The Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association is hosting two ASIA CONNECT conferences, one in Hong Kong on the 26th of November and the other, an inaugural event in Thailand on the 30th of November. Both conferences explore the impact of new media on sales and marketing for the hospitality industry.

The HSMAI Hong Kong/Macau chapter is hosting the ASIA CONNECT Hong Kong event at The Langham Hotel. The programme explores Social Media Marketing Case studies and/or best practices by Paul Mottram, COO, Upstream Asia, Marketing & Media, Jay Oatway, Journalist and HK’s Top Twitter Star and Matthew Eaton, Editor, Marketing Magazine.

“Along with the impact of new media, we also intend to look at what skills are required in this new age of marketing and sales, and we will present our findings from a Thought Leaders Online Research and Forum that we are hosting the day before ASIA CONNECT, which looks at the impacts of the current global economic crisis on Sales, Marketing and Revenue Management over the next 5 years”, said Ms Carmen Lam, Chapter Lead for the HSMAI Hong Kong/Macau chapter. Ms Lam is the Managing Director of Micros Fidelo Hong Kong Ltd.

The Hong Kong event also features Mike Walsh, the author and futurist, and CEO of innovation research agency, Tomorrow and a leading authority and keynote speaker on the digital future. Walsh has just published a new book, Futuretainment, which is a visual book on how media and entertainment are being transformed through consumer innovation.

Held at the Mövenpick Karon Resort, Phuket, the inaugural Thai event is a one day conference with an optional workshop on the second day. It features the infamous travel journalist, Yeoh Siew Hoon, who will impart the “Lessons learned” from the recent Web in Travel event, held alongside ITB Asia.

The Thai ASIA CONNECT also explores themes of Social Media, taking a quantitative look at social media. A special session on sales will address the matter of Selling in a Buyers’ Market and Optimizing Revenues, along with matters of Rate Parity and Best Available Rate Guarantee.

“We are very proud to be hosting the first ASIA CONNECT forum in Phuket,” said Craig Fong, a founding HSMAI Asia Pacific member and Chapter Lead for the drive to start a chapter for the organisation in Thailand. “We have received a tremendous amount of support for the event from local travel organisations, and we hope that the hotels in Thailand will embrace this opportunity to network and learn.” Mr Fong is the Director of Sales & Marketing for the Mövenpick Resort & Spa Karon Beach, Phuket.

For more information about these events, please contact HSMAI Asia Pacific.

About HSMAI

The Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International (HSMAI) is committed to growing business for hotels and their partners and is the industry's leading advocate for intelligent, sustainable hotel revenue growth. The association provides hotel professionals and their partners with tools, insights, and expertise to fuel sales, inspire marketing, and optimize revenue through programs such as the Commercial Strategy Conference, Sales Leader Forum, and Adrian Awards. Founded in 1927, HSMAI is a membership organization comprising more than 5,000 members worldwide, with 40 chapters in the Americas Region. Connect with HSMAI at hsmai.org.

Illka Gobius for HSMAI Asia
+65 6728 3820
HSMAI