State of The Art Hospitality

CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE
The state of customer experience

in hospitality
In the hospitality industry, where “experience is the product,” the ability to deliver
excellent customer experiences is the only path to overall business success. If you’re a
leader at a hotel, casino, airline, restaurant, car rental agency or other hospitality
company, you intuitively know what’s at stake.
What’s not so readily apparent is how guests and other hospitality customers are
constantly changing their definition of what constitutes an excellent experience. Equally
elusive is to know precisely what your company can do to ensure it changes fast enough
to keep pace with changing customer expectations.
The proper strategy will inevitably involve how you treat your customers in the physical
world as well as the digital world. Every successful hospitality company has a good
understanding of how to deliver excellent customer service in the physical world. But
each year, the digital world takes on more importance. And now the two are intertwined.
Perspectives: Customer Experience for Hospitality 1

TABLE OF CONTENTS
3 What do hospitality customers expect?
4 The context for these expectations
5 Obstacles to delivering excellent customer experiences
6 The answer: Personalize at scale
6 Best practices for creating personalized experiences
7 Implementing real-time, 24x7 marketing
9 Mapping and designing the guest journey
9 The right strategy and technology are essential

What do hospitality Fast service—Consumers don’t want to wait. It’s a changing
expectation driven in part by the proliferation of mobile
customers expect? devices in recent years, and the Internet in preceding years.
What consumers expect from hotels, casinos, airlines, “Mobile has produced a permanent sense of immediacy,”
restaurants, and other hospitality companies has changed at says travel industry advisor Henry Harteveldt, a former
a fast pace. Each year guests and other hospitality customers Forrester Research analyst. “It’s changing forever how our
want more personalized, higher quality experiences that guests interact with us and how they expect us to interact
can be procured more easily. But to meet these ever- with them.”3
increasing demands, hospitality companies can’t focus solely
Intelligent service—Consumers expect more sophisticated
on their own company or even hospitality industry overall.
service. This, too, is being driven by advances in technology
Instead, they have to study and understand how customer
and the service guests receive from companies in other
experiences are changing in business more generally.
industries. Devices today are smarter and enable more
For most hospitality and travel consumers, their perception sophisticated interactions between hotel staff and guests.
of what constitutes personalized and high-quality experience Even bed sheets and towels are more intelligent now.
is defined by their experiences with brands outside of the In many hotel properties, they are being equipped with
industry. As noted in Deloitte’s 2017 travel and hospitality radio frequency identification devices (RFID) to help hotel
industry outlook, other than frequent business travels, most management know better when a guest needs service.
people only travel a few times per year. “Consequently, their
Walt Disney Company™, an undisputed leader and innovator
exposure to travel brands is relatively limited,” the report
in hospitality service, offers its guest MagicBands wristbands
says. “Everyday brands such as Amazon, Starbucks, and
and cards, which are secure devices personalized to the
Seamless, however, showcase their innovation and services
choices a guest makes in preparing for their vacation. They
to their consumers often—sometimes daily. Many of these
can be used to unlock a hotel room, help the guest gain
brands are leading on the customer experience front and
access to a ride at theme park, and charge food, among
setting the bar high for consumers’ brand expectations.”1
other features.4
Here are some prevailing consumer expectations with direct
Consistent service—Consumers expect companies to
impact on the Hospitality industry:
deliver reliable service and communicate consistently at
Self-service—Consumers increasingly prefer self-service all touch points in the customer journey. With each visit to
over getting help from a company representative. According a property, a guest expects the same level of service, and
to a 2017 customer service trend report by Forrester familiar features and processes. Companies like Starbucks™
Research, “Customers of all ages are moving away from excel at maintaining consistency in both quality and the
using the phone to using self-service—web and mobile interactions with its customers. When a Starbucks customer
self-service, communities, virtual agents, automated chat interacts with a hospitality company, they expect the same.
dialogs, or chatbots—as a first point of contact with a With each contact, consumers also expect the business
company.” Each digital self-service channel reported growth to know the history of a particular issue or the preferences
while phone volume reported a 12% decline.2 they’ve stated before.
This helps explain the popularity of airline and hotel In the mind of hospitality customers, each of these service
self-service check-in and other recent developments in characteristics will produce a composite impression of
the industry. value. Delivering greater value in customer experience
is associated with greater profit. According to Forrester
Research, a one-point improvement in the customer
experience score for upscale hotels produces $6.52 per
customer in additional revenue.5 That can add up to a lot of
profit for hospitality companies that number their customers
in millions or tens of millions per year.

The context for these expectations Mobile devices are popular, but so are desktops—Research
indicates that even though smartphones play an increasingly
Hotel guests and other hospitality customers clearly are prominent role in bookings, desktop visitors to a hospitality
demanding enriched experiences. Fortunately, the industry website are more likely to convert. For many it’s a matter
is in a sustained period of growth so there’s money to invest of trust. A 2016 study by EyeforTravel found that security
in new processes and technologies necessary to meeting risk and performance risk are critical factors for consumers
new these new demands. According to a 2017 report from considering making a travel booking on a mobile device.
the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), the industry’s For example, the study reported that for flight bookings in the
direct contribution to the global gross domestic product grew UK, 51% were made using a desktop computer, 23% using
by 3.1 % in 2016 compared to the overall economic growth a tablet browser or app, and 11.7% for a smartphone app or
globally of 2.5%. It was the sixth consecutive year travel and browsers. The study concluded that many people started
tourism outperformed the global economy. In raw numbers, their research using a mobile device and then switched to a
the industry directly contributed US $2.3 trillion and 109 desktop to make the purchase. The report predicts that over
million jobs to the worldwide economy. The WTTC report time an increasing percentage of travel purchases will, in fact,
projects that the industry will grow at an average 3.9% for the be made using a smartphone.9
next ten years and in 2027 will support more than 380 million
jobs, one in nine of all jobs worldwide.6 Online reviews matter—For hospitality customers using a
travel booking site, 81% consider reviews to be important in
Despite this positive financial outlook, this is no time for their decision making and 49% of travel booking site users
hospitality companies to assume that pursuing the same won’t book a room without first seeing a review.10 According
strategy will enable them to remain competitive. In its 2017 to an article on CMO.com, 95% of leisure travelers read at
travel and hospitality industry outlook report, Deloitte least seven reviews before booking their holidays.11
acknowledged the growth trends, but added that winners
in travel are most likely to be companies that are most Hospitality brands still get a majority of online bookings—
responsive to disruptive changes in the industry, including Hospitality brand websites garner 65.5% of all online
shifts in the global economy, game-changing innovation, bookings. Merchant websites like Expedia/Hotels.com®,
geopolitical turmoil, natural disasters, pandemics, and rising Travelocity®, and Orbitz™ get 19.5%. Opaque websites where
consumer demands.7 customers make a purchase without knowing the brand get
11.3% of online purchases.12
Political turmoil, natural disasters, and pandemics clearly
demand a strategic response by hospitality companies. But Private accommodations are redefining what a hotel is—
changes to the industry caused by technological innovation Airbnb™ ranked as the most visited accommodation website
and related changes in consumer behavior deserve their in Q4 2016, receiving nearly 88 million visits, up 42% from
own distinct response. By understanding these changes Q4 2015.13 Research by Morgan Stanley indicates that Airbnb
and responding more effectively than their peers, hospitality is more of a threat to the traditional hotel industry than
companies can create significant new competitive advantage. previously thought. The Morgan Stanley survey found that
Airbnb adoption is currently at approximately 18% of travelers
Here are some of the top industry trends that can be traced and that increasingly, its adoption is coming at the expense
to the interrelationship of technological innovation and of hotels.14
ensuing changes in consumer behavior.
Online travel agencies (OTAs) are a fact of life in
Hospitality consumers are increasingly interacting hospitality—In Europe, 75% of hotel bookings originate from
online—More than 148 million travel bookings are made on OTAs. In the US, it’s 52%.15 A few major OTAs dominate, as
the Internet each year. That’s 57% of all bookings worldwide.8 illustrated by a 2016 survey of more than 2,000 European
hoteliers which showed that Expedia, Priceline™ and HRS™
controlled 92% of all rooms sold through OTAs and one out
of four rooms sold in the region overall.16

The industry’s relationship with OTAs is complicated. An Picture- and video-based social platforms are gaining
OTA’s commission to sell a hotel room usually is in the double strength—Deloitte notes that younger generations are
digits and smaller players in the industry who lack clout often increasingly using visual platforms, namely Instagram™ and
end up paying more than 20%.17 But OTAs are more than Snapchat™, to create their individual brands: “Trips make
just a cost for traditional hospitality companies. They are an excellent opportunities to generate ‘likes’ and ‘shares,’ and
important marketing channel, too. Catarina Randow, vice travel companies should make a point to create experiences
president of the Scandinavian chain First Hotels, expressed worth sharing in order to capitalize on the enormous
views held by many in the industry. “[OTAs are] a valuable exposure these platforms provide.”20
channel,” she said. “If you’d asked me two years ago, I’d have TUI, the British Leisure Travel group, has adopted more use
given you a different answer. I think we are together with of video and is getting an excellent return. According to
them more than anything…I don’t mind if the guest comes Jeremy Ellis, TUI marketing director, “Where we add video to
through the OTA the first time. The acquisition costs are the booking experience, people are three to four times more
bearable in that respect but, moving forward, it makes sense likely to complete a booking. And our digital stores have
if the guest books through our own channel the second or three times as much footfall. The key will be to bridge content
third time. That’s our view.” She notes that First Hotels is and video to help people experience a holiday before they
using customer relationship management (CRM) solutions to book. You can test drive a car, but you can’t test a holiday
increase its own direct bookings.18 before purchasing. We want to change that.”21
The EyeforTravel report also found that OTAs have higher
conversion rates on mobile platforms than traditional
suppliers. Author of the report, Alex Hadwick, credits this Obstacles to delivering excellent
to the current capability of OTAs to provide a better digital customer experiences
experience. “Travel consumers regularly cite convenience,
price, and quality as their top considerations and with the Successful hospitality companies have made enormous
OTAs they are able to meet these requirements through the progress in the past decade changing the experiences they
wide product choice, ease of comparison, price transparency, deliver to customers in the both the physical and digital
and the simplicity of the purchase process,” he said.19 worlds. But each year there are new obstacles to delivering
on customer expectations for self-service, fast service,
Tech leaders are eying the industry—Apple®, Google™, intelligent service, consistent service across all channels,
Facebook®, and other major technology brands have a and an overall high value experience. The obstacles can be
history of infiltrating other industries. So far, none have made divided into three major categories:
a major push into the hospitality industry. But that may be
only a matter of time. In September 2016, Google announced Internal operations—Front of the house (property
the Google Trips app, which helps consumers organize plane management and guest management) and back of the house
tickets and hotel reservations, and provides personalized operations aren’t tied together well enough, so workflow is
recommendations based on a person’s Google history. sometimes inefficient and glitches occur. These behind-the-
Facebook’s recommendation service, launched in October scenes problems directly spill over to your interactions with
2016, is a similar move to get involved in consumers’ guests and other types of customers, adversely impacting
travel planning. their experiences. There also is an indirect impact on
customer experience when internal operational inefficiency
adversely impacts the bottom line and requires more
financial resources that could better spent serving the needs
of guests.

Marketing operations—Hospitality companies often lack In hospitality, personalizing at scale means that
a way to seamlessly and intelligently interact with guests personalization occurs with all guests, across all channels,
across all touch points. This includes not having a system and all of a brand’s properties. It’s a major focus for industry
that enables you to know at the time of interaction an executives today. For example, attendees at a recent travel
individual guest’s preferences and what their current or industry conference were asked what they thought would
recent experiences have been. In a recent report, Forrester be the big game-changer in the travel industry. Data-driven
Research quoted a chief digital and distribution officer of a personalization was ranked first by an overwhelming 78%
global hospitality group, who said, “The two metrics that are of respondents. Other results paled by comparison: 14%
the hardest to solve are starting on one device and visiting for application programming interface (API)-led distribution
us on a second device within the same experience, so just partnerships, 5% for block chain technology, and 2% for
trying to understand how people are interacting across conversational commerce.24
devices. It’s very difficult to understand whether you visited
us on multiple devices and track that as a unique item.”22
Technology foundation—Many hospitality companies lack Best practices for creating
multi-departmental software that ties all areas of the business personalized experiences
together to foster efficiency in internal and marketing To create personalization at scale, hospitality companies
operations. Often there isn’t a way to collect, manage, and need an omni-channel marketing strategy. Deloitte’s 2017
make accessible data about individual customers. This industry report summarized the expectations of hospitality
results in interactions with individual customers that aren’t consumers and the stakes for companies in the industry.
delivered efficiently and intelligently across all touch points. “Today’s hotel guests, for example, will define a brand by the
There isn’t a complete customer view across all channels that quality of their experiences across a proliferation of touch
can be used to better plan and execute marketing strategies points, including smartphones, desktops, wearable apps,
and deliver optimal experiences—before they book, during over the phone, and on property. Brands, which make an
their stay, and after they’ve left. effort to infuse elements of on demand, personalization, and
There is a common theme across these obstacles: the need authenticity into these channels will likely fare much better
for better customer personalization. According to the Deloitte than brands which do not, generating more revenue by
travel and hospitality industry report, “Most travel brands driving loyalty, positive reviews, social likes and shares, and
realize that making a traveler feel special and appreciated word-of-mouth recommendations. Experience is now integral
can go a long way. Ultimately, the goal is to leverage data to core travel product offerings.”25
to automate personalization and drive conversion but, so Implementing an omni-channel strategy is a massive
far, much is left to be desired in terms of the travel industry’s undertaking that requires support from the top down.
effort on the personalization front.”23 To truly be successful, a company needs to put the following
elements into place:
C-level executive support
The answer: Personalize at scale ■■
■■ Strong chief marketing officer (CMO) and chief information

When marketers talk about personalization today, they mean
officer (CIO) partnership
doing 1:1 marketing at a mass scale. However, there are right
and wrong ways of personalizing guests’ experiences. It isn’t ■■ Customer-centric company culture
about merely adding “Dear John” to an email blast. Instead, ■■ Reorganization to incorporate digital throughout
personalization is about providing guests with the right the business
information and/or offer at the right time over their preferred
■■ Integrated customer data and marketing technology tools
channel. It’s about context, convenience, and taking the
customer’s point of view.

Implementing real-time, Today’s email marketing is automated whenever appropriate
and is highly personalized, with real-time offers generated
24x7 marketing based on current customer data—not static customer
Hospitality companies need the ability to respond to segmentation. More advanced marketing technology tools
customers whenever and wherever it’s convenient—even allow marketers to essentially send an email “placeholder” to
if that’s at 2:00 a.m. on a Sunday. To do this, hospitality a consumer’s inbox that’s populated with an offer just as the
marketers need to leverage self-learning marketing customer looks at it, ensuring that the offer is as relevant as
automation technologies that mine customer data to respond possible based on up-to-the-minute online activity and data.
appropriately, aid cross-selling, and serve up in-session Tracking and analyzing the effectiveness of email offers in
personalized offers on a website, in a marketing email, real-time is also now possible, allowing marketers to tweak
on search engines, social media sites, and in traditional campaigns to more quickly maximize ROI.
customer service contacts.
Search engine
Website/e-commerce Search engines are the most popular area of the Internet
Personalized website experiences on average produce to visit in the latter stages of travel buying, according to
a 20% increase in sales but when a personalized call to the EyeforTravel study. Nine out of ten travel purchasers
action (CTA) is used the conversion rate is 42% higher than used a search engine in the 15 sites visited before making
with generic CTAs.26 Something as simple as recognizing a purchase. In the US and UK, more than 90% of people
customers by name can improve sales. who booked a hotel room or purchased an airline ticket
Advanced tools are available to combine and apply customer online used a search engine immediately before making
data from all channels, track recent interactions with the purchase. Travel companies are investing huge sums in
individual customers, and base offers on buying patterns of search engine marketing. The report noted that Priceline
similarly profiled customers. Many automated systems can spent $2.7 billion on search engine advertising from January
change offers in real-time in response to recent guest through September 2016, a 26% increase over the same
online activities. period a year earlier.30
Email Mobile
Email has come a long way from the days of “segment, batch, From more mobile-friendly websites to specific guest
and send.” And email marketing still has more marketing experience apps designed for mobile devices, the industry is
impact than social media, in part because email usage is responding to strong and steady growth in the use of mobile
ubiquitous. There are 2.6 billion email users worldwide, 91% devices. Research by Google revealed that hotel mobile
use their email daily, 77% prefer email for permission-based search queries increased 49% from 2015 to 2016.31
promotional messages, and 66% report making a purchase In response, some in the industry are launching innovative
based on a marketing message sent via email. The number new apps. For example, Journy launched an app offering
of email users is expected to grow to 2.9 billion by 2020.27 concierge-style service helping travelers customize their
The average ROI for email marketing across all industries is travel plans. Users answer questions about their tastes and
$38 for every $1 spent.28 Research also shows that hospitality preferences and the Journy staff creates a personalized
consumers respond favorably to emails that are personalized. itinerary for the trip and helps out with restaurant reservations
When a hotel sends a personalized welcome email to a guest and booking activities. With Journy, the app is free and cost
when they arrive, there is an 88% open rate and a 29% click of service is $25 per each day of travel.32
through rate. This is significantly better than welcome emails
sent in batches, which garner 52% open rates and 12% click
through rates.29
Social media In October 2017, Marriott announced pilot program with
Alexa. According to Tony Stoeckl, global brand leader for
Social media is a powerful tool to generate awareness, nurture lifestyle brands at Marriott, “As a hotel brand, we’re in the
customer relationships and loyalty, and drive consumers to a experience business. This means (taking advantage of
brand’s website. Worldwide there are 2.8 billion social media technology that can) connect our consumers to the local
users, a number that grew by 482 million from 2015 to 2016.33 experience in the hotel or the neighborhood—as well as
Research shows 71% of consumers who have had a good removing some of the friction of transactions in hotels.
social media service experience with a brand are likely to The idea is that, as consumers have become increasingly
recommend it to others.34 comfortable with the technology, it’s now easier for a guest
Social media can also play a critical role in the booking to ask, ‘Alexa, what’s a good restaurant nearby?’ than to flip
process. According to the EyeforTravel report, one fifth of through a lengthy guidebook or call down to the concierge...
travel consumers visited a social media site among the 15 sites Having Alexa in the room lets you personalize the room
visited before a booking. Although research has suggested experience. The hotel chain is continuing to work with
that social media is most influential and utilized on travelers’ Amazon to ensure privacy.39
purchase decisions higher up the funnel, the high prevalence According to a recent survey of hotel executives, 74% plan
of social media visits indicates that it remains a useful to implement location-based technologies within a year.
marketing tool right up until the purchase.35 In a companion survey of hotel guests, 75% of guests were
It also plays an important role in marketing. Overt social willing to share personal information with hotels in exchange
media reviews can be a powerful marketing tool. Research by for tailored promotions, but 60% expressed concerns
Christopher Anderson at the Cornell University School of Hotel about privacy.40
Administration revealed that simply encouraging customer
reviews can boost a hotel’s ratings and revenues. Anderson
even found that consumers appreciate responses to negative Customer service
reviews more than those to positive reviews, with ratings rising Despite the growing preference for self-service, hospitality
more substantially in connection with constructive responses companies still must excel at traditional customer service
to negative comments than simple acknowledgment of interactions with guests. According to research published
positive comments.36 in eMarketer, the preferred service channel is largely a
Hospitality companies can use social marketing technology function of the type of request and the age of the person
for 24x7 social listening, monitoring, publishing, social profiling, making the request. People under 35 prefer digital customer
and social scoring to identify the best way to personalize service channels like social media and mobile apps, while
marketing offers. Many social marketing tools, when combined older people prefer the telephone or email. For billing and
with a CRM platform, also give hospitality marketers the ability payment questions, and for resolving problems, phone calls
to integrate social data with customer profiles. are the preferred channel for the majority of all consumers.41
Modern marketing technology gives customer service
representatives a complete view of the customer in real time
Geolocation and the same capabilities to optimize interactions to present
Geolocation has the potential to transform hospitality industry appropriate offers and help to resolve a problem.
marketing and service. Voice-activated device usage
jumped 130% from 2016 to 2017, according to eMarketer.37
Approximately 60.5 million U.S. consumers—20% of the
population—will use voice-enabled assistants monthly or more
often in 2017, and the heaviest usage occurs on voice-enabled
speakers powered by intelligent assistants, such as Amazon
Echo ™and Google Home™.38

Mapping and designing the The right strategy and technology
guest journey are essential
To ensure a consistent experience throughout the customer In the hospitality industry, the ability to deliver personalized
journey, hospitality companies must understand how experiences to every guest, ever time, across every channel,
customers interact with their brand at every touch point is a strategic imperative. It’s also a complex challenge for all
throughout the “engage,” “nurture,” and “convert” phases. the reasons we’ve outlined in this report.
Mapping out the customer journey can help hospitality Hospitality companies must deliver personalized experiences
marketers identify and fix gaps and inconsistencies in a to every guest, every time, across every touch point if they
customer’s experience, and eliminate barriers to purchase. hope to keep pace with changing customer expectations.
Researchers at McKinsey & Company urge companies to take To meet this challenge, hospitality companies need an
a holistic view of customer experience. They caution against executive team that understands the requirements of
aligning customer experience measurements with internal personalizing at scale. It will require a thoughtful, strategic
transaction-based processes. “This siloed focus on individual approach to business processes, especially those with direct
touch points misses the bigger—and more important—picture: interaction with customers. It will require a strategic approach
the customer’s end-to-end experience,” they write. “In our to implementing the enabling technology, too.
research, we’ve discovered that organizations that fail to For hospitality companies weighing how to proceed, a recent
appreciate the context of (individual customer interactions) Forrester Research report offered this advice:
and manage the cross-functional, end-to-end experiences
that shape the customer’s view of the business can prompt “In order to avoid disrupting the business, many companies
a downpour of negative consequences, from customer implement point solutions that incrementally improve their
defection and dramatically higher call volumes to lost sales channels and processes without truly transforming them.
and lower employee morale.”42 While these bolt-on solutions can be valuable stepping
stones, companies will never be able to compete with the
Always a leader in delivering fulfilling customer experiences, CX leaders that their customers are actually comparing them
Disney is committed to using digital technology to maintain with until they dramatically change their mindset and re-
that industry leadership. Commenting prior to the 2017 architect their businesses with the goal of creating seamless
Customer Experience Exchange for Travel and Hospitality, Dan experiences for the customer.”44
Sota, vice president of digital experience for Disney Parks and
Resorts, said, “At Disney, we believe in the power of leveraging
digital technology to allow our guests to maximize their
experience. Some things we do are practical and utilitarian:
reserving a dining or FastPass experience. Some contribute
to a simple and seamless vacation: pre-arrival resort check-in
enabling guests to skip the front desk. And others are fun and
magical: we allow guests to personalize their MagicBands with
a color of choice and laser engraved name.” Soto predicts that
over the next five years, there will be more virtualization and
automation of customer services in hospitality and that digital
interactions will more and more be smart and contextual.43

References
1
“2017 travel and hospitality industry outlook,” Deloitte Development LLC, 2017. Page 6
Link: https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/us/Documents/consumer-business/us-cb-2017-travel-hospitality-industry-outlook.pdf
2
Kate Leggett, “Top Trends for Customer Service in 2017: Operations Become Smarter and More Strategic,” Forrester Research, Inc. January 31, 2017.
Link: https://go.forrester.com/blogs/17-01-30-top_trends_for_customer_service_in_2017_operations_become_smarter_and_more_strategic/
3
Lisa Terry, “6 Mega-Trends in Hotel Technology,” Hospitality Technology, April 11, 2016. Link: https://hospitalitytech.com/6-mega-trends-hotel-technology
4
https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/plan/my-disney-experience/bands-cards/
5
“Expectations Vs. Experience: The Good. The Bad. The Opportunity,” Forrester Consulting, June 2016. Page 6.
Link: https://www.accenture.com/t20160825T041338__w__/us-en/_acnmedia/PDF-23/Accenture-Expectations-Vs-Experience-Infographic-June-2016.pdf
6
“Travel and Tourism: Global Economic Impact & Issues 2017,” World Travel & Tourism Council. 2017. Pages, 3, 4.
Link: https://www.wttc.org/-/media/files/reports/economic-impact-research/2017-documents/global-economic-impact-and-issues-2017.pdf
7
“2017 travel and hospitality industry outlook,” Deloitte Development LLC, 2017. Page 3.
8
“Internet Travel & Hotel Booking Statistics,” StatisticBrain, May18, 2017. Link: http://www.statisticbrain.com/internet-travel-hotel-booking-statistics/
9
Alex Hadwick, “Understanding the travel consumers’ path to purchase,” Eyefortravel.com. 2017. Page 12-14.
Link: http://img03.en25.com/Web/FCBusinessIntelligenceLtd/%7B889ee0c0-1596-450f-9cee-e93a27785781%7D_4755_31JAN17_Understanding_The_Travel_Consumers_Path.pdf
10
11
Giselle Abramovich, “15 Mind-Blowing Stats About Digital Trends in Travel and Hospitality,” CMO.com, June 2, 2017.
Link: http://www.cmo.com/features/articles/2017/5/5/15-mind-blowing-stats-about-digital-trends-in-travel-hospitality-tlp-ddm.html#gs.AMQ782E
12
13
Jeremy Kressmann, “Hotels Allocate More Budget for Digital Marketing and Social,” eMarketer.com, April 14, 2017.
Link: https://www.emarketer.com/Article/Hotels-Allocate-More-Budget-Digital-Marketing-Social/1015655
14
Julie Verhage, “Morgan Stanley: Airbnb’s Threat to Hotels is Only Getting Sharper,” BloombergMarkets. November 14, 2016.
Link: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-11-14/morgan-stanley-airbnb-s-threat-to-hotels-is-only-getting-sharper
15
Avinash Udayakumar, “Disruptive trends in the hotel industry to expect in 2017“, ehotelier.com. March 15, 2017.
Link: https://ehotelier.com/insights/2017/03/15/disruptive-trends-hotel-industry-expect-2017/
16
Alex Hadwick, “Understanding the travel consumers’ path to purchase,” Eyefortravel.com. 2017. Page 9.
17
Ibid.
18
Ibid. page 24
19
Ibid. page 28.
20
“2017 travel and hospitality industry outlook,” Deloitte Development LLC, 2017. Page 6-7.
21
Thomas Hobbs, “TUI: People are realizing the Airbnb model isn’t all it’s cracked up to be,” Marketing Week, October 18, 2017.
Link: https://www.marketingweek.com/2017/10/18/tui-people-realising-airbnb-model-isnt-cracked/?cmpid=em~newsletter~breaking_news~n~n&utm_medium=em&utm_source=newsletter&utm_
campaign=breaking_news&eid=4139144&sid=MW0001&adg=5DBF5A7A-D628-4605-9AB6-972695AE126C
22
23
“2017 travel and hospitality industry outlook,” Deloitte Development LLC, 2017. Page 7
24
25
“2017 travel and hospitality industry outlook,” Deloitte Development LLC, 2017. Page 6.
26
Erik J. Martin, “How to Realize ROI From Personalization,” EContent, March 21, 2016,
Link: http://www.econtentmag.com/Articles/News/News-Feature/How-to-Realize-ROI-From-Personalization-109358.htm
27
Mary Fernandez, “Email Marketing vs Social Media Performance (2016-2019 Statistics),” Optinmonster.com. November 8, 2016,
Link: http://optinmonster.com/email-marketing-vs-social-media-performance-2016-2019-statistics/
28
“3 Reasons Why Email Marketing is Essential for Your Hotel,” Trivago Hotel Manager, January 24, 2017. Link: http://hotelmanager-blog.trivago.com/en-us/183973-benefits-of-hotel-email-marketing/
29
Jason Dent, “10 Tips for Wildly Successful Travel and Hospitality Email Marketing Campaigns,” CampaignMonitor, June 21, 2017.
Link: https://www.campaignmonitor.com/blog/email-marketing/2017/06/10-tips-successful-travel-hospitality-email-marketing-campaigns/
30
Alex Hadwick, “Understanding the travel consumers’ path to purchase,” Eyefortravel.com. 2017. Page 20-22.
31
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44
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State of The Art Hospitality

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CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE

The state of customer experience

Perspectives: Customer Experience for Hospitality 1

3 What do hospitality customers expect?

4 The context for these expectations

5 Obstacles to delivering excellent customer experiences

6 The answer: Personalize at scale

6 Best practices for creating personalized experiences

7 Implementing real-time, 24x7 marketing

9 Mapping and designing the guest journey

9 The right strategy and technology are essential

Perspectives: Customer Experience for Hospitality 2

Perspectives: Customer Experience for Hospitality 3

Perspectives: Customer Experience for Hospitality 4

Perspectives: Customer Experience for Hospitality 5

■■ Strong chief marketing officer (CMO) and chief information

Perspectives: Customer Experience for Hospitality 6

Perspectives: Customer Experience for Hospitality 8

Perspectives: Customer Experience for Hospitality 9

Learn more about customer

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