Articles and Reviews Videos Education and Training News Email Alerts Feedback The Cast About Us Hotel Game Archives Hotel eMarketing and Internet ‘e’volution – Creating an Online Culture at Hotels Posted by JJ on Thursday, March 20, 2008 · 1 Comment  Are you a hotel eMarketer looking for ways to better communicate, educate and develop the role at your property/ies? This article explores some of the issues surrounding these efforts, complemented by a dose of perspective and a generous helping of best practices, all garnished, hopefully, by your own ideas and experiences. By Jitendra Jain

Impact and Perspective: According to the popular statistics site, internetworldstats.com, at the end of 2007, we had 1 in 5 people on the planet already connected to the Internet…and this number is growing fast. While 80% of the world waits to jump onto the bandwagon, the 20% who’re already on it are struggling to hold on for dear life. The Internet is to business today what electricity is to industry and good living…without it there would be chaos! That puts a little perspective on just how reliant we’ve become on this relatively new platform…but also how much we stand to gain from it in terms of breaking down communication, transaction and education barriers. And the pace of development and the evolving uses of the Internet have been dizzying to say the least. Marketers…and your average Internet Joe have been forced to constantly re-learn and evolve.

So the future of e-commerce in the hospitality industry is guaranteed to be a bright one. And the savvy hotel emarketer has a lot to gain, including room to grow, experiment and “wow” (from SEO to SEM, blogging to social networking, there’s plenty to keep the eager hotel eMarketer busy experimenting). But what about those in the industry just climbing on-board, especially employees in hotel operations and those struggling to make sense of the opportunities and challenges presented by the Internet? What can hotel eMarketers do to ensure interest and support at hotels? How do you create a culture of understanding and mutual growth?

Investment in Hotel Technology Pays Off with Increased Group Revenue Tuesday, July 10, 2012 by Sarah Vining Hotels, conference centers and other meeting venues are increasing group business with new technology, and it isn’t just a hotel app. To invest in the property’s overall capital, hoteliers are creating cool technology tools that market venues, increase group business and enhance the guest experience. Technology is just another way hotels are winning group business and marketing a hotel or conference center. What are some of these new hot tools for leisure and business travelers? Virtual concierge service on guest room TVs At Hyatt Hotels with in-room HD TVs by Roomlinx Inc., guests are able make service requests, check email/weather, use the Business Center, print documents, and receive customized messages from meeting planners. Service requests like housekeeping and in-room dining are instantly sent through the system, improving the venue’s departmental efficiency. All of these virtual functions are hoped to appeal to new markets and drive group business. More efficient billing In the article, “Insert IACC blog post title URL” we learn that in 2012, meeting and group planners are prioritizing finance as very important during in their planning process (which made the top 10 list for the first time). Hotels making large investments in revenue management systems are taking advantage of new features that automate and process data to improve efficiency and increase revenue for properties. Virtual business centers Socialization through technology and food and beverage outlets is increasing revenue for TRYP by Wyndham in the NYC Times Square South property. Google TVs and access to Google Chrome laptops near the Gastro Bar in the hotel’s lobby offers guests an opportunity to enjoy a dining experience with the comfort of complimentary technology use. On-staff IT team When planners were surveyed, reliability was listed as a top concern of IT services in the white paper “What Do Planners and Trainers Really Want in Their Meeting Service?” All IACC-certified conference centers are required to have an on-site IT team to ensure technology functions properly. Now, the need for a knowledgeable IT team that really understands technology and can cater to individuals and group business is spreading to other hotel markets.   These impressive technology tools improve the guest experience and lead to a quick return on investment, especially in F&B. As we move beyond the discussion of required hotel Wi-Fi services, there will be a focus on technology amenities that provide the same comforts of home or the office. To increase group business, hoteliers are comfortable with this investment knowing there’s a return on investment with generated buzz/venue marketing and satisfied guests. Want to learn about other ways hotels are using technology to build relationships? Check out Enhancing Your Social Networking Site with a Social Concierge! to maximize social media and connect with guests, attendees and planners!

"We don't get incremental revenue from using the PMS, but there is information in there you can use if you want to," said Graham Dungey, SVP of ecommerce, revenue and distribution for Concorde Hotels & Resorts. "The theory is fantastic. You identify the people who spend the most money and where they spend it. Some hotels are quite forward-thinking; they'll make a study of the minibar, see who is buying what items, put corner-store food into a dozen minibars and sell it for twice as much. There is so much opportunity inside the PMS to increase incremental spend on property.

"We don't get incremental revenue from using the PMS, but there is information in there you can use if you want to," said Graham Dungey, SVP of ecommerce, revenue and distribution for Concorde Hotels & Resorts. "The theory is fantastic. You identify the people who spend the most money and where they spend it. Some hotels are quite forward-thinking; they'll make a study of the minibar, see who is buying what items, put corner-store food into a dozen minibars and sell it for twice as much. There is so much opportunity inside the PMS to increase incremental spend on property.

"We don't get incremental revenue from using the PMS, but there is information in there you can use if you want to," said Graham Dungey, SVP of ecommerce, revenue and distribution for Concorde Hotels & Resorts. "The theory is fantastic. You identify the people who spend the most money and where they spend it. Some hotels are quite forward-thinking; they'll make a study of the minibar, see who is buying what items, put corner-store food into a dozen minibars and sell it for twice as much. There is so much opportunity inside the PMS to increase incremental spend on property.

Reservations ― features are integrated with other functionality such as profiles, cashiering and deposits. This property management software module provides a complete set of features for creating and updating individual, group and business block reservations, including deposit handling, cancellations, confirmations, wait listing, room blocking and sharing.

Reservations ― features are integrated with other functionality such as profiles, cashiering and deposits. This property management software module provides a complete set of features for creating and updating individual, group and business block reservations, including deposit handling, cancellations, confirmations, wait listing, room blocking and sharing.

Reservations ― features are integrated with other functionality such as profiles, cashiering and deposits. This property management software module provides a complete set of features for creating and updating individual, group and business block reservations, including deposit handling, cancellations, confirmations, wait listing, room blocking and sharing.

The first major impact that GDS had on the travel market was that the number of flights was increased. This led to an increase of competition and therefore travel industry prices fell. Travel agencies were accustomed with receiving a fixed fee (usually 10%) from everything they managed to sell, so once the prices started to fall, they felt threatened with the loss of their earnings. In order to counter this, travel agencies began to offer complimentary products such as car rental, hotel and other related forms of accommodation, bus tickets, vacation packages, yacht rides and even flowers and champagne. This was the first major step towards GDS’ being used within the hospitality industry.

As mentioned before, one of the first products distributed by GDS was hotel accommodation. Hotels have loaded the information related to their different types of rooms, description and price categories within the airline reservation system database. When this information became available online, thousand of clients started making bookings all around the world. This fact was advantageous for each participant. Hotels benefited from distributing their products to a larger audience, travel agencies had the opportunity of booking more products through their computerized system and GDS benefited from a growth in booking volume, which helped them to lower operating costs.

The first major impact that GDS had on the travel market was that the number of flights was increased. This led to an increase of competition and therefore travel industry prices fell. Travel agencies were accustomed with receiving a fixed fee (usually 10%) from everything they managed to sell, so once the prices started to fall, they felt threatened with the loss of their earnings. In order to counter this, travel agencies began to offer complimentary products such as car rental, hotel and other related forms of accommodation, bus tickets, vacation packages, yacht rides and even flowers and champagne. This was the first major step towards GDS’ being used within the hospitality industry.

Green roofs, also called 'vegetative', 'living', or 'eco-roofs', are living plants installed on top of traditional roofs. In addition to providing a haven for birds and other wildlife, the green roof provides many other benefits for the environment-- the reduction of storm water runoff, reduction in the amount of blacktop roofs in the city which reduces the heat island effect and reduction of HVAC cooling loads resulting in the lowering of utility bills. Green roofs also have the additional advantages of lengthening the waterproofing membrane life of the roof and help to improve the air and water quality of the area.

Green roofs, also called 'vegetative', 'living', or 'eco-roofs', are living plants installed on top of traditional roofs. In addition to providing a haven for birds and other wildlife, the green roof provides many other benefits for the environment-- the reduction of storm water runoff, reduction in the amount of blacktop roofs in the city which reduces the heat island effect and reduction of HVAC cooling loads resulting in the lowering of utility bills. Green roofs also have the additional advantages of lengthening the waterproofing membrane life of the roof and help to improve the air and water quality of the area.

Green roofs, also called 'vegetative', 'living', or 'eco-roofs', are living plants installed on top of traditional roofs. In addition to providing a haven for birds and other wildlife, the green roof provides many other benefits for the environment-- the reduction of storm water runoff, reduction in the amount of blacktop roofs in the city which reduces the heat island effect and reduction of HVAC cooling loads resulting in the lowering of utility bills. Green roofs also have the additional advantages of lengthening the waterproofing membrane life of the roof and help to improve the air and water quality of the area.

non-alcoholic drinks. A bartender in a bar takes direct orders from the costumers. Most of the time alcoholic drinks require a mixture of different ingredients and a different way to present it, such as in a different salt rimmed glass. Memorizing the way to make and present drinks is just part of a bartenders job but a very important one to be successful. Interacting with customers is also important, listening and participating in conversations at the bar makes people feel more comfortable, increases the atmosphere and might make them want to come back more often. Bartenders also have to watch the customers and keep in mind how much they have had to drink, so nobody gets too drunk or cause trouble, calling taxis for customers that have had too much to drink and checking id’s to make sure the customer isn’t underage.