New Wharton Study says that 35% of consumers have recently had a “wow” experience. The secret….Engagement: being polite, genuinely caring and interested in helping, acknowledging and listening. Got to http://tinyurl.com/lb2sx3
for the details.

Hotels are trying special rates for social media audiences. Good to customize your offer for the specific medium, like for Twitter!

More and more travel companies are using Twitter now. Some are using it to engage customers and build connections. Others have not cracked the code. The secret is to provide value and interest–like fielding customer issues, inviting friends to webinars, promoting travel offers or more. Check out some of the best travel Twitter-ers….http://tinyurl.com/qx9m7w

So what’s all the hype about Wikipedia? Every middle schooler knows… if you want to reserach something– start with Wikipedia. You can add any topic to the site which has rapidly become the world’s online encyclopedia. Shoppers won’t really go to the site to research specific travel options, however it offers a great resource for unusual stay options… It features unique properties such as treehouse hotels, cave hotels, underwater hotels, snow hotels…. So if your hotel has a unique stay experience, load it up!! This is a free channel that also offers a great opportunity to boost search ranking with links back to your website.

Some hotels are in a panic due to the recession–cutting rate just to win short term occupancy. That reactive behavior can cost you revenue and brand perception. Other hotels are not just following the latest fad, but what is good business. If you put boundaraies and limitations around rate discounts, you can boost occupancy and hopefully not impact brand value in the long term. Protecting rate is in fashion because it protects financial viability.

Club Med is smart… before jumping 100% into social networking, they developed www.clubmedinsider.com with great opportunities for travelers to share tips, photos, videos and other information that future travelers might find valuable. Testing the concept, they are asking for feedback and even asking visitors to report bugs. Great use of your social network to test a concept!

Maybe it was a long time in coming, but it seems the economic situation has helped hotels become more flexibile in order to win/keep conference business…. eliminating cancellation fees, retooling events to fit shrinking budgets, etc. Hotels are being more innovative with how to work through the changing enviroment with clients. Read more from Business Week http://tinyurl.com/cslpkn

After spending hours online reading every hotel review, looking at every hotel photo (including seeing the real truth by visiting the “traveler photos” at TripAdvisor and video shorts at YouTube), some of today’s value-driven deal-seekers eventually become confused. Many revert to a calling the hotel directly and talking to an actual live person. As a result of these trends, it is more important than ever to carefully train your reservations (and front desk) salespersons to capture and convert every possible inquiry, while simultaneously increasing average rates by better-presenting higher-rated accommodations, packages and promotional offerings. Check out this article on HotelMarketing.com.

There is a lot of noise in the market about rate.  Be careful.  Don’t cut your rate–which is a major element of your brand identity–unless market indicators state that a discount is the right strategy for protecting and growing market share.  Make sure you don’t use discounting as the first thing you grab for in an uncertain market.  Make an informed decision. Use intelligence about what your competitors are doing and what the rate trend is for your market.  Make discounting a strategic decision, not a knee-jerk tactic.