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Why Germ-Zapping Robots and AI Technology Could Be the Future For Cruise Ships - 0 views

  • Cruise lines have arguably been well ahead of the game when it comes to new technology in the travel industry
  • -- even before the COVID-19 pandemic took hold in March and led to a global suspension of operations.
  • What COVID-19 has done is to add a more 'urgent' element that will force the industry to speed up that process of adding to the passenger experience and enhancing health protocols."
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  • "Most likely to be rolled out first across most cruise lines and port terminals is temperature scanning, for example, thermal imaging using infrared to detect elevated skin temperatures, not only at embarkation, but for monitoring throughout the cruise."
  • Royal Caribbean's fast track check in -- take a selfie and scan your own passport; Celebrity's facial recognition technology; MSC Cruises' artificial intelligence system, Zoe, an Alexa-like onboard assistant; and Princess' Ocean Medallion, a part-app, part token approach to customized cruising.
  • Princess Cruises' Ocean Medallion, for example, unlocks the door as you approach so guests don't need to touch their door handle. It was simply a luxurious feature pre-COVID-19; now, in our new world it, holds far more practical importance."
  • Another possible change passengers might see are disinfection tunnels leading to the terminal and an entirely biometric system operating in the terminal, according to Jennifer Willy, editor at the
    • mmoutsatsos
       
      In our discussion we talked about how to justify spending money on technology and I believe this article does a good job at showing all the different tech the different cruise lines were investing in and how it todays day with COVID it has become money well spent. We also talked about disruptive innovation and how if a company doesn't adapt it will fail. The cruise industry see the move to things become touchless and have already taken steps to meet expectations.
  • Apple and Google both are developing track and trace apps, which can alert crew whether someone has been near an infected person.
  • thermal imaging cameras to test passengers' temperature; the aim of the technology is to give a ship's medical team the information to decide whether a passenger should be allowed to board.
  • One of the aspects that we might lose, at least in the short term, is the personal touch --
  • "There are systems for air purification and pathogen removal for the whole terminal facility that could be implemented, along with UV lighting, and the obvious thermal imagining for temperature checks,"
  • touchless tech. This is already used widely by the lines in the form of apps, which allow you to do a whole variety of things -- often without the need to log onto onboard Wi-Fi.
  • ct as a keycard to open your cabin, to order and pay for drinks; make bookings at restaurants, shows and the spa; book shore excursions, check your account, track your loved ones or even control the lights and temperature in your cabin.
  • "For instance, a ship could use virtual queueing apps to limit how many people are able to go to a certain area at any given time, which would make certain there is no crowding at a lunch buffet, in the fitness center or at the pool.
  • MSC Cruises' geo-location wristbands mean you can find your friends or family wherever they are on the ship (using your app), rather than meeting them at a central point somewhere.
  • Most of the major lines have been running with enhanced technology for a couple of years.
  • "Royal Caribbean's Bionic Bar cocktail maker was surely little more than a publicity stunt when it was conceived but it now seems a prophetic move by the cruise line. People will be understandably worried about food and drink preparation -- and shared buffets in particular - when they return to cruising. We may see an increase in automation as a result."
  • Ocean Now on some of Princess Cruises' ships, passengers can order food, drink and a selection of other products and receive them in a different location, away from other passengers or shopping areas.
  • could cruise lines introduce some of the changes that are already being pioneered at hotels such as limited housekeeping, no room service and surfaces devoid of many items to help with cleaning?
  • whose LightStrike Germ-Zapping Robots (they've been likened to R2D2) are already being used in hotels, restaurants, food processing facilities, and office buildings -- and it has built protocols for cruise ships.
  • The robots use broad spectrum UV light to quickly decontaminate rooms and public spaces.
  • Xenex, Texas Biomedical Research Institute tested the robot against the virus that causes COVID-19 and it killed it in two minutes.
  • worried about touching surfaces in your cabin, just ask Zoe to look up information or power items on or off for you – MSC Cruises' voice activated Alexa-like speaker is in every cabin onboard MSC Bellissima and MSC Grandiosa, and is likely to be retrofitted onto other ships in the fleet.
  • "Voice tech will become important in the new touchless world too. Rather than having to turn off the lights or lower the blinds by hand, just ask 'Alexa' to do it for you,
  • "It will be an expensive time for cruise lines when they can least afford it. Lifelong cruise lovers will return after the pandemic ends but convincing new people to give a cruise a try may rely on ships becoming as touchless as possible."
  • I think onboard technology will augment the ways guests can communicate and interact with the crew, rather than replace them."
  • "Once again, completely replacing a human being is unlikely, and handing off conversations will be an important step."
  • Royal Caribbean found out to its cost in 2014 when it first introduced tablets for waiters to take orders, and were hit with a deluge of complaints because it meant waiters were buried in their screens
  • Cruising is all about the personal attention and relationships built with crew and other guests. 
  • "Personal contact with the ship board staff is and always has been a very important component of creating memorable experiences. The cruise product cannot eliminate that essence of the cruising experience.
  • He added: "Otherwise it will be just transportation from one place to another."
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    This article talks about the different technology cruise lines have implemented and the future technology they plan to include as they move for a more touchless approach to certain things.
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Hackers Target WHO, COVID-19 Research Firm with Cyberattacks - 0 views

  • The Office for Civil Rights recently warned healthcare providers that hackers have increasingly impersonated health agencies tasked with the Coronavirus response, as well as the FBI and the Department of Justice.
  • , healthcare organizations need to be reviewing and discussing their data protection strategies as more work shifts into the remote environment to ensure they’re protected in the event of a compromise.
  • “It is a critical time to make sure all your data is backed up, especially as many of the company assets are moving out of the office,” he added. “If it’s critical to always have your systems running and you could not afford the downtime to rebuild your systems, you need more than just cloud backup and would need to implement a disaster recovery solution to continue your operations with minimal downtime.”
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    Cyberattacks on health organizations. These organizations need to implement better data protection. Personal and medical data has been hacked and there is a continuous effort put forth to breach the systems that house this information. With more and more companies researching potential vaccines and remedies for Covid, now more than ever, organizations must have more than just cloud backups; disaster recovery plans should include offsite backups at a minimum.
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How Hotels Are Becoming Smarter to Adapt to Changing Times - 1 views

  • As one of the largest and oldest industries globally, hospitality has been adapting to a changing world for thousands of years.
  • the social distancing measures imposed by the Covid-19 outbreak have resulted in greater demands for cleanliness and contactless transactions. In contrast, concern over sustainability has made green initiatives a wise financial decision and a marketing necessity.
  • a 2019 PWC survey found that 70 percent of hospitality executives report being actively involved in IoT projects at their properties, compared to just 48 percent of executives from other industries.
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  • an IoT platform could save guest settings so that each time they book a stay at a particular property or brand, they will find the room tailored precisely to their preferences.
  • hotels are beginning to experiment with occupancy sensors in rooms, too (among other things) inform staff of the best times to clean a room to avoid guest disruption.
  • Hotels such as the YOTEL Boston, Aloft Cupertino, Renaissance Las Vegas, and Hard Rock Hotel Biloxi have begun experimenting with robot helpers to clean or provide contactless guest service.
  • For some hotels in Asia, robots proved to be the safest way to deliver food or vacuum the rooms of guests who were completing mandatory 2-week quarantine periods upon arriving in the country.
  • Starwood Hotels & Resorts has begun automatically adjusting indoor lighting in their public areas based on the amount of natural light entering the space.
  • the Wynn Las Vegas scans the temperatures of all people entering the hotel and pulls aside for additional screening of anyone whose temperature registers greater than 100 degrees.
  • In the future, facial recognition technologies could be used to allow staff to identify guests by name.
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    While Covid-19 has caused some major challenges to the hospitality industry, the industry is particulairy known for changing and adapting to an ever evolving world around it. Covid created a big push for hotels and large properties to begin to assess their technology stratagies moving forward and the industry is expected to continue to see a large push for new advances in technology that not only will help to create more sustainable properties but an overall better and more enjoyable guest experience. While this does potentially create an overall more enjoyable guest experience, the upfront capital expenditures for properties could cause potential impacts to the bottom line as well as disrupt the guest experience during renovation times.
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COVID-19 & Employment: State & Local Laws - 0 views

  • Although it is not possible to discuss all related state and local developments that have occurred, this update provides a brief overview of some of these developments to help you maintain compliance for your organization.
  • Over half of all states have issued this type of order. In addition, over 80 counties and more than 10 cities have issued their own orders, typically in the absence of a state order
  • Several of the orders also require that non-essential businesses cease operations at their physical locations, but do allow for minimum basic operations to continue such as the minimum necessary activities to
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  • Maintain the value of the business’s inventory, preserve the condition of the business’s physical plant and equipment, ensure security, process payroll and employee benefits, or for related functions.
  • Facilitate employees of the business being able to continue to work remotely from their residences.
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    With COVID-19 shutting down businesses across the world or at least taking their work remotely, businesses have left their equipment behind. However, under these restrictions, businesses are still allowed to maintain the condition of their physical plants and equipment.
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Panera tests ghost kitchens, mobile kitchens, virtual catering - 0 views

  • Coming off a year of innovation during the pandemic, Panera Bread is looking to go all-in on convenience technology in the future, with ghost kitchens, mobile kitchens, virtual catering, and redesigned drive-thru lanes already in the works
  • ted about
  • “We are excited about creating our vision of the next generation of Panera,” Chaudhary said. “This next generation [of Panera stores] will use 5-6 disruptive ideas to drive greater customer engagement.”
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  • “These are the kinds of things we are thinking of recreating and redefining for the Panera of the future, which is going to be more off-premise-oriented, and led by technology and convenience,”
  • Besides smaller physical footprints, other aspects of Panera 2.0 will include delivery-centric ghost kitchens and mobile kitchens
  • An online version of catering will look like all of us sitting around a Zoom meeting with our food arriving at the same time
  • That is a disruptive way of serving the same needs consumers have in a different way that is more convenient and relevant in a world that looks different.
  • The pandemic has changed the way operators should approach convenience technology
  • Chaudhary said they’re looking at other forms of technology like touchless kiosks where instead of tapping a screen to place their order, customers might use hand gestures instead like giving a thumbs up, for example. This way, they can leverage consumer needs for contactless experiences without sacrificing engagement.
  • A disruptive model is a hybrid of both [third-party and in-house delivery],” Chaudhary said. “We might leverage our existing drivers for orders and every time we need some help, we can outsource it. These are examples in this new world of us being able to innovate, to improve and strengthen our business model
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    The article explains how Covid-19 has affected the dining industry and how companies have to adapt. In this article, specifically, it talks about how Panera is implementing ghost kitchens, changing how they approach catering, and how they can keep their consumers safe in a post Covid-19 world. Many hospitality based businesses are changing the way they operate, permanently, because of the pandemic.
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Covid-19 Will Drive A Decade Of Tech Growth In Just Two Years - 1 views

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    The article describes how COVID-19 has accelerated the implementation of technology. Companies like Netflix have profited from the pandemic and more systems will be coming to light in the next two years. Its important for companies to assess what technology they would invest on.
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    This pandemic have definitely brought to light many new technologies. It was untul this, that im guessing many of us has even heard about the online platform called zoom; which professors continued to conduct classes. we saw how many person also started using the internet as their primary platform in promoting and exchanging goods of their business. Although everything that we do cannot all be ran through an online platform this have definitely paved a way for greater things ahead.
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    It is true that the pandemic have brought opportunities for technology development. This article on Forbes gave us insight in the current situation from another view. It listed the data of stock market and the share prices of leading technology companies to support the topic that the pandemic is a game-changer. From my point of view, this may reflect that technology development is necessary in the modern world and one of the future trends of most industries will be remote communication.
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Hotelogix announces contactless capability for guests, compliance with COVID-19 guideli... - 0 views

  • Hotelogix, a leading Enterprise-Grade Cloud Hotel PMS provider releases an API stack, enabling complete contactless check-in and check-out experience for hotels
  • various other guest-facing capabilities
  • works ‘on mobile’, without a mobile app
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  • contactless platform in compliance to COVID-19 guidelines, which eliminates the human touch in the entire course of the guest stay at the hotel.
  • collecting feedbacks, selling upgrades, in-room ordering,
  • o perform all check-in related activities from the ease of their own device without having to interact face to face with any hotel staff.
  • digitizing other areas of interaction between the guest and the hotel.”
  • seamless end to end integrated experience with contactless modules
  • pace of recovery
  • how fast hotels can implement technology to adapt to the new normal."
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    The article talks about Hotelogix, a cloud-based hotel PMS, teaming up with Xperium's new technology that enables complete contactless check-in and check-outs. This new technology allows guests to perform all the normal check-in activities right on their cell phone, without the need to download a specific app. It digitizes the paperwork so the guests can electronically review the reservation and sign off on the registration card. They can also select their room right from their phone. This new technology complies with the COVID-19 guidelines and will be key in the industry's recovery. The new technology doesn't just end with the check-in process. It offers various capabilities such as collecting guest feedback and preferences, up-selling rooms, ordering room service, and can even take credit card payments. With the pandemic and the need for contactless services, this will help push cloud-based PMS to the forefront. The speed in which hotels adopt these new types of technologies will be crucial to their recovery in the new normal.
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Event Management Software Sales to Flatten Due to COVID-19 Pandemic; Key Market Players... - 0 views

  • The event management software market is anticipated to witness significant growth during the forecast period, owing to increasing use of social media and proliferation of smartphone usage and rising usage of event management software platforms.
  • The companies have started promoting event management software to improve the efficiency of their events business. These event management software platforms help organisers to increase the number of attendees through social media such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn as well as they help in increasing the sale of tickets by the event management software market.
  • The event management software market is classified on the basis of component type, deployment type, organization size, end users and region. On the basis of deployment type, the global event management software market is segmented into cloud deployment type and on-premise deployment type of the event management software market. On the basis of organization size the global event management software market is segmented into small enterprise, medium enterprise and large enterprise.
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  • The event management software market study discusses the key trends within countries contributing to growth of the market, as well as analyses degree at which drivers are influencing the market in each region. The key regions and countries assessed in the event management software market report include North America (U.S., Canada), Latin America (Mexico, Brazil and Rest of Latin America), Western Europe (Germany, UK, France, Spain, Italy, , Nordic, Benelux and Rest of Western Europe) Eastern Europe (Russia, Poland and Eastern Europe) APEJ (China, India, ASEAN, A & NZ, and Rest of APAC), Japan and MEA (North Africa, South Africa, GCC, and Rest of MEA) in the  global event management software market report.
  • The key competitors covered are Zoho Corporation Pvt. Ltd., Cvent, Inc., Bizzabo Inc., Eventbrite, Inc., Eventzilla, etouches Inc., Zerista, Certain Inc., Ungerboeck Software International, Social Tables, Gather Technologies, Inc. and Xing Events.
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    After the COVID-19 pandemic, the event registration industry is expected to boom once large scale events restart. Much of this is attributed to social media like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. It is believed that due to the increasing use of social media and smartphones that event registration software will become more apparent in the event industry than it already is.
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Communication Agility is Key to MOHG's Ability to Continue to Deliver Superior Service ... - 0 views

  • araschiv: How is Mandarin Oriental using technology to assist you operationally during these unprecedented times? Luthje: From the onset of the pandemic, we as hotel operators had to ask ourselves two important questions: 'How do we keep guests and colleagues safe?' and 'How do we stop the spread of COVID-19? One avenue and tool that helps us achieve these goals is simply 'Digital Communications.' While many of our hotels remained open, some closed and teams were furloughed. We knew we needed to stay engaged with our furloughed colleagues to keep them updated on the company and re-opening plans, etc. Fortunately for everyone at Mandarin Oriental, we have been using the Beekeeper employee communication platform for more than five years. Through the app, colleagues can access an RSS feed from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) to keep apprised of new guidelines and they can receive alerts from us showing the many layers of protection we are putting in place with our "We Care Program" to keep them and our guests safe.
  • Luthje: Because of our digital communication strategy, we don't have employees who want to cut corners on the new procedures; instead, they are more engaged and prouder to do their part in keeping everyone safe. Many offer ideas on how to improve processes. We attribute this success to Beekeeper; the platform really makes a difference in empowering our colleagues to deliver a delightful and genuine guest experience. We can explain in the app how colleagues can find the tools they need, and in return, they tell us what we can do to make processes better. Being agile is key.
  • Paraschiv: How is technology helping employees to do their jobs right the first time? Luthje: Beekeeper offers failsafe communication in how tasks need to be performed. If a colleague forgets how to do something, they can open the Beekeeper app and see what needs done. To go a step further, Beekeeper integrates to other technologies like LUA (formerly Whispr). LUA provides digital checklists in the user's own language to personalize the room cleaning experience. Housekeepers see step-by-step instructions on how to perform each task on the list. It also forces accountability by requiring housekeepers to confirm when tasks are complete. This tool is also a big help in public area cleaning. Management can use it to provide checklists for cleaning public restrooms. A rule can be set that every 20 minutes an attendant must refresh the space. If 25 minutes have passed and the bathroom attendant has not confirmed cleaning, management will get an alert.
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    An explanation how the Beekeeper platform has assisted a hotel group during COVID-19
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Party, event planners lose business over coronavirus pandemic - 0 views

  • Natasha Miller expected her San Francisco event planning company to organize more than 600 events this year, basking in the glory of previous corporate parties planned for corporations such as Google and Yelp.
  • As more cases of coronavirus are confirmed globally, Entire Productions feels the crimp caused by the outbreak as her clients are “pulling the plug” on contracts.
  • four to six more weeks of cancellations.
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  • organizers are canceling or postponing events throughout the country because of the outbreak of COVID-19.
  • which has 10 full-time employees, suffered a loss of more than $15,000 in the past month alone.
  • Smaller-scale event planners also feel a high level of uncertainty.
  • “None of this is going to allow us to make up for the lost revenue and growth,” she said. 
  • “My prediction is that my business will make 50% less of what it expected to do, if not less.”
  • 'No Income at all for this month'
  • The event planning business generates $325 billion of direct spending in the USA and helps support more than 5.9 million jobs with $249 billion of labor income, according to an Oxford Economics and Events Industry Council study in 2018. 
    • tcale003
       
      An event company in San Francisco was planning over 600 events this year. As the Covid-19 pandemic has spread globally, many clients have canceled or postponed their events. Organizers are predicting that their businesses will make 50% less than what is expected if not less.
  • organizers are canceling or postponing events throughout the country because of the outbreak of COVID-19.
  • “My prediction is that my business will make 50% less of what it expected to do, if not less.”
  • which has 10 full-time employees, suffered a loss of more than $15,000 in the past month alone.
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    With Covid-19 crippling businesses everywhere, event planning companies are no exception. With gatherings more than 10 people, being postponed or cancelled, most events and concerts have been cancelled. With contracts, deposits paid for, and purchased tickets, event planners are struggling to stay afloat.
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How Restaurants Can Minimize the Impact of COVID-19 - 0 views

  • This article presents strategies and tips to help restaurants minimize the revenue impact of the coronavirus, and for driving new revenue where possible.
  • make your restaurant as clean as possible.
  • Send a message to your customers that your restaurant is a haven from what’s outside.
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  • Lower rates of walk-ins and new bookings mean that you should plan to overbook more than usual.
  • Stay on top of stimulus options
  • Analyze POS data for food cost savings
  • Partner with nearby restaurants
  • In general, make sure your team has a plan in place for dealing with a sick customer. Protecting your employees and making the other customers feel safe remains your number one priority.
  • Even if diners end up going to restaurants less frequently during this period of social distancing, they might still come together for notable calendar events, such as Easter, Passover, Mother’s Day, Graduation celebrations, and so on.
  • Market your restaurant as a safe place to gather.
  • Engaging your regulars is going to be critical during the coronavirus. These are the people who probably already see themselves as part of your community.
  • Offer your community a safe place to come together, get to know them, serve them. You will inscribe a place for your restaurant in your community’s shared history.
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    This article is about how restaurants can use new and creative ways to minimize the impact of COVID-19. Specifically it gives some great ideas and context around cleanliness, flexibility in reservation policies, identifying cost saving opportunities, and unique ways of driving revenue.
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Resy's response to COVID-19 - Resy | Right This Way - 1 views

  • Resy has committed to providing 100% relief on all fees and billing (effective beginning March 9) now through the end of June.
  • Resy has added a module to restaurant pages on Resy.com that links to restaurants’ current revenue streams.
  • Resy has also compiled map-based lists in many major markets of Resy restaurants that have shifted to takeout and delivery options,
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  • Resy’s reservations ticketing feature allows restaurants to package ‘takeout meals’ for their guests to book online.
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    This article is about how Resy's reservation platform has been addressing and redirected restaurant needs during COVID-19. It has specifically made adjustments in offering relief on fees and billing, aggregating resources, and highlighting takeout/delivery options.
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EventTow Online service booking for Event Management Wedding Planning - Everything Expe... - 0 views

  • Event Tow, the one-stop Android application and website for event management & wedding planning, announced its launch today. With a sharp vision of solving age-old problems of event planning through AI, the company is targeting to change the way people plan their events & weddings. Using the EventTow app, customers can easily book all their events and wedding needs online. The EventTow app is the first attempt to provide customers seamless booking experience through transparent availability for venues/artists/DJs/makeup artists/salon services/birthdays/caterers, etc. at the best prices. Now, from the comfort of their homes, users can book vendors for different events as easily as they buy products online. For vendors, Event Tow offers year-round opportunities and a superior reach to millennials for events in all categories‐ from big fat weddings to corporate parties.
  • Event Tow also provides concierge services and helps the customers and corporates to make their events and wedding planning hassle-free and smooth. The app has bridged the gap between consumers and businesses by collaborating with large salon chains and hotel chains and offering their services directly to the clients.
  • To ensure safety and hygiene during the pandemic, Event Tow requires its vendors to maintain social distancing norms and other best practices such as wearing masks and sanitization. The app enables customers to organize their events safely without taking the risk of going out.
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    Another Article about how Covid-19 has affected the industry. In this one in particular, is about an application that can be accessed by Android phone or website called Event Tow. With this new app that was inspired in millennial technology and Covid-19 pandemic, the customers can book events from the comfort of their homes and/or office. I believe this could be another example like the Smart-bar
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The Benefits of Hiring an Influencer for Hospitality Marketing | By Colin Hannan - Hosp... - 0 views

  • Influencers have been a part of modern hotel marketing strategies for several years now, and it could be argued that influencers have played a key role in traditional hotel marketing for many decades
  • Think of how The Ritz in Paris became synonymous with icons like Coco Chanel and Ernest Hemingway - who they've named their old world cocktail bar after.
  • Inspire an Established Audience
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  • The right influencer should match both your brand values and the values of your audience, bringing an already-established crowd of relevant consumers to your digital door.
  • The audience's goal is to use that influencer's experiences to guide and inform them as they choose their next getaway destination - positioning your property as the place to be.
  • Educate Your Audience
  • Hotel guests can't get enough of reviews - the more in-depth, the better. An influencer can provide the most detailed content about your brand and the guest experience you offer through high-impact channels utilising video, blogs and photography.
  • The best influencers are seen by their audience to be unbiased and objective, which puts them in a position of authority and trustworthiness when it comes to purchasing decisions.
  • People follow influencers and engage with them because they believe they have a wider range of experience to better understand the brand, products and services they are talking about, similar to a professional hotel reviewer.
  • influencer marketing actively builds trust in your brand.
  • it's an ongoing challenge for hotels and hospitality marketing departments to keep coming up with something fresh and exciting - something their audience wants to see.
  • Good professional influencers really shine when it comes to this side of hotel marketing strategies. Not only do they have a deep understanding of what their audience (and therefore your audience) is looking for and what resonates with them, they are also creative specialists in finding fresh and entertaining ways to deliver this content.
  • leveraging their creative expertise is not only rewarding in terms of results, but helps to avoid critical missteps that can happen in a marketing strategy. You'll get more engagement, avoid the kind of faux pas that can cost you, and drive followers and leads to your website and social pages.
  • COVID-19 has made social media more powerful than ever before
  • Instagram, a primary platform for many influencers, saw some of the biggest increase in terms of use, with 2020 projections showing 14% growth - an additional 3 minutes of time per user on the platform per day.
  • One of the best ways of leveraging these changes in user behaviour work for your hotel marketing strategy is to get an established influencer who understands you brand and already has a relationship with your target audience to work on your campaigns.
  • Influencer Marketing is the Edge Your Hotel Marketing Strategy Needs
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    This article discusses the benefits of utilizing influencer marketing to give your hotel/restaurant marketing strategy a more competitive edge. They noted that influencers inspire an already established audience and provide inspiration to followers to live more fully and "experience something out-of-the-ordinary." I learned that the key to a great influencer is finding someone who matches both your brand values and the values of your audience. They also discussed how influencers add authority and trust and how they are seen by their audience to be unbiased and objective. This puts the influencer in a position of great trustworthiness when it comes to purchasing decisions. The article also discussed how influencers help marketing departments by coming up with fresh and exciting content that their audiences will want to see. Lastly, the article touched on that since the COVID-19 pandemic social media has become more powerful than ever before. People are spending an additional 3 minutes on Instagram per day. The best way to leverage this new increased usage is to get an established influencer who understands your band and who already has a relationship with your targeted audience to work on your campaigns. Overall, influencer marketing is here to stay and if carefully researched you'll see a strong surge of engagement on your social media platforms.
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What is Contact Tracing? - 0 views

  • Contact tracing is a public health practice that health departments use to identify and notify people who have been exposed to someone with an infectious disease.
  • Public health workers reach out to these exposed people to tell them that they've been in close contact with an infected person and to give them information and support to help them keep themselves and their loved ones safe.
  • People who have tested positive for COVID-19 infection receive a phone call or a short survey by text or email from the health department, asking them who they may have exposed while they were contagious
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  • Your identity and health information that you provide to a contact tracer is always kept confidential. It will not be shared with anyone who may have been exposed. 
  • Anyone who was within 6 feet (2 meters) of an infected person for a total of 15 minutes or more within 24 hours is considered to be a "close contact."
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    This article talks contact tracing with Covid-19. Health care works will contact anyone that person has been in contact with via phone call or text to let them know about the exposure.
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Reopening Las Vegas: Casinos, businesses open amid protests, COVID-19 - 0 views

  • It was set for launch on Tuesday morning, two days before casinos planned to end the coronavirus shutdown and open doors to visitors for the first time in almost 80 days.
  • demonstrations resulted in hundreds of arrests
  • things changed again when another violent night of unrest left a police officer shot in the head and a man dead outside a courthouse. The commercial was shelved
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  • Because of the passion and sensitivity and pain our community was feeling as well as every community in the country, we thought it would be more appropriate to show restraint."  
  • With intel from the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, Vassiliadis monitors room occupancy rates, bookings and visitor numbers at McCarran International Airport. The data, he said, has been promising – but nowhere near pre-pandemic levels.
  • MGM Resorts International is only booking 30 to 35 percent of available rooms at the reopened Bellagio, New York-New York and MGM Grand.
  • “While it was different, it was safe, it was fun, and it’s still the Vegas I know.’
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    Las Vegas casinos delayed their anticipated reopening by several days due to civil unrest and protesting. Digital marketing including a new ad campaign was ultimately pulled due to the heightened sensitivity surrounding recent events. Once the strip was eventually allowed to reopen, preliminary data was promising, but nowhere near pre-covid numbers, and capacity at resorts like MGM was being kept under 35% for the time being.
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Eating out after COVID-19: OpenTable diners weigh in [INFOGRAPHIC] - Open for Business - 0 views

  • The proportion of people in the US ordering takeout once a week or more for dinner increased 72% in April compared to pre-COVID. Numbers are up globally, too – 59%. 
  • The proportion of people ordering delivery once a week or more went up 62% compared to pre-COVID in the US.
  • In the US, the proportion of folks who cook at home daily is up 17 percentage points from pre-COVID rates.
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  • When it comes to dining out, US respondents are most excited about visiting restaurants with the people they are currently social distancing with (55%). 
  • Survey respondents in the US largely agree about what will make them feel safe eating out again: 72% said it’s “extremely important” to see strict cleaning policies. 
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    This article gives a snapshot of what a large grouping of diners say will help them feel safe again to go out to restaurants. Specifically, it shares some great data around takeout vs. delivery percentages as well as cooking at home. It also outlines what measures are most important to consumers and what will really excite them to dine out again.
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Choosing the right IT and cloud services provider post-Covid: A guide - Cloud Computing... - 1 views

  • Now, as most economic indicators begin to trend positive, companies are once again ramping up their IT projects. Long term solutions are necessary at the scale required for sustained operations and cost effectiveness.
  • In this article, we look at three options – IT consulting firms, IT outsourcing companies, and cloud systems integrators
  • There’s also the reality that many of the larger consultancies really aren’t positioned to efficiently or cost effectively help organisations implement necessary IT strategies. Their areas of expertise lie in assurance services, taxation, management consulting, advisory, actuarial, corporate finance and legal services, to name a few.
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  • They may have the staff to take on something like a cloud migration or cloud-native application development project. But technology implementation is not a strategic part of their business, so they aren’t necessarily eager to take on these types of projects — particularly if they aren’t of a scale that would allow them to make a sizable profit.
  • They have to rely on proven, repeatable methodology to remain efficient — even if it’s at the expense of better project outcomes for their customers.
  • Companies that specialise in IT outsourcing aren’t faring much better than the big consultancies. While they may be more cost effective than a large professional services provider or consultancy, many potential clients are becoming hesitant about working with them.
  • That’s not to say there still isn’t a place for the large technology consulting firms or IT outsourcing companies. But for companies that want the flexibility, scalability and cost benefits that cloud services provide, working with a company specialising in cloud technologies – as a true, long-time strategic business partner, rather than just a point-in-time technical resource – may be the optimal solution.
  • A viable option may be to go with a mid-sized company that specialises in technology implementation — particularly in the areas of cloud migration and cloud-native app development.
  • Cloud systems integrators are able to be more innovative than larger companies that have no wiggle room for experimentation or exploring new methodologies.
  • These companies develop solutions that can meet current requirements and adapt as those new requirements emerge. For many, their work for a customer is just the beginning of a much longer partnership that will evolve to help that customer continually leverage cloud technologies to meet changing needs.
  • However, many of the cloud-centric companies have chosen to focus their efforts on specific platforms, such as Amazon Web Services (AWS) or Microsoft, enabling them to gain familiarity with and expertise in the many tools and services those particular platforms offer. They can effectively leverage those resources to help their customers implement targeted, effective solutions.
  • Like the large technology consulting and professional services companies, the IT outsourcing companies also tend to rely on standard processes that can be repeated over and over to keep costs down. There’s no room for innovation.
  • Pandemic or not, hiring a big-name IT consulting firm often comes with an equally big price tag. Forgoing work with these higher-priced companies or simply cancelling projects reduces expenditures.
    • vanessavioli
       
      Cost is something that is a very serious part of any technological consideration by management. Will that investment be worth it in the long run and pay for itself. Smaller businesses cannot afford a misstep.
  • Few, if any, industries escaped the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. Even in the technology sector, where change is a normal part of business, many professional services and technology consulting firms struggled to cope with the disruption.
    • vanessavioli
       
      COVID-19 was/is the ultimate disruptor. It affected every single industry, but affected the hospitality industry in the most profound ways.
  • Yet another potential downside: larger firms tend to be less agile than their smaller counterparts. While they sell innovation to their customers, they are often too big and cumbersome to embrace the new ways of working and thinking that they promote on the consulting side.
    • vanessavioli
       
      It is interesting that it actually takes larger businesses to adapt to new technology, however once again it must come down to cost. Revamping a large company technologically is extremely costly and a very long complicated project.
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    This article provides insight on three various types of IT providers and there methodologies. It definitely emphasizes the benefits of specialized companies that focus on cloud computing as their IT service and business model and their ability to b=continually adapt to the changing environment and their desire to create long term relationships. It also talks about how larger IT companies are more focused on strategy rather than implementation of systems. It also talks about how the larger IT companies are much more focused on their own profit than providing services to the client and how cheaper off shore IT companies basically provide the same services at a lesser quality
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Cleaning robots are powering an automation revolution in hospitality - The Washington Post - 0 views

  • While Vi-YO-Let, the product of a partnership with Denmark-based UVD Robots, might play cute tunes and light up as she moves, she has a serious job: disinfecting the air and surfaces around her. And she does so remarkably well: Her array of UV lights, which look like a bundle of lightsabers, kill more than 99 percent of viruses and bacteria, including the coronavirus.
  • More and more guests are requesting the robo-cleaning package
  • But as the pandemic rages into its second year, major brands are increasingly turning to the world of high-tech disinfection to strengthen their cleaning protocols
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  • It’s a trend that’s slowly transforming housekeeping — and accelerating the pace of automation in hospitality.
  • Until recently, only health-care workers would frequently interact with disinfecting bots, which cost upward of $125,000 each. It’s a steep investment, but if it boosts travelers’ confidence, it’s worth it,
  • The appeal to the hospitality sector of virus-slaying UV light is obvious. Hospitals have found Xenex’s patented machines kill “22 times more pathogens” when compared with a room cleaned to CDC standards alone, Miller said.
  • certain hospitality jobs, those where face-to-face customer service is a key part of the experience, were less vulnerable.
  • Today, travelers might stumble on UV bots anywhere from five-star hotels and convention centers to train stations and cruise ships.
  • Verified Market Research that projects the market for UV disinfecting bots will grow to more than $5.5 billion by 2027.
  • Some robot makers refer to these kinds of bots as “cobots,” a portmanteau of “collaboration” and “robots,” because they’re intended to work alongside people rather than replace them.
  • a report that predicted more than 60 percent of jobs in hospitality-dominated cities like Las Vegas could be automatable by 2035
  • Take the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, Calif. The iconic hotel, famous for hosting the annual Golden Globe Awards ceremony, boasts in one promotional video that its Xenex robot staff “zaps every inch before your arrival,” leaving you a “pathogen-free sanctuary” where you’ll “rest assured you’re sleeping in the safest room possible.”
  • the pandemic is likely to accelerate the automation of jobs in sectors like hospitality.
  • “If they can develop driverless cars, if they can develop the whole variety of different things I saw there, certainly the jobs in our industry are going to change.”
  • Unite Here negotiates “extensive technology language” into its labor contracts. This helps ensure that workers can retrain for new skills, transition to other roles or at least receive severance pay if their jobs are automated out of existence.
  • Even as new technologies create new roles, some types of jobs may go away for good.
  • For now, even a state-of-the-art robot sometimes requires the delicate human touch.
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    This article explains how robotics in hospitality is becoming far more common because of Covid-19. They go into detail about how, right now, all robotics require the assistance of humans. But they also go into how that can change in the next few years. The better technology gets, the less need there is for human support.
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Ziosk sees future momentum after restaurant tech thrived before widespread COVID-19 shu... - 0 views

  • Ziosk’s restaurant products became increasingly popular after the coronavirus began to spread in Kirkland, Wash., said Baum, co-founder.
  • The Dallas company’s touchscreen technology enables remote ordering and other features, and that’s in demand when social-distancing suddenly becomes more important.
  • While the company hasn’t escaped the pressures of the coronavirus, it’s been able to make its case about the future in the restaurant industry and how social-distancing will make its products in-demand over the longer-term. That’s continued to stir interest in the sector and beyond.
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  • Even before the pandemic, Ziosk, while not a consumer brand-name, has attracted big-time customers. On its website, it lists such partners as Olive Garden and Yardhouse. The company provides devices that let customers pay at the table, get access to digital games and see restaurant promotions, along with other services.
  • And now, restaurants are beginning to open again, even if under limitations in some parts of the country.
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    The Ziosk products were popular before COVID19 but have now increased in popular after the spread of the virus. It allows for social distancing by ordering through the Ziosk that sits at tables in restaurants like Olive Garden, helping to minimize contact between the guest and the server.
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