There is good news coming out of The Broadmoor in Colorado Spring, Colorado: Turnover is down. Call it an obvious benefit of the downturn, as workers cling desperately to their jobs amid historic levels of unemployment. But for the 95-year-old resort, it’s something of a consistent claim relative to the industry as a whole.
“We have a lot of long-term employees,” said Cindy Johnson, The Broadmoor’s director of human resources. “Average tenure is eight years.”
The Broadmoor's Nancy Johnson has increased training programs during the downturn.
When occupancies, morale and resources are high, facilitating the type of work environment that fosters such long-term employment is easy. Try doing the same as hours get cut, salaries are frozen and coworkers get the ax, and the task becomes a lot more difficult. Yes, the most talented workers might stick around out of fear today, but will they jump ship when opportunities present themselves during a recovery?
That was the question panelists sought to answer Saturday during a breakout session at the Hospitality Leadership Forum in New York.
“You have to analyze your organization. What are your objectives?” asked Alan Momeyer, VP of HR for Loews Corporation, of which Loews Hotels is a fully owned subsidiary. “Figure out in the human resources what you can do that’s not going to send your best people out the door.”
Momeyer and Johnson worked through that analysis with attendees, examining five key topics during a downturn where HR can make or break a talented employee’s long-term retention.
Training. “There was a time when a recession came, the first person to lose their job at a hotel was a training manager,” Momeyer said. Not so anymore. Skimping on training tells employees you’re no longer interested in their personal development and, as a result, their long-term prospects with your company.
“Employees have a long memory,” Johnson said. “Even in this tough economy, they’re going to remember some of those small things.”
Both she and Momeyer recognized this and have kept, if not revamped, existing training programs. At each of Loews’ 17 properties, for example, there is a training manager who works with the hotels’ various departments to sharpen employees’ skills and thus improve the guest experience.
Johnson has actually increased training at The Broadmoor. “We feel we’ll be better-positioned (coming) out of the downturn if we have done this,” she said.
Benefits. As budgets get slashed, so do employee benefits. But again, think about what cutting health care and other plans says about how much your company values its people.
Alan Momeyer of Loews Corporation suspended incentive pay and merit pay increases this year.
It’s something management at The Broadmoor clearly pondered. In evaluating their benefits plan, the only thing they dropped was their full-time employees’ hourly requirements to keep it. The step was deemed necessary because a number of these workers’ hours got reduced, thus putting them under the former threshold for benefits.
Loews also adopted a similar policy and saved money in the process. When it came time to re-evaluate the company’s existing benefit plans, Momeyer and the HR team discovered they were paying too much, so they found a more affordable alternative. It’s something he admitted the company could have done before the downturn but became necessary when times got tough.
Incentive pay and pay raises. Here’s something both Loews and The Broadmoor suspended, at least for the immediate future. Nearly every like-organization has done the same throughout the industry, so it’s not a competitive disadvantage, Momeyer said.
How and when you bring them back will vary. Hourly employees at The Broadmoor will receive merit increases in 2010, and Loews is reimplementing incentive pay next year, though not at the previous target of 20 percent. “The money simply isn’t there,” Momeyer said.
Employee recognition. Loews and The Broadmoor are continuing existing employee-recognition programs. Doing so encourages strong performance and acts to boost morale. It also communicates to your hotel’s other employees that people are your company’s most valuable asset, according to Momeyer.
Communication. “During times like this, you have to communicate even more than before,” Momeyer said. Doing so eliminates the uncertainty and doubt that can destroy employee morale. It also helps you keep your finger on the pulse of your work force to measure its mood and anticipate any problems or complaints. Loews has increased its employee roundtables and internal surveys to meet this end.
The Broadmoor has gone a step further. The resort’s president and CEO, Stephen Bartolin Jr., holds regular meetings to address the concerns of staff and share relevant news and information.
In addition to those meetings, Johnson has overseen a comprehensive communications plan to keep every possible channel open with employees. She urged other hoteliers to do the same.
“Over-communicate, whether it’s in person, a memo, in your newsletter, whatever,” she said. “You can’t let people speculate about how your business is doing.”
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
‘The single most significant crisis’ of 2010
Like a gladiator returning from combat, the U.S. hotel industry has come face-to-face with a number of considerable challenges this year: dismal demand, plunging rates and lack of financing to name a few. Yet while murmurs of recovery have begun to echo from the masses, the fight is far from over.
Jim Abrahamson, InterContinental Hotels Group
Jim Abrahamson, president of the Americas for InterContinental Hotels Group, made this clear when discussing debt, which he called the “single most significant crisis that’s going to face us this year” during a panel at the AH&LA’s Hospitality Leadership Forum this week in New York.
“Debt is as large and looming as any issue facing our industry today,” he said. “And it’s not just our industry; it’s the entire world of commercial real estate. … We know there is a looming problem with the CMBS market and just general real estate loans.”
The issue was top of mind for Abrahamson, who had recently joined with leaders from America’s top public and privately owned real estate entities to discuss debt with members of the White House Counsel of Economic Advisors and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation during a meeting of The Real Estate Roundtable.
“They are very concerned about this,” he said. “… Their prediction as of the end of September is that we could see as many as 500 to 1,000 more banks being at risk of going out of business.”
During the meeting, members of the FDIC said at-risk lending institutions are facing tremendous pressure from appraisals, which are typically revealing enormous losses on invested assets, according to Abrahamson. Banks have begun raising reserves to cushion these financial blows, which could mean less lenient extensions on hotel loans.
“We got a pass this year, generally,” he said. “Banks haven’t been aggressive. They’ve kind of held off. We haven’t seen a lot of foreclosures. We’ve had some, but it’s not been widespread. (But) we have CMBS maturities in 2010 and 2011 that are looming.”
The news isn’t all bad, though. The industry has seen a number of successful refinancings of late, including FelCor Lodging Trust’s successful distressed-debt exchange last month.
But to get through 2010, Abrahamson said the industry has to establish a united front to lobby for extensions of TARP, TALF and other programs to ease the pressure on banks. He tasked the American Hotel & Lodging Association and the U.S. Travel Association with leading the charge.
“If (banks) don’t make it, we ain’t going to make it,” he said. “We have to take this on, because it’s going to be a battle ground next year.”
Jim Abrahamson, InterContinental Hotels Group
Jim Abrahamson, president of the Americas for InterContinental Hotels Group, made this clear when discussing debt, which he called the “single most significant crisis that’s going to face us this year” during a panel at the AH&LA’s Hospitality Leadership Forum this week in New York.
“Debt is as large and looming as any issue facing our industry today,” he said. “And it’s not just our industry; it’s the entire world of commercial real estate. … We know there is a looming problem with the CMBS market and just general real estate loans.”
The issue was top of mind for Abrahamson, who had recently joined with leaders from America’s top public and privately owned real estate entities to discuss debt with members of the White House Counsel of Economic Advisors and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation during a meeting of The Real Estate Roundtable.
“They are very concerned about this,” he said. “… Their prediction as of the end of September is that we could see as many as 500 to 1,000 more banks being at risk of going out of business.”
During the meeting, members of the FDIC said at-risk lending institutions are facing tremendous pressure from appraisals, which are typically revealing enormous losses on invested assets, according to Abrahamson. Banks have begun raising reserves to cushion these financial blows, which could mean less lenient extensions on hotel loans.
“We got a pass this year, generally,” he said. “Banks haven’t been aggressive. They’ve kind of held off. We haven’t seen a lot of foreclosures. We’ve had some, but it’s not been widespread. (But) we have CMBS maturities in 2010 and 2011 that are looming.”
The news isn’t all bad, though. The industry has seen a number of successful refinancings of late, including FelCor Lodging Trust’s successful distressed-debt exchange last month.
But to get through 2010, Abrahamson said the industry has to establish a united front to lobby for extensions of TARP, TALF and other programs to ease the pressure on banks. He tasked the American Hotel & Lodging Association and the U.S. Travel Association with leading the charge.
“If (banks) don’t make it, we ain’t going to make it,” he said. “We have to take this on, because it’s going to be a battle ground next year.”
Friday, November 6, 2009
3 signs of pricing recovery
In thinking about the series of events that ultimately will lead to a recovery in pricing power for the U.S. hotel industry, it seems to me that three intertwined but separate things will have to happen:
1. Demand will have to recover. By that I mean there will have to be a sustained period where there is meaningful growth over previous periods.
2. Absolute levels of occupancy will need to be above a critical floor, which, of course, will vary by market and nationally.
3. Booking windows will have to lengthen to allow revenue managers to achieve desired levels of occupancy without having to practically give rooms away.
Let’s take a little more in-depth look at each of these three areas …
I start first with demand because, regardless of all the other factors, this is the first measure that needs to show sustained recovery. Historically, the industry has been able to maintain or even slightly raise room rates when the demand for hotel rooms is growing; basically, there are more guests in the market than the same time of the previous period. However, real pricing power has been elusive until that demand growth is consistently over the 2-percent range. When demand growth is at or above that rate of improvement, pricing power shifts from the buyer to the seller.
But there is an increasing school of thought that this historical standard may not repeat itself this cycle because the occupancy rates in most markets are too low. The thinking goes that no matter how great the level of demand growth, pricing power will not return until minimum levels of occupancy are achieved. This is an interesting point and one that needs considerable consideration. But I suspect this occupancy effect will be very market specific, mostly depending on the hotel mix and product quality in each market.
A couple of interesting developments in the current hotel cycle may have an unexpected effect on this level-of-occupancy effect. First, compared to historical levels, virtually no hotels are currently closing. Inherently, that means a considerable amount of inferior product remains in supply, and basically the question is whether these properties will stay in customer decision mix in a more robust economy.
Second, during the past several months there has been a meaningful demand recovery in the higher price segments, specifically in the luxury, upper-upscale and upscale chain-scale segments. This, unfortunately, has not been the case in the other three segments. Since pricing power starts at the high end, the fact that demand is indeed beginning to rebound there is an encouraging sign.
The last link in the pricing stability chain is the length of the booking window, which appears to be at all-time low levels. This, in concert with significant declines in the group and meetings business, has left hotels with a very uncertain and uneasy feeling regarding their short-term occupancy performance. With very low visibility in regard to bookings, the typical response is to lower the rate to attract guests. The real problem with this strategy is that it seldom significantly increases share but rather lowers the price point for the entire market as everyone follows suit. This is easily checked at Smith Travel Research because we have the unique ability to examine the performance effect of this behavior. So while it makes for a good story that this behavior “steals share,” the reality is it’s mostly not true.
Additionally, it trains the buyer that waiting until the last possible minute to book a room yields considerable benefit. This buying pattern seems unlikely to change until guests start to get burned by this behavior with either very high-priced rooms or no rooms available.
In conclusion, while we are beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel, a few more key pieces have to fall into place before a pricing recovery is imminent.
1. Demand will have to recover. By that I mean there will have to be a sustained period where there is meaningful growth over previous periods.
2. Absolute levels of occupancy will need to be above a critical floor, which, of course, will vary by market and nationally.
3. Booking windows will have to lengthen to allow revenue managers to achieve desired levels of occupancy without having to practically give rooms away.
Let’s take a little more in-depth look at each of these three areas …
I start first with demand because, regardless of all the other factors, this is the first measure that needs to show sustained recovery. Historically, the industry has been able to maintain or even slightly raise room rates when the demand for hotel rooms is growing; basically, there are more guests in the market than the same time of the previous period. However, real pricing power has been elusive until that demand growth is consistently over the 2-percent range. When demand growth is at or above that rate of improvement, pricing power shifts from the buyer to the seller.
But there is an increasing school of thought that this historical standard may not repeat itself this cycle because the occupancy rates in most markets are too low. The thinking goes that no matter how great the level of demand growth, pricing power will not return until minimum levels of occupancy are achieved. This is an interesting point and one that needs considerable consideration. But I suspect this occupancy effect will be very market specific, mostly depending on the hotel mix and product quality in each market.
A couple of interesting developments in the current hotel cycle may have an unexpected effect on this level-of-occupancy effect. First, compared to historical levels, virtually no hotels are currently closing. Inherently, that means a considerable amount of inferior product remains in supply, and basically the question is whether these properties will stay in customer decision mix in a more robust economy.
Second, during the past several months there has been a meaningful demand recovery in the higher price segments, specifically in the luxury, upper-upscale and upscale chain-scale segments. This, unfortunately, has not been the case in the other three segments. Since pricing power starts at the high end, the fact that demand is indeed beginning to rebound there is an encouraging sign.
The last link in the pricing stability chain is the length of the booking window, which appears to be at all-time low levels. This, in concert with significant declines in the group and meetings business, has left hotels with a very uncertain and uneasy feeling regarding their short-term occupancy performance. With very low visibility in regard to bookings, the typical response is to lower the rate to attract guests. The real problem with this strategy is that it seldom significantly increases share but rather lowers the price point for the entire market as everyone follows suit. This is easily checked at Smith Travel Research because we have the unique ability to examine the performance effect of this behavior. So while it makes for a good story that this behavior “steals share,” the reality is it’s mostly not true.
Additionally, it trains the buyer that waiting until the last possible minute to book a room yields considerable benefit. This buying pattern seems unlikely to change until guests start to get burned by this behavior with either very high-priced rooms or no rooms available.
In conclusion, while we are beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel, a few more key pieces have to fall into place before a pricing recovery is imminent.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Social web for business travellers 'impossible to ignore'
Social media will become increasingly important for business travellers and their agents, according to a report commissioned by a travel management company.
Advito, which is the independent consulting arm of BCD Travel, released its 2010 Industry Analysis this week.
The study says that it is inevitable that [business travellers] will generate content about their business travel experiences through social networks, just as they do about other aspects of their lives. Travel managers therefore should offer an official channel for them so that the information can captured and used.
A well-executed corporate network could give travel managers information about every hotel within a preferred programme, identifying strengths and weaknesses of the various properties. Similarly, a social network could be set up to float ideas among travellers on issues such as budget cuts, or for travellers to share cost-saving tips.
Leisure operators have started to use user generated content in resort to improve their product. A similar dynamic will emerge in corporate travel, Advito claimed. In 2010, we are likely to see the first examples of feedback from travellers being used in supplier negotiations, it said.
However, managers need to be aware of potential problems, such employees using the network for what is not a core business activity.
However, the conclusion is that social networking will become impossible to ignore in 2010 and that there will be major growth in travel managers creating corporate travel specific social networks.
Advito, which is the independent consulting arm of BCD Travel, released its 2010 Industry Analysis this week.
The study says that it is inevitable that [business travellers] will generate content about their business travel experiences through social networks, just as they do about other aspects of their lives. Travel managers therefore should offer an official channel for them so that the information can captured and used.
A well-executed corporate network could give travel managers information about every hotel within a preferred programme, identifying strengths and weaknesses of the various properties. Similarly, a social network could be set up to float ideas among travellers on issues such as budget cuts, or for travellers to share cost-saving tips.
Leisure operators have started to use user generated content in resort to improve their product. A similar dynamic will emerge in corporate travel, Advito claimed. In 2010, we are likely to see the first examples of feedback from travellers being used in supplier negotiations, it said.
However, managers need to be aware of potential problems, such employees using the network for what is not a core business activity.
However, the conclusion is that social networking will become impossible to ignore in 2010 and that there will be major growth in travel managers creating corporate travel specific social networks.
Friday, October 30, 2009
Seven future hotel tech advances
During the first of my carefree college years, my freshman dormmate, Kyle, left our room for only three reasons:
1. to occasionally go to class;
2. to occasionally visit the dining hall on the off nights he didn’t order food; and
3. to frequently use the restroom.
For the other 21 hours each day, he confined himself in our phone-booth sized cell of a dorm room, firmly planted within the warm glow of his then-state-of-the-art, 17-inch, flat-panel computer screen. This self-inflicted house arrest would have rendered the most stable of personalities certifiably nuts, yet good ol’ Kyle remained as jolly as Santa Claus on his way down a chimney.
I’ve encountered such unabashed optimism in other technophiles throughout the years, something I’ve attributed in part to the dulling effects of long-term exposure to binary code on the brain’s sensory receptors most responsible for despair. More likely a reason for this upbeat demeanor, however, is the cohort’s focus on future capabilities. While the rest of us are slogging through the depressing realities of today, IT-minded folk like my roommate Kyle frequently have their targets set on the anything-is-possible promises of tomorrow.
This refreshing mindset was certainly on display this week during LodgeNet’s 2009 Customer Technology Symposium in Atlanta, where some of the best and brightest in the industry gathered to discuss and share ideas about how hoteliers can reap the benefits of improved guest experiences.
Craig Mathias kicked the event off with a discussion of future trends in interactive technology and their implications on hospitality.
Mathias, who serves as principal for technology advisory firm Farpoint Group, discussed the need to be infocentric—that is, focusing on the importance of information rather than the devices that deliver that information. Those devices, he argued, are so varied and run so many different operating systems and software that they create nightmare compatibility issues for IT professionals. There’s also an issue with carrying them; while we might like our iPods and cell phones and pagers and notebooks and tablet PCs and cameras, there are often not enough pockets in a single set of trousers to house them all.
In short, we need to think of hardware as being independent of the application. Mathias outlined a number of ways this approach could be applied in a hotel:
1. Check-in. “When I check in, I don’t have to talk to somebody at the desk. I authenticate using my cell phone or perhaps my USB key.”
2. Room key. Cell phones, USB keys, or other devices could act as room keys.
3. Profiles and preferences. We all make different preferences during the check-in process. Some of us request spacious king beds, while others like rooms at the end of the hall. Mathias longs for a time when a guest’s personal preferences follow him or her from property to property. Guests would simply upload their profile, and when they walked into their hotel room for the first time, they would find everything—including the thermostat, telephone directory, TV—set to meet their personal tastes and needs.
4. Charge card. Guests should be able to charge everything during their hotel stay through a cell phone or USB key through the hotel’s intranet site.
5. Dialing directories. When a guest enters a property, the hotel’s dialing directory should automatically be downloaded to their personal device.
6. TV as computer. “I want the TV in my room to be my screen. Give me a keyboard with a little touchpad on it, and now I can use that as a computer. I don’t have to carry a notebook with me.”
7. Check-out. “Finally, check-out. I don’t have to use the TV. I can just do it on my way down to the lobby using my handset.”
Innovative steps like those outlined about are about productivity, convenience and, most importantly, stickiness.
“If you let me do this at your hotel, I’m going to stay at your hotel,” Mathias said. “If you do this before your competitors do this, I’m much more likely to do business with you.”
If they create a level of stickiness anything like those forces that kept my roommate Kyle in our dorm room, then the industry’s woes, much like my college tenure, would be a thing of the past.
TripAdvisor Explains Guidelines for Marketers
There is a lot of speculation going around the hotel industry on how they should interact with TripAdvisor. Since this site is so important for hospitality & travel marketing, I went right to the source to clarify a few things. Here is my conversation with TripAdvisor Vice President Michele Perry.
Josiah: If a hotel has a poor reputation on TripAdvisor, what steps should they take to improve it?
Michele: When a hotel has a poor ranking on TripAdvisor, it usually reflects problems with the property — grounds, staffing, cleanliness, service, or something else. The most important step hoteliers can take is to read the feedback they’ve received on TripAdvisor, and take the necessary steps to improve problem areas.
If a new owner has just taken over a property with a poor reputation, they can go to their owners’ page and fill out the change of ownership form with details of the nature of the ownership change, along with documentation that the change occurred, and we can remove reviews from the prior owner’s tenure.
Let’s be honest: as hotel marketing professionals it’s often our job to increase ranking on your site. What are some ethical ways we can do this – that you approve of?
TripAdvisor popularity index rankings are significantly impacted by the quantity of reviews, quality of reviews, and how recent those reviews are. You can’t approach improving TripAdvisor ranking as you might search engine optimization, where you can purchase keywords and impact your listings. The most important thing a hotelier can do is provide a good experience for their guests.
From a marketing professional’s perspective, you can educate guests about TripAdvisor and encourage them to write reviews of their stay. The more recent reviews you can help generate for your client, the better their ranking will be (assuming they are running a solid business).
On every hotel’s owners’ page we provide links that can be added to post-stay guest emails so that hoteliers can ask their recent guests to submit a review – the link makes it easy for the guest to get started. Also on the owners’ pages are new “write-a-review widgets” that can be added to a hotel’s website in minutes, so that visitors can write a review without searching TripAdvisor for the right page.
Are there any specifics you want us to avoid?
While we encourage you to encourage guests to write reviews, any sort of incentive – a free night, a coupon off the next stay, a discounted meal, etc. – is strictly against our rules.
And, of course, reviews need to be the honest, unbiased opinions of real travelers who have had an experience with your property.
Do you have any recommendations for integrating TripAdvisor into our website and marketing materials?
We strongly encourage property owners to register at www.tripadvisor.com/owners, and to learn about all available monitoring, management and marketing tools. We have a variety of customizable widgets that allow properties to display current review data on their websites, and we also offer “recommended on TripAdvisor” badges for your site. Research consistently shows that consumers trust other consumers, so adding TripAdvisor content to your property’s web site through our products gives your customers the review information they want. More than 5,000 hotels worldwide have done this and the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive.
Registering as an owner also puts properties on our newsletter list, which means they’ll receive first notification of new metrics and tools.
What day-to-day actions should hotel management take to ensure their hotel has a great presence on your site?
First and foremost, take good care of your property and guests. Check TripAdvisor everyday for new reviews and use the feedback to make appropriate adjustments. Owners can sign up for daily emails of new reviews so that they can stay current easily, and respond to reviews quickly.
Properties have the option to upload a photo, and as many videos as they like. We encourage owners to take advantage of this, and to keep their listing up-to-date.
How should management respond to reviews? Select ones: negative or positive feedback? Ignore them all?
We encourage hoteliers to address negative reviews with a management response on our site; we often hear that how a property reacts to the criticism is more important to prospective guests than the negative comments themselves. Some hoteliers choose to respond to positive reviews, also. We consider this less essential, but it certainly gives travelers an even better sense of who you as a hotelier and your property are.
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Choice, Expedia resume negotiations
Choice Hotels International and Expedia are at the bargaining table looking to hammer out an agreement that would get the room inventories at Choice’s more than 5,000 hotels listed again on the Web sites that Expedia operates.
Those Web sites, including Expedia.com and Hotels.com, have not had Choice properties listed in their inventories for about two weeks. In a previously released statement, Expedia said it pulled Choice hotels from its site because of the inability to reach a new agreement after numerous extensions.
Read the statement here.
The rift focuses on Expedia’s alleged desire to have last-room availability from the Choice properties to sell on its sites. Choice rejected the notion, prompting Choice CEO Steve Joyce to tell Hotels magazine that “Expedia wanted Choice to literally give up control of its inventory and pricing and wanted to penalize franchisees who did not give Expedia 100 percent access all the time.”
Anne Madison, Choice’s senior VP for Corporate Communications, said the two organizations resumed negotiations late last week.
Anne Madison“We are back at the negotiating table and having productive conversations,” Madison said Wednesday afternoon.
Choice’s No. 1 goal is simple: “The one thing that has to be maintained is franchisees have control over their own businesses,” Madison said.
The fact that the hotel industry is moving more and more into the online space makes it more important to have a cohesive and comprehensive online strategy and policy, she said.
“We’re an online society. That’s why you see all the major hotel chains building strong ecommerce presence with their own channels,” Madison said.
She declined to reveal data regarding Choice’s Web site, including traffic to the site and bookings made through the site, because it is proprietary information.
“We were the first to come out with a hotel reservations Web site in ChoiceHotels.com, and since that time it has changed dramatically.” She said. “We feel very good about the performance that we have online.”
Choice’s goal is to focus on the value that online reservations bring to its franchisees, according to Madison. She declined to specifically say if Choice franchisees could pursue individual agreements with third-party sites such as Expedia.com and Hotels.com.
“A strong part of an Internet distribution strategy is to have approved channels,” she said. “We have an Internet policy and strategy that go hand in hand.”
Several comment boards on industry Websites, including HotelNewsNow.com, have indicated strong support in the industry for Choice’s stance on the issue. Madison said the company isn’t interested in speaking on behalf of the industry.
“The most important thing is to do what’s right for our franchisees,” she said. “We are really speaking for our franchises, not the industry. We want to operate in the best interest of our franchisees.”
Expedia, a publicly traded company that is expected to release its third-quarter earnings report today, was unavailable for comment.
Those Web sites, including Expedia.com and Hotels.com, have not had Choice properties listed in their inventories for about two weeks. In a previously released statement, Expedia said it pulled Choice hotels from its site because of the inability to reach a new agreement after numerous extensions.
Read the statement here.
The rift focuses on Expedia’s alleged desire to have last-room availability from the Choice properties to sell on its sites. Choice rejected the notion, prompting Choice CEO Steve Joyce to tell Hotels magazine that “Expedia wanted Choice to literally give up control of its inventory and pricing and wanted to penalize franchisees who did not give Expedia 100 percent access all the time.”
Anne Madison, Choice’s senior VP for Corporate Communications, said the two organizations resumed negotiations late last week.
Anne Madison“We are back at the negotiating table and having productive conversations,” Madison said Wednesday afternoon.
Choice’s No. 1 goal is simple: “The one thing that has to be maintained is franchisees have control over their own businesses,” Madison said.
The fact that the hotel industry is moving more and more into the online space makes it more important to have a cohesive and comprehensive online strategy and policy, she said.
“We’re an online society. That’s why you see all the major hotel chains building strong ecommerce presence with their own channels,” Madison said.
She declined to reveal data regarding Choice’s Web site, including traffic to the site and bookings made through the site, because it is proprietary information.
“We were the first to come out with a hotel reservations Web site in ChoiceHotels.com, and since that time it has changed dramatically.” She said. “We feel very good about the performance that we have online.”
Choice’s goal is to focus on the value that online reservations bring to its franchisees, according to Madison. She declined to specifically say if Choice franchisees could pursue individual agreements with third-party sites such as Expedia.com and Hotels.com.
“A strong part of an Internet distribution strategy is to have approved channels,” she said. “We have an Internet policy and strategy that go hand in hand.”
Several comment boards on industry Websites, including HotelNewsNow.com, have indicated strong support in the industry for Choice’s stance on the issue. Madison said the company isn’t interested in speaking on behalf of the industry.
“The most important thing is to do what’s right for our franchisees,” she said. “We are really speaking for our franchises, not the industry. We want to operate in the best interest of our franchisees.”
Expedia, a publicly traded company that is expected to release its third-quarter earnings report today, was unavailable for comment.
Valuable hotel communication is the name of social media game
The key to social media marketing success is customized, quality messages, said Kent Schnepp, chief strategy officer for search engine marketing firm EngineWorks. Schnepp talked about social media marketing strategy last week during a webinar for the Boutique & Lifestyle Lodging Association, based in West Hills, California.
“With social media marketing, we don’t want to just put out a bunch of noise,” Schnepp said.
“The signals need to be interesting and of value to the people you are targeting.”
Boutique and lifestyle hotels can use social media networks for customer service purposes, as well as for providing valuable information to prospective and loyal guests. For example, instead of sending out a multitude of promotions to social media networks, properties can become experts on their area, which in turn leads to bookings.
“Think of social media not as advertising your brand, but more about the experience of staying with you,” Schnepp said. “If you are top of everything going on in Vail, Colorado, for example, you are the resource that (potential customers) go to.”
There are several other best practices that hoteliers should consider as they form their social media strategies:
-- Explore the available social media sites, and determine which are best for the property to focus on. Although Facebook and Twitter boast millions of users, those social media sites are not necessarily the best audiences for all hotels, according to Schnepp.
“Consider what is right for your business, and not what the latest trend is,” he said. “One size does not fit all in social media; it has to be customized to your user.”
Hoteliers first must determine which social media services their target guests are using. For example, Schnepp uses sites such as tripadvisor.com when researching his vacations in obscure locales that offer saltwater fishing.
“I am so targeted that Facebook may not be the best way to reach me,” he said.
At the same time, many hotel companies and brands have had great success using Facebook. For example, Dots, a young women’s clothing line, has developed more than 11,000 relevant fans on Facebook.
“Their demographics are very strong on Facebook,” Schnepp said. “If they would have tried the same approach on LinkedIn, they would have failed.”
To find out which social media sites are popular by industry and to keep up with social media trends, Schnepp suggested visiting mashable.com, traffikd.com and doshdosh.com.
-- Speak the language of the users on each specific site instead of sending out a mass message to all social media sites.
“What works on one site may not work on others,” Schnepp said.
-- Optimize the hotel’s profiles on social media sites so guests can find the property’s sites on search engines.
“Social media marketers don’t realize how much (search) optimization can be done to their profiles,” Schnepp said.
For example, on Facebook, hotels can create a URL directly to their Facebook page, which will help the hotel’s Facebook listings show up in search engines. On Twitter, hotels should incorporate key words, such the property’s location, into the biography section. In LinkedIn profiles, hotels can use key words in the user name, create a URL directly to their LinkIn page, and add up to three additional links in the profile.
-- Track the performance of your messages on social media sites. Facebook has a proprietary tracking system, as does Bit.ly and TweetStats.com
-- Stay relevant.
“I want you to take advantage of relevant opportunities you encounter each day,” Schnepp said. To keep up the hot topics that people are talking about, Schnepp suggested using services such as WhatTheTrends.com, Google Trends, Google Analytics and Twitter.com.
--Keep it real. For example, Comcast has improved its customer service by focusing on solutions to customers’ problems on its Twitter page, ComcastCares.
“They have focused on valuable communication, not shameless self-promotion,” Schnepp said.
“With social media marketing, we don’t want to just put out a bunch of noise,” Schnepp said.
“The signals need to be interesting and of value to the people you are targeting.”
Boutique and lifestyle hotels can use social media networks for customer service purposes, as well as for providing valuable information to prospective and loyal guests. For example, instead of sending out a multitude of promotions to social media networks, properties can become experts on their area, which in turn leads to bookings.
“Think of social media not as advertising your brand, but more about the experience of staying with you,” Schnepp said. “If you are top of everything going on in Vail, Colorado, for example, you are the resource that (potential customers) go to.”
There are several other best practices that hoteliers should consider as they form their social media strategies:
-- Explore the available social media sites, and determine which are best for the property to focus on. Although Facebook and Twitter boast millions of users, those social media sites are not necessarily the best audiences for all hotels, according to Schnepp.
“Consider what is right for your business, and not what the latest trend is,” he said. “One size does not fit all in social media; it has to be customized to your user.”
Hoteliers first must determine which social media services their target guests are using. For example, Schnepp uses sites such as tripadvisor.com when researching his vacations in obscure locales that offer saltwater fishing.
“I am so targeted that Facebook may not be the best way to reach me,” he said.
At the same time, many hotel companies and brands have had great success using Facebook. For example, Dots, a young women’s clothing line, has developed more than 11,000 relevant fans on Facebook.
“Their demographics are very strong on Facebook,” Schnepp said. “If they would have tried the same approach on LinkedIn, they would have failed.”
To find out which social media sites are popular by industry and to keep up with social media trends, Schnepp suggested visiting mashable.com, traffikd.com and doshdosh.com.
-- Speak the language of the users on each specific site instead of sending out a mass message to all social media sites.
“What works on one site may not work on others,” Schnepp said.
-- Optimize the hotel’s profiles on social media sites so guests can find the property’s sites on search engines.
“Social media marketers don’t realize how much (search) optimization can be done to their profiles,” Schnepp said.
For example, on Facebook, hotels can create a URL directly to their Facebook page, which will help the hotel’s Facebook listings show up in search engines. On Twitter, hotels should incorporate key words, such the property’s location, into the biography section. In LinkedIn profiles, hotels can use key words in the user name, create a URL directly to their LinkIn page, and add up to three additional links in the profile.
-- Track the performance of your messages on social media sites. Facebook has a proprietary tracking system, as does Bit.ly and TweetStats.com
-- Stay relevant.
“I want you to take advantage of relevant opportunities you encounter each day,” Schnepp said. To keep up the hot topics that people are talking about, Schnepp suggested using services such as WhatTheTrends.com, Google Trends, Google Analytics and Twitter.com.
--Keep it real. For example, Comcast has improved its customer service by focusing on solutions to customers’ problems on its Twitter page, ComcastCares.
“They have focused on valuable communication, not shameless self-promotion,” Schnepp said.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
10 steps to improve search engine marketing
Last week, Kent Schnepp shared 10 strategies for online success via search engine marketing during a webinar aimed at helping boutique and independent hotels improve their online marketing.
Kent SchneppSchnepp is chief strategy officer for the search engine marketing firm EngineWorks Incorporated, which is based in Portland, Oregon.
Additionally, the West Hills, California-based Boutique & Lifestyle Lodging Association, which sponsored the webinar, is developing a booking engine so consumers can book boutique hotels in one place.
Schnepp’s strategies are:
1. Assess your company’s current SEM strategy and opportunity.
“Search engine marketing isn’t a silver bullet that will work for everyone’s marketing campaign,” he said. “When you consider what your online marketing strategy looks like, don’t necessarily rely on what other people in your industry are doing. Every SEM campaign should be customized.”
Therefore, hoteliers need to assess the current traffic to their Web sites from search engines and how much of that traffic converts to customers. Figure out what each conversion is worth by multiplying the hotel’s average daily rate by the average length of stay. Then determine the average cost per conversion or target cost per conversion.
2. Generate seed keywords and phrases central to your company’s business and offerings.
To generate seed keywords, look at your site and the keywords you’re already using in your Internet copy, such as “Belize resorts.” Then, note the keywords and phrases in a spreadsheet and look at the number of searches being conducted on those keywords during a period of time. Give the keyword an objective score to determine how important it is to your site.
Also, determine the competitiveness of those keywords. For example, when one searches for “Belize hotels,” there are more than 9 million results, whereas a search for “Belize vacations” produces about 877,000 results. “Belize vacations” in general is going to be a less competitive search term than “Belize hotels.”
3. Expand your keyword list.
Google provides keyword list tools, such as “Wonder Wheel,” which is a visual representation the number of searches on specific keywords and phrases. And several other services, such as Word Tracker and Dogpile, can help with this. KeywordDiscovery.com is a tool that is useful for going after international business, such as the European market.
4. Select your final keyword list.
To determine which keywords are most important to keep, figure out what the conversion rate likely will be on those keywords. Productive keywords have a high rate of search-engine traffic.
“For example, I would leverage ‘Belize luxury resorts’ over ‘Belize resorts,’” Schnepp said. “There’s more traffic that will convert at a higher rate.”
5. Analyze your competition and develop a strategy.
Use services such as SpyFu, KeywordSpy and Google, which list competitors’ paid and organic search rankings.
Then determine which online marketing channels are going to be most effective for the hotel company’s marketing campaign, including search engine optimization, paid search marketing and display ads, and social media marketing. SEO, which is labor intensive but typically less expensive than paid search marketing, can help companies obtain higher organic search engine rankings. Paid search marketing and Internet display ads should be run simultaneously to achieve immediate results.
6. Become a great writer.
“Whether it’s SEO, paid search or social media marketing, you have to write effective ad copy,” Schnepp said. “You can’t just go in and manipulate your Web site; it’s providing content that’s useful to someone.”
7. Track everything.
Track your Web site’s organic rankings, page views, traffic from search engines and time spent on the site. Also, track the bounce rate, which is when customers search for a keyword, visited the company’s Web site, then leave it. Track how you were able to get eyeballs on the new promotion, including impressions from display ads or paid search campaigns.
8. Test and optimize your campaigns’ performances.
When you’re looking at your traffic and success metrics, any good search campaign will run multivariant tests on the ad copy and landing pages. Once the data is segmented and companies determine which ads are performing at a better rate, they can fine-tune their marketing campaigns.
“You can make your marketing dollars stretch as much as possible,” Schnepp said.
9. Continually education yourself about search engine marketing techniques.
There are several useful Web sites to learn about search engine marketing, including new technologies and methods in the field. Engineworks.com publishes a daily blog about the industry, and SearchEngineLand.com is a good resource, too.
10. Repeat steps one through 10.
Hoteliers must continually assess, track and test their search keywords to achieve higher rankings and conversions for their marketing campaigns.
Kent SchneppSchnepp is chief strategy officer for the search engine marketing firm EngineWorks Incorporated, which is based in Portland, Oregon.
Additionally, the West Hills, California-based Boutique & Lifestyle Lodging Association, which sponsored the webinar, is developing a booking engine so consumers can book boutique hotels in one place.
Schnepp’s strategies are:
1. Assess your company’s current SEM strategy and opportunity.
“Search engine marketing isn’t a silver bullet that will work for everyone’s marketing campaign,” he said. “When you consider what your online marketing strategy looks like, don’t necessarily rely on what other people in your industry are doing. Every SEM campaign should be customized.”
Therefore, hoteliers need to assess the current traffic to their Web sites from search engines and how much of that traffic converts to customers. Figure out what each conversion is worth by multiplying the hotel’s average daily rate by the average length of stay. Then determine the average cost per conversion or target cost per conversion.
2. Generate seed keywords and phrases central to your company’s business and offerings.
To generate seed keywords, look at your site and the keywords you’re already using in your Internet copy, such as “Belize resorts.” Then, note the keywords and phrases in a spreadsheet and look at the number of searches being conducted on those keywords during a period of time. Give the keyword an objective score to determine how important it is to your site.
Also, determine the competitiveness of those keywords. For example, when one searches for “Belize hotels,” there are more than 9 million results, whereas a search for “Belize vacations” produces about 877,000 results. “Belize vacations” in general is going to be a less competitive search term than “Belize hotels.”
3. Expand your keyword list.
Google provides keyword list tools, such as “Wonder Wheel,” which is a visual representation the number of searches on specific keywords and phrases. And several other services, such as Word Tracker and Dogpile, can help with this. KeywordDiscovery.com is a tool that is useful for going after international business, such as the European market.
4. Select your final keyword list.
To determine which keywords are most important to keep, figure out what the conversion rate likely will be on those keywords. Productive keywords have a high rate of search-engine traffic.
“For example, I would leverage ‘Belize luxury resorts’ over ‘Belize resorts,’” Schnepp said. “There’s more traffic that will convert at a higher rate.”
5. Analyze your competition and develop a strategy.
Use services such as SpyFu, KeywordSpy and Google, which list competitors’ paid and organic search rankings.
Then determine which online marketing channels are going to be most effective for the hotel company’s marketing campaign, including search engine optimization, paid search marketing and display ads, and social media marketing. SEO, which is labor intensive but typically less expensive than paid search marketing, can help companies obtain higher organic search engine rankings. Paid search marketing and Internet display ads should be run simultaneously to achieve immediate results.
6. Become a great writer.
“Whether it’s SEO, paid search or social media marketing, you have to write effective ad copy,” Schnepp said. “You can’t just go in and manipulate your Web site; it’s providing content that’s useful to someone.”
7. Track everything.
Track your Web site’s organic rankings, page views, traffic from search engines and time spent on the site. Also, track the bounce rate, which is when customers search for a keyword, visited the company’s Web site, then leave it. Track how you were able to get eyeballs on the new promotion, including impressions from display ads or paid search campaigns.
8. Test and optimize your campaigns’ performances.
When you’re looking at your traffic and success metrics, any good search campaign will run multivariant tests on the ad copy and landing pages. Once the data is segmented and companies determine which ads are performing at a better rate, they can fine-tune their marketing campaigns.
“You can make your marketing dollars stretch as much as possible,” Schnepp said.
9. Continually education yourself about search engine marketing techniques.
There are several useful Web sites to learn about search engine marketing, including new technologies and methods in the field. Engineworks.com publishes a daily blog about the industry, and SearchEngineLand.com is a good resource, too.
10. Repeat steps one through 10.
Hoteliers must continually assess, track and test their search keywords to achieve higher rankings and conversions for their marketing campaigns.
Driving a recovery depends on smart rate management
What happens to lodging when the economic environment improves?
Over the past several months, it has begun to appear that the overall health of the U.S. economy has begun to move slowly from the critical patient stage to the stabilization stage and very recently to slow recovery stage. No one, at this point, believes that the economic recovery will be either swift or robust. So if, indeed, we have an extended period of time before we can utter the word “recovery” with any confidence, what does that mean for the hotel industry?
First of all it means that we are in for an extended period of sluggish demand growth that certainly will result in ongoing pressure on room rates. With that said, the industry’s bottom line is likely to become more challenged in the coming months because it is likely to face the unseemly combination of declining revenues and increasing costs.
If the coming recovery plays out as most analysts predict and the overall economy improves with little or no real employment growth, then that makes the lodging industry’s recovery lag a bit more. Sluggish employment growth probably translates into a slower return of both the transient business traveler and attendance at meetings and conventions.
In addition, the hotel industry typically lags the overall economy when recovering from a recession. That is almost certain to be the case this time and one begins to wonder if the pricing “hangover” that the industry will feel will have an even longer effect.
Now, having said all that, the industry can do some things to help accelerate the pace of the recovery. The most important, of course, is room-rate management. It will come as no surprise to anyone who either knows me, has heard me speak or reads my blogs that I feel like at least part of industry’s current dilemma is self inflicted. While it is clear that room-rate realignment was necessary, the depth and breath of the decline in room rates was unnecessary. Not everyone agrees with this view, but I remain convinced.
If the industry is to capitalize on an economic recovery, regardless of it’s timing, now is the time to start planning for that day. In order for hotels to begin to reap the financial benefits of improving business conditions, they must at least attempt to climb up the room-rate ladder at a pace that approximates the swiftness with which they were able to negotiate the slide down!
Over the past several months, it has begun to appear that the overall health of the U.S. economy has begun to move slowly from the critical patient stage to the stabilization stage and very recently to slow recovery stage. No one, at this point, believes that the economic recovery will be either swift or robust. So if, indeed, we have an extended period of time before we can utter the word “recovery” with any confidence, what does that mean for the hotel industry?
First of all it means that we are in for an extended period of sluggish demand growth that certainly will result in ongoing pressure on room rates. With that said, the industry’s bottom line is likely to become more challenged in the coming months because it is likely to face the unseemly combination of declining revenues and increasing costs.
If the coming recovery plays out as most analysts predict and the overall economy improves with little or no real employment growth, then that makes the lodging industry’s recovery lag a bit more. Sluggish employment growth probably translates into a slower return of both the transient business traveler and attendance at meetings and conventions.
In addition, the hotel industry typically lags the overall economy when recovering from a recession. That is almost certain to be the case this time and one begins to wonder if the pricing “hangover” that the industry will feel will have an even longer effect.
Now, having said all that, the industry can do some things to help accelerate the pace of the recovery. The most important, of course, is room-rate management. It will come as no surprise to anyone who either knows me, has heard me speak or reads my blogs that I feel like at least part of industry’s current dilemma is self inflicted. While it is clear that room-rate realignment was necessary, the depth and breath of the decline in room rates was unnecessary. Not everyone agrees with this view, but I remain convinced.
If the industry is to capitalize on an economic recovery, regardless of it’s timing, now is the time to start planning for that day. In order for hotels to begin to reap the financial benefits of improving business conditions, they must at least attempt to climb up the room-rate ladder at a pace that approximates the swiftness with which they were able to negotiate the slide down!
Why Twitter matters most to businesses, not celebrities
Love it or hate it, Twitter is a force to be reckoned with. The best any hotel operator can do is go along for the ride and make the most of it.
It turns out businesses might have the most to gain from the online network that connects people with 140-character messages. The project started with posing the question, “What are you doing?” but it’s more about telling people what’s happening in real time, according to Evan Williams, CEO of Twitter.
The original question trivializes the possibilities, he said, during a keynote session at the Online News Association conference last week in San Francisco.
Williams said it’s the new relationships that businesses have with their customers that is the most exciting opportunity for Twitter. There has never been interaction on this level.
And for those that think the Twitter phenomenon will be short lived, Williams said the business model for Twitter is not designed to turn a profit, for now.
“We will build Twitter and grow it as long as we can pay for it,” he said. “To build a business on top of that is a different task.” The focus now is on incremental improvement and building a great company.
Some hotels already are taking advantage. Examples such as announcing special promotions via Twitter, promoting new amenities or events, and monitoring guest sentiment are just the beginning.
Here’s a great story about Gaylord Hotels & Resorts picking up on a guest comment made on Twitter. The Gaylord National Harbor guest was Twittering about craving cornbread. @gaylordpalms not only attempted to get the guest cornbread during their stay, they remembered it the next time she stayed at a Gaylord hotel! How’s that for customer satisfaction.
Thanks to Bonnie Buckhiester for pointing that one out.
If you’re not in the game yet, it’s time to get started. Start a Twitter account for your hotel and dedicate someone to manage it.
From another session at ONA09, here are some Twitter tips:
1. Create a Twitter dashboard. Use a downloadable application (or app as the technologically inclined like to call it) to help manage all of the people you follow and what they are saying. Tweetdeck, Seesmic Desktop and Hootsuite are the top choices.
2. Find local “tweeps.” Twitter is a great way to connect to the local community. You can find people based on their location in several ways. The first is Twitter’s advanced search feature at search.twitter.com/advanced. Other tools: TwitterLocal.net, NearbyTweets or Localtweeps.
3. Follow breaking news. Use Twitterfall to follow the Web in real time. Create custom searches to follow topics you specify and save them for later retrieval. You can also follow hashtags, phrases and terms identified with a # that can be searched like keywords.
Source: JD Lasica, Socialbrite.org
It turns out businesses might have the most to gain from the online network that connects people with 140-character messages. The project started with posing the question, “What are you doing?” but it’s more about telling people what’s happening in real time, according to Evan Williams, CEO of Twitter.
The original question trivializes the possibilities, he said, during a keynote session at the Online News Association conference last week in San Francisco.
Williams said it’s the new relationships that businesses have with their customers that is the most exciting opportunity for Twitter. There has never been interaction on this level.
And for those that think the Twitter phenomenon will be short lived, Williams said the business model for Twitter is not designed to turn a profit, for now.
“We will build Twitter and grow it as long as we can pay for it,” he said. “To build a business on top of that is a different task.” The focus now is on incremental improvement and building a great company.
Some hotels already are taking advantage. Examples such as announcing special promotions via Twitter, promoting new amenities or events, and monitoring guest sentiment are just the beginning.
Here’s a great story about Gaylord Hotels & Resorts picking up on a guest comment made on Twitter. The Gaylord National Harbor guest was Twittering about craving cornbread. @gaylordpalms not only attempted to get the guest cornbread during their stay, they remembered it the next time she stayed at a Gaylord hotel! How’s that for customer satisfaction.
Thanks to Bonnie Buckhiester for pointing that one out.
If you’re not in the game yet, it’s time to get started. Start a Twitter account for your hotel and dedicate someone to manage it.
From another session at ONA09, here are some Twitter tips:
1. Create a Twitter dashboard. Use a downloadable application (or app as the technologically inclined like to call it) to help manage all of the people you follow and what they are saying. Tweetdeck, Seesmic Desktop and Hootsuite are the top choices.
2. Find local “tweeps.” Twitter is a great way to connect to the local community. You can find people based on their location in several ways. The first is Twitter’s advanced search feature at search.twitter.com/advanced. Other tools: TwitterLocal.net, NearbyTweets or Localtweeps.
3. Follow breaking news. Use Twitterfall to follow the Web in real time. Create custom searches to follow topics you specify and save them for later retrieval. You can also follow hashtags, phrases and terms identified with a # that can be searched like keywords.
Source: JD Lasica, Socialbrite.org
Friday, August 14, 2009
Maximize Performance Through Understanding
To be effective, leaders must not only manage their team but they must develop an understanding of every individual on that team.
Prioritizing acquainting yourself with each individual on your team includes knowing their dreams, their hopes, their thoughts, their opinions and their values. This and only this is the key to making sure you not only have the right team in place but it enhances your ability as a leader to maximize performance.
The most effective leaders seem to have both a unique ability to pick the right people for their team and they are superior in reading and understanding people.
Getting to know and understand people really doesn't take an enormous amount of time or effort for effective leaders. I often perform business assessments and one of the most effective tools in determining the challenges facing the business is simply meeting with individual employees for an hour and listening to them. I mean really listening. It is amazing what employees will tell you by asking a few precise questions and having the discipline to then shut up and listen.
Understanding is paramount to success
Understanding the leaders you have selected for your team is paramount to the success of the business. That means you must ask questions that go beyond the business itself. The right questions reveal passions, beliefs and values. Questions like:
What are your long term goals - dreams?
What brings a tear to your eyes?
What is your biggest passion in life?
What has been the biggest tragedy in your life?
What has been the biggest joy in your life?
Keep in mind, your discussions with your team members are not an interrogation. These questions may be asked over an expanded time period but you need to have a deep understanding of every team member you have surrounded yourself with. Your effectiveness as a leader and your success as a business depend on these people.
Understand their passions
Your discussions should reveal their passions; a light should brighten in their eyes and an excitement should overtake the conversation. An effective leader must be able to interact with employees, peers, superiors and many other individuals both inside and outside the organization.
But, the most important relationship you must nurture is the relationship with the leadership team you have surrounded yourself with. This team must gain the support of many people to meet or exceed established objectives. This means that they must develop or possess a unique understanding of people. The ability to coach-mentor and teach leadership skills to others is the driving force that will create a winning organization. To do this requires a passion for success. That means understanding the individual passions of your team.
Being an effective leader requires the understanding of the principles that govern employee behavior. Accomplish that and success is imminent.
It starts with effective communication
Effective communication with your leadership team is the breath of life, the first spark to ignite success. Nothing else is so crucial to survival, solidarity and the ability to grow market share. True leaders inspire others to greatness. Inspiring your team starts by taking that first step to really understand who they are, what they are about and the principles they stand for.
Effective face to face communication is your platform to provide that inspiration. Don't delegate this kind of communication to E-mail.
It's your responsibility
Understanding the team you have put in place to help you run the company is not a luxury. It is a responsibility you must accept as a leader. Every one of us is a human being with different values, different beliefs, different back rounds and different views.
Ask yourself; "how can I possibly be an effective leader without a complete understanding of every one of my team members?"
Prioritizing acquainting yourself with each individual on your team includes knowing their dreams, their hopes, their thoughts, their opinions and their values. This and only this is the key to making sure you not only have the right team in place but it enhances your ability as a leader to maximize performance.
The most effective leaders seem to have both a unique ability to pick the right people for their team and they are superior in reading and understanding people.
Getting to know and understand people really doesn't take an enormous amount of time or effort for effective leaders. I often perform business assessments and one of the most effective tools in determining the challenges facing the business is simply meeting with individual employees for an hour and listening to them. I mean really listening. It is amazing what employees will tell you by asking a few precise questions and having the discipline to then shut up and listen.
Understanding is paramount to success
Understanding the leaders you have selected for your team is paramount to the success of the business. That means you must ask questions that go beyond the business itself. The right questions reveal passions, beliefs and values. Questions like:
What are your long term goals - dreams?
What brings a tear to your eyes?
What is your biggest passion in life?
What has been the biggest tragedy in your life?
What has been the biggest joy in your life?
Keep in mind, your discussions with your team members are not an interrogation. These questions may be asked over an expanded time period but you need to have a deep understanding of every team member you have surrounded yourself with. Your effectiveness as a leader and your success as a business depend on these people.
Understand their passions
Your discussions should reveal their passions; a light should brighten in their eyes and an excitement should overtake the conversation. An effective leader must be able to interact with employees, peers, superiors and many other individuals both inside and outside the organization.
But, the most important relationship you must nurture is the relationship with the leadership team you have surrounded yourself with. This team must gain the support of many people to meet or exceed established objectives. This means that they must develop or possess a unique understanding of people. The ability to coach-mentor and teach leadership skills to others is the driving force that will create a winning organization. To do this requires a passion for success. That means understanding the individual passions of your team.
Being an effective leader requires the understanding of the principles that govern employee behavior. Accomplish that and success is imminent.
It starts with effective communication
Effective communication with your leadership team is the breath of life, the first spark to ignite success. Nothing else is so crucial to survival, solidarity and the ability to grow market share. True leaders inspire others to greatness. Inspiring your team starts by taking that first step to really understand who they are, what they are about and the principles they stand for.
Effective face to face communication is your platform to provide that inspiration. Don't delegate this kind of communication to E-mail.
It's your responsibility
Understanding the team you have put in place to help you run the company is not a luxury. It is a responsibility you must accept as a leader. Every one of us is a human being with different values, different beliefs, different back rounds and different views.
Ask yourself; "how can I possibly be an effective leader without a complete understanding of every one of my team members?"
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Analyst picks hotel company as one of top picks
At the risk of promoting insider trading, at least one major public hotel company is being touted as a top pick.
A JPMorgan analyst said in a client note today that he’s betting on Wyndham Worldwide Corporation in light of its solid balance sheet, free cash flow improvements and stock price, reported Forbes.com.
Analyst Joseph Greff reaffirmed an "Overweight" rating mostly on the strength of its fee-for-service business.
Late last month, Wyndham, the Parsippany, New Jersey-based hotel and vacation-ownership operator, beat analysts’ expectations with a 13.6-percent RevPAR decline—compared with the 19.5-percent drop that stood as the industry average.
This isn’t the only major hotel company that is beating Wall Street prognostications. While poring through earnings releases for a second-quarter wrap up that will appear on our site today, I came across many major chains and owners that came to the mid-year checkup with better-than-expected results—including Choice Hotels International, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Gaylord Hotels and InterContinental Hotels Group, just to name a few.
That doesn’t mean that Wyndham’s Q2 reports or that of the vast majority of hotel companies out there are something you’d want to hang on your refrigerator. Nor does it mean that an upswing is less than a quarter away.
What it does mean is the hotel industry isn’t doing as bad as many cynics (some of our readers included) thought it was. If only we could disappoint the naysayers more often.
A JPMorgan analyst said in a client note today that he’s betting on Wyndham Worldwide Corporation in light of its solid balance sheet, free cash flow improvements and stock price, reported Forbes.com.
Analyst Joseph Greff reaffirmed an "Overweight" rating mostly on the strength of its fee-for-service business.
Late last month, Wyndham, the Parsippany, New Jersey-based hotel and vacation-ownership operator, beat analysts’ expectations with a 13.6-percent RevPAR decline—compared with the 19.5-percent drop that stood as the industry average.
This isn’t the only major hotel company that is beating Wall Street prognostications. While poring through earnings releases for a second-quarter wrap up that will appear on our site today, I came across many major chains and owners that came to the mid-year checkup with better-than-expected results—including Choice Hotels International, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Gaylord Hotels and InterContinental Hotels Group, just to name a few.
That doesn’t mean that Wyndham’s Q2 reports or that of the vast majority of hotel companies out there are something you’d want to hang on your refrigerator. Nor does it mean that an upswing is less than a quarter away.
What it does mean is the hotel industry isn’t doing as bad as many cynics (some of our readers included) thought it was. If only we could disappoint the naysayers more often.
Thursday, August 6, 2009
STR reports US performance results for week ending 1 August
The U.S. hotel industry posted declines in all three key performance measurements during the week of 26 July-1 August 2009, according to data from STR.
In year-over-year measurements, the industry’s occupancy fell 6.4 percent to end the week at 66.5 percent. Average daily rate dropped 9.6 percent to finish the week at US$97.48. Revenue per available room for the week decreased 15.5 percent to finish at US$64.86.
Highlights from the Top 25 Markets include (in year-over-year comparisons):
• St. Louis, Missouri-Illinois, posted the largest increase in occupancy, jumping 8.8 percent to 75.1 percent. Seattle, Washington, was the only other top market to experience an occupancy increase, up 2.5 percent to 89.7 percent.
• Detroit, Michigan, reported the largest occupancy decline, dropping 26.3 percent to 53.7 percent. Four other markets posted double-digit occupancy declines: Houston, Texas (-17.1 percent to 54.6 percent); Atlanta, Georgia (-11.0 percent to 57.8 percent); Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota-Wisconsin (-10.7 percent to 68.4 percent); and New Orleans, Louisiana (-10.5 percent to 53.4 percent).
• Nashville, Tennessee, experienced the smallest ADR decrease, falling 1.4 percent to US$88.97. • Five markets reported ADR decreases of more than 15 percent: New York, New York (-29.0 percent to US$184.97); Chicago, Illinois (-16.5 percent to US$112.13); Los Angeles-Long Beach, California (-15.7 percent to US$117.69); San Diego, California (-15.6 percent to US$134.33); and Oahu Island, Hawaii (-15.5 percent to US$153.18).
• St. Louis was the only market to report an increase in RevPAR, which was up 4.9 percent to US$64.20.• Detroit posted the largest RevPAR decrease, falling 34.3 percent to US$41.65. Two other markets experienced RevPAR decreases of more than 25 percent: New York (-33.9 percent to US$154.93) and Houston (-25.2 percent to US$47.11).
In year-over-year measurements, the industry’s occupancy fell 6.4 percent to end the week at 66.5 percent. Average daily rate dropped 9.6 percent to finish the week at US$97.48. Revenue per available room for the week decreased 15.5 percent to finish at US$64.86.
Highlights from the Top 25 Markets include (in year-over-year comparisons):
• St. Louis, Missouri-Illinois, posted the largest increase in occupancy, jumping 8.8 percent to 75.1 percent. Seattle, Washington, was the only other top market to experience an occupancy increase, up 2.5 percent to 89.7 percent.
• Detroit, Michigan, reported the largest occupancy decline, dropping 26.3 percent to 53.7 percent. Four other markets posted double-digit occupancy declines: Houston, Texas (-17.1 percent to 54.6 percent); Atlanta, Georgia (-11.0 percent to 57.8 percent); Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota-Wisconsin (-10.7 percent to 68.4 percent); and New Orleans, Louisiana (-10.5 percent to 53.4 percent).
• Nashville, Tennessee, experienced the smallest ADR decrease, falling 1.4 percent to US$88.97. • Five markets reported ADR decreases of more than 15 percent: New York, New York (-29.0 percent to US$184.97); Chicago, Illinois (-16.5 percent to US$112.13); Los Angeles-Long Beach, California (-15.7 percent to US$117.69); San Diego, California (-15.6 percent to US$134.33); and Oahu Island, Hawaii (-15.5 percent to US$153.18).
• St. Louis was the only market to report an increase in RevPAR, which was up 4.9 percent to US$64.20.• Detroit posted the largest RevPAR decrease, falling 34.3 percent to US$41.65. Two other markets experienced RevPAR decreases of more than 25 percent: New York (-33.9 percent to US$154.93) and Houston (-25.2 percent to US$47.11).
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
How to get repeat guests for only 44 cents
When I found a handwritten envelope with the Best Western Napoleon Inn & Suites’ return address in my mailbox last week, my thoughts immediately turned to the worst. I had stayed at the modest property the week earlier after attending a country wedding in rural Northwest Ohio, and while the one-night stay went without incident, the business-sized envelope evoked a bubbling sense of cynicism.
Was I being charged for something extra—running water, a broken keycard entry, a missing towel?
No, I quickly assured myself. I had left the room in the same condition I had found it. I was sure of it. Wasn’t I?
I was, as it turns out. The envelope contained no extra charges and no angry comments from the hotel manager. Instead, it held a few forgotten photographs that I had left behind on the TV stand, along with a simple note: “You forgot these! ?”
On today’s bloodthirsty street corners, that’s where loyal customers are born. It’s precisely that kind of guest outreach that will distinguish your property from your competitor across the road and get that guest to keep coming back.
And the good news is it requires very little capital outlay.
Sure, the housekeeper easily could have tossed my photographs in the rubbish. She easily could do the same with forgotten hairbrushes, ties or souvenirs. But by showing a little thought and care and turning in those and other left-behind items, she perpetuated a fond, lasting impression of the property that I, along with other guests in the same situation, will spread through positive word-of-mouth.
To foster that kind of behavior at your property, be proactive. Tell your housekeeping staff and other associates to keep an eye out for lost and forgotten items. If one is found, ask staff to look up the appropriate name and billing address on file for that particular room, and have them send it to its owner.
Usually, the expenditure likely will be minimal—the cost of a standard 44-cent stamp, for example. Not bad for a loyal guest.
Was I being charged for something extra—running water, a broken keycard entry, a missing towel?
No, I quickly assured myself. I had left the room in the same condition I had found it. I was sure of it. Wasn’t I?
I was, as it turns out. The envelope contained no extra charges and no angry comments from the hotel manager. Instead, it held a few forgotten photographs that I had left behind on the TV stand, along with a simple note: “You forgot these! ?”
On today’s bloodthirsty street corners, that’s where loyal customers are born. It’s precisely that kind of guest outreach that will distinguish your property from your competitor across the road and get that guest to keep coming back.
And the good news is it requires very little capital outlay.
Sure, the housekeeper easily could have tossed my photographs in the rubbish. She easily could do the same with forgotten hairbrushes, ties or souvenirs. But by showing a little thought and care and turning in those and other left-behind items, she perpetuated a fond, lasting impression of the property that I, along with other guests in the same situation, will spread through positive word-of-mouth.
To foster that kind of behavior at your property, be proactive. Tell your housekeeping staff and other associates to keep an eye out for lost and forgotten items. If one is found, ask staff to look up the appropriate name and billing address on file for that particular room, and have them send it to its owner.
Usually, the expenditure likely will be minimal—the cost of a standard 44-cent stamp, for example. Not bad for a loyal guest.
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
The keycard myth
While passing through a hotel lobby a few weeks ago, I couldn’t help but listen in on a middle-aged couple as they hovered anxiously over a keycard drop box. The husband, having already checked out, wanted to toss the cards in the secured metal box with the slotted top. His wife, however, was a bit more cautious. Those cards had their credit card data and other personal information on it, she argued. The only way to dispose of them properly would be to cut them up and discard them when the couple returned home.
Had the two not been in such an agitated state—they were already late for the airport, the husband curtly informed his wife—I might have stopped over to put their worries at ease.
As all savvy hoteliers (and industry trade journalists) know, the notion keycards contain any personal information is as old as keycards themselves. Or, as tech consultant John Burns of Hospitality Technology Consulting described the myth: “(It’s) absolutely fallacious. There is absolutely no truth to it. It’s an urban rumor that goes around and around and around.”
It seems the myth has been going around with greater frequency as of late, courtesy of a few misleading e-mail forwards and an air of general economic uneasiness.
As hoteliers, it’s your job to dispel this myth—and it starts at the front desk. Inform your staff what information is and isn’t included on keycards so they can accurately field questions from anxious guests.
So what kind of info lies within that pesky little magnetic strip?
“It doesn’t have your social security number, and it doesn’t have your mother’s maiden name,” Burns said.
More specifically, keycards generally contain a code to open a given guestroom, as well as the check-in and check-out dates through which it’s active. That’s it.
Had that couple known this, the husband probably would have tossed their keycards carelessly into the drop box instead of pocketing them before rushing out to catch a cab. Sure, that decisions was based in a certain amount of ignorance, but given the prospect of enduring a plane ride in close quarters with an angry spouse, it was probably the smartest move he could have made.
Had the two not been in such an agitated state—they were already late for the airport, the husband curtly informed his wife—I might have stopped over to put their worries at ease.
As all savvy hoteliers (and industry trade journalists) know, the notion keycards contain any personal information is as old as keycards themselves. Or, as tech consultant John Burns of Hospitality Technology Consulting described the myth: “(It’s) absolutely fallacious. There is absolutely no truth to it. It’s an urban rumor that goes around and around and around.”
It seems the myth has been going around with greater frequency as of late, courtesy of a few misleading e-mail forwards and an air of general economic uneasiness.
As hoteliers, it’s your job to dispel this myth—and it starts at the front desk. Inform your staff what information is and isn’t included on keycards so they can accurately field questions from anxious guests.
So what kind of info lies within that pesky little magnetic strip?
“It doesn’t have your social security number, and it doesn’t have your mother’s maiden name,” Burns said.
More specifically, keycards generally contain a code to open a given guestroom, as well as the check-in and check-out dates through which it’s active. That’s it.
Had that couple known this, the husband probably would have tossed their keycards carelessly into the drop box instead of pocketing them before rushing out to catch a cab. Sure, that decisions was based in a certain amount of ignorance, but given the prospect of enduring a plane ride in close quarters with an angry spouse, it was probably the smartest move he could have made.
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