Interview - Business Travel and the developments in 2024

LIVE@ IHTF 2024 in Barcelona

Travel Market Life hosted live discussions featuring insights from hoteliers and technology experts on innovative approaches to hotel management, revenue optimisation, and the significance of digitalisation and direct bookings:

Henrique Tiago de Castro, GM at Evolution Hospitality's Cascais-Estoril Hotel, shares pre-opening challenges for Lisbon's only lifestyle hotel.

James Lemon from Stripe dives into decision-making nuances between global brands and smaller groups in tech investments.

Charlotte Newton teases IHTF Singapore's arrival, targeting APAC markets and potential expansion to the Middle East.

Alberto Plaza of IDeaS Revenue Solutions emphasises the power of data-driven decision-making in hotel revenue management.

Raimund Notz of Preferred Hotels & Resorts highlights tech adoption's role in enhancing guest experiences and revenue optimisation.

Carsten Wernet, CEO at SIHOT Group, discusses cloud and SaaS systems' pivotal role in modern hospitality.

Markus Mueller of GauVendi explores leveraging emotions and dynamic pricing in the booking process.

Piergiorgio Schirru from Blastness stresses revenue management and direct bookings' importance.

Gérald Lampaert of VERTU Hotels shares project management insights for tech adoption and expansion goals.

Christoph Peppers from H-Hotels.com delves into the significance of affiliate marketing in driving direct bookings.

Jon Siberry, Group Revenue Manager at Sarova, unveils AI's rising prominence and the concept of 'digital workers' in hotels.

Matthew Prosser of Agilysys discusses the value of IHTF for suppliers in understanding industry challenges.

Listen to more episodes of the hospitality industry podcast Travel Market Life and subscribe for the latest news at http://travelmarket.life/

Follow us on LinkedIn for more thought-provoking content: https://www.linkedin.com/company/travel-market-life/

Do you have a story to share about technology, digitalisation or culture changes within the hospitality and travel industry? We'd love to hear what your company is doing and the impact it is having. Please contact us through http://travelmarket.life/

Drip-pricing in hotels - could you be breaking the law?

In this episode, we deep dive into drip-pricing the practice when a headline price is initially shown to travellers when they are browsing online, where additional elements of the price being added or ‘dripped’ as they move through the checkout process.


Richard Collie, Managing Associate for TLT LLP a consumer law expert at award-winning law firm with particular specialism in the leisure industry, including advising on consumer regulatory matters looking at investigations brought by the Competition and Markets Authority.

We look at

• What is drip-pricing
• Examples of how it is used in travel and hospitality industry
• Why drip-pricing is an issue for consumers and businesses
• What the UK government is planning to do
• The risks for businesses if this policy comes in

For further reading check out:
The UK government has made it clear that it wants to stamp out the most harmful forms of ‘drip pricing’. On 24 January 2024 it announced that it would bring forward new legislation banning hidden fees. The policy justification behind the new rules are as follows:

• Drip pricing undermines price transparency and make it difficult for consumers to make informed purchasing decisions based on the price of a product or service and
• It also limits price competition because businesses often compete on misleading headline prices rather than the price which consumers must pay in practice.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-68075851

https://news.sky.com/story/drip-pricing-three-psychological-reasons-we-fall-for-the-technique-and-how-to-resist-the-it-12959042

https://www.thesun.co.uk/travel/25491349/hotel-costs-drip-pricing-extra-fees-charges-holiday/#:~:text=HOTELS%20have%20been%20accused%20of,the%20overall%20price%20actually%20is.

https://www.morningadvertiser.co.uk/Article/2024/01/25/Hospitality-sector-welcomes-legislation-to-ban-drip-pricing

https://travelweekly.co.uk/news/air/government-confirms-plans-to-tackle-drip-pricing

Note that DBT also commissioned a detailed report estimating the prevalence and impact of online drip pricing in certain sectors – including hospitality and travel.

Listen to more episodes of the hospitality industry podcast Travel Market Life and subscribe for the latest news at http://travelmarket.life/

Follow us on LinkedIn for more thought-provoking content: https://www.linkedin.com/company/travel-market-life/

Do you have a story to share about technology, digitalisation or culture changes within the hospitality and travel industry? We'd love to hear what your company is doing and the impact it is having. Please contact us through http://travelmarket.life/

Travel Review: Payments under scrutiny, Spain struggles with UK travellers, Loyalty promises

For the Travel Monthly Review Show - April 2024 edition - with our expert panel featuring Will Plummer (CEO, Trust My Group), Claire Steiner (UK Director, Global Travel and Tourism Partnership), and James Clarke (General Manager, Travelzoo UK),

In this episode we’ll tackle:

• Latest industry developments: Spain’s traveller numbers, Dynamic pricing and loyalty schemes
• A look into Travel Payments and how this is adapting for consumers and businesses, we have a special mini-panel with
  • Maggie Bazemore, Knowledge Management Director | Mr & Mrs Smith
  • James Lemon, GTM | Global Industry Lead - Travel & Leisure - Stripe
  • Peter Gerstle, Business Solutions Director, Head of Travel Loyalty, Collinson

REFERENCES
Spain to tackle decrease in UK visitor durations
Dynamic (Surge/Demand) Pricing Is Coming for Everything in Travel
AVIS BUDGET GROUP REVAMPS ITS LOYALTY INITIATIVE
Expedia Group launches single loyalty programme but Hotels.com customers will earn less

Listen to more episodes of the hospitality industry podcast Travel Market Life and subscribe for the latest news at http://travelmarket.life/

Follow us on LinkedIn for more thought-provoking content: https://www.linkedin.com/company/travel-market-life/

Do you have a story to share about technology, digitalisation or culture changes within the hospitality and travel industry? We'd love to hear what your company is doing and the impact it is having. Please contact us through http://travelmarket.life/

Cheval Collection - Hoteliers' Voice S4E4 with Mustafa Gokcen: Purpose of hospitality and its relationship with technology

In this episode of Hoteliers' Voice season 4, we speak with Mustafa Gokcen, Head of Information Technology, Cheval Collection - an award-winning hospitality group with 13 luxury all-apartment locations in London, Edinburgh and Dubai.

Mustafa has worked in the hospitality industry since 2012 following a move from the IT industry where he had spent the first 10 years of his career. He has worked with brands including Hilton, Starwood, and Marriott before joining Cheval Collection in 2023.

In this episode, he explains the moment he realised that hospitality is more than rooms and services and the impact this has had on his perception of the role of technology and strategic development. He shares his progression from IT to hospitality IT and how he approach leadership and recruitment.

Through our conversation we learn;

• What is misunderstood about technology in the accommodation market
• How the mindset and culture in hospitality needs to change/adapt
• His area of focus and investment in tech
• Managing to improve IT resources and find the best talent
• What makes a good tech vendor partner

Mustafa will be speaking at the IHTF 2024 which Travel Market Life is a media partner

Listen to more episodes of the hospitality industry podcast Travel Market Life and subscribe for the latest news at http://travelmarket.life/

Follow us on LinkedIn for more thought-provoking content: https://www.linkedin.com/company/travel-market-life/

Do you have a story to share about technology, digitalisation or culture changes within the hospitality and travel industry? We'd love to hear what your company is doing and the impact it is having. Please contact us through http://travelmarket.life/

Marriott - Hoteliers' Voice S4E3 with Florian Hepp: Employer branding, attracting talent and managing staff today

In this episode of Hoteliers' Voice, we are honoured to be joined by Marriott International's Director of Employer Branding - Central Europe to discuss the initiatives that are engaging and attracting staff.

Florian Hepp started his career at Marriott before developing his career at Westin Hotels, and Sofitel Luxury Hotels & Resorts, back at Marriott he utilised his sales and marketing training in HR and employer branding.

Florian will speak about Attracting talent, managing staff shortages and the role of technology at 21st IHTF in Barcelona, but here we look at the operational aspect:

• Roles most challenging to recruit for
• Sharing best practice between teams
• What people expect from work and employers today
• Why showcasing company culture and values is important
• What sort of stories really resonate with people?

For the survey Florian refers to - please see this resource
https://www.presseportal.de/pm/56177/5429436

Listen to more episodes of the hospitality industry podcast Travel Market Life and subscribe for the latest news at http://travelmarket.life/

Follow us on LinkedIn for more thought-provoking content: https://www.linkedin.com/company/travel-market-life/

Do you have a story to share about technology, digitalisation or culture changes within the hospitality and travel industry? We'd love to hear what your company is doing and the impact it is having. Please contact us through http://travelmarket.life/