In today's fast-paced digital world, spas have become a respite from the stresses of everyday life. As wellness vacations increase, resort spas have positioned themselves as the perfect place to unwind and disconnect, even if just for a little while. Every part of the spa experience should be seamless and stress-free, but to complete the wish of the savvy traveler, spas must be the ones to connect in order to allow their customers to disconnect. Spas need the latest technologies and operating systems to function at the highest level so their customers can truly have a worry-free experience. READ MORE

Today's hotel industry is rapidly evolving to meet the needs of a digitized society. These efforts require mobile and global marketing strategies to reach customers at an unprecedented rate. Social media has become the go-to tool to foster visual communication and engagement with target audiences, and marketers can use social media to deliver digestible, consistent, and influential content to potential travelers looking for "Insta-worthy" accommodations. From working with influencers, highlighting service features, and understanding diverse markets, social media gives hotels a platform to distinguish their brand and expand their customer base faster than ever before. READ MORE

When I speak with my industry peers, asset managers and owners lately, they tell me that the number one thing keeping them up at night is the increasing cost of customer acquisition. To appreciate why that concern appears to be not just prevalent, but justified, we first need to take a step back and look at the bigger picture about what is currently taking place in the hotel industry. Understanding why rising acquisition costs are an issue-and appreciating some of the complexities involved in the strategic and perspective shifts that will likely be required to effectively address that issue¬-is essential for hotel professionals who want to continue to thrive in an evolving industry. READ MORE

In today's world of hospitality and hotel management, fostering the perfect work environment can be difficult. With a bevy of personalities and ever-changing expectations, managing a robust team is a crucial skill that team leaders must possess. In this article, Eliezer Quinones offers his insights on hotel management, building an enigmatic team, driving business through teamwork, and achieving goals. We will explore the best ways to communicate with your team, motivate your work staff, find value in their skillset, and more. READ MORE

Major hospitality markets like Miami are seeing a shift from hotel brands planting new flags in long-time popular beachfront destinations like South Beach to urban cores like Miami’s highly dense Brickell and downtown neighborhoods. Domestic and international brands entering and expanding in the region’s hotel market are gravitating to these thriving urban locations. Among the reasons why is the emergence of the live-work-play lifestyle that makes urban locations more attractive to both leisure and business travelers and the development of large scale, mixed-use projects that creates built-in demand and value-add synergies. READ MORE

Digital marketing execution is a major contributor to a successful hotel opening and requires engaging specific tactics and strategies as early as when the first shovel hits the dirt. Concord Hospitality's pre-opening digital strategy, themed "From Shovel to Shoot" by associates, emphasizes a digital marketing pre-opening checklist that begins when the first shovel is put in the ground and continues through opening day when the first official photo shoot occurs. This is a key driver in any hotel revenue generation game plan and will maximize future successes and early returns for all investors. READ MORE

Accurate demand forecasting is extremely important for a hotel as it drives strategic planning aimed at optimising sales, increasing operational efficiency, improving customer service and maximising profit. Predicting what the customer wants, anticipating the sales of products and services helps managers understand revenue opportunities and make informed decisions about pricing and business growth strategies. It involves attempting to gain an insight into the future while relying solely on past trends and present events. Forecasting is the scientific version of crystal gazing and while future events may deviate from past trends, the intelligent insights obtained from forecasting, provide a reliable platform to build upon. READ MORE

The hurricane season of 2017 brought with it destruction of near-Apocalyptic proportions. The Southeastern states, Texas and the Caribbean were hammered relentlessly with catastrophic winds and disastrous flooding. Like many businesses affected in the region, hotels and resorts are still working to recover from the damage and the right partnerships with insurers are helping many properties get back in business as they rebound from one of the most destructive storm seasons on record. In this article, we look at the 2017 hurricane season, its effect on the hotel industry and how the right insurance partner is essential to business continuation planning. READ MORE

Every year, some of the world’s brightest minds and most iconic celebrities assemble in Salt Lake City, Utah, to impart their knowledge, network on the surrounding ski slopes, and dance the night away at a private concert. The annual summit, put on by Qualtrics - one of the fastest-growing technology companies in the world - achieved record highs in attendance in 2018 with 7,000 delegates, perpetuating the company’s mandate to improve the quality of the conference content and the overall experience. How has this annual conference grown so quickly? It is all about the hospitality and a real focus on the guest experience, and this article will take a closer look at why the Qualtrics conference is so different from other business events. READ MORE

Now that online guest reviews are an established feature of both brand.com and OTA booking sites – led by TripAdvisor, Google and Expedia – successful hoteliers are taking a more strategic approach to guest opinions. They understand that crafting appropriate responses to reviews is a high-level responsibility that should not be automated or delegated to junior staff members without proper guidance. These hoteliers subscribe to the opinion that standard responses should be banished. READ MORE

Online reputation has a direct effect on hotel bookings and revenue. Many hoteliers have discovered that promptly responding to reviews has a positive impact on a hotel's online reputation. Online guest reviews cannot be modified or changed once they are written, nevertheless, responding to them is still very important and impacts the perception of your brand and ultimately reservations. This article will look at how to create an effective response strategy, so you can leverage the power of reviews and boost your conversion rates. We will also provide insight into the approach taken by two well-known hotel brands when responding to reviews. READ MORE

The hospitality industry is changing in ways we never saw coming. Thanks to Millennials who don't travel like their predecessors coupled with growing competition from disruptors in the sharing economy, all players in the travel arena need to up their game with new concepts and innovation in order to not just stay relevant, but profitable, too. Hotel sales departments need to completely change the way they've done business previously in order to have success selling to this new generation of traveler. Technology and experiences are key, but we also can't risk losing sight of compassion and creating relationships. READ MORE

Embedded in the travel-buying decision making process is consideration of online reviews. Led by the mother of all travel review sites - TripAdvisor - these resources provide a platform for individuals to post direct comments about their experiences in specific hotels and resorts. Smart owners and operators are embracing the major review sites, gleaning information that gives them an understanding of the guest experience - good, bad or indifferent - and serves as a barometer for answering the question: "How are we doing?" This article provides an overview of the main review sites and their influence, offering recommendations for responding to reviews. READ MORE

What are the hotels of the future? Will all the newest technology implications harm or hurt us? Jackson Thilenius of Retail Design Collaborative highlights what the future of the hotel looks like, how technology is rapidly changing our lives for the better and for the worst, and how hotels can help fill a need in the marketplace as a safe haven for consumers to “tap back in” to our true selves, senses and the wonder of life and our humanity. READ MORE

While external consumer platforms like Yelp, Trip Advisor, and other social media network channels provide transparent, experiential guest reviews, they lack the often-needed, internal scrutiny. Understanding the mix of both customer reaction and operational efficiency can expose important cracks that impact performance. This article reviews the significance and value of unbiased, comprehensive, routine spa inspections and wellness program assessments. And how incorporating systems for “routine, reaction and review” can reveal critical insights pertaining to performance gaps, risks, volume and yield. These services can also help highlight new revenue opportunities and improve creative ideology, enhance profitability and guest experiences. READ MORE