Group® Note: If you are a consumer with a Junk Fee issue, please do NOT contact us! We do not represent consumers against hotels, restaurants, or other business owners. We are part of the fabric of the hospitality industry and are committed to informing, educating, and assisting the industry. We represent business owners, helping them to understand and comply with applicable laws and defending them from consumer charges. HR 6543: The US Congress wants in on Junk Fee regulation for hotels Over the past several weeks, we have written about recent major regulatory developments concerning Junk F...
Human-Centric Hospitality: The Key to Thriving in the Industry
EHL GRADUATE SCHOOL | June 14, 2024
In the hospitality industry, success lies in the ability to integrate strategic business practices with the unique demands of the sector. A people-centric approach should lie at the heart of everything you do, both in terms of delighting your guests and attracting and retaining the best talent. However, all too often, the demands of running a business can get in the way. In this article, we explore the key challenges hospitality businesses face and the strategies they can implement to align corporate culture and human values. We also discuss some of the benefits you can realize by successfully navigating the transformation to become a...
Brand Dilemma: Navigating the Pros and Cons of Launching New Brands – An Unbiased Perspective
Hala Matar Choufany | June 14, 2024
Throwback to Future Hospitality Summit Saudi Arabia last month, where Hala Matar Choufany هلا مطر شوفاني contributed her insights on the “Brand Dilemma: Navigating the Pros and Cons of Launching New Brands – An Unbiased Perspective". Click here to watch the discussion unfold with Catherine Edwards, Chief Strategy Officer at QUO. ...
Jim Butler Asks Mark S. Adams for Update on California Junk Fee law: Would SB 1524 Gut SB 478’s Honest Pricing for All?
Mark S. Adams | June 12, 2024
Mark S. Adams is the go-to senior lawyer in JMBM’s hospitality litigation team for assessing legal exposure, pursuing legitimate claims, and defending a client’s rights involving hospitality matters. Jim Butler caught up with Mark to find out what all the fuss is about over California’s Junk Fee law (SB 478) and a proposed amendment by SB 1524 that has consumer advocates for transparent consumer prices in an uproar. Jim Butler: As a hospitality litigator and advisor, you have been at the forefront in junk fee matters for many years, and have written extensively about the latest developments. Tell us what all the fuss is about c...
Aligning Culture With the Bottom Line: How to Create a Commercial Mindset That Will Drive Revenue and Service
Andrew Rubinacci | June 11, 2024
By Andrew Rubinacci “We see our customers as invited guests to a party, and we are the hosts. It’s our job every day to make every important aspect of the customer experience a little bit better.” Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon. Almost every person in your hotel should be aware of how sales truly impact your property. Whether at reception, working in payroll, or drawing up employee onboarding SOPs, they need to know that every day is a sales day. Selling can be a human trait, and great things start to happen when your hotel company is tuned into the commerce side of your business. It makes me think of a famous quote that...
Emotional Intelligence and Leadership: The Perfect Combination
EHL | June 10, 2024
When we think about leadership qualities, not more than a decade or two ago, emotional intelligence would have come a long way down the list. However, our expectations of work and what it means to be a leader have shifted drastically since then. Now, if you talk to most leadership and HR experts, they will tell you that emotional intelligence is one of the most, if not the most important skill for today’s business leaders. Operational and technical skills are still essential, but modern organizations are increasingly looking for effective leaders who can create positive work cultures, encourage employee growth, consider other p...
How To Extinguish Hospitality Burnout
Matthijs Welle | June 5, 2024
By Matthijs Welle We work in an exhausting industry. So much of our time is dedicated to ensuring that our guests have remarkable experiences that we forget to pursue our own happiness. I’ve worked in both sides of industry – on the front lines at reception and behind the scenes in hospitality tech – and in both areas I’ve often felt exhausted and overworked. So what’s the solution? Obviously, I don’t have all the answers. It took me years to find the best ways to recharge and find my personal balance. But I do believe that hoteliers and anyone in hospitality have a particular responsibility to look after themselves...
Tourism Tidbits: Weddings Are Summer Events
Dr. Peter E. Tarlow | June 3, 2024
By Dr. Peter Tarlow Perhaps there is nothing more romantic than a June wedding. June is the month of roses and across the Northern Hemisphere the weather in most places is ideal and perfect for an outdoor rose-scented wedding. Weddings range from small and intimate to large-scale events, from local gatherings to destination weddings. From a tourism perspective, weddings can be a very lucrative part of a local tourism industry’s offerings. Technically wedding tourism refers to any time the couple invite out-of-town guests to their nuptials or travel, such as a honeymoon, due to the wedding. Anytime a wedding hosts out-of-town guests it ad...
5 Ways a Virtual Executive Assistant Can Help Hotel Executives
Kenzie Biggins | June 3, 2024
By Kenzie Biggins A hotel executive’s role is different almost every day. It’s that diversity that makes the position both exciting and challenging. From ensuring proper hotel operations and securing compliance to helping drive sales and overseeing events, the responsibility that comes with the job can, at times, be overwhelming no matter if the executive is managing a single property or group. Recently, we’ve seen an uptick in hotel executives interested in hiring a Virtual Executive Assistant (VEA) to help with such an intense workload. A VEA may not be for every hotel executive, but bringing one onboard is something to consider...
Six Pitfalls for Full-Service Hotel Development
Dan Voellm | May 30, 2024
By Dan Voellm Part 1: Two pitfalls for full-service hotel development Hotel development is a complex undertaking. It requires little of the skills to operate and monetize the asset. Owners and architects are often ill-equipped to measure up the requirements for running a successful hotel a few years down the road. While certain industry trends exist, fundamentals still need to be observed. Words of caution for those attached to specific brands or roles a hotel is meant to fulfill – in today’s world of hyper-efficiencies it is becoming more difficult to provide everything for everyone. Or specifically: provide a comprehensive range of s...
The Opportunities for Highly ADA-Compliant Hotels
Adam and Larry Mogelonsky | May 29, 2024
By Adam Mogelonsky, Larry Mogelonsky The hotel industry has seen an explosion of new brands and sub-brands over the past two decades, and this trend shows no signs of abating. This diversification is driven by various forces, with a prominent rationale being that emergent brands can better appeal to niche interests, microsegments or specific customer identities. We see this trend in the rise of the extended stay category (Home2 Suites by Hilton, Residence Inn by Marriott, Hyatt House) and the growth of serviced apartment or aparthotel brands. Premium and luxury segments have also excelled by focusing on particular value propositions, wh...
HotStats Shares Insights From 2023-2024 Hotel Management Sentiment Survey
HotStats | May 28, 2024
With the first quarter of the year behind us, our recent sentiment survey provides a snapshot of the current state of the hotel industry and a glimpse into what 2024 might hold. Benefiting from insights from hotel managers across various regions, the survey sheds light on performance expectations, operational challenges, and future forecasts. Although respondents to our 2023-24 sentiment survey painted a diverse picture of the hotel industry's performance, a general pattern of optimism emerged. The majority of hoteliers (65%) felt that they outperformed their expectations last year whereas only 35% felt that they fell short. This dispa...
HotelTechReport Surpasses 50,000 Authentic Product Reviews, Marking Growth in the Global Hotel Software Market
Hotel Tech Report | May 24, 2024
[Los Angeles, May 24, 2024] – HotelTechReport, the leading online buying platform for hotel technology, has announced that it has surpassed 50,000 authentic product reviews. This milestone represents a significant achievement for the hotel software community, underscoring the platform's commitment to transparency, quality, and user-driven content. HotelTechReport has long been a trusted resource for hoteliers seeking reliable information and reviews on a wide range of hotel software solutions. With this new milestone, the platform has solidified its position as the go-to source for hoteliers worldwide who are looking to make informed dec...
