Hotel Technology
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The Five Levels Hotels Need to Climb to Master CRM!
Did you know only 26% of hotels globally use a CRM? That’s a huge missed opportunity! CRM isn’t just for big brands; it’s a powerful tool for independent hotels and smaller chains to boost revenue and guest satisfaction. Imagine: 👉🏻 Email marketing that pays for itself (ROI of 20-50 or more) 👉🏻 Increased revenue from upselling, cross-selling, and repeat business 👉🏻 Guests feeling truly valued with personalised experiences Here’s your step-by-step starter guide to mastering CRM: Level 1: Start Simple ➡️ Collect guest emails from bookings and check-in. ➡️ Send targeted email offers and promotions. (permission based) Level 2: Personalise Your Approach ➡️ Use PMS to gather guest preferences (room…
- Hospitality Industry, Hotel Marketing, Hotel Technology, Productivty and Time Management, Uncategorized
War and Hospitality: Why Great Hotels Share Similarities (But Struggle in Unique Ways)
Leo Tolstoyan wrote, “All happy families are alike, but each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way” Well, the same goes for hotels. The successful ones all seem to nail a similar set of things: 🟢 Dream Team: Strong leadership, a collaborative crew, and everyone’s on the same page. 🟢 Marketing Magic: Knowing who you’re trying to reach and using the right channels to get there. 🟢 Distribution Dynasty: Striking a balance between getting your name out there and keeping prices fair. 🟢 Guest Gems: A focus on a diverse, sustainable guest mix and making sure every stay is stellar. 🟢 Retention Revolution: Building loyalty programs and keeping the…
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The top pitfalls that hotels must avoid in 2023
Everyone I speak with is upbeat about the coming year. This year may be the closest to normalcy since the pandemic. It is easy to get carried away or feel laid-back. Here are some things hotels should be aware of:Revenue versus budget: As the year progresses, demand may be higher than anticipated. It may be lower in rare cases. The benchmark should be market performance, not budget. RGI is the best option.Over-reliance on social media: Just because you have complete control over what you post on this channel does not mean it is the most effective. There are ads galore, and their reach is shrinking as personal content is prioritized.…
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The Growing Disparity between Guest experiences at Home and in Hotels
Do I need to provide a statistic to show how digitalization accelerated during and after the pandemic? Consider your own smartphone usage and the number of tasks you completed on it before and after the pandemic.So this is what your guests have become accustomed to.👉🏼 They can order food from the comfort of their own homes by using an app.👉🏼 Users can use shopping apps to order almost any product and have it delivered to their home.👉🏼 They have instant access to any type of entertainment.👉🏼 The majority of apps learn about the user and provide personalized recommendations.👉🏼 Their friends, as well as Google, Alexa, and Siri, respond immediately to…
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Does your hotel need an app?
For most hotels, the answer is still “No". It's time to skip, move on, and browse away!However, if you're interested in how guest behavior has changed as a result of the pandemic, what hotel apps can do these days, whether they can drive revenue, and whether they're a good fit for your property, keep reading.Let us begin with the guest behavioral changes hastened by the pandemic.They can use an app to order food from the comfort of their own homes.Shopping apps allow users to order almost any product and have it delivered to their home.They have access to any type of entertainment on demand.Most apps learn about the user and…
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The Great Talent Crunch in Hospitality-Commercial Edition
Several hotel general managers have approached me for assistance with recruitment. In order of the number of requests, here are the positions they seem to be having trouble with:Revenue ManagersDistribution/ E-Commerce ManagersSocial Media ManagersMarketing ManagersCommunication and PRDigital Marketing ManagersThere are challenges elsewhere, but because I specialize in the commercial arena, the requests I get are in this area.Hiring anyone to fill vacant positions has been a challenge, let alone talent. If what is happening in the US and Europe is any guide, the talent crunch is not going to ease for a while, even in Asia. Here are some thoughts on what hotels can do to tackle the issue and still…
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Incorporating a New Process, System, or Tech in Hospitality
I have observed hospitality to be a very process-driven industry. For most serious hotels, SOPs on everything are sacred. If you are an outsider, it may be a little hard to appreciate the complexity. There are so many moving parts: systems, people, vendors, contractors, etc. If you have any experience running a household, just multiply it by the number of rooms a hotel has to get a feel for it. Processes have served the industry well in standardizing the quality of product and service offerings. However, when you are in the business of digitisation like me, you come in to disrupt. Introducing a new system or process is always hard.…
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Hospitality’s Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) Culture
One thing I've noticed about the hospitality industry is that it is very interested in what others are doing. It is common for hotels to use a system, technology, strategy, tactic, or structure just because everyone else does it.This tendency is easily exploited by partners, agents, OTAs, and technology vendors. Vendors frequently release case studies, advertorials, and poorly disguised help pieces to entice hoteliers. The media is always eager to publicize the newest and greatest inventions. When platforms like Snapchat, TikTok, AI, augmented reality, and others first came out, they were heralded as the next big thing in the hotel industry. In Second Life, I remember that vendors built hotels…
