Retaining high quality leadership is critical to the success of any business, particularly hospitality. It is surprisingly difficult, even today, to find quality front-line staff, but even worse to lose them. The best way to attract and retain quality staff at the bottom, however, is by developing great leadership at the top. The General Manager is the lynchpin to a healthy culture at any given property. They set the tone and influence the quality of life for everyone else at the hotel. READ MORE

When it comes to implementing your hotel's service training program, it is not unlikely that you will face similar problems. When staff members aren't trained to perform tasks in a logical order, significant messes, operational and financial, are bound to spill over and impact your ability to manage your hotel, your budget, and your time. The best way to head off training mishaps before they occur is to develop individual work cycles for each position. Ask: What does each person in each position do? What are the effects of their actions and responsibilities on guests and other departments? READ MORE

Do you know what your customers are saying about you? How are you handling the constant stream of online reviews and ratings by customers? Are you interacting with prospective guests and actively promoting your brand through social media? Now more than ever, social media and reputation management are an essential component of the travel industry that impact not just your marketing team, but touch on every aspect of your business as it relates to the customer experience. If you're not effectively monitoring your online presence, you could be putting your brand at risk. READ MORE

Today it is simply smart business for hotels to install water-efficient fixtures such as low-flow showerheads and low-flow toilets that are up-to-date with high performance technology. Installation of water-conserving products in guest rooms alone can save a property upwards of thirty percent on water bills. In fact, there are eleven different categories of hotels. According to Water Management Inc., (a company offering water efficiency programs) some budget hotels to use as little as twenty gallons of water per occupied room per night whereas resort hotels can use as much as two hundred fifty gallons of water per occupied room. READ MORE

In response to perceived guest demand and government regulation, many international hospitality operators and local hotel operators have moved ahead with sustainability programs. However, many of these programs focus on different elements of “green” operation. One consequence of this diversity of sustainability efforts is that would-be guests cannot always compare one hotel's program to another. Thus, one challenge for the global hospitality industry is simply to define and measure exactly what constitutes sustainable practices, together with establishing consistent sustainability benchmarks. Contrary to established myths, sustainability programs confer several benefits on hospitality operators, including cost savings for well-designed programs, improved customer relationships, and, in many jurisdictions, meeting government regulations. However, sustainability can move beyond mere regulation to becoming a positive competitive force. READ MORE

We are all familiar with the basics of a hotel frequent guest program: customers earn points for staying with a particular property or chain, which are redeemable for anything from discounts, upgrades, to a free stay. While most hotels have loyalty programs, most place very little importance on their loyalty programs as a driving factor for increasing consumer bookings. But the truth is that loyalty programs can be a very important decision-maker, especially for frequent travelers, often hotels' highest-earning customers. Don't believe me? Let's look at the stats.. READ MORE

In the pursuance of growth, retailers know the key to profitability and success is location. Red Door Spas CEO Todd Walters explains the importance of identification and the prioritization of locations as critical factors in the prediction of the success of a site. The private-equity-backed company turned to Site Analytics Co, to create a quantitative formula factoring guest demographics, psychographics, competition and other Red Door-specific considerations to create a predictive model for the success or possible failure of potential locations. The model has also helped to improve under-performing locations, evaluate potential hotel partners and study best practices of thriving spas. READ MORE

Attracting new revenue and saving money is more important than ever in this economic climate and many hotels now recognize both of these goals can be realized through green programs. As a result, many hotel or hotel companies are claiming they have programs in place, but are they actually being implemented successfully? Is the full value of these programs being realized? This article examines how critical it is that eco-programs are implemented internally and successfully managed, plus it outlines the subsequent benefits that come from doing so. READ MORE

Recommendations from family and friends are the number one trusted source of insights and advice driving travel service purchase decisions. What are you doing to empower guests to spread the word about your property? Learn several easy and inexpensive ways to increase word of mouth and help drive bookings. READ MORE

With social media being the most popular form of online activity (1 in 5 minutes online is being spent using social media), one can argue that your voice online is becoming the most important facet of your hotel's online communication strategy. Gone are the days where push marketing is king. It's all about the one-to-one dialog, personal relationships, and the way you are represented online. Providing guests with an authentic representative as community manager to give them the answers they are looking for in real-time is the new king. READ MORE

Stories are for sharing, as is social media, making a branded online community the ideal channel for Fairmont Hotels & Resorts to highlight its storied history and unrivalled collection of luxury hotels. Hayley Mitchell, Social Media and Community Manager for Fairmont shares the reasoning behind the creation of Everyonesanorioginal.com and how the online portal has provided a major international hotel brand with an intimate way to hear from brand advocates and share unique information and stories in a more casual environment than traditional websites. READ MORE

Today, it's clear that consumers are not only embracing, but engaging with new technologies in ways that are changing the face of travel. The challenge that comes with digital innovations is deciding which to lev¬erage, and how to leverage them effectively. Instead of launching one-off initiatives, the most successful brands are developing digital media programs that are holistic, integrated and strategic. 'Going digital' really means authentically interacting with an audience through all of the platforms that make sense, in order to reach the consumer in a way that is seam¬less, intuitive, enhances brand identity and adds value to the customer experience. READ MORE

Without a sale there is no profit, without a person that is no communication and without features and benefits there is no sale. How does your art balance the components of people, progress and profit as we creatively brush at the colors of communication and passion that a hotel artist may use today. The success of each piece is through the canvas, color and palette that YOU bring to your audiences by and for the people through progress in a finished product and the profit of a sale. Balance of these components in a defined manner will without question lead to undiscovered revenues and thus increased profitability whether today or in the future. READ MORE

Hotels no longer face the choice of whether or not to go mobile, as the necessity to implement a mobile strategy is well established. Now the question is what platform to develop on. There are many options, each posing unique advantages and disadvantages. We'll identify and address some key factors to help you decide which options best satisfy your unique needs, both short and long-term. Properties should consider several factors when determining what ecosystem will provide the desired results. Some key elements include: cost, maintenance, functionality, exposure, distribution, and sustainability. READ MORE

The hospitality industry has long been defined as the “people business.” What's more hospitable than helping those who need it? Steve Belmonte believes that it's our responsibility to give back to those who need it the most and hotel corporations have great reach and opportunities to do so. Joining forces with a charity and putting the weight of the brand behind the philanthropic mission should be a no-brainer for hoteliers. By giving a charity organization 100% of your commitment, you'll see that, you really can make a difference in the world - whether it's just to one person, an entire community, or the planet. And customers will respond positively to that. READ MORE