Opinion Articles

February 18, 2010

Here’s someone all hoteliers should meet

Even during a phone interview, Jim Loyd is in complete control. It’s nothing new for him to be a leader—after all, he spent 38 years in the public service sector, including stints as an EMT and a police officer. In his roles as evening manager, night auditor and director of security for Hotel Teatro, Loyd is a multitasker who has learned to expect the unexpected. Take the night of Tuesday, 26 January 2010, for example. That’s when Loyd saved the life of a Hotel Teatro guest in distress by practicing what he preaches at the downtown Denver luxury boutique hotel.

Cayuga Hospitality Consultants

February 11, 2010

Demand Management: An Update*

In an article published in the Journal of Revenue and Pricing Management in 2007, (Vol. 6, 4-260-263), two faculty members from the Hotel School at Cornell, Assistant Professor Chris Anderson and Senior Lecturer Bill Carroll wrote a very insightful piece on the subject of demand management as it has emerged from its more traditional antecedents of revenue or yield management. What follows is a concise updated summary on that piece.

February 4, 2010

What to do when things go wrong in a hotel

People often corner me at social functions to tell me about a problem they’ve had in a hotel. It doesn’t matter if I’ve never worked for the hotel or the incident occurred seventeen years ago; apparently, it’s my duty to listen. Sometimes I get the impression they think I’m somehow to blame.

By Daniel Craig, Founder & Chief Strategist, Reknown, Reknown Marketing

February 3, 2010

What is more important than location in selecting a hotel? | Jonathan Barsky & Lenny Nash

Are location, location, location the three most important things that determine the success of a property? The purpose of a recent Market Metrix global study of the hotel industry was to analyze the reasons why guests select a particular hotel. The results of this study offer insight into the current behavior of hotel guests and the corresponding market opportunities.

By Jonathan Barsky

February 2, 2010

Managing Hotel Revenue and Everything That Drives It

I wish hoteliers would stop thinking that lowering your rates will sell more rooms and increase room revenue. That tactic may sell a few more rooms, but it rarely sells enough rooms to offset lowered rates. It’s simple economics; simply selling more rooms increases expenses, while even slightly higher or flat rates increase profit. As occupancy demand increases, ADR should increase as well.

Hotel Marketing Coach

The next-gen metrics that move hotel P&L

February 1, 2010

Could Apps be the New Search?

If you are researching a trip to Italy, or want to learn about wines in the region or even just keep track of calories and new recipes while you're away,"there's an App for that." It is important to acknowledge that phrase has now become common vernacular among iphone users just as "Google It" has to the entire population. With a current user base of 1.5 million iphone users and 1.2 Million Ipod Touch users in Canada alone (Mobile Fringe), 2010 just may be your "app-ortunity" to launch a mobile marketing strategy.

A Couple of Chicks

Ontario, Canada

Ad Tambourine One

All you need is one.

Some call it a website with a booking engine built in. Some call it a booking engine with a website built in. We call it One.

Tambourine

Ad Guide

Hotel tech has changed what's possible – and measurable. RevPAR and ADR aren't enough; discover the metrics that really matter.

Mews

January 25, 2010

ALIS through the looking glass - what to watch for

As we get ready for another ALIS conference, here are some interesting trends to watch for in the hallways and on the panels: 1.Attendance: The number of people sitting in the opening session is always a good indicator of how the industry feels about itself. Conference organizer Jim Burba is optimistic, and I always find it interesting to estimate the ratio of people in breakout session versus doing deals in the hallways. 2.Operators’ mood: While transient demand numbers seem to have stabilized, group demand is still wanting.

By John Hogan, CHA CHMS CHE CHO

January 25, 2010

The Evolution Of Best Practices In Hospitality And Tourism (part 1 Of 2) | Dr. John Hogan

Recognizing that future success in hospitality and tourism will come from different practices if the industry will continue to evolve and grow in the next generation. The hospitality industry in many ways has become a mature industry, with innovations primarily in the technology side. Tourism, by contrast, can continue to evolve as the next generations embrace the traditional venues, while seeking alternative locations and interests such as volunteer tourism, environmentally related sites and humanitarian causes.

January 22, 2010

Applying Five Tenets of Sales and Marketing in These Tough Times

We made it through the holidays celebrating responsibly—as those alcoholic beverage commercials remind us so well—but still with that dark cloud hanging overhead, that inescapable awareness that the industry’s tough times will no doubt carry over throughout 2010 and possibly beyond.

By David Brudney, ISHC, David Brudney & Associates

January 21, 2010

Market share vs. profits - an oxymoron

Webster’s Dictionary defines “oxymoron” as “a combination of contradictory or incongruous words.” And recent comments by some industry experts suggest the following two statements are mutually exclusive: 1.Hotels are more worried about revenue than revenue per available room. 2.They are more concerned about market share than profits.

January 19, 2010

Revenue Management: Dynamic Pricing

Dynamic pricing means that a hotel will change its room rates daily or even within a day if up-to-the-minute market information reveals the need for adjustments. It is based on the recognition that the right rate to charge for a room night is what the customer is able and willing to pay. By underpricing, the revenue manager leaves money on table; by overpricing, the hotel may price itself out of the market. Those who practice dynamic pricing believe that the hotel has to continually adjust rates in response to ever changing supply/demand conditions. The constant challenge, of course, is trying to determine the optimal price on a given day or afternoon.

By Gabor Forgacs, Associate Professor Emeritus, School of Hospitality & Tourism Management, University of Guelph

January 19, 2010

A New Year, Renewed Focus and Best Revenue Management Strategies for 2010

For hoteliers in 2010, very few aspects of daily and strategic operations are going to be as crucial as revenue management. Of course, revenue management is important at all times but as the new year gets underway with a stronger recovery mentality – and about time too - it is especially important now: demand for hotel rooms is forecasted to increase only slightly more than 1%, and occupancy to essentially remain unchanged this year.

By Jean Francois Mourier, CEO of REVPAR GURU, RevPAR Guru Inc.

The next-gen metrics that move hotel P&L

Ad Guide

Hotel tech has changed what's possible – and measurable. RevPAR and ADR aren't enough; discover the metrics that really matter.

Mews

January 18, 2010

Customer service comes first for Andaz

Hyatt Hotels’ Andaz brand isn’t the first—and most definitely won’t be the last—brand launched with service as the centerpiece of its mission statement. Many hotel brands focus on customer service to some extent, and most of them earn passing grades. However, when it comes to customer service, it’s guest satisfaction that is the ultimate measuring stick. The recipe is quite simple: If you deliver the service that your guests expect, you will earn their allegiance.

January 15, 2010

Three smart moves for 2010 hotel capital plans

A new mindset is emerging from guests about what they want from their upscale hotel experience. Downward mobility is the new “trading up.” Today’s consumers of luxury goods and services are spending less on bling and more on the basics. Cash-strapped hoteliers should take this into consideration when establishing upscale hotel renovation budgets for 2010 and beyond. Three concepts can help hotel owners and operators better craft their new-reality capital plans for this year and thereby spend their dollars more strategically.

January 13, 2010

The key to your 2010 business plan? Make it a living document

In the uncertainty of today’s economic environment, the old saying, “Plan your work and work your plan,” is not only as good of advice as ever, it takes on a new meaning. We know the annual process of writing business plans produces our blueprint for achieving maximum performance. In this economy we know any number of economic variables could change from the predictions we made during the planning process.

January 11, 2010

Fear and growing in Las Vegas

It’s no shock that all eyes have been on the multibillion-dollar CityCenter project in Las Vegas as of late. As HotelNewsNow.com’s Patrick Mayock reported last week, the new 67-acre centerpiece of the Las Vegas Strip has been worth the five-year wait. It is spectacular in all ways, even though it isn’t even fully completed. But judging from the reaction after last week’s grand opening, the project is going to be a success.

las Vegas, Nevada, United States

January 11, 2010

Geller on value, recovery and ... Kinsey?

It’s rare that a conference keynote presentation begins with a joke about the Kinsey Reports—those controversial analyses of sexual behavior penned by Dr. Alfred Kinsey and others. But then, there’s hardly anything about a Laurence Geller address that fits the typical mold.

January 6, 2010

Price Impact on Guest Satisfaction

Research within the hospitality industry suggests that price plays a significant role in the perception guests have towards the value and quality of the hospitality product they are buying (Mattila et al., 2003, p. 329). Guests simply expect to receive a higher level of service when they pay more for the service (Matzler et al., 2006, p. 181). Within the hotel and cruise industry, this in essence means that higher performing yields result in higher guest expectations. Assuming that the product delivery and service quality is static regardless of price fluctuations, higher expectations also often consequentially result in lower guest satisfaction. This article will explain the impact price has on guest’s price perception, and it will also explain how guest’s value perception, loyalty and expectations are related to the price they pay.

SQInsight

January 5, 2010

Hotelier’s 2010 Top Ten Internet Marketing Resolutions

Looking back, HeBS believes that 2009 was a year not only of challenges, but also successes for the industry. While no hotelier is sad to see the end of 2009, HeBS believes that every hotelier has learned extremely important and insightful lessons that have benefitted their Internet marketing and distribution efforts. Undoubtedly the most important and relevant initiatives in 2009 included holding every spent dollar fully accountable with analytics, not experimenting with unproven advertising formats, enhancing and optimizing the hotel website, and very carefully targeting the right customer segments. These tactics were integral parts of HeBS article “Getting Back to the Basics: The Hotelier’s Action Plan for a Difficult Economy” and hoteliers who made these recommendations priorities in 2009 were the winners in this economic downturn.

By Max Starkov, Hospitality & travel technologist and digital strategist, Hospitality Net