A Case Study in Optimizing Length of Stay From Wellness Capex
Adam and Larry Mogelonsky | April 17, 2024
IDeaS Releases 2024 Hotel Technology Predictions
IDeaS | November 15, 2023
Smart Strategies
Tourism Tidbits: Tourism’s Importance in a World in Crisis
Dr. Peter E. Tarlow | September 2, 2014
by Dr. Peter Tarlow The last three months have not been easy ones. Politically the world has seen some of its greatest threats since the end of World War II. Economically, Europe is still very much in shambles, the US has fewer unemployed but it also has fewer people employed, and those who are employed often have low paying jobs. From a security perspective, the Middle East is in flames. European cowardice and the US's desire to lead-from-behind have created a world in which terrorists no longer fear repercussions, and groups such as Hamas and ISIS simply believe that they can manipulate a naïve public. Tourism officials do not know w...
The 1st Step of Service: Be Eager to Serve
BWTV | August 18, 2014
by Bryan Williams Have you ever walked into a business and left before you were served? That scenario has happened to me multiple times. On past occasions, I left because the staff showed no sense of urgency to be of service. Please note that the business(s) had the product or service I wanted, but I left because there was an obvious sense of apathy among the staff. Yes, your customers can feel the apathy; especially if the majority of the staff look like they would much rather be anywhere else besides work. Example 1: I was at a hotel recently and getting ready to check out. I had two bags with me and while approaching the front desk, ...
World-Class Service Tips for Your Staff
BWTV | August 13, 2014
Join the free industry webinar to learn how to build a culture of service excellence for your staff Bowie, MD – Wednesday, August 13, 2014 - B.Williams Enterprise, a leading service company focused on driving improvements in service excellence, employee engagement and organizational effectiveness, will host a complimentary webinar on August 20, 2014, at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. EST entitled, "Improving & Sustaining World-Class Service With BWTV". The webinar will discuss tips for building a culture of service excellence on your team and how BWTV can help to sustain it. When guests make the decision to visit a hotel, restaurant or spa, t...
Stanley Turkel Named Recipient of Historic Hotels of America 2014 Historian of the Year Award
August 6, 2014
WASHINGTON---Stanley Turkel has been named the recipient of the Historic Hotels of America 2014 Historian of the Year Award. Turkel will be honored with this distinguished award on October 2, 2014 at the Historic Hotels of America Annual Awards Ceremony and Gala Dinner at The Hotel Hershey® (1933) in Hershey, Pennsylvania. The Historic Hotels of America Historian of the Year Award is presented to an individual for making a unique contribution in the research, and presentation of history and whose work has encouraged a wide discussion of greater understanding and enthusiasm for American History. Stanley Turkel is one of the most distinc...
West Inn & Suites Signs with BWTV for Online Service Excellence Training
BWTV | August 5, 2014
Bowie, MD (August 5, 2014) - West Inn & Suites has signed with BWTV from B.Williams Enterprise, LLC. The hotel's BWTV subscription brings world-class service education to the hotel and both of its award-winning restaurants. "Bryan Williams is simply a must! His Leadership and Guest Service training are inspirational, applicable and fundamental to any successful business. He is a master of delivery and his content will thoroughly engage your team", said Kimberly Akers Malaspina, VP of West Hospitality. West Inn & Suites is one of the top hotels in the world for families, based on online reviews from TripAdvisor, and is consistent...
Nobody Asked Me, But… No. 127: Hotel History: Hotel Theresa: the “Waldorf of Harlem”
Stanley Turkel, CMHS | August 4, 2014
By Stanley Turkel, CMHS 1. Hotel History: Hotel Theresa The Hotel Theresa opened in 1913 on 125th Street and Seventh Avenue in Harlem and closed its doors as a hotel in 1970. It was built by German-born stockbroker Gustavus Sidenberg to the designs of architects George and Edward Blum. The Blum brothers were trained at the famous Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris and they designed a full-blockfront all-white apartment hotel 13 stories high with 300 rooms. Like its façade, the newly-opened Theresa had an all-white clientele and staff for its first twenty-eight years. In 1940, reflecting the changing population of Harlem, the hotel accepted...
Tourism Tidbits: Protecting People Different from Ourselves
Dr. Peter E. Tarlow | August 4, 2014
by Dr. Peter Tarlow Tourism is about discovering the unknown and about learning about the other. Often in the tourism we need to deal with people who have a different sexual, religious, or political orientation from ours. We also have to deal with, serve and protect people whom we may not like. Often these people are a challenge to our belief system and from a personal perspective these are people whom we might not want to choose as our personal friends. Despite our personal preferences, we all have to deal with people whom we do not like, who hold radically different beliefs from our, or whom we find to be annoying. As long as they peo...
A Brief Guide to Managing Your Hotel’s Digital Assets
Vikram Singh | August 1, 2014
By Vikram Singh One of the most crucial aspects of running a hotel or a lodging business is asset management. The same efforts and energy should be used when it comes to your hotel's digital assets. In my experience working with hotels and asset management firms worldwide, I have seen most of the hotel managers and marketing departments show apathy towards owning and managing their digital assets. Their neglect is usually a result of trying to keep costs down (ie, hiring low-cost digital marketing vendors and leaving management to them), or just a general lack of knowledge about how and why they should pay attention to their digital ass...
Improving & Sustaining World-Class Service With BWTV; A Complimentary Webinar
BWTV | July 30, 2014
Bowie, MD – Wednesday, July 30, 2014 - B.Williams Enterprise, a leading service company focused on driving improvements in service excellence, employee engagement and organizational effectiveness, will host a complimentary webinar on August 20, 2014, at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. EST entitled, "Improving & Sustaining World-Class Service With BWTV". The webinar will discuss tips for building a culture of service excellence on your team and how BWTV can help to sustain it. When guests make the decision to visit a hotel, restaurant or spa, they are trusting that the service will be gracious, attentive and consistent. This all requires a stro...
“Engaging & Dynamic” – Shore Lodge Resort Signs with BWTV for Online Service Excellence Training
BWTV | July 21, 2014
Bowie, MD (July 21, 2014) - Shore Lodge Resort has signed with BWTV from B.Williams Enterprise, LLC. The resort's BWTV subscription brings world-class service education to over 400 employees at the award-winning resort. "We love Bryan Williams and BWTV! The contents of his material and examples that he shares truly resonate with each and every employee regardless of their position. Our staff loves the videos, and I think this is a GREAT way to set the foundation for us to continue to build on and reinforce", said Kaili Moss, Director of Human Resources for Shore Lodge. Set on the sandy shores of beautiful Payette Lake, the iconic Shore ...
Ten Ways You Can Tell If a Hotel is Truly Focused on Service Excellence
Bryan Williams | July 14, 2014
by Bryan Williams "If it weren't for these guests, I could get my job done!" Believe it or not, I have heard that exact phrase on more than one occasion. Some people view the guest as an interruption of their work. In their minds, guests complicate things, cause stress, and get in the way of an, otherwise, enjoyable job. The point that is sorely missing is...THERE IS NO JOB without the guests. It may sound ridiculously obvious, but many people completely miss that point. Guests are not an interruption of your work, they are the purpose of it. In my mind, serving, giving, sharing, helping and teaching are all pointing to the exact same t...
Summer 2014 Lodging Industry Forecast by Robert Rauch
Robert Rauch | July 8, 2014
Yes, the recovery was slow and erratic but 2014 is shaping up to be a great year as we begin the summer and there is no reason the momentum will slow next year or anytime soon. Sure, there is always some type of uncertainty regarding expenses, e.g. the impact of minimum wage bills and the living wage movement on labor costs or healthcare costs and the impact of Obamacare, but in the short term it is mostly good news. And there is always the possibility that an "event" of some sort could dramatically disrupt things, but here is what is going on in key areas of the hotel industry. Travel and tourism is the world's biggest industry, repres...
Independent and Empowered: A letter to my manager by Bryan Williams
B.Williams Enterprise | July 3, 2014
(Dedicated to all hospitality employees who work with passion, pride and professionalism) As our country prepares to celebrate the Independence Day holiday, it made me think about what it truly means to be "independent". Especially as it relates to those of us working on the front lines of the hospitality industry. To me, independence means to be free...without restrictions. As a concierge, bellman, housekeeper or server, I need to know that my manager trusts and believes in me enough to empower me to serve with excellence. No, I don't mean just having a clever mission statement that claims that the staff is empowered. Rather, does my m...
Priceline’s Acquisition of Buuteeq: Why Hotels Must Own Their Digital Assets
Vikram Singh | July 1, 2014
By Vikram Singh The hotel marketing and distribution world was recently shaken when Priceline Group (aka, The #1 Lodging Online Travel Agency in the World) acquired Buuteeq for an undisclosed sum. This officially makes them the first OTA to directly enter the B2B hotel marketing services sector. Can you hear me now? For over nine years, in every one of my lectures, workshops, consultations – just about every interaction with hoteliers – I have tried to stress the importance of owning your digital assets (your domain, website, analytics, etc). I have evangelized WordPress to the hotel sector for quite some time now. I could not have ...
Full-Service Hotel Planned for Houston’s New CityPlace Mixed-Use Development
Patrinely Group, LLC | June 19, 2014
HOUSTON, June 19, 2014 -- A development venture comprising Patrinely Group, CDC Houston and USAA Real Estate Company, today announced project details for the new CityPlace, formerly known as Springwoods Village Town Center. The 60 acre fully integrated, mixed-use development will provide the Houston community with a new destination of choice that integrates working, shopping and living, with over four million square feet of Class A office space located above ground floor retail, and luxury urban multifamily, and a full-service hotel. "CityPlace is an innovative development located at the nexus of Interstate-45, Grand Parkway and the Har...
Unique Forms of Tourism – Thinking Outside the Box
Dr. Peter E. Tarlow | June 10, 2014
by Dr. Peter Tarlow People travel for many reasons. Some travel for business, others travel for a sense of adventure or for relaxation. Leisure travel only succeeds if it provides two essential elements (1) the travel experience must offer something that the visitor cannot obtain at home and (2) the travel experience must provide memories. In fact, we can postulate that the travel and tourism business sells memories. Globalization has done many wonderful things not only for people in general but also for the travel industry. There is no doubt that never before in history have so many people have had so many travel opportunities to place...
Single-Asset Transactions in U.S. Hotel Market Up 40% to $5.7B; On Track to Reach $25B in 2014
June 4, 2014
NEW YORK, June 4, 2014 – Midway through 2014, the U.S. lodging sector is delivering plenty of news to keep investors and lenders bullish. While on the ground at the NYU International Hospitality Industry Investment Conference, JLL's Hotels & Hospitality experts announced that the sector is on track to reach $25 billion in transaction volumes in the U.S. in 2014. Driving the forward momentum are factors including: An abundance of equity capital, led by private equity and REITs, but also including a diverse array of other investor types, including off-shore buyers Strong debt markets, including the re-emergence of the floating ra...
Nobody Asked Me, But…No. 125; Hotel History: Martha Washington Hotel*; Quote of the Month
Stanley Turkel, CMHS | June 2, 2014
By Stanley Turkel, CMHS 1. Hotel History: The Martha Washington Hotel* In late August 2014, King & Grove Hotels announced that it restored the original name to the Martha Washington Hotel. The Martha Washington Hotel opened on March 2, 1903 as the first New York hotel exclusively for women. All the employees were women with a hostess and chaperones in attendance at all times. An opening day advertisement in the Hotel Gazette showed an illustration of Martha Washington and said: Hotel Martha Washington 29th and 30th Sts., Near Fifth Ave., N.Y. City EXCLUSIVELY FOR WOMEN 450 rooms en suite and single, $1.50 per day ...
Hotel Pay Per Click: Your Single Most Powerful Marketing Tool
Vikram Singh | May 27, 2014
by Vikram Singh I have had a front row seat to the hotel pay per click (PPC) world for the past decade. PPC is not new, but it's rapidly changing. One thing that hasn't changed: hotel marketers and owners are still caught up in debates about its effectiveness and viability. As a result, a lot of hotels are still not embracing the power of pay per click. Google's Golden Goose Time for a reality check: Since its inception in October 2000, pay per click advertising, aka Google Adwords, has been Google's nonstop money-making Golden Goose. Here are some powerful statistics highlighting its power: In 2013, Google officially surpassed $50 bi...
PolyU Signs Agreement to Create Tripartite Master’s Degree in Global Hospitality Business
PolyU's School of Hotel and Tourism Management (SHTM) | May 20, 2014
20 May 2014 - The School of Hotel and Tourism Management (SHTM) at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne (EHL) and Conrad N. Hilton College of Hotel and Restaurant Management of the University of Houston (CNHC) have come together to sign a Letter of Intent (LOI) to establish a tripartite master's degree in global hospitality business. The three institutions, representing the best of the East and the best of the West, join hands to nurture talents of a new generation and define the future of the global hospitality industry's development. The signing ceremony took place today at the SHTM's teaching and resear...
Figures for Q1 2014 Show 155% Hike in London Hotel Investment Market According to Jones Lang LaSalle
Jones Lang LaSalle's Hotels & Hospitality Group | May 19, 2014
May 19, 2014 - Q1 hotel investment figures released by JLL show a 155 per cent increase in the London hotel investment market in Q1 2014 compared to Q1 last year and a 33 per cent rise in Asian investment into the capital's hotel market compared to Q4 2013, with private equity firms making up over a quarter of the investment total. Total investment in the London market for this quarter stood at £527.8 million, up by 8 per cent from Q4 2013 and 155 per cent from Q1 2013 when it stood at £207.2m. The largest source of investment in Q1 and Q4 came from the UK domestic market, although the percentage fell by 39 per cent from Q4. The highe...
Nobody Asked Me, But… No. 124; Hotel History: The Cliff House Resort & Spa, Ogunquit, Maine
Stanley Turkel, CMHS | May 5, 2014
Quote of the Month; My New Book By Stanley Turkel, CMHS 1. Hotel History: The Cliff House Resort & Spa* On April 14, 2014, it was announced that fourth-generation owner Kathryn Weare sold the historic Cliff House Resort & Spa to the Rockbridge hotel investment firm. Sometimes the history of a place and of a family extend so far across time that their identities intertwine and become one. Such a place is The Cliff House, and such a family is Weare. The story begins in 1866. The Civil War had just ended, and the nation turned its attention to reconstruction and rebuilding its spirit. One of the North's military necessities durin...
Hotel Marketing Is Not a Substitute for Innovation
Vikram Singh | April 30, 2014
By Vikram Singh One of the trends I have been noticing is that hotels continually generate hype instead of value. Hyper-marketing on social media platforms has led to a race for hotels to participate in everything; that participation then somehow reflects the level of "modern-ness" or innovation at your hotel. On the contrary, innovation requires time and effort, from ownership and management, and the on-property staff. Asking your internet marketing vendor to bring innovation to your hotel does not work. It just enables them to sell you a new product or service. True innovation, on the other hand, supercharges your marketing. You have ...
The 260-key New-Build Hilton Mexico City Santa Fe Opens in Mexico
Dr. Peter E. Tarlow | April 7, 2014
SANTA FE, Mexico and MCLEAN, Va. - April 7, 2014 - Hilton Worldwide announced the opening of Hilton Mexico City Santa Fe, a 260-room new-build Hilton Hotels & Resorts property in Santa Fe, Mexico City. The property forms part of Samara - one of the five largest mixed-use complexes in Mexico. "We are excited to open our seventh Hilton Hotels & Resorts property in Mexico, as we continue our brand's expansion throughout Latin America," said Rob Palleschi, global head, Hilton Hotels & Resorts. "The stylish Hilton Mexico City Santa Fe will welcome travelers with Hilton hospitality and introduce our signature brand elements in thi...
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