Many marketers have used the pandemic as a crutch to get more exposure for clients, but to be effective today, we need to shift our messaging towards recovery, rather than the hardship we've all, collectively, experienced in the past 14 months. Here are 4 ways that marketers can improve their messaging to help hospitality companies discover the road to recovery. READ MORE

The pandemic has not only challenged our operational leaders – it has forced our sales and marketing leaders to fundamentally change how they work. Learn three prominent Sales and Marketing insights that we as a company have gained throughout the pandemic, and how we see those insights shaping our future revenue generation efforts. READ MORE

Direct booking has been a staple in the hotel industry for brands looking to build a stronger connection with their guests. But as we move forward into a future that increasingly focuses on user profiling's privacy and ethical concerns and a shift to a "cookieless world", the need for and value of first-party data becomes more evident. READ MORE

As the travel industry gets ready for post-COVID economic recovery to come into focus, natural language processing technology - deployed to analyze online reviews and guest feedback - provides a data-driven solution to help hotels improve hygiene standards, ensure impactful staff training, and successfully personalize the guest experience. These, in turn, can help operators craft safe, post-pandemic experiences that match the expectations of business and leisure travelers alike. READ MORE

As travel loyalty programs mark their 40th anniversary, are they still viable? Loyalty proved profitable even during the pandemic, and it is now more important than ever for hotels to preserve their guest relationship versus letting the online travel agencies become an intermediary. Owning the customer journey is still one of the most effective marketing tools for hotels to utilize. READ MORE

If we accept that the customer will change because of this terrible pandemic, then it follows that hotels will need to change, reimagine and reboot how they market and sell their brand. In this new article, Conor Kenny challenges many of the cliched sales and marketing methods that are no longer relevant and will make you rethink, question and plan for a new world order and vastly different guest expectations. READ MORE

If Radar O'Reilly of M*A*S*H* fame were here, he would sense three forces moving the hotel industry into the future: Knowledge is King; Living Longer and Aging Better, and More Time for Leisure. In this article, you will find new ways of thinking about how your hotel can take advantage of these tailwinds. READ MORE

Independent hotels are uniquely positioned to lead the commercial strategy charge by creating on-property leadership positions. An aligned commercial strategy allows hotels to drive revenue by eliminating silos and ensuring that sales, marketing, and revenue management are working toward the same goals. An on-property commercial strategy role creates a career path for discipline leaders and streamlines payroll costs. READ MORE

Your customers have changed! They aren't waiting around for you to sell them something. Instead, they are taking action – searching the web for solutions to their problems. Learn to position yourself as a problem-solving partner, not just a salesperson. In return, you'll meet your sales goals – despite the fact that you never sold them anything. READ MORE

New tech has allowed us to maintain work relationships (thank you, Zoom), personal relationships (FaceTime), and professional relationships (Clubhouse), while also keeping us entertained (TikTok), and informed for better or worse (Facebook/Twitter). New tech has also proven to be a linchpin in saving the hospitality industry. Hotels must continue to adopt new and existing tech to appeal to today's travelers. READ MORE

Despite the courts largely ruling in favor of insurers in response to COVID-19 claims, general liability losses continue to increase and impact hoteliers. Both the pandemic and other factors are contributing to social inflation, with rapidly expanding litigation costs impacting insurer claims payouts, loss ratios and rates. In this article, we'll examine the factors contributing to this trend and its potential impact on hoteliers. READ MORE

HSMAI's recent series of Executive Roundtable programs for hotel sales and marketing leaders revealed the trends, challenges, and priorities that have reshaped the hospitality industry during the pandemic - including the frustrations of trying to sell when so many factors are still up in the air, the advantages of focusing on high-performing verticals, the need to approach virtual sales and marketing differently, and the importance of training and supporting teams as they've adapted to remote work. READ MORE

Virtual events have dominated the meeting space for the past year, but with screen fatigue rising, many people are ready to travel for events and meet in-person again. Hotels should prepare to meet this demand by instilling confidence and providing safe experiences for meeting planners to successfully welcome the return of in-person meetings. READ MORE

The strength of your branding and marketing today will have a dramatic effect on long-term success. For hospitality, today's messaging needs to inspire consumers to get out again and return to travel. But we also need to manage expectations, and that has to happen at both the marketing and operational levels. It's time for an internal assessment and perhaps a course correction. Whether a small independent property or a multi-state operator, hoteliers need to be honest with themselves, be real with people, make smart investment and get creative. READ MORE

Hotel industry room rates were not problematic at all before the pandemic. However important they are, rates did not cause our problems, so rates will not fix them. This article discusses the importance of data-driven decisions and offers encouragement to exploring the real drivers of strategy. Larger market forces cannot be overpowered but understanding them can prove vitally important. READ MORE