Social media has quickly become the topic that is keeping some marketers on edge. While some marketers have a full understanding of the capabilities and reach of social efforts, others are still in the information gathering phase and quietly asking themselves if social efforts are really important to their brand. Dozens of questions continue to perplex marketers and brands even as the wave of social media participation continues to evolve. As a juncture is approached, marketers are reaching a point of saturation in social programs which could soon force them to join forces within their segmented social programs. READ MORE

As hotel development in North America slowly regains impetus, Jim Holthouser, global head of Embassy Suites and full service brands, Hilton Worldwide, and William Fortier, senior vice president, development, Americas, Hilton Worldwide, examine how the Embassy Suites Design Option III prototype and the Kit of Parts approach have sustained brand viability through the economic downturn and continue to support developers as the industry rebuilds. While site selection is a key component to success in the hotel industry, in-depth understanding of the marketplace and a flexible approach to design are equally vital. READ MORE

In the beginning of the year, we talked about the importance of investing in Marketing and Public Relations, since these areas are key in order to build up a property's message and enhance its brand. Of course, many businesses continue to scale back, and have even eliminated PR and Marketing efforts entirely. In most cases, that decision turned out to be unwise. In a Social Media, SEO-era, your hotel's name must be out on the Internet. Period. Hotel online reputation is one of the reasons why PR and Marketing are no longer budgets that are considered "optional." READ MORE

Even for an industry that is as TV-centric as travel, digital integration is crucial to success. Direct response TV is the best driver for sending customers online to book immediately or to gather needed customer data. On the surface, using DRTV to drive online reservation looks like a simple task. But it's not. There are a lot of considerations a DRTV advertiser needs to make when integrating online data capture and reservations with a successful TV spot. We've identified the top ten, and they go for beyond the simple listing of a URL. Meshing DRTV with online booking will help the travel industry achieve its full digital potential. READ MORE

Most hotel management agreements contain a "performance test" that gives the Owner of the hotel an option to terminate the management agreement if the Operator fails to achieve one or more financial benchmarks in the operation of the hotel. Many of these performance tests were negotiated under very different economic conditions than prevail today. Given the new reality that prevails in the hotel industry, Owners, Asset Managers and Operators should be reviewing the performance tests in their existing management agreements to determine if it is time for renegotiation. This article explains the components of a typical performance test in a management agreement and recommends areas for examination and negotiation. READ MORE