As social customer service matures to become one of the main customer service channels guests are using today, engaging with customers on social media is a main priority for companies in the hotel industry. As hotels are becoming more and more innovative in terms of technology and mobile access, guests now turn to channels like Facebook and Twitter first when complaining in real time, about a travel and lodging issue. Below outlines how hotels can maximize the benefits of social customer service, as they show guests that customer engagement and guest experience is their number one priority. READ MORE

For many hotel businesses, measurement of energy, waste and water is a hit and miss affair. Those businesses that have developed effective procedures to 'hit' the resource measurement button have found that they can use their knowledge of resource consumption patterns to drive impressive cost and environmental savings. Those that have 'missed' have found their organizations mired in targets that cannot be met, staff who are not motivated and customers who are unconvinced by claims of sustainable practice. READ MORE

Welcoming the new generation of touch control cooktops into hospitality offers a consolidated solution for en-suite cooking that is cost-effective, eco-friendly and safety enhanced; and while the initial equipment costs are higher; the measureable savings to operating expenses coupled with intangible benefits to safety and sustainability net a win-win value-added proposition. READ MORE

Even if one occasionally played hooky, all of us remember the so-called “three R's” from our school days: Reading, wRiting and aRithmetic. For the past 25 years, businesspeople aiming to create the most efficient, cost effective and profitable operations focused on another three R's: Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. Now that socially responsible business practices have gone so mainstream, a new threesome sums up the opportunities we face in this new age. Namely, reducing Risk, increasing Revenue and enhancing Reputation. And what business leader would not wish those three benefits for (and from) their company? READ MORE

The “Internet of Everything” is the networked connection of people, data, processes and things. Twenty years ago, how broadly the internet would change our lives and grow in ubiquity was unimagined. Today, our connection to each other via the internet is fundamental to how we interact and how we run our businesses. For example, currently the majority of customers in the hospitality industry use the internet to research and/or book their stays - whether it is for hotels, timeshares or short-term rentals. Many people base their decisions on feedback and reviews found on major Online Travel Agency (OTA) sites with hundreds of million unique users every month. READ MORE