Hotels and chains are looking to meet the rising demand for more bandwidth as they ramp up their hotel group meetings business. Throughout the industry, hotels are upgrading (or have recently upgraded) their Wi-Fi to serve in-room guests. Now that these properties are growing their group meetings business, they're finding that their existing bandwidth is no longer sufficient. Problems can arise when your Wi-Fi service becomes stretched too thin. This can diminish your competitive advantage and even lose business. On a broader level, it can also damage your branding because, let's face it, few things are more frustrating that attending a conference with spotty, unreliable Wi-Fi. READ MORE

More and more, smaller independent hotels striving for success in the group meeting business find out they're not truly on their own. Vying for this business remains highly competitive. Some strategies, however, can increase their chances to attract, impress and retain a significant amount of group meeting business. When you're responsible for a lifestyle or boutique hotel's success, go with your strengths. Be unique and distinctive, target a niche in your community, and emphasize how you offer guests a truly different and memorable experience.That's not to say it's easy. Successfully booking group sales at an independent hotel relies less on sheer volume and more on savviness READ MORE

Since its infancy in the late 90s and early 2000s, paid search has been a highly effective tactic for capturing would-be travelers that are actively exploring travel options. There's seemingly no better way to attain a new hotel guest than by delivering an ad promoting your hotel when someone is searching for “hotels” in your market area. For instance, if you are promoting hotel rooms in Las Vegas, you would likely deliver relevant ads to people searching for keywords such as “Las Vegas hotel,” “Las Vegas hotels,” and “Vegas hotel reviews. ”According to Prognosis Digital, 79% of people that book hotels online search for that particular hotel on a search engine before buying. Thus, having a presence on search engines is essential for any hotel. READ MORE

As simple as it sounds, knowing which customers are profitable is a challenging task for many businesses. Predicting which customers have the most profit potential is even more challenging since it requires estimation of future business. Applying these same modeling techniques and profit calculations to potential customers adds yet another degree of difficulty. Customer lifetime value (CLV) is a (relatively) old concept. Businesses have been calculating the expected operating margins received from a customer from long before the birth of the internet and modern data tools. READ MORE

Rate optimization is arguably the most critical component of a successful Revenue Management strategy, but most hoteliers still tend to fall into two broad categories when it comes to this discipline: Set-it-and-forget-it, or follow-the-market. Both of these approaches are sub-optimal as they simply ignore the evolving purchasing patterns of increasingly savvy customers. We live in an era of disintermediated distribution, and the reality is that meta search and third party aggregators have made it easier than ever for customers to shop and compare options. READ MORE

In the hospitality and tourism industries, guests' happiness reigns supreme. With ever-changing consumer demands and evolving technologies, new developments and renovations alike often cause disruptions to the normal function of businesses, impairing the public's accessibility to the venue, or adjacent venues. Hence, construction timelines become a crucial issue with projects situated in high-density tourism areas. Improved time-efficiency minimizes the disturbances in local businesses' operation and profitability. Yet, shorter timelines might come at a price of higher expenses on labor, machinery and materials. READ MORE

In today's environment, hotel owners and operators must find or create a food and beverage (F&B) concept that is accessible, inviting and relevant to the market. It's important to create an atmosphere that entices hotel guests out of their rooms and into the greater scene, as having an alluring, busy restaurant enhances the hotel guest experience. However, to create a sustainable and profitable F&B offering, the hotel must attract local customers as well. To achieve this, the menu must be crafted around an unfulfilled need in the market and deliver on the service promise of the hotel brand. READ MORE

It's no secret that one of the most important aspects of any hospitality company is how it develops and manages its food and beverage program. Oftentimes, a business or leisure traveler will make his or her decision on the next vacation or property based on the offerings in this category. At Best Western® Hotels & Resorts, we have an understanding of just how important it is for us to differentiate our product from our competitors and constantly rethink and reinvent our offerings to exceed consumer expectations. Through guest feedback, research and analysis, we've uncovered that a quality breakfast is a significant driver of guest satisfaction in both the business and leisure travel segments. READ MORE

Food and beverage sales represent a huge source of revenue for full-service resorts and hotels. As a result, many properties spend a great deal of time and money refining food preparation techniques, menu selection, and even restaurant decor. Yet, these same hotels often ignore the area that can have the biggest bottom-line impact on F&B delivery — technology. Today's best-in-class F&B software systems address every aspect of operations — from online reservations and mobile ordering, to point-of-sale and payment. So, whether you're a small boutique hotel or a large resort property, consider these five technology solutions when planning your restaurant upgrades. READ MORE

In the restaurant industry, good isn't good enough. People no longer seek out the best ingredients, menus and experiences; they expect them. There's a reason why Panera Bread has vowed to remove artificial ingredients from its food by the end of the year, and it's no surprise that Darden Restaurants - which owns Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse and, until recently, Red Lobster - is floundering. People are asking: “Why overpay for a mass-produced pasta dinner with processed meats and cheeses that's also available at over 800 identical restaurants around the country?” READ MORE

A city's win of a major special event like the Republican or Democratic National Convention can mean a boon for the local economy, including the hospitality industry. Unfortunately, these days, it also means heightened security concerns. Whether here or abroad, acts of terrorism, bombings, and active shooter situations are a part of life and cannot be ignored. Hotels—particularly those in special event host cities, or those hosting large conventions or multiple conferences simultaneously—need a plan in place to reduce their risk exposure to these horrific events. By developing security action plans and reinforcing them, hotel management can be sure they are doing the best they can to protect their guests and business without spoiling the fun of these events. READ MORE

Still crawling out of the recession, businesses continue to employ a conservative approach with every decision affecting the bottom-line. This offers an even bigger challenge in the hotel industry, where guests expect top-notch properties at an outstanding rate. With the internet providing a seemingly endless array of travel review websites ready to critique each aspect of your property to offer affordable alternatives, how does a hotel stay profitable while keeping guests happy (and writing positive reviews)? READ MORE

Here's why I admire menus: it's the only marketing content that's guaranteed to be read. Once the consumer is seated at a table, they are almost guaranteed to make a purchase. Less than one percent of patrons are likely to depart a restaurant after being seated. Therefore, 99 percent is an outstanding conversion rate that digital marketers would sell their first born to achieve. I would say congrats to all the restaurateurs for achieving this amazing feat of feasts, but we have to be forthright, your margins are miserable. The purpose for our research was to understand how consumers increase spending after viewing a menu, and we've discovered that creating an experience is the catalyst. READ MORE

Hyatt Regency Savannah is embracing the city's exciting foodie scene with a vibrant new restaurant concept that will give guests an authentic dining experience and an up close view of Savannah's riverfront, while at the same time, will meet the day-to-night needs of the modern traveler. For the past few years, hotels have begun modernizing their offerings for a new type of traveler—one that's readily plugged in (sometimes literally with their smartphone in hand) to the newest trends in design, technology, food, and experiences. This traveler expects far more from their hotel than just a comfortable bed at night. READ MORE

Faced with new, demanding guests, hotel restaurants are relying on local sourcing, quality ingredients and authentic experiences to return to the glory days of hotel dining. Not all that long ago, the best dining you could find in any city in America was in a hotel. In cities like New York, Chicago, San Francisco, even in my city of Atlanta, grand hotels offered acclaimed restaurants known for their fine cuisine and memorable experiences. People got dressed up to enjoy steak and lobster, oysters and fine wine. For their discriminating guests, chefs served surprises like shrimp cocktail, baked Alaska and smart cocktails. READ MORE