Innovation

🍴 Denver-based Dividend Restaurant Group (DRG) promotes Sullivan’s Steakhouse and Eddie Merlot’s, both awarded on Wine Spectator’s 2024 list. DRG uses Champion Management and Tagger Media for influencer marketing, targeting macro and micro influencers. The company has 27 upscale locations and focuses on personalized loyalty campaigns without compromising quality, offering 2-for-$99 deals at Sullivan's on Wednesdays and at Eddie Merlot’s on Tuesdays. Wine events, menu refreshes, and a new loyalty program are also key strategies. Sullivan’s and Eddie Merlot’s are open every day, with special seafood Happy Hour deals in October.

📍 Berlin's airport praised for modern, timeless design but noted for needing efficiency improvement—40+ minute security wait compared to Paris CDG's 10+ minutes. The rise of tech giants may lead to the replacement of Online Travel Agencies (OTAs) with built-in AI for search, discovery, and bookings. The importance of brand names is downplayed, suggesting names should not pigeonhole the brand, allowing for future expansion and meaning built through actions and marketing. Meta's event outshone Apple's, with new products and a live demo showcasing innovation. A shift to daily use of Generative AI by hoteliers is anticipated to spark ideas and accelerate innovation. Social media's evolving role in travel includes a 65% usage rate among travelers for planning and booking trips. The hotel industry is highlighted as a meritocracy with potential issues due to fewer people attending hotel schools and the challenge of retaining staff due to low compensation. MGM Resorts CEO points out the need for better pay and benefits in the industry. Summary: The design of Berlin's airport is lauded, but efficiency lags behind Paris CDG. Tech giants with AI could replace OTAs in travel booking. Brand names are less critical than marketing strategies. Meta's recent event eclipsed Apple's, indicating a trend towards innovative live demos. The hotel industry faces talent retention challenges, with calls for better compensation to match the demanding work environment.

💰 Stayntouch partnered with Cobblestone Hotels, which operates over 160 properties in 29 states, deploying its cloud-based Property Management System (PMS) to enhance operations by 70%. Cobblestone, founded in 2008, focuses on upper-midscale accommodations in smaller communities. The partnership offers centralized multi-property management, automated revenue optimization with built-in AI, and scalable tech solutions. Cobblestone values Stayntouch's customer support, while Stayntouch is committed to driving revenue and operational efficiency for the hotel chain.

📊 When choosing a Revenue Management System (RMS) for your business, key considerations include intelligent, scalable automation, instant innovation with cloud-based solutions (like Duetto), comprehensive and configurable data sets, enterprise strategy, and flexible reporting. Duetto's features enable controlled automation, use Open Pricing methodology, offer integration with multiple data sources, allow enterprise-level strategy setting, and provide flexible reporting structures. The article suggests defining feature priorities before searching for an RMS, and refers to Duetto's buyer's guide and demo options for further assistance.

🏨 A hotel Booking Engine allows direct room and accommodation bookings on a property's website, featuring real-time availability and pricing. It aims to streamline bookings, reduce reliance on OTAs like Booking.com, Expedia, and Airbnb, and improve customer satisfaction. A top-notch engine should be user-friendly, mobile-optimized, provide tailored offers and comprehensive information, have a seamless booking process with multiple payment options, instant confirmations, and no hidden fees. Inadequate engines can cause revenue loss, operational inefficiencies, and a poor user experience, leading to negative reviews and increased OTA dependence. The new Hop Booking Engine launches in November, promising a commission-free, user-centric design with features such as multi-room booking and upselling optimizations.

📖 Growth.Design offers a free cheat sheet summarizing cognitive biases principles, aiming to serve as a user empathy tool for feature development. Renowned author Nir Eyal endorses the resource as an ethical design reference for enhancing user experience. The cheatsheet is available for PDF download.

📓 Key facts extracted from the provided article content include: - Subject: Hotel Management Software for Small Hotels. - Focus: Streamlining operations and enhancing guest experiences. - Source: Hotelogix Blog. - Date of content: October 3, 2024 (Published), October 4, 2024 (Last Updated). - Author: Hotelogix Marketing. - Social Media: Mention of Facebook account - https://www.facebook.com/Hotelogix. - Article features an image with dimensions: 1200x686 pixels. - Mention of the software version: Ghost 5.95. - Reference to web technologies: RSS feed, webmentions, CSS minification. - Canonical URL for the article is https://blog.hotelogix.com/hotel-management-software-small-hotel/. - The article is likely formatted with a Table of Contents and is optimized for various screen sizes, indicated by meta tags like "width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0". - Accessibility features like a noscript section are included for loading stylesheets when JavaScript is disabled. Summary: Discover the benefits of Hotel Management Software for small hotels in the latest Hotelogix Blog, published on October 3, 2024. Enhance guest experiences and streamline hotel operations as detailed in the article. Follow the latest trends with Hotelogix, using their up-to-date platform Ghost 5.95.

🍪 Third-party cookies, essential for digital advertising by tracking user behavior for nearly three decades, are phased out due to privacy concerns and regulations like the EU's GDPR and California's CCPA. These laws mandate user consent for tracking, leading to browsers like Safari and Firefox blocking third-party cookies by default, and as of 2022, Apple requiring third-party app user consent.

💳 TRAY, a POS system provider, expanded its partnership with Alraedah Finance from Saudi Arabia in 2023, securing significant investment and exclusive reseller rights in the MENA region. This agreement enables SMEs and Enterprise customers to access TRAY's POS solutions in local languages and currencies. With TRAY's technology and Alraedah's expertise in data analytics and product development, the partnership aims to enhance customer experiences and optimize operations in the hospitality industry. TRAY also plans to develop TRAY-branded financial products like TRAY Capital and TRAY Pay.

📍 Travel Tech Essentialist introduced "Deep Dives," a new series focusing on influential travel tech companies, with Dharma being the first featured company. Dharma, a travel company that curates passion-led journeys, was established in Abu Dhabi and joined Mubadala’s Hub71 program. Charaf El Mansouri, Dharma's founder, aims to offer unique travel experiences, transforming travel into secular pilgrimages, a concept which allows non-travel professionals to plan and sell trips. Dharma's strategy includes creating 'unique content' with over $10.5 million in funding, $5 million in listed supply, growing at 25% per month, and partnering with more than 150 hosts. By 2026, Dharma aims to build a $1 billion inventory of unique travel content. A Thrillist survey found that 72% of Gen Z and Millennials consider travel core to their identity, and 88% view it as essential for personal growth. Dharma targets $6 million in revenue for 2024, leveraging influencers and creators to expand into new markets. They charge an 18%-25% commission on bookings, focusing on trust with creators, guests, and operators.