TripAdvisor may be the most controversial service in hospitality marketing today. Some hoteliers love it, while others have issues. No matter what you think, TripAdvisor is making an offer you just can’t refuse. A Business Listing on your TripAdvisor page at half off the regular rate. Sounds like they’re in the hotel business, doesn’t it? In any case, the [...]
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Many readers have ask which Hospitality Marketing Blog posts were the most widely read in 2009. So, by popular request, here is a list of the Magnificent Seven. Please enjoy the practical advice and marketing insights as you gear up for 2010. Hotel Case Study – Prospering in difficult Times – Good news was hard [...]
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Speaking before a conference of luxury Italian companies, luxury hotel operator Rocco Forte offered a stunningly concise summary of the toxic hospitality marketing strategies used by far too many hotels in these recessionary times. “What happens in a hotel cycle [during a recession] is always exactly the same. Revenue dissipates, occupancies go down, hoteliers then [...]
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Okay, so the research study didn’t actually come out and say it, but anyone reading the recent Market Metrics’ Research on user generated content (aka TripAdvisor) could easily draw that conclusion. For several years Market Metrics has been tracking the rising popularity of user generated reviews. Here are a few of the key findings from [...]
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Last week’s post, “The Media Are Killing Us,” talked about how biased and sensationalized news reports on organizations conducting conferences hurts resorts and hotels. This week I would like to focus on the human suffering it is causing. Do you think reporters, so eager to create (even fabricate) “news,” ever think about the damage and [...]
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The Social Security Administration recently held its first conference since 2001 which included 700 attendees at the Arizona Biltmore in Phoenix. Perhaps you heard about it because of the brouhaha raised by ABC News when they offered a totally unflattering report. If not, you can read and see it here. Just in case you think [...]
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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. Purported [...]
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Seismic upheavals are leading to a paradigm shift in hospitality. Companies have clamped down on travel and the AIG effect has battered the meeting and convention business. Leisure travel is exhibiting anemic and last minute booking patterns. The Internet keeps bubbling along serving up what seems to be the social media flavor of the month. [...]
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If you are a regular reader of HospitalityMarketingBlog.com you know I’m a raving fan of TripAdvisor. With over 20 million reviews there’s hardly any guest who enters the door of a luxury hotel who hasn’t first read about the property on TripAdvisor. The TripAdvisor Home Page proudly boasts, “more than 15,000,000 travelers from 190 countries [...]
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What is the most appropriate tone to deliver in your advertising and marketing messages during this great recession? Adweek Magazine was determined to find out. It surveyed nearly 1,500 advertising and marketing members of LinkedIn – the professional social network. The overwhelming answer – Value. In fact, when offered a list of five choices the [...]
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