No matter how your organization is currently structured, it is important to involve your salespeople in your social media strategy. And since it is tough for a sales team to shift gears from “hard sales” to using social media, effort on the organization's part is extremely crucial to ensure they have your support. The majority of salespeople are already involved in various communication channels like email, phone, newsletters, etc., so why not give them the training on social media that is needed to make them even more successful. However, who has time for social media? Certainly not salespeople, right? READ MORE

By its very nature, the Internet has made our society very skeptical of electronic messages. Consumers no longer take any marketing message at face value. Specific to the hospitality industry, prospective customers are increasingly wary of what's being sold through hotel websites and direct advertisements. To gain credibility and thus generate new sales, you have to double your efforts on the core experience your property offers. Focus on making a select few aspects undeniably memorable, ensure that your guest services are flawless, and tell your tale wholeheartedly through your social media channels. READ MORE

In 2011, hotel brands and individual hotel properties embraced social media platforms as never before. Global brands such as Starwood Hotels and Resorts and Hilton International stepped out of their “comfort zone,” and experimented with everything from loyalty program rewards for Foursquare “check-ins,” to global “treasure hunts” executed via Facebook and Twitter. Smaller boutique hotel brands and independent hotels were innovators, as well, launching stylish promotions with like-minded partners, developing engaging video content, and deploying direct booking via Facebook. This article takes a look back at some inspiring campaigns - large and small - from 2011, and offers hints at new directions for the New Year. READ MORE

Never before in the history of our industry have hotels had so many opportunities to market and sell their room inventory. Facebook, TripAdvisor, Google, mobile, online, GDS and traditional voice, among countless others, present infinite opportunities to increase exposure for a property on a global level. However, there is one tool that remains crucial regardless of the channel you're selling through, and that is the hotel website. Many hotels, especially independents, have only scratched the surface with the foundation of their online presence, inadvertently making serious errors that may in fact be hurting their chances to sell. Following are the five website failures hotels make, along with how to fix them. READ MORE

One of the greatest challenges that hotel executives face is retaining their valued employees. Hoteliers don't always have the extra funds to reward their valued employees the longevity increases that they want and often expect. So what can you do to reward longevity─without spending a lot of money? Many non-financial rewards have a high-perceived value to your employees and no-cost to you. In addition, we provide some low-cost alternatives for you to explore. While this article offers a wide variety of rewards, the best ideas for you may not be here, but we will tell you how to find them─without spending any money. READ MORE

Litigation under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) has long been a favorite of plaintiffs' employment attorneys. Claims under the FLSA are expensive and difficult for employers to defend and offer plaintiffs and their attorneys the possibility of attorneys' fees as well as the potential for significant liquidated damages. Claimed attorneys' fees often significantly exceed the damages awarded to employees. One area of the Fair Labor Standards Act which is seen increased litigation recently is claims by tipped employees. READ MORE

A hotel's housekeeping department is what keeps everyone in the hotel employed, especially a general manager. The relevancy of a clean guest room or hotel building is paramount to the success of the business. It is incumbent on the general manager to ensure the property is meeting his or her standards. The biggest fear a general manager has is being featured in an undercover story on the cleanliness of their bathrooms, or their bedding, or any part of their building. General managers must recognize the importance of their role in the success of the housekeeping staff and be actively involved in all aspects of the housekeeping process. READ MORE

The purpose of the article is to certainly touch upon the importance of the service standard, but also, we will dig deeper into situations that can perhaps be damaging existing standards. Perhaps you may not have any to begin with, so how do we start developing a base set of service standards, while identifying where we best fit in the market (or in this case establishment scale)? Let's take a look (from an end user's standpoint) into a hospitality establishment that has obvious service standards, vs. a comparable that has them (service standards in place) but not being implemented or executed properly.. READ MORE

More than ever it is essential that spas deliver the exceptional experiences that ensure guests come back time and again. In this article, we look at the top five ways spas can make their customers fall in love with the staff, service, and overall operation. The focus is on building and retaining a relationship with the primary guest base. READ MORE

Selling a hotel can come with a great amount of pressure to ensure the business appeals to prospective buyers. If sellers don't take the steps necessary to make their businesses marketable, they could face a long, tedious process and ultimately sell for much less money than they had hoped. Fortunately, there are steps that sellers can take to avoid this situation and put themselves in the position for a quick, smooth sale. Read my article below to learn what hotel sellers need to know about marketability when putting their businesses on the market. READ MORE

The challenge of optimizing IT investment is relentless for the hospitality sector. This article reviews some of the salient issues that impact on optimizing new technologies by revisiting the determinants of technology adoption and then by sharing some of my research into Strategic Technology Relationships in the Hotel Sector, conducted earlier this year with the hospitality technology managers (CIOs and IT Directors) in the major European hotels. Finally, some suggestions are proposed for the future optimization of technology in the hospitality sector. READ MORE

With hotel executives discussing the newest updates to the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design rating systems, LEED 2012, due to be released in November of this year by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), many are asking what this will mean to the hospitality industry. Trish Donnally, ForrestPerkins' director of communications, talks to top hoteliers and sustainability specialists and reveals why LEED 2012 could be a game changer. READ MORE

Some of us prefer to pay for well-made products that operate effectively, yet when we try to buy a cell phone, landline phone (or almost anything else you care to name) that has not been made in China (usually with as many short cuts as possible to maximize profits) it proves practically impossible. The ubiquity of it all makes for a grim shopping experience. Extrapolating into the hospitality world, imagine if hotel ratings were adjusted so that two-stars were reported as five-stars because occupancy rates were insufficient in "higher-end" hotels to justify the service levels of "old-style" five-stars. READ MORE

The advent of publishing tools for the web made it possible for the nontechnical user to publish content without any knowledge of HTML or FTP, and ushered in the era of the web blog… a term used to describe web sites that maintain an ongoing chronicle of information. This is often referred to as a form of social media advertising. The question that businesses are now asking themselves is one of participation, should their company be blogging? READ MORE

Fact: the majority of all hotel reservations are directly affected by each hotel's online and mobile presence, reputation management and search rankings. How each hotel connects its Internet marketing initiatives will determine its success or failure. Success is a combination of the hotel's Return on Engagement (ROE) and its Return on Investment (ROI). To produce the best possible short term and long term results, the hotel must plan, implement, maintain and measure its marketing initiatives. The plan must be flexible and accommodate constant changes. Implementation has to be quick to gain a competitive advantage. Constant maintenance is essential for online reputation and social engagement. How results are measured is much more than just monthly percentage shifts in guest reviews. Connect your marketing and you will connect with more customers. READ MORE