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Switching to the cloud from a client server platform pays off with a big drop in both the initial capital outlay and the ongoing operating costs for the property management and other systems.

pects of a franchisee’s business, from guest check-ins and housekeeping services to billing and finances. Over time new features have been rolled into the software platform making it more robust and useful for hotel owners—it’s currently distributed in eight countries and available in four languages. And while plenty of cloud-based PMS packages are now available from third-party vendors like Micros, Maestro, and RoomKey, Choice’s internal solution has garnered its fair share of attention. “We had been getting knocks on the door from IT vendors at other hotel companies and individual Choice franchisees that own other brands, saying they were interested in our product,” says Pacious, “So we set up a new division so we could take a look at other opportunities we could develop.” This led the company to launch SkyTouch last year, a new division that develops and markets cloud-based software solutions to hotels inside and outside the Choice system. Pages: 1 2 3 4 2013-06-18 Sean Downey !function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js";fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,"script","twitter-wjs"); (function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk')); (function() { var po = document.createElement('script'); po.type = 'text/javascript'; po.async = true; po.src = 'https://apis.google.com/js/plusone.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(po, s); })(); (function() { var li = document.createElement('script'); li.type = 'text/javascript'; li.async = true; li.src = ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https:' : 'http:') + '//platform.stumbleupon.com/1/widgets.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(li, s); })(); inShare0 Related Articles attachment-3

his led the company to launch SkyTouch last year, a new division that develops and markets cloud-based software solutions to hotels inside and outside the Choice system. Pages: 1 2 3 4 2013-06-18 Sean Downey !function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js";fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,"script","twitter-wjs"); (function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk')); (function() { var po = document.createElement('script'); po.type = 'text/javascript'; po.async = true; po.src = 'https://apis.google.com/js/plusone.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(po, s); })(); (function() { var li = document.createElement('script'); li.type = 'text/javascript'; li.async = true; li.src = ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https:' : 'http:') + '//platform.stumbleupon.com/1/widgets.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(li, s); })(); inShare0 Related Articles Hotel Market Insight: Cleveland a

This led the company to launch SkyTouch last year, a new division that develops and markets cloud-based software solutions to hotels inside and outside the Choice system.

Start by Liking Other Businesses

Ask Other Pages to Promote You

o ensure your event is seen by customers, pay for Facebook bar marketing.

DON’T Skimp on Paid Facebook Bar Marketing

Use Free AnalyticsYou can also use “publishing tools” to look for patterns in your content.

DO Customize and Optimize Your Page

Verify Your Page

The Dreaming Phase: Where should I travel next? When online travel planners are looking for vacation inspiration, they can now turn to Facebook Graph Search to see places their friends have visited. This adds a more personalized element to researching possible vacation destinations. Users can search phrases like "Photos taken at places my friends have been to" and "Photos taken at hotels by my friends" to see more personalized search results from friends rather than conducting a more general Google search for potential travel destinations.

The Sharing Phase: How can I make my friends jealous? Not only can Facebook Graph Search help users discover recommendations from friends on things to do, it also allows them to share their own experiences on Facebook to add additional content to the Facebook Graph. One guest's Experience and Sharing phase can potentially ignite and influence a future guest's Inspiration and Planning phase when they view friends' scenic and enticing travel photos in Facebook Graph Search results.

provide us a good e-commerce platform that provides a reward for their loyalty to our brand on one of the most popular social networks."

The drastic improvements in the Audio-Video equipments, staging and lighting instruments have made sure that you need to make your event stand out.

Recently – online registration for events has taken the center stage with a lot of small players like Eventzilla. 

Social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter have completely altered the way we think about event promotion.

Technology has made sure that geographical impediments no more stop you from attending an event half way round the world. The webinars and live meetings are the newest venues for events the world over.

Now the event attendees can ask questions to the speaker via tweets or Facebook comments real time during an event. With the world tweeting away night and day, there is no doubt that technology has changed our life completely

The drastic improvements in the Audio-Video equipments, staging and lighting instruments have made sure that you need to make your event stand out. No more can you pass off an event with just a great speaker. Even with the best of the content and ingredients, you need to upgrade the stage show to make sure that the attendees are left wonder struck.

The barriers have been stomped down and the walls have fallen.   Technology has made sure that geographical impediments no more stop you from attending an event half way round the world. The webinars and live meetings are the newest venues for events the world over.

The FIFA World Cup this year was a lot of fun for us. And we are not talking about football. Our excitement was because of this cool application that had been created especially for the World Cup that highlighted the real time schedule of the games and results as they took place. This event alerted us to the huge potential that has hardly been scratched.

has made sure that geographical impediments no more stop you from attending an event half way round the world. The webinars and live meetings are the newest venues for events the world over. Planners and

No more can you pass off an event with just a great speaker. Even with the best of the content and ingredients, you need to upgrade the

stage show to make sure that the attendees are left wonder struck.

The barriers have been stomped down and the walls have fallen.  Technology

Social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter have completely altered the way we think about event promotion.   Letters are antiquated and emails outdated. Nowadays, you ‘tweet’ and ‘poke’ your way around the events

Social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter have completely altered the way we think about event promotion.   Letters are antiquated and emails outdated. Nowadays, you ‘tweet’ and ‘poke’ your way around the events

With the advent of the iPhones, Androids and Blackberrys, smart phone applications have become the next-gen platform for event management. From charting an event to locating it on the map, you can do it all on your mobile. 

With the advent of the iPhones, Androids and Blackberrys, smart phone applications have become the next-gen platform for event management. From charting an event to locating it on the map, you can do it all on your mobile.

In an attempt to clarify the language they’re using to explain the privacy of groups, Facebook has changed group classifications.

Facebook groups centered around your hotel or resort are a great way to engage your guests.

it’s a good idea to double check that your privacy and visibility settings are where you want them to be.

Facebook Announces New Messenger Interactions for Businesses 

Pages can integrate Messenger with their CRM to move guests through the sales funnel, all while setting up more automated processes in the messaging platform to better engage and qualify guests.

Integrated appointment booking in Messenger

Businesses will soon need to respond to users within 24 hours with standard messaging. This puts an emphasis on the requirement for faster customer service. 

Both Messenger features are opening up stronger opportunities to better communicate with potential and existing guests to offer them better service faster.

The 24-hour requirement can feel overwhelming, but it’s a good one to follow even if Facebook didn’t set up this rule, as it will keep your guests happy and your inbox clear.

Twitter is working on a small test that will allow users to follow “interest topics,” the same way that they can currently follow accounts.

allowing users to see content they’re interested in even if it’s coming from accounts they don’t follow yet.

Travel is an interest many people share, and if so, this could be a valuable opportunity to connect with more guests by sharing great content even if they aren’t following you yet.

Over the long-term, the result is the same: a massive, impending re-architecting of how properties are managed.

. “If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

. “If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

“If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

“If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

“If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

“If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

“If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

The company is in prototype on a social media integration project that would, among other things, let guests book a room through Facebook and then send a confirmation text to their mobile device.

Over the long-term, the result is the same: a massive, impending re-architecting of how properties are managed.

“If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

“If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

“If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

“If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

“If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

“If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

Over the long-term, the result is the same: a massive, impending re-architecting of how properties are managed.

“If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

“If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

“If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

“If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

The company is in prototype on a social media integration project that would, among other things, let guests book a room through Facebook and then send a confirmation text to their mobile device.

The company is in prototype on a social media integration project that would, among other things, let guests book a room through Facebook and then send a confirmation text to their mobile device.

The company is in prototype on a social media integration project that would, among other things, let guests book a room through Facebook and then send a confirmation text to their mobile device.

What’s still not clear is the extent to which social media can and should be integrated into formal property systems, so that user-generated content can be stored, mined, analyzed and tracked.

What’s still not clear is the extent to which social media can and should be integrated into formal property systems, so that user-generated content can be stored, mined, analyzed and tracked.

“One of the promises of the cloud is that it becomes easier to integrate, so you can go more best-of-breed in your solution choice, but you still have issues with data structure and architecture.”

What’s still not clear is the extent to which social media can and should be integrated into formal property systems, so that user-generated content can be stored, mined, analyzed and tracked.

What’s still not clear is the extent to which social media can and should be integrated into formal property systems, so that user-generated content can be stored, mined, analyzed and tracked.

“One of the promises of the cloud is that it becomes easier to integrate, so you can go more best-of-breed in your solution choice, but you still have issues with data structure and architecture.”

“One of the promises of the cloud is that it becomes easier to integrate, so you can go more best-of-breed in your solution choice, but you still have issues with data structure and architecture.”

If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

cloud.”

“We’re an hour and a half from a major metropolitan area. There are enough providers selling the bandwidth we’d need for redundancy in a true web-based cloud environment,” says Nickelson, whose 2,000 acre property is located in North Carolina’s rural heartland. “If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

“We’re an hour and a half from a major metropolitan area. There are enough providers selling the bandwidth we’d need for redundancy in a true web-based cloud environment,” says Nickelson, whose 2,000 acre property is located in North Carolina’s rural heartland. “If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

“We’re an hour and a half from a major metropolitan area. There are enough providers selling the bandwidth we’d need for redundancy in a true web-based cloud environment,” says Nickelson, whose 2,000 acre property is located in North Carolina’s rural heartland. “If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

“We’re an hour and a half from a major metropolitan area. There are enough providers selling the bandwidth we’d need for redundancy in a true web-based cloud environment,” says Nickelson, whose 2,000 acre property is located in North Carolina’s rural heartland. “If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

“We’re an hour and a half from a major metropolitan area. There are enough providers selling the bandwidth we’d need for redundancy in a true web-based cloud environment,” says Nickelson, whose 2,000 acre property is located in North Carolina’s rural heartland. “If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

“We’re an hour and a half from a major metropolitan area. There are enough providers selling the bandwidth we’d need for redundancy in a true web-based cloud environment,” says Nickelson, whose 2,000 acre property is located in North Carolina’s rural heartland. “If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

“We’re an hour and a half from a major metropolitan area. There are enough providers selling the bandwidth we’d need for redundancy in a true web-based cloud environment,” says Nickelson, whose 2,000 acre property is located in North Carolina’s rural heartland. “If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

“We’re an hour and a half from a major metropolitan area. There are enough providers selling the bandwidth we’d need for redundancy in a true web-based cloud environment,” says Nickelson, whose 2,000 acre property is located in North Carolina’s rural heartland. “If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

“We’re an hour and a half from a major metropolitan area. There are enough providers selling the bandwidth we’d need for redundancy in a true web-based cloud environment,” says Nickelson, whose 2,000 acre property is located in North Carolina’s rural heartland. “If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

“We’re an hour and a half from a major metropolitan area. There are enough providers selling the bandwidth we’d need for redundancy in a true web-based cloud environment,” says Nickelson, whose 2,000 acre property is located in North Carolina’s rural heartland. “If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

“We’re an hour and a half from a major metropolitan area. There are enough providers selling the bandwidth we’d need for redundancy in a true web-based cloud environment,” says Nickelson, whose 2,000 acre property is located in North Carolina’s rural heartland. “If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

“We’re an hour and a half from a major metropolitan area. There are enough providers selling the bandwidth we’d need for redundancy in a true web-based cloud environment,” says Nickelson, whose 2,000 acre property is located in North Carolina’s rural heartland. “If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

The industry is also mid-stream in a massive replacement cycle, with 40% planning to upgrade their PMS by the end of next year.

Over the long-term, the result is the same: a massive, impending re-architecting of how properties are managed.

Over the long-term, the result is the same: a massive, impending re-architecting of how properties are managed.

Over the long-term, the result is the same: a massive, impending re-architecting of how properties are managed.

next year.

next year.

“We’re an hour and a half from a major metropolitan area. There are enough providers selling the bandwidth we’d need for redundancy in a true web-based cloud environment,” says Nickelson, whose 2,000 acre property is located in North Carolina’s rural heartland. “If I look at it from a city hotel perspective, absolutely; there’d be no downfall to cloud.”

The industry is also mid-stream in a massive replacement cycle, with 40% planning to upgrade their PMS by the end of next year.

The industry is also mid-stream in a massive replacement cycle, with 40% planning to upgrade their PMS by the end of next year.

The industry is also mid-stream in a massive replacement cycle, with 40% planning to upgrade their PMS by the end of next year.

Over the long-term, the result is the same: a massive, impending re-architecting of how properties are managed.

The industry is also mid-stream in a massive replacement cycle, with 40% planning to upgrade their PMS by the end of next year.

The industry is also mid-stream in a massive replacement cycle, with 40% planning to upgrade their PMS by the end of next year.

The industry is also mid-stream in a massive replacement cycle, with 40% planning to upgrade their PMS by the end of next year.

The industry is also mid-stream in a massive replacement cycle, with 40% planning to upgrade their PMS by the end of next year.

The industry is also mid-stream in a massive replacement cycle, with 40% planning to upgrade their PMS by the end of next year.

Hotel management systems are shifting from on-property to cloud-based, from tethered to mobile, from data-heavy to insight-rich.

A significant chunk of hotel IT budgets -- 19% -- is spent on property management systems (PMS)

Some are ready to embrace cloud-based solutions; others want to expand their mobile capabilities; and others are excited about the possibilities rich data can provide in personalizing the guest experience

I think it’s really about the ability of the PMS to grow with the changing need. What we need today isn’t what we needed just two years ago

Both Nickelson and Yelley are experiencing different symptoms stemming from the same challenge: better integration between systems.

Every vendor and most of the hoteliers HT spoke to predicted that property management systems would eventually migrate to the cloud.

“We’re an hour and a half from a major metropolitan area. There are enough providers selling the bandwidth we’d need for redundancy in a true web-based cloud environment,”

“Just because they’re in the cloud doesn’t make it easier to integrate,

I agree, from a PMS standpoint, that I want to know everything about a guest when they show up at the front desk. I should be able to see that you’ve stayed with me, and if you posted about our hotel in our social space, and if it was a complaint.

The 5 Napkin Messenger campaign, which occurred in early 2019, resulted in 77 in-store redemptions. Five Napkin also gained 2,500 new Messenger and email subscribers from the campaign.

Once diners and restaurants are connected through Messenger, Linkletter said restaurants can continue to market to customers acquired through the initial promotion.

Once a diner clicks on the first promotional link, the restaurant never has to “spend a dollar on them again,” he said.

“I feel like a kid in a candy store with all these choices. It performs better from a click-to-install perspective than anything except incentivized ads. From an efficiency standpoint, it’s on par with everybody else out there today,” Hotel Tonight's director of mobile marketing Adam Grenier has said (quoted in a Facebook case study).

database .  The

The website is flexible, restaurant owners since can even change prices remotely using the SalesVu Point-of-Sale management interface

 This model significantly decreases the risk of data-loss in the case of disasters.

The RTI web-based TOM portal provides operators with at-a-glance, real-time visibility via reports showing store-level activities like oil usage statistics, shortening quantities, oil quality, and filtration data.

This is the most obvious technology we can’t live without. Let’s be honest—-most of us are glued to our smartphones and our favorite apps 24 hours a day.

Chances are, if you walk around a convention center or hotel lobby, you will see people with their heads down, tapping away furiously on their smartphones

How did we ever find time to accomplish everything before smartphones came into existence?

your event management system with a customer relationship management (CRM) system such as Salesforce,

the benefits of the SaaS (software as a service) delivery model are becoming increasingly apparent.

These applications are advantageous to planners because they allow us to access all details and execution aspects of an event from any web-enabled device—be it a computer, smartphone, or iPad

With SaaS cloud apps, just provide end-users with reports-only access to what they need and nothing more. 

integration options available to planners, you are now blessed with the ability to link up your event management system with a customer relationship management (CRM) system such as Salesforce,

2. SaaS Cloud Apps

With all of the information you  could ever need to access right at your fingertips through event management applications, you can ditch the millions of pieces of paper and now access contracts, registrations, room blocks,

Live and virtual events are about giving the attendee a choice as to how they spend their time

“webinars on steroids.” Live and virtual events are about giving the attendee a choice as to how they spend their time.

virtual events save the planner and attendee time, money, and resources.

virtual events save the planner and attendee time, money, and resources.

Virtual events are a great way for planners to fill seats at a cost that won’t make anyone wince.

This is the best tool in the box for improving future events.

4. Social Media and Viral Marketing

Did you know that one out of three consumers is online for three or more hours per day? Or that 90 million tweets are sent out daily? What about this one: One of every eight minutes spent online is spent on Facebook

Some of the best traction you will get is from people sharing interesting tidbits they may have learned and enticing others to learn more

Today is the day of the iPad and the tablet, and a more simplified life.

3. Virtual Events

In a world where everyone is always on the run, our top five technologies for event planners are no surprise—but what these tools can accomplish might impress you.

our top five technologies for event planners are no surprise—but what these tools can accomplish might impress you.

our top five technologies for event planners are no surprise—but what these tools can accomplish might impress you.

our top five technologies for event planners are no surprise—but what these tools can accomplish might impress you.

our top five technologies for event planners are no surprise—but what these tools can accomplish might impress you.

our top five technologies for event planners are no surprise—but what these tools can accomplish might impress you.

our top five technologies for event planners are no surprise—but what these tools can accomplish might impress you.

our top five technologies for event planners are no surprise—but what these tools can accomplish might impress you.

Smartphones

Chances are, if you walk around a convention center or hotel lobby, you will see people with their heads down, tapping away furiously on their smartphones. 

Whether the ubiquity of these devices is a blessing or a curse, the fact is, event professionals and participants alike would be lost without them.

SaaS Cloud Apps

SaaS (software as a service) delivery model

These applications are advantageous to planners because they allow us to access all details and execution aspects of an event from any web-enabled device

Additionally, with all of the integration options available to planners, you are now blessed with the ability to link up your event management system with a customer relationship management (CRM) system

Virtual Events

Virtual events are a great way for planners to fill seats at a cost that won’t make anyone wince.

Often complementing physical events, virtual events save the planner and attendee time, money, and resources.

There is word that the economy is making a recovery, but many of us have yet to see it.

Social Media and Viral Marketing

Did you know that one out of three consumers is online for three or more hours per day? Or that 90 million tweets are sent out daily? What about this one: One of every eight minutes spent online is spent on Facebook. 

So this should be a no-brainer

This marketing can come from either you or your attendees. Allowing attendees to share things that they like and getting them involved in hyping your event is a great way to spread the word. 

iPads and Tablets

Today is the day of the iPad and the tablet, and a more simplified life. 

When combining tablets with mobile event applications, planners can also communicate in real-time with participants and share or update information in seconds. Never leave home without one! 

Europe’s new privacy law, the General Data Protection Regulation, imposes massive fines on companies if they don’t notify privacy regulators about a data breach within 72 hours. The rule took effect in May and applies to any company with E.U. customers. U.S. lawmakers have proposed similar a 72-hour rule to replace the patchwork of state data breach laws that exist here

The company said Friday it had notified European data privacy regulators of the breach, in accordance with GDPR. Shortly after doing so, Ireland’s Data Protection Commission, the watchdog that monitors Facebook’s GDPR compliance, said Facebook’s disclosure “lacks detail” and criticized the company for being “unable to clarify the nature of the breach and the risk for users at this point.”

 Equifax waited six weeks to reveal that the Social Security numbers and other sensitive information on 143 million Americans had been exposed in a data breach. Uber waited a year to reveal a hack affecting tens of millions of drivers — and just last week paid a $148 million settlement in connection with the incident. Yahoo also paid a fine earlier this year for waiting two years to tell investors that Russian hackers stole information on 500 million users. 

Wray stressed that cyberattacks and theft of intellectual property can inflict long-term damage on American companies,

No country poses a broader, more severe intelligence collection threat than China.

The Energy Department on Monday announced awards of up to $28 million to help fund 11 cybersecurity research projects to strengthen the defenses of America's critical energy infrastructure,

Karen Evans, the assistant secretary for the department's Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response, said “energy cybersecurity and resilience” is one of the “most important security challenges” that the United States faces.

“The frequency, scale, and sophistication of cyber threats have increased and attacks can be much easier to launch,”

“Cyber incidents have the potential to interrupt energy services, damage highly specialized equipment and threaten human health and safety.”

The Senate Commerce Committee should hear from consumer privacy experts as lawmakers consider whether to develop data privacy legislation, a coalition of consumer and privacy groups said Monday

And while civilian agencies generally face the most lopsided age disparities, the importance departments place on building a long-term talent pipeline varies greatly

That means federal technologists at or approaching retirement age outnumbered their 20-something counterparts roughly 4.6 to 1.”