misshotelier-blog

[misshotelier-blog]

Want to see the real Seattle? Jog through three miles of trails in Green Lake Park where the city sheds its tech side and goes with the flow.

[misshotelier-blog]

9 Questions to Ask Before Making Your Reservation

So you decided to take a vacation. Awesome! You have your flights booked, you took time off work...now what? Your hotel.

Choosing a hotel doesn’t need to be complicated. I made a list of questions for you to ask - and why the answers matter.

1. Location, Location, Location

So important I had to say it three times. But you know that! Are you going to have access to a vehicle? If not, you’ll obviously want to be in a centralized location, close to attractions and dining.

2. Does the hotel offer transportation?

This really only matters if you won’t have access to a vehicle. Are you flying in? You should check if the airport has a free airport shuttle so you don’t spend money on a cab. If the hotel isn’t centralized, do they offer transportation to area attractions, or at least to a public transportation hub? If not, make sure you plan on spending money for a taxi or Uber.

3. Does the hotel offer parking?

Again, this only matters if you have a vehicle. If your hotel is downtown, you’ll probably end up paying to park, so make sure you budget for that. Most other properties offer complimentary parking.

4. Does the hotel serve breakfast (or other meals?)

Most hotels now offer some sort of breakfast. It may not be the best, but it probably is available. See if the hotel has an on-site restaurant. If the property isn’t in a convenient area, this amenity will make life a lot easier for you.

5. What other amenities are offered?

If this is a family vacation, you’re probably looking for a pool. Some hotels have fitness centers as well, so if you’re into working out (on vacation!!!) you’re in luck. Also, WIFI!!! It’s 2018 though, most hotels have you covered.

6. Is the hotel pet friendly?

Are you traveling with your favorite child (the dog)? Make sure you filter your search to only find pet friendly properties. Then you’ll want to check the policy and any fees. Some places require a deposit.

7. Are any special discounts available?

Almost all hotels will offer discounts for AARP, AAA, or military. You can always ask what they have available. We want to sell you the room and have you experience our property, so we’ll probably help you out.

8. What is the incidental policy?

Don’t forget to budget for this!! A lot of hotels will collect an incidental deposit for room damages or charges. Make sure you have enough in your account to cover that. You may want to use a credit card at check in too, that way it won’t matter as much if the deposit takes a bit to return to your account.

9. What else?

Odds and ends. What’s the cancellation policy? Some hotels allow free cancellation up to 6pm the day of arrival. My property has a 24 hour cancellation policy. Are you allowed to check in early or have a late checkout? Just some small things to consider!

Once you use these questions to filter your results, you should have a pretty good idea of your best options. Make sure you call the property direct to get the best rates available, and happy vacation!

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I’ve created a podcast! I covered the basic skills needed to make it in hospitality, along with some information about what we actually do everyday.

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#SocialMedia

How many of you have a personal social media account? Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr....all of these are popular. Does your hotel use social media? You should be!

Social media can expand your brand awareness and give your business a humanized feel. You can use social media to offer quick customer service. For example, if a guest had a terrible stay, they might post a negative comment on your Facebook page. You can (and should) reach out to that person, find out what happened, and make it right. Some guests don’t want to complain to the front desk or call in, but social media posts are easy to make. Take advantage of this. You can find out what you’re doing wrong (and right!) and fix it. 

Are you wondering how you could possibly build brand awareness by creating a Facebook or Twitter profile? Simple. Interactions, great content, and hashtags! 

Let’s start with #hashtags. A tagged word or phrase allows you to be searched by tag. For example, if I share an Instagram picture and tag #Seattle, someone who searches for Seattle can see that picture. You can start by just hashtagging your hotel’s name! Once you have followers who are sharing or retweeting your content, their followers and their follower’s followers and so on will see that hashtag. They can click it, and it’ll show all posts with that tag, and can lead them to your profile. Brand awareness. That person just became aware of your profile and your hotel. Easy, right? Let’s look at a real life hotel using hashtags to their advantage.

La Quinta Inns and Suites launched their #WinAtBusiness campaign when they revamped their rewards program, La Quinta Returns. With the new Returns program, guests can redeem points for everyday transactions. 

“Our data shows that members engaged with the loyalty program—literally making a redemption with their points—have a higher propensity to come back and stay with us again," stated Julie Cary, CMO. "They are also more satisfied with the brand experience and are a better advocate for the brand."

The key word in that quote was “engaged”. You as a hotelier need to engage your guests with social media and draw attention to your property.

Interacting with people through your profiles is important. Get to know your guests - past, present, or future. Give them engaging content that will make them want to keep up with your profiles and become a repeat customer.

Social media is incredibly easy to figure out and take advantage of. Most consumers have some sort of profile, so as long as you produce quality content and engage your followers, it’s likely your brand awareness will increase!

And the best part? It’s free!*

*Unless you’re using promoted ads. 

[misshotelier-blog]

Would you stay at a robot staffed hotel? 

A hotel in Japan opened a property staffed by robots. No human interaction for check-in, no human concierge, and no human housekeepers! 

Personally, this freaks me out. I just don’t like human-like robots. All those realistic robots in Disney attractions? Those freak me out too. Some people may like this! 

It was stated in the video, but hospitality is about meeting and connecting with people. How do you connect with a robot? 

What do you think??

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QR Codes - What Can I Use Them For?

QR codes can be used for any number of things. Hotels can take advantage of this technology for marketing or customer engagement. But how?

Hotels could leave a note in a preassigned room, or include it with a room key, with a QR code printed. The code could give a personalized welcome message for the guest. The code could also give a list of all amenities offered at the hotel.

If a hotel issues print advertisements, including a QR code would allow people to scan and access more information, or be taken to the hotel website. They could also give a discount to anyone who scans the code and books on the site.

Hotels could give out cards, the size of a typical business card, with a code that leads guests to a survey. This could be an easy way to get guest feedback.

In my personal opinion, QR codes aren’t “in” anymore, but they could come back. I don’t think a lot of people know how to use them. I just read that the new iOS update, iOS 11, allows the camera app to be used to read QR codes. There are several uses for QR codes that businesses could take advantage of. What do you think?

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How many times have you lost your hotel room key? Or accidentally deactivated it? It happens to guests all the time. What if you could open your room with your phone?

In 2014, Starwood launched a program called SPG Keyless. Starwood Preferred Guests can participate. All you need to do is register your phone using your SPG account on the Keyless app. If your upcoming stay is eligible for SPG Keyless, you’ll get a notification where you can choose to go keyless. You will receive another notification when your room is ready, and you can check in either through the app or with the front desk (if you prefer human interaction). Once checked in, your phone will be able to unlock your room!

Most Aloft, W, and Element hotels are participating in SPG Keyless. For more information, you can visit the SPG Keyless FAQ page at https://www.spgpromos.com/keyless/faqs 

What do you think? Would you use this? I love this idea and am amazed this technology exists. I always forget to keep my phone away from my room keys, so I often have to have the front desk remake it. I use my phone for everything else, why not open my hotel door with it?

[misshotelier-blog]

Have you heard of ALICE? ALICE is an operating platform that both guests and staff can use. There’s ALICE Staff, ALICE Concierge, and ALICE Guest. 

The employees of a hotel can communicate to each other and to guests on this platform. A guest can request housekeeping, pillows, maintenance service, help from the concierge...basically anything a guest could need assistance with can be requested through ALICE. The staff will receive these requests and the appropriate department can respond. If the guest requested new sheets, housekeeping will respond. Leaky faucet? Maintenance is coming! Need a dinner reservation? The concierge is on it. 

Guests just need to download the ALICE app, and everything they could possibly need is in their hands. This platform allows hotels to have all aspects of operations in one spot. 

For more information, you can visit https://info.aliceapp.com/