There are three options to expanding your portfolio of hotels. You can purchase an existing property and leave it as is, build a new property or purchase an existing one and renovate it. Economics is what will drive your ultimate decision. In order to determine which expansion option best meets your objectives, it is important to properly and reliably evaluate each opportunity by breaking down its time, cost and quality elements in order to ensure success. READ MORE

Research shows that loyal customers spend more, serve as ambassadors for their preferred brands and are less likely to be drawn to a competitor's promotion. Loyalty and rewards programs are ways for both business owners and customers to get what they want while building a connection more intimate than a simple transaction. Successful customer loyalty programs build upon the concept of a dynamic mutually beneficial relationship. And now, as consumers are seeking custom-tailored experiences, technology is empowering business owners to provide robust, personalized loyalty programs that lead to guests coming back. READ MORE

According to Gartner, the customer relationship management (CRM) market is projected to increase to $36.5 billion by 2017. Businesses across all industries are looking to improve customer interactions through technology, but this is particularly critical for hoteliers who are losing ownership of customer relationships to online travel agencies (OTAs) that are outspending them on CRM technology and marketing. CRM applications have the ability to enable real-time connections between hospitality companies and their customers, and benefits are only compounded when solutions are integrated with advanced platforms for revenue management, mobility and business intelligence. READ MORE

After a catastrophe befalls your hotel, you are forced to cope with not only the significant costs of clean-up and repair, but the loss of business income when your usual operations are interrupted. In these instances, hotels often lose multiple income streams, from rooms to events to food and beverage. READ MORE

Hotel executives must make tough budget decisions every day. When funds are limited, it's tempting to limit expenditures on a hotel's exterior landscape. But this is a mistake—a beautiful landscape can bring more guests (and, consequently, more revenue) through the door. If you're working with a limited budget, follow these best practices to make sure that you see a positive return on your landscaping investment. READ MORE

This article discusses how hotel mobile apps can help create guest loyalty and retention by creating unique experiences and providing great utility that makes the property stand out from the competition. Ultimately, the idea is that a hotel app can be used as a competitive advantage and convince the guest to book at that property the next time they need accommodations. READ MORE

It is estimated that only 48% of travelers write and post travel reviews online. But since a hotel's online review scores contribute to everything from occupancy to RevPAR (revenue per available room) to profits, encouraging the remaining 52% of casual visitors to become social advocates for the brand is of critical importance. Luring these guests to action requires changes to both a hotel's operations and its marketing campaigns. While the specific recommendations made in this article may seem time-consuming, the results gained from improved social review scores make the investment well worth it for motivated hotel operators. READ MORE

It's engagement season! How is your hotel or brand driving customer loyalty and striving for that long-lasting relationship? If you want travelers to opt-in and engage with your digital marketing effort, they need to be wooed. Wooing, however, takes time and it takes finesse. More importantly, it takes precision in knowing just the right thing to say and when to say it. In "Engaging with Customers Beyond their Stays," Shayne Paddock, CIO of ZDirect, details the importance of using Hotel Marketing Automation to build customer trust and a desire for two-way communication. READ MORE

Business as usual produces the usual results: average quality delivered by uninspired employees. There are far too many companies known for providing ordinary customer service - or worse. And there are far too many employees who are content to simply execute the mandatory job functions for which they are paid, unaware of the myriad opportunities missed to delight customers. But for those companies that refuse to accept an unremarkable reputation by default and, instead, take steps to define and communicate their purpose and foster a corporate culture that inspires employees to deliver their best work, READ MORE

Workplace safety plays an important role in retaining productive employees, especially in the hospitality industry where turn-over is high compared to other private sector industries. Safe work environments affect employee health, staff morale and workers' compensation insurance costs. The following guest column by Barry Vogt, senior vice president and chief claims officer at EMPLOYERS, America's small business insurance specialist®, provides guidance on what hotels should do in the event of an on-the-job injury or illness to ensure their employees receive appropriate care and return to work in a timely manner. READ MORE

"Social Identity." It's a phrase heard increasingly often. Yet many hotel marketers still don't fully understand how the concept can and should fit into their marketing strategies. The brand tracking studies the industry uses seem to rely more heavily on competitive comparisons than on a distinct brand identity or social identity. In fact, do you think most consumers can really tell the different between brands? Learning how to market to their social identities will give you the edge you need to stand out from your competitors and earn their loyalty and affinity. READ MORE

This article describes an opportunity that could take your lodging brand (or establishment) to a higher competitive level of service, by applying the latest trends being used in the industry, to a traditional lodging front desk setting. But first, let's see the current state of the hospitality market. READ MORE

The time will come when Corporate Offices have to accept that the SOP-Customer Satisfaction guest experience concept is obsolete, however much technology they embellish it with. The energetic guest experience will replace it because it fulfills the unspoken emotional needs and wishes of guests. Corporate Offices will inevitably reject or resist such a change, and because of this the hotel industry landscape will change radically in the future. The future belongs to independent hotels and small hotel groups, which ignore the Sirens of Tradition, and which create an energetic guest experience, Heart-Based Hospitality, which has no limits. READ MORE

Despite industry efforts to the contrary, women still earn less money than men for the same jobs. Data analysis does not support the economic arguments for this disparity, and several studies have pointed directly to discriminatory policies. Regardless of the reason, the industry loses a valuable resource, as talented women look elsewhere for employment or leave to form their own businesses. To stanch this loss of talent, several firms have taken steps to promote women in their ranks. This article outlines the gender pay gap and suggests ways to improve the status of women--thereby retaining a large set of dedicated and talented workers. READ MORE

Service in today's hospitality properties is more far casual than it was during the era of 'Old World' hotels. Even though this may be more appropriate for the times and a big cost saver, we are losing sight of the glamour which with we have, in times past, attracted some of the brightest and most eager minds to our industry overtop of others with potentially more lucrative monetary compensations. All is not lost, however, as the hotel industry has many exceptional benefits for new entrants to the workforce, but only if we properly promote these incentives. READ MORE