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ChatGPT is a new technology that is hoping to take over the travel industry. It is an AI product, similar to google, which will generate answers to questions that travelers may have via a chat service. It is meant to replace tour guides, travel agents, and concierge experts and can either save business time and money, or create chaos and the need to speak to an expert human instead. Like all technology products, there is always room to improve and grow in the initial stages, and not all roles are better off being completed by a computer, rather than a human. Although AI may have access to more information at a quicker pace, and may even be able to write better than most people, some companies believe that the possible errors and inaccuracy provided by ChatGPT will make content creators and human expertise way more valuable. ChatGPT accesses data from 2021 and prior, which means it is not current and up to date. This is a major flaw that will need to be improved.

Even though using beacon technology for proximity marketing is still in its infancy in the restaurant industry, this technology has already demonstrated some of its potential by virtue of increasing labor and overall operational efficiency while boosting customer satisfaction and loyalty. Beacons can help increase restaurant and bar sales, improve customer service, and provide more value for their customers, which should lead to customer loyalty. The possibility of applying beacon technology in the restaurants and bars opens a window of opportunity to engage diners and also enables restaurants to create more tailored experiences for them. Restaurants can use beacons to send alerts to people nearby about many table/seat availability and encourage them to make reservations or walk in. Or if the restaurant is very busy, restaurants can send the menu to their phones, so they can browse it while waiting for their tables. Restaurants and bars can build profiles of returning customers and provide offers based on past preferences. Thus, returning customers can benefit from improved and personalized customer service. During quiet hours or days, restaurants and bars can efficiently manage their staff and service, because of the data they have been collecting using beacons. Diners can even pay for their meal or drinks using their mobile device without having to wait for the waiter to come over and accept their method of payment.

This articles talks about what beacon-based proximity marketing is and its usefulness in restaurants.

Beacon technology has been around for a long time - prior to 2013 - but cost kept it unpopular. Initially only real big hospitality players had this tech. Now cost is no longer a limiting factor, but companies are limited to customers/potential customers who have a compatible app or the companies own app already on their phone, so they can push the proximity messages.

Software as a Service is becoming an essential part of the healthcare community. The time saved researching information about a patient, searching for medications or treatments could be valuable time needed for saving a life. It is project that "the number of businesses using cloud-based apps is expected to increase by 19.6%." With the increase in the use of cloud-based applications, there is a stronger need for the attention given to data security. Especially when it comes to patient information. Multiple cloud based options may initially be utilized before phasing into singular sources over time. This will alleviate some of the pressure needing to have the increased security for two platform rather than one.

This article speaks about the CTO and Airbnb joining forces to embrace the growing demand for Digital Nomads to work and travel, with the "Work from the Caribbean" campaign, a possible win for all involved. With Airbnb, it is a solution to embrace the flexibility of its clientele and the CTO, an opportunity to increase revenue in the Caribbean destination, diversifying the way they do business while offering the sun, sand, and sea. This disruptive innovation will undoubtedly change immigration policies in accepting longer than previously allowed visitor stays and could see reduced nightly rates and discounts. The flexibility of working remotely is an opportunity to increase the 'tourism dollar' in off-peak months, additionally bringing possible investment in real estate for the Caribbean. With the application of research through technology, both entities can devise innovative ways to market to this ever-changing industry.

Phillips a manufacturer of TVs and other electronics made efforts to reduce its carbon footprint in terms of e-waste by extending the lifetime of its current products used in hospitality. They did this by creating software updates that would upgrade the TVs without having to replace them with newer models that have all the bells and whistles that guests expect to have in newer Smart TVs. Since 2019 "53.6 million metric tons of e-waste" have been calculated up 21 percent since 2014. Laptops and TVs are among the highest number of items being discarded. Phillips like many companies has committed to making green initiatives and one of these ways was with currently used TVs in the industry. Rather than replace them with a newer model they can update with simple software which allows them to last longer. Sustainability has been at the forefront of customers' minds and Phillips made its own commitment to sustainability in the industry. It is great to see tech giants making efforts to be sustainable. I know we hear about "green initiatives" but we often don't see them. This is something tangible and has a huge impact not only on the tech side but for hospitality providers. Instead of needing the greatest and latest they can save money and keep using currently purchased tech and just upgrade it. I find this very appealing especially for smaller HSP that may not have budget replacement every so often. I also find this good for consumers because it can also be done at home. These updates are available for all Phillips tv users, not just HSP. So this goes a long way to benefit the environment. And many more ideas can come from this simple idea.

Green computing, commonly referred to as "green technology," is the study of creating, utilizing, and disposing of computing systems in a way that minimizes their impact on the environment. The ecologically friendly and ethical use of computers and their resources is known as "green computing." A growing trend that has established itself as the preferred method of doing things while preserving the environment is "Going Green." Green computing aims to lessen technology's negative effects on the environment. This entails conserving energy, cutting waste, and fostering sustainability. The goal of "green computing" is to lessen the carbon footprint left by the information technology and systems sector and allied businesses. Green computing mainly uses two methods: e-waste and energy efficiency. Reduced resource use as well as the use of energy-efficient servers, peripherals, and CPUs are all part of energy efficiency. And e-waste is how electronic garbage should be disposed of properly. Even while we may believe that computers are non-polluting and require relatively little energy, their use really contributes significantly to environmental pollution. Only 15% of the estimated $250 billion annually spent on powering computers globally is thought to be used for computation; the remaining energy is lost idling on inactive machines. Since energy consumption is the primary cause of CO2 emissions, any energy saved on computer hardware and computing will result in tons of CO2 emissions being avoided every year. The Energy Star program was established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 1992 as a controlled labeling initiative to promote and reward energy efficiency. More than 75 different product categories, as well as residences, office buildings, and industrial facilities, have already received the Energy Star badge. Consumers of devices have widely embraced sleep mode because of the campaign. The IT industry is working to implement Green Computing across a

"Green computing, also called green technology, is the environmentally responsible use of computers and related resources. Such practices include the implementation of energy-efficient central processing units (CPUs), servers and peripherals as well as reduced resource consumption and proper disposal of electronic waste (e-waste). One of the earliest initiatives toward green computing in the United States was the voluntary labeling program known as Energy Star. It was conceived by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 1992 to promote energy efficiency in hardware of all kinds. The Energy Star label became a common sight, especially in notebook computers and displays. Similar programs have been adopted in Europe and Asia."

This article shows that in order to keep up with the new demands or preparations of customers, restaurants need to keep pace with the ever changing world of technology. The NRA and Cornell study all showed that nearly 40% adults prefer online orders. But restaurant still need to consider the whole cost and revenue if they want to invest in mobile and online order. What is more, they still need to put efforts on marketing. Word of mouth really influence customers choices. In this article, it also gave us a example of online ordering by FB.

This article summarized smart hotelier's top ten digital marketing resolutions of the year 2012 and the author analyzed each resolution's situation as well as the action plan in details with an improved outlook for the industry, technological advances, and the usage of mobile devices growing exponentially, opportunities for incremental revenues abound. The top five ones are I will bring social, local and mobile marketing initiatives to the forefront of my hotel digital marketing plans this year, I understand this industry is complex and will work to make sense of a very convoluted digital space/online marketplace, I will continue to account for the continued shift from offline to online, and engage the hyper-interactive travel consumer via multi-channel marketing efforts, I will take advantage of the Mobile Channel, especially in this marketplace where my competitors are behind the times, and Now that I know social media is a customer engagement channel and not a distribution channel in hospitality, I will use Social Media correctly to create "buzz" around my hotel, target receptive audiences, provide customer service and enhance customer experiences. This will ultimately stimulate hotel website visits, interactions and conversions on the hotel website. The sixth to the tenth ones are I will rise to the challenge imposed by the recent Google Panda and 'Freshness' updates, I will decrease dependence on the OTAs this year, adding thousands of dollars in incremental revenues to my hotel's bottom line, I will NOT resort to desperate measures and use social buying and flash sales sites in 2012, I will focus on determining the effectiveness and ROI of my digital marketing campaigns and make smarter use of analytics technology to determine true ROI and campaign effectiveness, as well as test, test, test to achieve better results, and I will partner with savvy digital marketers who know it all and can guide me through this process, so I can drive the most re

EMarketing is the ability to market your products or services with Internet capabilities. In other words, it includes emailing, websites, follow-up, and every other marketing approach. Through computer/Internet capabilities, small business owners that embrace eMarketing will save themselves hours of time. With eMarketing, business owners can automate nearly all of their business management functions. That means that eMarketing capabilities are taking care of the day-to-day tasks small business owners and their employees would normally be engaged in. eMarekting also has some other benefits. E-marketing eliminates the printing and postage costs of direct mail and is substantially less expensive than other traditional forms of advertising. Customers opt in to receive your news via email. E-marketing is affordable, so you can advertise more often.

EMarketing is the ability to market your products or services with Internet capabilities. In other words, it includes emailing, websites, follow-up, and every other marketing approach. Through computer/Internet capabilities, small business owners that embrace eMarketing will save themselves hours of time. With eMarketing, business owners can automate nearly all of their business management functions. That means that eMarketing capabilities are taking care of the day-to-day tasks small business owners and their employees would normally be engaged in. eMarekting also has some other benefits. E-marketing eliminates the printing and postage costs of direct mail and is substantially less expensive than other traditional forms of advertising. Customers opt in to receive your news via email. E-marketing is affordable, so you can advertise more often.

Meetings and events are now stepping to cloud storage. Although cloud-based storage is very popular, there are people who believe cloud storage is not secure, thus important information such as information from meetings and events should not be stored on the cloud. However, cloud storage is safe. And it is even much safer when a company need to back up a large amount of information. A company that stores all information in their property may lose all of it if something unexpected happens. An event or a meeting always involve multi-users, therefore technology must fulfill the need of sharing information among these uses. For example, you will share information between all your devices, colleagues, facilities, and supplier partners A manager should always consider the followings when buying a cloud service for your meeting. The amount of free space provided; the ability to manage concurrency issues with multiple users. and the ability to share folders and documents seamlessly with others on another platform.

Now hotels have the perfect solution for managing meeting room sales and catering operations - IQbanquet, available from Deerfield Beach, Fla.-based IQware. Designed specifically for the hospitality industry, IQbanquet provides your sales and management team a suite of powerful tools to efficiently handle every aspect of your operation, saving you significant time and headaches while increasing your profitability and service levels. Nevistas Publishing (http://s.tt/1tOFU) This website reports an article about intelligent event planning. It is basically a system designed for the hotel industry to streamline processes and eliminate manual process. The great advantage of the system the ability to track previous guests and preferences from one event to the other. It also helps with contracts and documents that need to be signed and saves time as well. This type of system will assist in keeping track of emails sent and it is very intuitive as well expediting training ultimately increasing guest satisfaction.

Newly integrated directly into the IQware PMS, IQbanquet a new solution for properly managing sales, delivers a wide range of features designed and proven to streamline event management, from sales tracking to resource planning. "IQbanquet also serves as a contact management system - all interactions, including phone calls, office visits or emails with the client are tracked. While many systems are integrated with Outlook, much of the client contact information can be lost or misplaced when staff changes." This new system has potential to really go in today's technologically advanced world. IQbanquet really is a system that will increase a positive consumer response rate. 

HRIS is a computer software employers use to manage the human resources functions of hotels. There are lots of benefits of using this system. According to this article, the most advantage by using HRIS is that it helps create reports and presentation. For instance, the system holds all the informations about human resources in hotels. You can find your employees' personal information very easily and don't have to ask them to bring their documents any more such as I-20 or I-9 forms. The second benefit is related to recruitment, which means it can provide information not only internal staffs but also external job applicants. The third advantage is that by using HRIS, employees themselves can focus on their own profiles. They can log in themselves and change and update their status and required details, which becomes a better way to manage themselves.  

The human resource system can help hotel or anyother companies' HR department to management employees effectively. The system will in charge of salary, w2 tax report and a lot of tedious work. In a sense, the system can not only reduce mistake but alos save some laber cost, because most of data processing will be finished automatic.

This article summarizes the major key points with Human Resources Information Systems and more importantly, their advantages. It starts by discussing how a HRIS is software that aids in the management functions of human resources. The main benefit is the fact that it can generate reports and presentations, making it particularly convenient for more than a few factors, while holding data and files needed for the human resources mangers to do their jobs proficiently. HRIS can aid a company internally as well as externally with job applicants. This is great for employers who are looking for new candidates. In addition, it benefits the company with assisting with the benefits plan, knowing exactly what their coverage is for the year.

This article talks about the fact that although many view Las Vegas as the "city of excess" (A. Freeman), it is actually greener than we think. Many of these large hotel chains are actually working very hard to reduce their carbon footprint in the world, despite their need to consume so much. By utilizing green light bulbs, to allowing steam from boiler rooms to heat water, organizations such as Harrah's Entertainment have been working over time to reduce their damage by as much as possible. The article then goes on to explain different methods used to create a green hotel. In the end, it was stated that "if we do our job properly the average customer will not notice this is a green facility" proving that upholding the luxurious lifestyle and appearance is important to them. What I like particularly about this article and their methods is that they maintain their status yet still do much behind the scenes to ensure "greeness". Just like the hospitality industry itself, much goes on behind the scenes to make the overall experience, just like the green initiatives.

This article talks about new technological initiatives in the hospitality industry. Connect is the new software that will be launched in January 2013 for Androids, and is currently available for downloads on iOS platforms. The purpose of this software is to improve hotels connections to their guests. This software was created by Monscierge with the idea that hotels can keep connection with their guests through smartphones or tablet where guests can get access to all the information about the brand, hotel in a way that suits the requirements of today's tech-savvy user. Through Connect, guests can now communicate their need via chat or voice directly and quickly getting in contact with any department of service that the hotel offer such as housekeeping, restaurant, valet, spa and any other. At the moment, this software is only available at participating hotels. However, guests still have access to the recommendations and travel information in any other hotel. This efficiently allows reliable information at a real-time delivery. "Guests can add their own messages and send them to friends and family through email, Facebook, and Twitter - facilitating the guest's connection to friends and family while providing added exposure for the brand and location." (Robinson. C, 2012)

I myself have a Square and swear by it. I use it to sell homemade goods and trinkets and fairs, as well as sell baked goods at fundraising events. The Square app and unit are free (after registry refund) and are simple to use. Just connect it to a bank account and you are off. You can take and keep track of both cash and credit card payments. Plus inventory tracking is easy. The Square turns any iPad, iPhone, iPod or android device into a traveling POS system. Plus there is no paper involved so it's a great first step to running a Green business. Square is the POS solution for small businesses. 

The article highlights new advances in technology trends that has captured the attention of numerous businesses in the UK due to the significant reduction cost and savings that can be achieved. The trends include cloud computing which businesses view as a low initial cost or capital investment to undertake. Eliminating the need for hard drives storage, maintenance, and giving way to quick upgrades and updates of an It system. A company's main goal is to provide the best products and services at the lowest cost, and if cloud computing creates this ease of burden without compromising the quality of products and services offered to guests then transitioning to this new technology remains one of the best and newest innovation as the savings will undoubtedly add to the company's bottom line. Smart phones, tablets and other mobile devices has definitely revolutionize the way people communicate and hotels in the United States, China the UK and other parts of the world are capitalizing on this mobile trend as a way to improve customer service. Whether it may be making reservations, or checking in and out of hotels from any location without having to wait in long lines at the front desk. Mobile computing is definitely a way to save cost, and time. It's important to note that this trend does not only benefit huge companies but it's a viable option for small businesses who definitely wants to position itself as a company offering the best and most unique service. Social media is extremely paramount for business exposure and that's why hospitality companies continued to capitalize on this growing phenomena. From Trip Advisor which informs potential guests about the facilities, products, and services to Facebook or Twitter which not only help to market or promote the company's products and services but these are great resources and tools for companies to capture and address comments or concerns that can potentially put the business in a negative light.

This article discusses hardware and software trends in the hospitality industry. Article discusses six points that are having a major effect on the hospitality industry. The first area is the definite shift from software held in-house to software used in the cloud. The article estimates that around 85% of all inquiries are from companies that are looking to use the cloud for software needs. The second item article discusses his mobility. The use of devices such as tablets and smart phones are revolutionizing the way people interact with technology this is also revolutionizing the hospitality industry. The third area that the article discusses the social media and the profound impact it has had has had on the hospitality industry. Article points to trip advisor who has become one of the major sources of information for people researching holidays travel, hotels and leisure facilities. The fourth area in which hardware and software is changing hospitality industry is the feeling of a personalized experience. People are expecting that their experience within the hotel to be personalized and technology is helping the industry personalized their experience. The fifth area is the integration of the hardware and software from the many specialized facilities within a property. Traditionally golf spas have operated their own individual software system now that software system is integrated into the overall properties software system. The last area of hardware and software trends that is changing industry is an area of globalization. Properties will need to adapt their two different management approaches to survive in high levels of economic uncertainty. Consequently, brands with large chains must look at their business from a global perspective.

TripAdvisor just launched the new TripAdvisor GreenLeaders program, which ranks hotels across the U.S. according to their engagement in environmentally-friendly practices like linen and towel re-use, recycling and composting, solar panel and electric car charging station implementation, and green roofing.

With TripAdvisor's launch of the new GreenLeaders program, it will help hoteliers as well as restaurants and other businesses increase their Green initiative commitment. I know for the Florida Green Lodging Certification, it is a simple, yet tedious, form to complete, covering many aspects that can help reduce waste of products, energy, and gasses. Thanks to a bill that was passed in the not-so-distant past, certain aspects of the government travel requires their selection of lodging and/or meeting facilities to be green. This is in an effort to encourage those changes in order to secure government business, as well as to encourage personal & leisure travel, government or not, to choose green facilities. The more we increase the demand for green properties, the more properties will seek to make the necessary changes and commitment. In addition, the application process changes periodically, increasing the information and steps necessary to become green. Through all of that, we will begin to notice bigger steps to be made to save our resources and our environment. TripAdvisor launching this program will only help in these efforts. Along with increasing efforts, the feedback will be a great tool for use when selecting how to make those changes. Sure, nothing is perfect and you will still have those that prefer the convenience instead of the overall "Save the Earth" way of life, but we will be able to see what is working and what may need to be adjusted a bit.

There are of course numerous ways a hotel property can go green. Depending on need and budget, one can choose from a range of options and technologies. There are tons of technologies right now designed for hotels to save energy.But, since energy-efficient equipment may be costlier both in terms of installation and capital costs; the hospitality industry is acknowledging the long term benefits to be reaped in terms of reduced maintenance and energy saving, especially when energy costs are escalating. With technology constantly improving and becoming cost effective, initiatives that seemed too expensive just a short while earlier are now within reach of most hotels. Going green using techonologies can be easy for big hotels , but for smaller scale hotels, the installation and maintence costs too much. But we believe that with the fast development of technology , go green will be acceptable for every hotel.