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Luncheon Program
Date: 8/18/09 Topic: 2009 Hotel Consumer Study Location: Marriott Los Angeles Downtown Luncheon Program Date: 9/2/09 Topic: 2009 CA Hospitality Educational Conference Location: Crowne Plaza Resort Garden Grove 
Tuesday, July 21, 2009 "Evolution of Social Media" 11:30 AM - 1:30 PM Le Merigot Beach Hotel & Spa 
HSMAI LAX brings to you the profound value of "Smart Marketing 2.0" with guest speaker, Jim Cox as he addresses “Smart Marketing” within the context of “Social Media” and why now, with certainty, that “The Medium is the Message”, to take a quote from Marshall McLuhan. Certainly “Social Media” has, and will continue to have, a profound impact on our all our marketing efforts; they will indeed be forever changed. Jim examines this impact and offers insight on the opportunities...
G'Nell Abracosa
Hollywood Roosevelt Dennis Hernandez Standard Downtown Jorgen Christensen Langham Huntington Jim O'Connell Langham Huntington John Douponce Le Parc Suites Jamie Morphy Embassy Suites LAX South Yani Duran Red Lion Anaheim Raul Sanchez Hospitality Performance Network  Robin Austin,
Director of Revenue Management How did you hear about HSMAI? Why did you join HSMAI? Awards: Other comments: 
FEATURED ARTICLE
 Recap: HSMAI’s Revenue Management & Internet Marketing Strategy Conference FOCUSES ON DRIVING DEMANDRevenue management and internet marketing professionals from across the hospitality industry convened at the Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI) Revenue Management & Internet Marketing Strategy Conference in Anaheim, Calif., for a day of in-depth discussions about how the two disciplines can work together to generate demand. “Revenue management and internet marketing professionals are the new rock stars of the hospitality industry,” said Eric Pearson, Senior Vice President of Brand Performance, Americas, InterContinental Hotels Group, in his keynote presentation titled Real-Time Revenue Management. He added that, by working closely together, these teams can deliver tactical promotions, backed by concrete analytics that quantify success, to provide consumers with relevant offers in real-time and drive incremental revenue to hotels when they need it most. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend ECONOMIC INSIGHTS  Thinking about the eventual recovery and what it might look like | By Mark V. Lomanno29 June 2009 | During the past several days there have been a lot of stories in the lodging, and indeed the general, press about the decline in lodging industry room rates during the past eight or nine months and how long it’s going to take to recover to pricing levels that existed at the end of last summer. Those addressing this issue have used STR data from the last downturn as a guide. View Article | Send to a Friend Smith Travel Research (STR) dramatically shifts U.S. forecasts 7 July 2009 | The situation in the hotel industry might be starting to stabilize, but the executives at Smith Travel Research aren’t convinced there’s sunny skies on the immediate horizon. In fact, the usually optimistic STR has joined other prognosticators in releasing a revised forecast and it paints a fairly bleak picture for the rest of 2009. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend Canadian hotel investment market expected to recover in 2010 according to Colliers International Hotels and HLT Advisory10 July 2009 | According to a survey conducted by Colliers International Hotels and HLT Advisory, the economic recovery is unlikely to benefit the Canadian hotel industry until 2010. The survey of 325 hotel owners, managers and advisors found that 59 per cent of respondents anticipate seeing clear signs of economic recovery in 2010, with only one-fifth (19%) of respondents expecting a recovery this year. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend [MULTIMEDIA] Mark Woodworth, president of PKF Hospitality Research, Interviewed by Stacey Mieyal Higgins | hotelnewsnow.com10 July 2009 | Mark Woodworth, president of PKF Hospitality Research, discussed the firm's revised forecasts during a break at the AH&LA Summer Summit. View Article | Send to a Friend Hotels losing fight to retain rates | abtn.co.uk10 July 2009 | When the recession hit hotels with its full force late last year, there was one thing on which owners and managers were determined: rates would not be lowered. They would take a hit on occupancy, they would offer extras as part of the price - but they would not drop their average daily rates. Eight months on, the growing evidence from hotel consultants and analysts is that hotels, under intense pressure form corporates, are losing the battle. View Article | Send to a Friend Hospitality Lawyers: Conditions for hotel industry "RESET" may be coming into alignment | By Jim Butler10 July 2009 | Hospitality Lawyers with some perspective on recent developments. My friend Steve Van at Prism Hotels has a great Hotel Default Blog. I you haven't seen it, you should take a look at www.hoteldefaultblog.com. His most recent article ("The Sky is Really Falling") sparked some perspective on whether the hotel industry is finally reaching a critical RESET point we have been talking about on www.HotelLawBlog.com for months. View Article | Send to a Friend STR posts US results for week ending 4 July 200910 July 2009 | The U.S. hotel industry posted declines in all three key performance measurements during the week of 28 June-4 July 2009, according to data from STR. In year-over-year measurements, the industry’s occupancy fell 6.0 percent to end the week at 57.7 percent. Average daily rate dropped 7.4 percent to finish the week at US$95.16. Revenue per available room for the week decreased 13.0 percent to finish at US$54.94. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend Testing Times for International Tourism | UNWTO Reports6 July 2009 | According to the June edition of the UNWTO World Tourism Barometer international tourism declined by 8% between January and April compared to the same period last year. Destinations worldwide recorded a total of 247 million international tourist arrivals in those four months, down from 269 million in 2008. Given the changes in the outlook UNWTO has revised its forecast for the full year 2009. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend
FEATURED REPORT  U.S. Lodging Industry Projections As of July 6, 2009 (STR)The situation in the hotel industry might be starting to stabilize, but the executives at Smith Travel Research aren’t convinced there’s sunny skies on the immediate horizon. In fact, the usually optimistic STR has joined other prognosticators in releasing a revised forecast and it paints a fairly bleak picture for the rest of 2009.
HOTEL HIGHLIGHTS & OPENINGS NYLO Dallas / Las Colinas Boutique Hotel Opens Its Doors July 137 July 2009 | NYLO Hotels, the groundbreaking concept that integrates urban style and a boutique attitude with the functionality of a business hotel, opens the doors to its newest and biggest location in Las Colinas July 13. “NYLO has its own twist on traditional Texas hospitality, and we’re proud to bring our unique boutique hotel offering to the Las Colinas community,” said John Russell, CEO of NYLO Hotels. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend Starwood Signs an Agreement to Sell the W San Francisco for $90 Million 7 July 2009 | Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: HOT) announced today that the Company has signed an agreement to sell the W San Francisco for $90 million to Keck Seng Investments (Hong Kong) Limited, a hotel investment and property development company listed on the Hong Kong stock market. The sales price is immediately accretive to earnings and represents a multiple of over 14X anticipated 2009 EBITDA. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend World’s Most Influential People in the Hotel Industry | HotelNewsNow.com announces call for nominations 7 July 2009 | To celebrate individuals whose significant presence is felt throughout the global industry, HotelNewsNow.com brings you The World’s Most Influential People in the Hotel Industry. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend Recession-fed tensions grow in luxury hotel industry | latimes.com3 July 2009 | At the tranquil Four Seasons Resort Aviara north of San Diego, a heated struggle for control of the deluxe hotel's future is playing out in a rare public spat. The increasingly nasty tussle at the Carlsbad resort is indicative of tensions throughout the higher end of the hotel industry, as travelers cut way back on spendingAt issue is the very definition of luxury. View Article | Send to a Friend Global Hyatt Corporation Changes Name to Hyatt Hotels Corporation 3 July 2009 | Global Hyatt Corporation today announced that the company has changed its name to Hyatt Hotels Corporation. Hyatt Hotels Corporation is the parent entity of companies that own, operate, manage and franchise hotel, resort, residential and vacation ownership properties under the brand names Hyatt®, Park Hyatt®, Andaz™, Grand Hyatt®, Hyatt Regency®, Hyatt Place®, Hyatt Summerfield Suites™ and Hyatt Vacation Club®. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend ISPA Releases 2009 U.S. Spa Industry Statistics2 July 2009 | The International SPA Association 2009 U.S. Spa Industry Update reveals a steady increase across the board in overall spa locations, revenues and visits. While this may seem unexpected given the current economic climate it's important to keep in mind that these numbers are from the calendar year of 2008, the first half of which was very profitable for many spas. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend
BUSINESS/MEETINGS HSMAI's Affordable Meetings® National Celebrates 20 Years; Welcomes Jonathan Tisch As Keynote Speaker 14 July 2009 | The Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International’s (HSMAI) Affordable Meetings® National celebrates its 20th year of providing a forum for planners, properties and suppliers to come together to do business, Sept. 9-10, 2009 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, DC. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend Meeting Planners Pressured by Management, Customers and Members | By David M. Brudney, ISHC29 June 2009 | Meeting planner guru Joan Eisenstodt responded to my 'Meeting Planners and Hotel Suppliers: Let's Be Fair' article of last month calling for 'a whole bunch of cooperation' right now in hopes that when we do come out of this recession. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend Meetings: Twice the Work, Half the Pay | nytimes.com7 July 2009 | When meetings or conferences are canceled — a relatively common occurrence in these financially difficult times — hotels collect a fraction of the money they were expecting, and participants lose the chance to network or gain knowledge about their industry. View Article | Send to a Friend Media Futurist Gerd Leonhard to Open at the 2009 ACTE Global Education Conference in Prague 1 July 2009 | The Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE) is pleased to announce renowned media and communications futurist Gerd Leonhard as the opening keynote speaker at the 2009 ACTE Global Education Conference in Prague (25-27 October 2009). View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend Starwood Hotels and Tata Communications Partner to Roll-Out TelePresence Rooms in Hotels Globally 30 June 2009 | Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc (NYSE:HOT) and Tata Communications, a leading provider of the new world of communications, today announced a partnership agreement as part of an ambitious plan to roll out public Telepresence rooms worldwide. The agreement will significantly increase Tata Communications' network of public Cisco TelePresence rooms with 10 new facilities opening in Starwood hotels by the end of 2009. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend Passkey Launches Innovative Real-Time Group Tracking Technology25 June 2009 | Passkey, the worldwide leader in online group reservations, today announced the launch of Live Dashboards, its innovative real-time event and group tracking technology. Passkey is releasing two types of dashboards: Event dashboards, which allow meeting planners and hotel staff to track and manage individual events in real-time, and hotel dashboards, which allow hotel staff to monitor and maximize their group performance, also in real-time. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend
INTERNATIONAL Europe’s Top Five are all German | STR Global reports8 July 2009 | Being the least worst is never a high accolade, but in the face of a very tough market the performance of Germany’s main cities is commendable. The May 2009 edition of the European Hotel Review, published by STR Global, the leading provider of market information to the world’s hotel industry, shows German cities taking the top five positions for annual change in revenue per available room (RevPAR) for the year-to-May 2009. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend UNWTO 2009 Ministers’ Summit focusing on Roadmap for Recovery9 July 2009 | The 3rd annual Ministers’ Summit will be held on 10 November 2009 in London by UNWTO and the World Travel Market (WTM). This key gathering of travel & tourism stakeholders will serve to assess the effects of the economic crisis on the industry and provide new solutions to overcome current challenges. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend Rezidor announces Hotel Missoni Ilha de Cajaíba, Brazil 9 July 2009 | The Rezidor Hotel Group, one of the fastest growing hotel companies in the world, today announces Hotel Missoni Ilha de Cajaíba, Brazil. The hotel will feature 118 guest rooms and suites and 32 villas and is scheduled to open its doors in early 2012. With this signing Rezidor brings the total number of Missoni hotels to five. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend Wyndham Hotels and Resorts Expands in Latin America 8 July 2009 | Wyndham Hotels and Resorts today announced its continued expansion in Latin America with the grand opening of the Wyndham® Garden Hotel Mexico City – Polanco. “Latin America continues to be an important and growing market for the Wyndham brand,” said Jeff Wagoner, Wyndham Hotels and Resorts president. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend European hotel prices plummet | trivago Hotel Price Index Shows8 July 2009 | The trivago hotel price index shows that accommodation prices in Europe are seven percent less than the previous year. A standard double room in one of the top European cities costs 90 pounds in July 2009, compared to 97 pounds in July 2008. In 38 of the 50 cities hotel prices have decreased or remained the same. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend CHTA President Enrique De Marchena Kaluche Urges New Initiatives To Combat Global Economic Crisis7 July 2009 | Enrique De Marchena Kaluche, president of the Caribbean Hotel & Tourism Association, is urging the Caribbean to “strengthen international advertising and programs” to counter the effects of the tourism reductions seen across most of the region. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend City of Amsterdam Signs Agreement with Park Plaza Hotels to Develop an art’otel in the City’s Iconic Former Kadaster Office 6 July 2009 | Park Plaza Hotels announce the signing of a key covenant with the City of Amsterdam (The Netherlands), paving the way for developing an art’otel in one of Amsterdam’s most iconic city centre buildings. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend Starwood Capital And Golden Tulip Hospitality Sign A Binding Agreement3 July 2009 | Starwood Capital Group Global L.P. "(STARWOOD") is pleased to announce the signature of a binding agreement for an affiliate to purchase Golden Tulip Hospitality BV’s Franchise business, its Development & Representation businesses, Joint Venture interests, and the brands, trademarks and intellectual property of Golden Tulip, Tulip Inn and its related brands. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend
FEATURED DOWNLOAD  Excerpt of the UNWTO World Tourism BarometerAccording to the June edition of the UNWTO World Tourism Barometer international tourism declined by 8% between January and April compared to the same period last year. Destinations worldwide recorded a total of 247 million international tourist arrivals in those four months, down from 269 million in 2008. Given the changes in the outlook UNWTO has revised its forecast for the full year 2009. Taking account of the results for the first four months of the year and the current market conditions, international tourism is now forecast to decrease by between -6% and -4% in 2009, as the pace of decline is expected to ease during the remainder of 2009.
TRAVEL INTERNET MARKETING FOCUS Founders of Hotels.com Launch New Hotel Booking Site 8 July 2009 | Bob Diener and David Litman, the founders of Hotels.com and pioneers of the online hotel industry, announced today the launch of getaroom.com (www.getaroom.com). With its exclusive money-saving non-published rates travelers booking accommodations with getaroom.com get the benefits of opaque pricing without being kept in the dark about where they will be sleeping. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend For the real bucks, SEM’s still the way to go | webintravel.com8 July 2009 | As far as Jos Weesjes (right), vice president, distribution marketing & revenue management, InterContinental Hotels Group Asia Pacific, is concerned, SEM (Search Engine Marketing) remains the most effective tool for direct revenue generation despite the rise in popularity of social media. He said, “It is known that people search four to five times before making a choice so you want to make sure they find you easily. View Article | Send to a Friend Death of the Travel Brands | Ram Badrinathan8 July 2009 | The idea of manipulating public opinion using the sub consciousness was pioneered by Sigmund Freud’s nephew, Edward Bernays, who is also regarded as the father of public relations. In the 1920s, working for the American Tobacco Company, he sent a group of young models to march in the New York City parade. He then told the press that a group of women’s rights marchers would light “Torches of Freedom”. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend HEDNA's ASPAC Meeting Focuses on Strategies to Help Hoteliers Boost Revenue Via Electronic Distribution2 July 2009 | HEDNA, the Hotel Electronic Distribution Network Association, is hosting its annual ASPAC Meeting on 23rd July 2009 at the Grand Hyatt Singapore. Attendees will learn how electronic distribution is changing the travel business and how they can use it to increase revenue. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend International Hotel & Restaurant Association to support “dotHOTEL”29 June 2009 | The International Hotel & Restaurant Association (IH&RA) has announced its support for dotHOTEL, the company which will register ‘.hotel’ as a new top-level domain for the global hotel industry with the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend TRAVEL INTERNET MARKETING | WHITEPAPER SERIES  Effective Internet Marketing Strategies for Recessionary TimesThe HSMAI Travel Internet Marketing Special Interest Group is pleased to present a ten-part series of white papers, as part of its mission to increase members’ awareness and understanding of emerging issues, opportunities and trends; and, TIG Global is proud to sponsor the reports as part of its commitment to helping travel professionals drive revenue and profit online by making smart, strategic marketing decisions. The reports, published by the HSMAI Foundation, are offered complimentary to HSMAI members and industry professionals.
REVENUE MANAGEMENT FOCUS “No Idea is a Bad Idea in this Economy” Hilton Hotels on Incremental Business and Price Integrity | eyefortravel8 July 2009 | Hotel revenue managers have been struggling with how best to manage declining demand and the pressures to reduce rate. Revenue managers need to identify pockets of opportunity to maintain or improve revenues. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend Marriott, Starwood Need Four Years to Restore Hotel Room Rates | bloomberg.com29 June 2009 | Marriott International Inc. and Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. are among U.S. hotel operators that may need four years to restore room rates to 2008 levels after slashing prices to spur demand. “We don’t see national average room rates getting back to 2008 levels until sometime in 2012 or even 2013,” Mark Woodworth, president of PKF Hospitality Research, said in an interview. View Article | Send to a Friend Rate Integrity In A Down Market |Report from Revenue Management Roundtable in Singapore 25 June 2009 | Over the twenty years that Revenue Management has been in practice in the hospitality industry, most of the principles have been learned in a sound economy, commented Dr. Sheryl E. Kimes, Singapore Tourism Board Distinguished Professor of Asian Hospitality Management, who recently led the Revenue Management Roundtable in Singapore, hosted by the Cornell-Nanyang Institute of Hospitality Management (CNI), along with iDeas, a SAS Company. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend RESORT MARKETING FOCUS AZ Resorts suffer financial strains | azcentral.com7 July 2009 | A glut of empty rooms and panic pricing are taking a serious toll on hotel and resort owners in the Phoenix area. Foreclosure proceedings were initiated against seven financially squeezed properties, two of them brand new, in the first half of the year. That's just one less than in all of 2008 and more than double the number in 2007, according to Ion Data, a Mesa real-estate research firm. View Article | Send to a Friend Luxury Market's New Normal AFTER the Recession1 July 2009 | Everybody is asking it: What is the 'new normal' in the luxury market after the recession? The answer is simple: The new normal won't be anything like the old normal, according to the findings of a new research study conducted by Unity Marketing and presented by Pam Danziger at the recent Luxury Interactive conference held in New York City. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend Pillow Fights at the Four Seasons | nytimes.com29 June 2009 | ISADORE SHARP had a different coda in mind for the twilight of his career. The 77-year-old founder and C.E.O. of Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, he was looking forward to some time with his wife, sons and grandchildren. View Article | Send to a Friend HOTEL DIRECTOR OF SALES & MARKETING Give Us This Day Our Daily Sales' | By Conor Kenny6 July 2009 | Who Moved My Cheese? Dr.Spencer Johnson is the author of Who Moved My Cheese? It has sold more than 16 million copies. It is a fable that tells the story of change, but it is told in a simple way. You see, his mice are simply used to new cheese arriving daily. They eat it, enjoy it and expect it every day. Surprisingly, they never question where it is coming from. They just assume it will arrive. One day, there is no delivery. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend Newest Expedia Travel Trendwatch Shows Some Travelers Planning to Extend Vacations This Summer 3 July 2009 | Expedia.com(R), the world's leading online travel site, today released the summer issue of the Expedia Travel Trendwatch(R). This issue of the Trendwatch(R) illustrates how industry dynamics have produced an abundance of values for travelers this summer in destinations around the globe - and how some consumer behaviors are shifting in order to take advantage of these opportunities. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend Front Desk Hospitality Training Can Generate Future Business | By - Doug Kennedy3 July 2009 | When it comes to creating positive first impressions, the job of front desk associate is arguably the most important of any hotel staffer. For guests booking online or via third parties, the front desk literally is their first impression. Even for those who have spoken with the reservations team by phone prior to arrival, their front desk arrival experience will set the tone for their entire stay. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend Total U.S. travel spending down, lodging disproportionately so | hotelnewsnow.com30 June 2009 | Recently, the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) released its estimates of travel-and-tourism-related spending for the first quarter of 2009. In 2000 inflation controlled dollars, total spending on travel and tourism declined by an annualized rate of 5.9 percent relative to the previous quarter. This quarter-to-quarter drop of total spending occurred despite a 10.9-percent decline in the overall price of tourism goods and services. View Article | Send to a Friend HSMAI MARKETING REVIEW | JUNE 2009 edition  Featured Article: SAVVY SEARCHING | By Rob TorresLeveraging the Online Behavior of Travelers in a Down Economy. The economy is impacting the way people are traveling and every segment of hospitality, travel and tourism has made changes to keep business strong. Google?s research also shows that there is opportunity in consumer behavior if travel marketers look deeply and think creatively. Here is what Google?s research and query data reveals about what drives consumers? travel decisions today. Click here to read full article... The June 2009 issue of the HSMAI Marketing Review magazine is now available to members. SALES & MARKETING FACULTY Cornell Study Finds that Lower Hotel Prices Cost Hotels Money in Good Times and Bad24 June 2009 | When close competitors cut their prices, the temptation for hotel operators is to follow with reductions of their own. While that strategy may increase occupancy, it reduces revenue per available room (RevPAR), when compared to a hotel’s competitive group. This is the key finding of a new study from Cornell's Center for Hospitality Research, “Competitive Pricing in Uncertain Times,” by Cathy A. Enz, Linda Canina, and Mark Lomanno. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend Rohit Verma Is Named Executive Director of Cornell Center for Hospitality Research2 July 2009 | Rohit Verma has been named executive director of Cornell's Center for Hospitality Research. An associate professor of operations management at the School of Hotel Administration, Verma teaches executive, master's, and undergraduate classes in service operations, product-service innovation, project management, and quality improvement methods. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend National Travel MONITOR Reveals Where U.S. domestic Travelers Want to Go 29 June 2009 | In the battle for domestic travel dollars during the year ahead, the just-released Ypartnership/Yankelovich 2009 National Travel MONITOR(SM) reveals that the West is likely to win, with the South not far behind. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend
COLUMNS Lifestyle Hotels: Gotta Have Soul | By Daniel Edward Craig8 July 2009 | Now that luxury is a bad word, hotels everywhere are scrambling to find ways to reinvent themselves without spending a whack of money. The quick fix? Simply delete all references to “luxury” in marketing materials and replace them with “lifestyle”. Magically, the hotel’s image transforms from visions of champagne baths and gold-plated toilet seats to a holistic experience involving discovery, connecting and environmental responsibility. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend Are you a Lodging Laggard or a Leader? | By Rob Käll10 July 2009 | About a week ago, I spoke with several Property Managers who feel helpless in the face of today’s economic climate. “Chin up,” I said to the audience. “All is not lost; in fact, there is plenty to gain during this turbulent time. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend Lessons on Brands and Discounting (with a touch of humor) | By Dr. John Hogan, CHE CHA MHS9 July 2009 | One only needs to read any news today globally to learn of continuing economic hesitation in projecting when the economy might reverse direction. One also can read the online or print stories about the challenges facing hospitality. Even though it has been substantiated repeatedly by every qualified source that huge discounting alone is NOT a good business decision, we continue to read stories about that exact approach by too many hoteliers. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend Are All Hotel Marketers Liars? | By Madigan Pratt 8 July 2009 | As a hospitality marketing professional you and I both know we’re not. But even Seth Godin would be hard pressed to think otherwise after reading the press releases for the new, over-hyped online hotel review site Oyster.com. Essentially, Oyster.com is a hotel review site that sends professionals to stay at and review individual hotels. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend THE LATEST ENTRIES FROM TOP HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY BLOGS This Blog consolidator provides summaries of entries from Blogs by industry insiders and publications, including USA Today Hotel Hot Sheet, HotelChatter, Revenue Management Forum, and Tourism Internet Marketing. It will appear in each issue of the eConnect Industry Trends Update and is always accessible on the HSMAI Foundation's eConnect site. If you have a Blog to recommend for inclusion, please use the online form to do so or to provide feedback on this new feature.  Meta-search vs Online Travel Agents: the three main differences and why they matterThe Kayak vs Bing litigation PR war and my post last week on TripAdvisor and fraud reviews turned me to thinking about the differences between Online Travel Agents (OTAs) and meta-search companies. There are plenty of similarities. The base similari... posted on The BOOT | By Timothy Hughes  Experiment results: Linking vs. sharing info on TwitterLast Friday I asked you which you prefer: sharing links to blog posts on Twitter – or actual information in the tweet. Over the past week, I took some recently popular blog posts, broke them down into 140-character, “bite sized” pieces – and made a ... posted on Hotel Marketing Strategies Blog  How small tourism companies can increase their online bookingsToday’s guest post is by Andy Hayes. It’s not secret that more and more travellers are feeling comfortable making travel bookings online – and are doing so in droves. Travel bookings in the US alone were up 12% to US$ 105 billion last year (source: ... posted on T4 | Travel & Tourism Technology Trends | By Stephen Joyce  The Future Of Hotel Booking Is... Call Centers?!Color me skeptical about GetARoom.com, the newest booking portal from the guys behind the iconic online travel agent Hotels.com. GetARoom is being touted as a "reverse opaque" platform, wherein users can see discounted published rates, as is typical... posted on Musings & Miscellany (HOTELS Magazine) | By Adam Kirby  What Happened to Hilton’s Denizen?Ever since Starwood sued Hilton over their Denizen brand no word has come from either party about Denizen's fate. I don't think anyone expects Denizen to ever see the light of day at this point - but still.. What's going on? posted on Passions Of A Zealot | By Andrew Calvo  Unfortunate brand namesThe hotel industry has mercifully been spared when it comes to choosing unfortunate brand names that, in some instances, have had decidedly deleterious outcomes for the owners. In the latter category General Motors' Nova is one of the more prominent... posted on New York Hospitality | By Vijay Dandapani  Facebook Helps Brands and Personalities Convert Visitors to FansFacebook Connect is connecting people across the social graph to fresh content and furthermore it’s channeling outside Web events into individual lifestreams. Essentially, Facebook is solidifying its position as not only your primary social network,... posted on PR 2.0 | By Brian Solis  Travolution Index - first six months of 2009So with the first half of 2009 now a semi-distant memory, how did the travel and hospitality firms listed on the Travolution Index performed during the six months to the end of June?The Index as a whole was down 2.34% between 2 January and 30 June.T... posted on Travolution Blog | By Kevin May  How hotels use (and misuse) Facebook: 5 examples, 14 ideas for youThis is a guest post by Josiah Mackenzie, author of a hotel marketing blog. To followup on Guillaume's series on hotels using Twitter, I wanted to examine how hotels are using another popular network: Facebook. While Twitter seems to be... posted on Hotel Blogs 2.0 | By Guillaume Thevenot TripAdvisor needs to move to a "no stay, no say" approach to reviews to protect brand and online reviews generallyExpedia's TripAdvisor is claiming more than 20 million reviews on their site. In addition they have been on a steady and apparently unstoppable campaign to buy niche review sites in areas such as Cruise, holidays, airline seats and vacation rental. ... posted on The BOOT | By Timothy Hughes All Blogs ECONNECT RSS FEEDS  Stay on top of what's happening in your city and the industry. As an HSMAI member, you can now customize your eConnect news and information to include daily
news from your choice of more than 40 city Business Journals. The HSMAI Foundation's eConnect research
and resource site now gives you the choice of adding news feeds (via Real Simple Syndication, or RSS)
that are updated throughout the day from Business Journals as well as the top hospitality industry and
consumer publications. Just click here, log in to eConnect if you aren't already, and choose from the
list of available feeds. Click here to learn more...
HSMAI UPDATE
HSMAI's Affordable Meetings® National Celebrates 20 Years; Welcomes Jonathan Tisch As Keynote Speaker 14 July 2009 | The Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International’s (HSMAI) Affordable Meetings® National celebrates its 20th year of providing a forum for planners, properties and suppliers to come together to do business, Sept. 9-10, 2009 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, DC. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend HSMAI Announces 2009 Adrian Awards Call For Entries 8 July 2009 | In the current economic climate, hospitality industry and agency professionals have given 110 percent to marketing, advertising and public relations programs and have gotten extremely creative to produce results. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend [MULTIMEDIA] HSMAI University Audio interview: The Bad News and Good News About Hospitality Today23 June 2009 | Dr. Cetron has been identified as one of the nation's foremost futurists in the cover story, "The Next 50 Years" in the 50th Anniversary issue of U.S. News & World Report. He was selected by the Institute of Industrial Engineers as one of the top10 Industrial Engineers in the U.S. and has been featured in countless magazines and newspapers. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend Excitement builds for HSMAI’s Affordable Meetings® National and Event Technology Expo™22 June 2009 | Planners attending the 13th Annual Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International’s (HSMAI) Affordable Meetings® West Conference & Exposition meant business. Attendees used their time to meet with exhibitors on the convention floor and take advantage of 24 educational sessions that made up the conference program June 10-11 at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center. View Article | Print Article | Send to a Friend FEATURED EVENTS  Affordable Meetings National and Event Technology Expo 2009 9 - 10 September 2009 HSMAI's Affordable Meetings® National is the ideal forum where planners, properties and suppliers come together to do business – attracting motivated planners from all sectors of the industry who attend looking for quality resources to enhance their meetings and events. Washington, DC  2nd Annual Event Technology Expo 9 - 10 September 2009 Event Technology Expo @ Affordable Meetings is a national exposition and conference addressing all aspects of technology as it relates to tradeshows, conventions, meetings, and special events. Washington, DC  HSMAI Adrian Awards Gala 1 February 2010 In its 53rd year, the Adrian Awards continues to capture and showcase industry achievers and ROI-producing materials from hotels, airlines, attractions, car rental companies, casinos, convention centers, cruise lines, destinations, restaurants, and spas, as well as time share and extended stay properties and industry suppliers. New York, NY All HSMAI EventsAll Upcoming Industry EventsFEATURED HSMAI UNIVERSITY PROGRAMS 
HSMAI University programs for 2009 are aligned with HSMAI's Special Interest Groups to offer specialized content
to support business needs in revenue management, Internet marketing, hotel director of sales & marketing and
resort marketing. Every aspect of the content and support material included in the HSMAI University program has
been specifically designed and developed for those involved in sales and marketing, including an inventory of
subject matter appropriate to individuals with responsibilities ranging from entry-level to advanced.HSMAI-U offers workshops and seminars in various cities, and "Webinars" incorporating 60-minute presentations conducted "live" via the web with audio conference linkage. Upcoming HSMAI University Programs:
NEW! Tune in to hear insights from hospitality industry leaders on the latest sales & marketing topics:
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The recession has stimulated many hoteliers to use some creative ways to drive sales. Their focal point is to create ways to capture sales in the most cost-effective means possible, with the quickest results possible. Let's face it; few hotels are flush with money right now. I think we can all agree that a well-designed website is the most cost-effective hotel marketing tool, ever conceived. Hotels that don't take full advantage of this marketing tool are way behind the curve. Every hotel, motor Inn, lodge, bed 'n breakfast, resort, or Inn; franchised or independent, benefits from having a presence on the world-wide web; every lodging facility needs a functioning website, but that’s only the first step. Many hoteliers have learned to use their proprietary, individually-owned, websites as a promotional tool and not just an online brochure. Because of this, they will continue to out-pace and dominate their competition. Not just because they care enough to have a good functional site, but because they understand that the information on a hotel website needs to be continually managed, promoted, and enhanced to get the most out of it. With the potential of having a few thousand monthly site visitors, smart hoteliers are using that opportunity to, not only display their hotel features, but also to give visitors reasons to stay in their market area and thus, their hotel. You May Need To Change Your Website Paradigm If you are not already a believer, you may have to change the way you view your hotel's website. Too many hoteliers consider mission accomplished when their site is published, but this should only be the beginning of your Internet marketing effort. A website that just sits there, without a consistently strong promotional effort, will continue to underperform. The real winners in Internet marketing understand that a well-designed hotel site is only the palette on which to build their promotional efforts. You've done everything necessary to get visitors to visit your site, but what is your site's sales message? Why do travelers visit your hotel's location? Do you really think that all you need do is to tell visitors about your facilities, amenities, and service? Not in this competitive marketplace. Years ago, a very wise general manager once told me that "everyone wants a deal" and that sure holds true today. The location of your hotel as compared to where visitors want or need to be is one's first value-based decision. Your website provides an opportunity to promote packages and "special offers" to people visiting your site. Promote Reasons To Visit Your Destination Travelers visit a destination and stay in a hotel; not the opposite. Connect your hotel to the reasons why people visit your area. Some hotels have found this formula and are benefitting in two ways; first, from increased traffic to their site through search and second, from increased online reservations by providing promotions and packages as a value-added solution. There are some good examples of this on the Internet. One example, a major brand hotel in the Northwest, is among those leading the way. They have a search and content optimized website on which they are promoting room packages, banquets, weddings, and restaurant promotions. Everyone, including the general manager, food and beverage director, sales, revenue manager, and even the property controller contributes ideas to optimize website sales content. They collaborate with their website developer on a regular and consistent basis to keep their hotel in a dominant position in their market. Another example of hotel creativity is a small limited-service hotel in Belize. This hotel uses local attractions and social events to package their rooms and location into a powerful sales message. Collaboration – Two Minds Are Better Than One Create a collaborative relationship with your hotel website developer. Any website designer, worth his/her fee, should be eager to help you develop your website into a productive site which optimizes search, maximizes links, promotes packages, and generates reservations. Just about any site designer can create an attractive website; the true measure of their work is how well they support your promotional efforts with timely updates and additions to your site. Collaborate with your site developer for ideas and to add some additional insight into what is happening in an ever-changing marketplace. A good site developer knows what people are searching for so you can take advantage of those searches. Using Revenue Management Techniques To Keep Your Site Current Be aware of what is going on in your marketplace. Any hotel which is using revenue management techniques knows that the key to managing rates and inventory is to know what's happening in your market, now and into the future Revenue managers routinely look for opportunities; your website is the perfect vehicle to reflect market changes in the form of packages and promotions. Revenue management "best practices" includes the collection and analysis of market data and allows hotels to anticipate fluctuations in the market; your website should reflect these opportunities. Take the "Mystery" Out of Internet Marketing Consider the Internet as a living, breathing advertising medium, not too unlike that full page ad in the New York Times that you've always dreamed of affording. A prime difference is that, if your site is properly developed, your site will have a much bigger relevant audience with a much lower cost per capture. Internet marketing is much more than simply posting a website. These are some of the simple, but essential, steps to maximize the results from your online promotional efforts.
Sometimes, ASAP can be too fast. In Microsoft Outlook, you can specify a delivery time for every message you send. Schedule Emails in Outlook To set a date and time before which a message must not be sent in Outlook:
Schedule More Flexibly, Recurring Emails and Attachments in Outlook To schedule messages more flexibly and include automatic attachments, too, you can try a number of specific Outlook email scheduling add-ons or resort to an email scheduling service. |
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The Bad News and Good News About Hospitality Today
