Recent Articles in Hotel Front Office

Crisis Management , Part 1
Feb 10, 2013

Pricing is a crucial revenue management (RM) practice affecting both occupancy and RevPAR (revenue per available room).  In order for a RM strategy to succeed, a balance should be maintained between simulating sufficient demand to maximize occupancy, while not leaving money on the table in the form of too-low ADR (average daily rate).  In the current environment of price transparency, rates/prices take on an even greater role.  Thus, suggesting the right rate to a potential customer has become one of the most important aspects of revenue management.

"Running a profitable business isn't just about keeping costs down, it's about winning and serving your customers,
Feb 10, 2013

  According to Experience Radar 2012: Consumer insights for the US hospitality industry released by PwC US, travelers are back on the road and the hotels and brands that deliver the experiences that customers not only want, but also are willing to pay for, can benefit from the continued lodging recovery. The report reveals that issue resolution and current room amenities are most sought by customers. PwC's Experience Radar study is designed to uncover experience "recipes" that drive the choices of today's traveler and profits for tomorrow's hotel operators. The research points to important issues on the minds of hoteliers today including: attracting and retaining guests, investing in capital improvements, and reaping benefits from "brand ambassadors."

50 Reasons People Should Buy from YOU
Feb 9, 2013

It is a structured process that walks you through 5 key questions - which require 10 (ten!) answers to each, giving you an arsenal of 50 selling points. You can use these in your marketing materials, sales conversations, website copy, phone calls, emails, and anyplace else you need to PROVE to your buyers that buying from anyone else would be a HUGE mista

Forget Rate Parity and Rate Integrity
Feb 8, 2013

Forget Rate Parity and Rate Integrity, let’s go to War!

Apple's Secret Employee Training Manual Reinvents Customer Service in Seven Ways
Feb 7, 2013

After spending one year of research into every aspect of the Apple Retail Store for my book, The Apple Experience, there’s very little new information that surprises me. However, sometimes people leak information that can teach all of us a lot about running a successful business, communicating brand messages effectively, and enhancing the customer experience.

One such piece was recently leaked and posted on the tech site, Gizmodo. The title, How To Be a Genius: This is Apple’s Secret Employee Training Manual. According to Gizmodo Senior Staff Writer, Sam Biddle, “We read Apple’s secret Genius training manual from cover to cover. It’s a penetrating look inside Apple: psychological mastery, banned words, roleplaying—you’ve never seen anything like it.” This description alone should teach you a lot. It reinforces the fact that nothing at the Apple Store is taken for granted. From the way you are greeted when you walk into the store to the way Genius Bar experts (technical/troubleshooting specialists) communicate with agitated customers, Apple carefully considers the experience its customers have at every touch-point.

Crisis Management, Part 2
Jan 9, 2013

Cutting prices across the board is not a key to success as this strategy impacts customers' perceived value of the business, which makes it difficult for hotels to recover their preliminary positioning when better times come around.  Rather, hotels must focus on particular market segments and distribution channels as rate decreases should be targeted and differentiated.

Hotel Selling's 'S' Factors
Jan 4, 2013

Hotel Selling's 'S' Factors: Six Serious Selling Sins & Sound (Rx) Solutions Ed Iannarella President, Stonehenge Consulting Group

What are your hotel guests saying about your approach to Hotel Surcharges and Fees?
Dec 27, 2012

Dr. Bjorn Hanson, Divisional Dean Preston Robert Tisch Center for Hospitality, Tourism, and Sports Management NYU School of Continuing and P Dr. Bjorn Hansonrofessional Studies (NYU-SCPS)

What Innkeepers Want Every Christmas? Fill Those Empty Rooms
Dec 13, 2012

HOSPITALITYEDUCATORS.COM FACULTY MEMBER DAVID BRUDNEY
HAS GENEROUSLY AGREED
TO SHARE SOME OF HIS EARLIER COLUMNS THAT GENERATED
READER FEEDBACK AND INTEREST

What Innkeepers Want Every Christmas?
Fill Those Empty Rooms

the Energetic Guest Experience
Dec 12, 2012

             The Dilemma for Hotel Groups of the Energetic Guest Experience | By Peter McAlpine 

Social and mobile impact on sales ‘overhyped’
Dec 10, 2012

   The impact of social media and mobile on travel sales could be being overhyped, a forum run by Barclays heard this week.

A senior panel of industry bosses agreed that many firms were still trying to work out their strategies for what are widely seen as two important new channels.

A New Marketing Tool for the Hospitality Industry
Dec 7, 2012

Quick Response codes or QR codes are a 2D matrix barcode consisting of black modules arranged in a square pattern on a white background. QR codes can be read easily by scanning any smart mobile device. Their popularity stems mainly from their large storage capacity, the diversification of the types of data, and their fast readability. QR codes' key function is to break the barrier between the offline and online media by connecting with people in the offline world and bring them to the online world.