Recent Articles in Hotel Marketing & Sales

We are in the experience-creating business
Feb 13, 2013

Everyone agrees it’s important to focus on RevPar growth, penetration and bottom line improvement.  “No brainers,” of course.  But what do we focus on to achieve those improvements?  How do we do this? Is re-flagging or going independent the answer? Hire a consultant?  New management?  Proactive local sales calls?  Form new marketing alliances? New guest tracking? 

Maybe all we need to focus on is adding new facilities and amenities, e.g., high speed Internet access? fitness rooms? business centers? 

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

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!

Case Study: How an Integrated Online Marketing Strategy Helped Drive Brand Awareness
Feb 7, 2013

The Challenge     

Based in Asheville, North Carolina, The Biltmore Company includes the 8,000 acre estate, Biltmore House and Gardens, Inn on Biltmore Estate, Biltmore Estate Wine Company, and Biltmore For Your Home, the company's branded products division.

Biltmore needed to create and manage an integrated online marketing strategy to align with changing consumer behavior and industry trends in order to drive revenue, increase estate visitation and improve marketing ROI.   

Hotel Food And Beverage Trends
Jan 23, 2013

To understand recent trends in hotel food and beverage departments, PKF-HR studied the financial performance of hotel restaurants, lounges, and catering departments for the period 2000 to 2010.

How to boost sales and stand out from the crowd - 10 marketing tips for restaurants
Jan 18, 2013

10 marketing tips for restaurants Advice on how to boost sales and stand out from the crowd    | By Linda Duke  Linda Duke is chief executive of Duke Marketing and author of "Recipes for Restaurateurs." Duke has led her San Rafael, Calif.-based firm, which specializes in multiunit and franchised restaurant concepts, for more than two decades. She has advised brands from Rubio's to Togo's Sandwiches on public relations, local store marketing, and investor relations and crisis communications. In the following column, she offers 10 marketing tips for restaurant operators.

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.

General Managers Workshop: Managing Today's Hotel Sales Teams
Jan 8, 2013

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HOSPITALITYEDUCATORS.COM FACULTY MEMBER DAVID BRUDNEY HAS GENEROUSLY AGREED TO SHARE SOME OF HIS EARLIER COLUMNS THAT GENERATED READER FEEDBACK AND INTEREST
General Managers Workshop: Managing
Today's Hotel Sales Teams

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

U.S. Tourism Campaign Launches For First Time In Japan, Canada And The UK
Dec 30, 2012

While tourism has increased globally over the last decade, the U.S. slice of those travelers has fallen, due in large part to complicated visa procedures and heightened security that followed the Sept. 11 attacks. The U.S. had a 17 percent slice of the global tourism spending in 2000, but that has fallen to just over 11 percent today. About 6 percent of tourists globally last year came to the U.S. – that's behind France.