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February 26, 2021

Siegel Sez

I wish I had the money to buy a hotel right now.

I am so thankful to those a lot smarter than me who have shared their wisdom as to what is coming for the industry. I have been reading and researching on travel nonstop and came across a quote that pretty much sums up the impact of travel here in the states. Adam Sachs of Tourism Economics phrased it perfectly. You can’t have an economic recovery without a travel recovery. The two are inseparable. The summer travel season will be something we probably have never experienced before. Do you know anybody who hasn’t shared where they plan to go once the pandemic is over? Think about all those who are going to go back to work in hotels. Think of all the companies that service or rely on hotels for their business that are going to be reborn. I spend a fair amount of time in Las Vegas, a city where most jobs are related to travel which of course became a city that was hurt beyond belief when the pandemic started. I hope a year from now when we are gathered at one of the many tradeshows that will be back, we can talk about what we all went through for more than a year. Yes, I remain optimistic that the worst is behind us and we are about to enter the new normal which might not be that new at all. We shall see.

As for today, I really feel for hotel salespeople and revenue managers. We are in the process of finalizing our 16^th Executive Vendor Summit, an annual event that brings hospitality technology leaders together. The “special” requests we are giving the hotel must have them rolling their eyes, but as I found out it is not that unusual today. Our greatest motivator is the number of attendees who keep telling us that we need to make it happen. And trust me, we will. If you are a vendor and are eager to join us, please email kim@hospitalityupgrade.com immediately. It is by invitation only. I hope you will join us this year. Can you imagine the stories that will be shared?

As the recovery kicks in, I encourage you to read Doug Rice’s Definitely Doug column that follows. His part two on generating new revenue for hotels will definitely be coming into play this summer followed by business travel happening again by the end of the year. Yes, we are getting there. I will see you at the end with this week’s attempt at you-know-what. Anybody have an inexpensive hotel to sell? 😊

Rich
rich@hospitalityupgrade.com

Definitely Doug

It’s Not Just a Room: Part 2

My last column started by reminding readers that for the last 50 years, the way hotels sell has remained basically unchanged. It went on to discuss attribute-based selling as a major opportunity to better align with the expectations of today’s guests. This week I will continue the theme and highlight some of the many other revenue-enhancing technologies that have emerged in recent years (or are in development now) and that should at least be on the radar of hotels, if not already in their plans.

As consumers, Amazon has trained us well to think in terms of a shopping cart, to look at suggestions for what people who bought something also bought with it, and to expect personalized suggestions based on our individual buying histories. Yet very few hotels are prepared to sell anything other than standard room types on their website, and even fewer can do so for third-party bookings or personalize the offering. While a true shopping-cart experience may still be some distance in the future for hotels, there are more and more options for capturing at least some of the additional potential revenue now.

The cost of new technologies is often a barrier to adoption, but there is really no reason not to look at these emerging products. Many are priced based on success (at least as an option) or offer a free trial. Some have been shown to generate significant additional revenue as well as a better guest experience. And this could be particularly welcome during the latter days of the COVID pandemic, as many guests choose to spend more time – and a greater share of wallet – within the bubble of the hotel or resort.

Perhaps the most mature technologies in this class are the ones that sell room upgrades. This was first introduced by Nor1 (recently acquired by Oracle) around 2005; more recent entrants include UpsellGuru and Roomdex. Upgrades may be offered either via a reverse-bidding system, where the guest says how much they are willing to pay and the hotel decides whether and when to accept it, or at a known price for immediate confirmation. Many guests who are unwilling to pay the full rate for a better room are still happy to pay a smaller increment, and upgrades can be an important part of the ancillary revenue strategy for hotels with premium rooms that cannot always be sold at full rate.

Click here to read more of Doug’s column on It’s Not Just a Room – Part 2

Douglas Rice
Email: douglas.rice@hosptech.net
Twitter: @dougrice
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/ricedouglas/

It’s Not Just a Room – Part 2

CORPORATE NEWS

- BirchStreet Systems Relocates Headquarters to Las Vegas
- M3 Named to Top 2020 Best Employers by Gwinnett Magazine
- DataArt Partners with PROVision to Expand Commercial and Digital Service Offerings for Travel and Hospitality Clients
- NextGuest Merges with Cendyn
- Hospitality Technology Hub, a Virtual Forum Powered by IDeaS, Launches to Support Hotel Industry
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For more information on Corporate News for 2/26/2021

GUEST MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS

- Maestro Asks: Is Your Current PMS Helping or Hindering Your Reopening Plans?
2021 is a year of disruption. Not only has the hotel business come to a screeching halt in many markets, but travelers are modifying their list of must-haves if operators want them to return, and touchless experiences — such as contactless payments, mobile check-in/out, mobile reservations, mobile keys, and hotel-to-guest text messaging — are topping their list of demands.
maestropms.com

- Dot.Cy achieves Oracle Validated Integration with Oracle Hospitality Hotel Expertise for Delivering Proven, Repeatable Integration
Dot.Cy, a member of Oracle PartnerNetwork (OPN), announced that it has achieved Oracle Validated Integration for Oracle Hospitality Hotel Expertise using OWS (Opera Web Services) and OXI OPERA eXchange Interface) for its integration of dot.Hospitality with Oracle Hospitality OPERA.
dot.cy

RESERVATIONS & DISTRIBUTION

- ROOMDEX, A Hotel Upsell Innovator, Partners with Pacifica Hotels
ROOMDEX, a pioneer in automated hotel upselling solutions, announces that Pacifica Hotels has activated ROOMDEX’s Upgrade Optimizer™ software in four hotels, including, Marina Del Rey Hotel, (Venice, CA), Inn at the Pier (Pismo Beach, CA), Blue Sea Beach Hotel (San Diego, CA) and La Jolla Cove Hotel (La Jolla, CA).
roomdex.io

REVENUE MANAGEMENT AND ANALYTICS

- IDeaS Introduces Optix for G3 RMS, Providing Big-Picture Revenue Intelligence for Hotel Groups
IDeaS, a SAS company, a world leading provider of revenue management software and services, announced IDeaS Optix™, a cloud-based advanced reporting and analysis module for IDeaS G3 Revenue Management System (RMS).
ideas.com

- Datavision Congratulates Customers Recognized in Prestigious Forbes Star Ranking
Datavision, a premier business intelligence system for the hospitality world, is proud to count dozens of customers named to the 2021 Forbes Travel Guide listing Four and Five Star Restaurants, Spas and Hotels.
www.datavisiontech.com

GUEST FACING TECHNOLOGY

- INTELITY Named a Forbes Travel Guide Brand Official for Fifth Year in a Row
- Bartech's Customized Line of In-Room POS Solutions Help Hoteliers Maximize Revenue
- Quality Inn Southaven Caters to Guest Demands for Access to Personalized Streamed Content with BeyondTV GuestCast®
- Cloud5 and SABA Hospitality Bring Humanized Virtual Guest Service to the Americas
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For more information on Guest Facing Technology for 2/26/2021

BACK OFFICE

- Charlestowne Hotels Implements ProfitSword and Event Temple Integration to gain Real-Time Insight into Business and Group Sales Performance
ProfitSword, a premier developer of hospitality-related business intelligence and data integration software, has announced the implementation of its performance forecasting technology alongside Event Temple's advanced group and event sales management software at Charlestowne Hotels.
profitsword.com

- Hotel Companies Turning to Aptech’s Browser Based PVNG Accounting Solution Mid Pandemic
As hoteliers continue to use this time of low occupancy to improve their properties, many have found it the ideal opportunity to also upgrade their back-of-house systems to optimize efficiency. Aptech, an industry standard for hospitality financial management, has seen a surge in adoption of its browser based PVNG enterprise accounting solution.
www.aptech-inc.com

COMMUNICATIONS & INFRASTRUCTURE

- Ritz Hotel Geelong Deploys High-Performance Wi-Fi Network Technology by Liveport
4.5 Star Australian property leverages Liveport's hotel internet expertise to address latest guest online needs while ensuring seamless operations connectivity.
www.liveport.com.au

FOOD & BEVERAGE

- Brazil’s Cabana Burger Increases Delivery Orders by 400% with Oracle
Fast growing Brazilian restaurant chain, Cabana Burger is using Oracle MICROS Simphony Point-of-Sale (POS) to better serve customers and support its rapid growth.
www.oracle.com

- W Washington DC Hotel Manages Their F&B Inventory with Clear Sky Software's Bar Code Based Solution
Clear Sky Software, Inc. ® announced today that the W Washington DC Hotel has installed the company’s food & beverage inventory control system to help manage and track all food & beverage products. Located in the heart of DC, the W has been busy taking advantage of the features of this industry-leading F&B inventory system.
www.clearskysoftware.com

- Hotel Effie Sandestin Selects Agilysys SaaS Solutions to Improve Operations & Enhance Guest Experience
Agilysys, Inc. (Nasdaq: AGYS), a leading global provider of next-generation cloud-native SaaS and on-premise hospitality software solutions and services, today announced that the Hotel Effie Sandestin in Miramar Beach, FL has selected the award-winning innovative InfoGenesis POS solution, as well as its modern cloud-native SaaS Agilysys Pay Connect secure payment processing product to enhance their guest experience.
www.agilysys.com

PAYMENT PROCESSING

- Digital Tipping: Meet the Need for Speed by Avoiding the App Store
That’s what tipping expert Michael Lynn said in a recent article titled, “Tipping do’s and don’ts: When and how much to tip in every situation.” Lynn is a Burton M. Sack Professor in Food & Beverage Management at the Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration, and he is a nationally recognized expert on tipping with 70+ research publications written on the topic.
youtip.money

OPERATIONS

- Profile Films Implements the InvoTech Uniform System for Contactless Uniform Distribution and Inventory Management
InvoTech Systems Inc. announces the previously installed Uniform System at Profile Films. InvoTech Systems is the leading provider of advanced Linen Management, Laundry and Uniform Systems that integrate the latest RFID technology to increase profitability for hotels, resorts, casino operators, sports arenas, convention centers, theme parks and production plants.
invotech.com

HUMAN RESOURCES

- Beekeeper Announces ‘Frontline Future’ Event, a Global Summit on the Rise of Frontline Workers
Beekeeper, the mobile-first collaboration platform designed specifically for frontline workers, announced Frontline Future, a groundbreaking virtual summit dedicated to the frontline workforce.
www.frontlinefuture.io

HOSPITALITY EVENTS AND ASSOCIATION NEWS

- HSMAI Foundation’s COVID Relief Fund Opens with Generous $150,000 Donation from the Carolyn Smith Foundation
The Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International (HSMAI) Foundation is opening its COVID Relief Fund for grant applications following a generous donation of $150,000 from the Carolyn Smith Foundation on behalf of STR Founders Carolyn and Randy Smith.
global.hsmai.org/foundation/

PIQUED OUR INTEREST

- Robots to Join Security Team in Victorian Hotel Quarantine Trial
- Americans Are So Desperate to Travel Again That 38% of Them Would Give Up Sex for a Year Just to Go on a Trip
- South Africa's Johannesburg is Turning to Robot Hospitality in Times of COVID-19
- Another Cruise Line Plans a Robot Bartender — and This Time It’ll Almost Look Human
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For more information on Piqued Our Interest for 2/26/2021

You-Know-What

And now for the ‘did-you-know-what' ? .…

The space between your eyebrows is called a glabella.
The way it smells after the rain is called petrichor.
The plastic or metallic coating at the end of your shoelaces is called an aglet.
The rumbling of stomach is actually called a wamble.
The cry of a newborn baby is called a vagitus.
The prongs on a fork are called tines.
The sheen or light that you see when you close your eyes and press your hands on them is called phosphenes.
The tiny plastic table placed in the middle of a pizza box is called a box tent.
The day after tomorrow is called overtomorrow.
Your tiny toe or finger is called minimus.
The wired cage that holds the cork in a bottle of champagne is called an agraffe.
The ’na na na’ and ‘la la la’, which don’t really have any meaning in the lyrics of a song, are called vocables.
When you combine an exclamation mark with a question mark (!?), it’s referred to as an interrobang.
The space between your nostrils is called columella nasi.
The armhole in clothes, where the sleeves are sewn, is call armscye.
The condition of finding it difficult to get out of bed in the morning is called dysania.
Illegible handwriting is called griffonage.
The dot over an “i” or a “j” is called tittle.
That utterly sick feeling you get after eating or drinking too much is called crapulence.
The metallic devise used to measure your feet at the store is called Bannock device.