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Articles by Margaret Ady
The Life-Changing Magic of Giving Up In Emergencies and Beyond | By Margaret Ady – Hospitality Net
Well, here we are with a widespread global emergency on our hands (no hand washing pun intended). While an economic downturn was predicted for this year, an abrupt shut down was not. Everyone is cancelling plans (government-imposed or otherwise), staying home from work, and well... giving up. Giving up the things we're accustomed to enjoying, and, for some, giving up far more.
Think Small: Rethinking hotel technology for a new era | By Margaret Ady – Hospitality Net
When Volkswagen introduced the Beetle to the United States in the 1950s, it did it with a revolutionary and wildly successful ad campaign: "Think Small." Original "Think Small" VW Ad Given it was a decade of giant, gas-guzzling American cars from the likes of GM and Chrysler, the campaign needed to entice consumers to go against the grain. They would have to see the value in a small, simple, and inexpensive European car.
Think Small: Rethinking Hotel Technology for a New Era
Think Small: Rethinking Hotel Technology for a New Era Margaret Ady | February 04, 2020 By Margaret Ady When Volkswagen introduced the Beetle to the United States in the 1950s, it did it with a revolutionary and wildly successful ad campaign: “Think Small.” Original “Think Small” VW Ad Given it was a decade of giant, gas-guzzling American cars from the likes of GM and Chrysler, the campaign needed to entice consumers to go against the grain.
Hotel Apps Enter a New Decade | By Margaret Ady – Hospitality Net
Two point five million! Well, nearly 2.5 million. That's how many apps the Google Play store has. Apple's store came in second at 1.8 million apps. For perspective, 1.69 million people live on the island of Manhattan. That's more than one app for every person on the island. Apps have become the go-to for managing our lives, both the operations (budgets, exercise, bill paying) and outer lives (work, social, news apps).
The Tech List that Hotel Brands Need for 2020 | By Margaret Ady – Hospitality Net
Hotel tech lists—Hotel Tech Must-Haves for 2020 and What All Hotels Need in Order to Succeed Next Year—are like the sloganned-out t-shirts everyone's wearing to the gym these days. Less Whine, More Wine. Already Planning What I'm Going to Eat After This. I Work Out... Just Kidding, I Take Naps. We kind of love to hate them. Maybe it's because we've been working toward a tech revolution for years now, one that leaves hotels ahead as an industry rather than continually pulling up the rear.
A Make-or-Break Issue for Hotels: Guests Want Cybersecurity | By Margaret Ady – Hospitality Net
These days, we tend talk about cybersecurity far less than we talk about melting icebergs or political problems or plastic straws. And, of course. Those are things we can do a little something about; we can make our own tiny dent in the environmental crisis or get out the vote, but cybersecurity is one of those problems that feel far out of most our hands. Yet, we all have important, essential, identifying information flying around the web, apps, stores, airlines, and—hotels.
A Make-or-Break Issue for Hotels: Guests Want Cybersecurity
A Make-or-Break Issue for Hotels: Guests Want Cybersecurity Margaret Ady | December 03, 2019 By Margaret Ady These days, we tend talk about cybersecurity far less than we talk about melting icebergs or political problems or plastic straws. And, of course. Those are things we can do a little something about; we can make our own tiny dent in the environmental crisis or get out the vote, but cybersecurity is one of those problems that feel far out of most our hands.
A Smart Approach to Economic Downturns for Hotel Chains : 4Hoteliers
Further, North American hospitality and leisure CEOs are reportedly showing a decline in their confidence about revenue growth, according to PwC (AdWeek). From Brexit to various trade wars, to protests in Hong Kong, there’s plenty to be concerned about. But don’t panic; studies show that’s a bad move. It’s most important to start thinking carefully about how to handle a downturn in business if it comes.
A smart way for hotels to approach economic downturns | By Margaret Ady – Hospitality Net
Unless you're living a version of The Truman Show, you've seen the word recession floating around the web-o-sphere recently. The Marriotts and Hyatts of the world have been noticed using words like caution in light of the potential for the U.S., Britain, Germany, Japan, and Brazil to see a recession as soon as 2020. Further, North American hospitality and leisure CEOs are reportedly showing a decline in their confidence about revenue growth, according to PwC (AdWeek).
50 Years of the Hotel PMS (And Why It Matters) : 4Hoteliers
Despite the technological progress made during all of those years, for most of that time hotels have relied on legacy systems with relatively basic functionalities and mainframes that kept everyone glued to a desk. Then in 2010, the cloud-based system came along, which changed so much more about the PMS than most hotels realize. And now, we’ve come even further to the API-first era. (techtalk.travel) Before we deep dive into the history, let’s talk about why it matters.
50 years of the hotel PMS (and why it matters) | By Margaret Ady – Hospitality Net
The hotel PMS has been around for about 50 years. That's HALF A CENTURY. That's as old as the Beatle's last album Let It Be, Walt Disney World, Watergate, and Amtrak. Despite the technological progress made during all of those years, for most of that time hotels have relied on legacy systems with relatively basic functionalities and mainframes that kept everyone glued to a desk. Then in 2010, the cloud-based system came along, which changed so much more about the PMS than most hotels realize.
50 years of the hotel PMS (and why it matters) | By Margaret Ady – Hospitality Net
The hotel PMS has been around for about 50 years. That's HALF A CENTURY. That's as old as the Beatle's last album Let It Be, Walt Disney World, Watergate, and Amtrak. Despite the technological progress made during all of those years, for most of that time hotels have relied on legacy systems with relatively basic functionalities and mainframes that kept everyone glued to a desk. Then in 2010, the cloud-based system came along, which changed so much more about the PMS than most hotels realize.
Moving beyond the monolith | By Margaret Ady – Hospitality Net
Opinion Article12 September 2019 The shift away from out-of-the-box hotel management solutions By Margaret Ady, Co-founder of Apaleo 1 minComments Until recently, hotels - and most enterprise businesses, for that matter - had been stuck with one singular approach to their tech: a closed, out-of-the-box solution to manage nearly all their business needs. For hotels, this system was built by the PMS provider.
What the Evolution of the iPhone Teaches us About Hotel Technology : 4Hoteliers
In all the versions after, the sizes have changed, the material has gone stainless, the camera has been remodeled and improved...but these are relatively small shifts. The most significant change Apple made was to focus on improving core functionality and rely on the experts to develops apps within a seamlessly connected App Store for the rest.
Killer Customer Service: Does your tech provider really care? | By Margaret Ady – Hospitality Net
The last time you vetted a tech company, you surely received evidence of the company's commitment to customer service. Likely in the form of stats like downtime and call-resolution. The tech company probably said that these stats demonstrated its truly customer-centric philosophy and that its responses to issues would be impeccable. Perhaps they even pulled out a certificate or the name of some customer service award you've never heard of.
What The Evolution Of The iPhone Can Teach Us About The Future Of Hotel Technology | By Margaret Ady – Hospitality Net
When it launched in 2007, the iPhone was a derivative of the iPod, designed to "mimic the features of the iPod while allowing for increased functionality" like phone calls and web browsing (HistoryCooperative). The next version, the 3G released in 2009, allowed third parties to create and promote their own apps, effectively turning it into more than a music and phone device.
A new way of thinking about property management systems: the API first approach | By Margaret Ady – Hospitality Net
Imagine if every time you wanted to install a new app on your smartphone, you had to call the maker of your phone to ask about it, then schedule a date far in the future for one of their representatives to come to your house, get it working on your phone, and charge you heaps of money in the process. You wouldn't stand for it, right? Then why go through a similar process when working with your property management system (PMS)? Legacy PMSs make it difficult and costly to connect all systems.
You want those Millennial travelers? Here's how to get them. | By Margaret Ady – Hospitality Net
Maybe you're getting sick of hearing about Millennial travelers but sit tight because they still matter — a lot. Millennials take more annual leisure trips than any other generation, and they'll soon be among the most profitable group of family travelers. Further, they are the largest segment of business travelers now, with 56% saying they (shockingly) create reasons to travel for work, according to Forbes.
You Want Those Millennial Travelers? Here's How to Get Them : 4Hoteliers
Further, they are the largest age segment of business travelers now, with 56% saying they (shockingly) create reasons to travel for work, according to Forbes. Millennials are not as brand loyal as older generations, but they also like consistency, according to Expedia. So loyalty isn’t out of the questions, especially when there are perks. And they love a good deal because they want to be traveling more. Eighty-one percent say budget is a key factor in leisure travel.
Build Your Hotel's Ideal Guest Journey and Learn How to Make it a Reality : 4Hoteliers
This pick your adventure style game is designed to help you understand which guest segment you want to go after and how to best cater to them. Choose from a variety of guest types like business travelers, families, tech savvy Gen Z, and more. Once you're done, you'll receive a custom report about that guest’s profile, the systems required to cater to the guest, and additional accommodations to create the perfect guest journey. Build your guest journey >>
The Hotel Love Match | By Margaret Ady – Hospitality Net
Let's face it hotel technology isn't a supporting player in the guest experience anymore. It is an essential part of every guest journey, an integral aspect of each step of the guest's experience of a property—before, during, and after the stay. As such, it can make or break those guest reviews and has long-term effects on loyalty. It seems most hotels know this because over half (54%) plan to increase their technology spending this year, according to the 2019 Lodging Technology Study.
Love the one you’re with: how hotels can use technology to keep their best staff | By Margaret Ady – Hospitality Net
Every hotelier knows that there's not enough love to go around, what with all different kinds of guests wanting all different kinds of things. You've got your high maintenance guests with a thousand questions, your sloppy mess makers that drip pool water all over the floors and leave cracker crumbs all over the room, guests who squeak into the breakfast buffet at one-minute until you're trying to pack it up, and the ones that change rooms three times.
Is Your Toilet Listening To You? ð
To name a few: sunlight-blocking blinds, shower controls, smarter light bulbs, and a toilet that really listens (eek!). All this new and connected tech really set the stage for the week - check it: At least cut back on using the word so much. John Padgett, chief experience and innovation officer at Carnival Corporation, calls us all out, saying that the i-word is the "most overused word in the dictionary right now." He thinks it's more about focusing on the goal and what you want to change.
How to compete with Airbnb by thinking like a tech company | By Margaret Ady – Hospitality Net
Here's a terrifying fun fact: some insects have superpowers. Take scorpions, for example. They can flatten their bodies to the size of a small coin, which allows them to get through small crevices, cracks, doorjambs...anything really. This crazy power means that scorpions can invade virtually any area that they want to invade. Yikes. Glad you live in the city now, right? Airbnb is the scorpion of accommodations.
How to Compete with Airbnb by Thinking Like a Tech Company : 4Hoteliers
This crazy power means that scorpions can invade virtually any area that they want to invade. Yikes. Glad you live in the city now, right? Airbnb is the scorpion of accommodations. There’s one, actually more like five, in that downtown condominium complex right around the corner from your hotel.
How to Future-Proof Your Hotel : 4Hoteliers
Nowadays, parents just do this. It’s an inexpensive part of the process that makes sense in order to minimize the risk that an unstable little toddler machine will end up in tears, or worse. Since we’re talking about big growth and unstable phases of development for a second, let’s talk about hotels. Many urban markets around the world are flooded with new supply.
How to Future-Proof Your Hotel | By Margaret Ady – Hospitality Net
Baby-proofing is big biz. But why? The truth is that not that many children stick their fingers in sockets and get burned. Sticking those covers in outlets is insurance against the trauma and cost of something that could happen. Nowadays, parents just do this. It's an inexpensive part of the process that makes sense in order to minimize the risk that an unstable little toddler machine will end up in tears, or worse.
Limited-Service Hotels & Rising ADR : 4Hoteliers
We’re all supposed to have a budget, no doubt, but it isn’t always easy: Living expenses aside, there’s Netflix and Spotify and Audible and Hulu and Strava and so on and so on. We come to expect all these distractions, tools and apps, and new ones appear each month. The costs are recurring and don’t look like much. Five bucks here per month. Twenty bucks there a month. But suddenly, they start to add up, and before you know it, it’s month-end, and your budget is blown.
The Big Creep: Limited-Service Hotels & Rising ADR | By Margaret Ady – Hospitality Net
We're all supposed to have a budget, no doubt. But it isn't always easy. Living expenses aside, there's Netflix and Spotify and Audible and Hulu and Strava and so on and so on. The costs don't look like much. Five bucks here per month. Twenty bucks there a month. But suddenly, they start to add up, and before you know it, it's month-end, your budget is blown, and you're eating packaged ramen for lunch.
Approaching The Tech Buffet Without Getting Sick : 4Hoteliers
How can you say no? Decision fatigue kicks in, your better sense of judgement goes out the window, and you go after that buffet like a boss instead of thinking about how you’ll be in bed for the following three hours wishing you hadn’t eaten all of the things. It’s called overindulging. And it isn’t just happening at the breakfast buffet. It’s running rampant in hotel tech.
Approaching the Tech Buffet Without Getting Sick
How to build a tech stack based on what your guests need (instead of just what’s available) By Margaret Ady Don't lie; you know you've done it. I sure have. The hotel breakfast buffet. You're so hungry and there's so much food. You want your money's worth. Each station looks better than the one before it, and those decorated plates piled with pancakes the size of your head make it all too delicious to pass up (I usually have these as my "dessert course"). How can you say no?
Approaching The Tech Buffet Without Getting Sick
Don't lie; you know you've done it. I sure have. The hotel breakfast buffet. You're so hungry and there's so much food. You want your money's worth. Each station looks better than the one before it, and those decorated plates piled with pancakes the size of your head make it all too delicious to pass up (I usually have these as my "dessert course"). How can you say no?
Great for Movies, Not for Software : 4Hoteliers
While the Jurassic Park blockbusters live on, dinosaurs, do not. There are a handful of theories explaining their extinction: An asteroid. Climate change. The exorbitant amount of resources needed to sustain their giant bodies. Some even say that their brains were too small for their big bodies. Despite the mystery, a changing environment and their generally huge scale are frequently part of the debate. One direct descendant of the dinosaur was able to survive. Yep, you got it, the bird.
Dinosaurs: Great for Movies, Not for Software – Hospitality Net
If you had a pulse in the '90s, you most definitely saw Jurassic Park. And if you are a person who totally loves dinosaurs, like myself, you probably saw Jurassic Park at least a dozen more times in the theater. While the Jurassic Park blockbusters live on, dinosaurs, do not. There are a handful of theories explaining their extinction: An asteroid. Climate change. The exorbitant amount of resources needed to sustain their giant bodies.
How Hotels Can Get Ahead of the Curve : 4Hoteliers
Even if hotels aren’t ready to be labelled technology companies, hotel operations have evolved from an industry that once utilized technology to a technology-dependent industry. However, as Futurecast notes, a tech dependency doesn’t necessarily mean the users are tech savvy. Even when it comes to digital natives/millennials. Adapting technology to our needs can be a challenge even for those immersed in it.
Reviving the Spirit of Innovation in the Hospitality Industry
How to Improve Your Hotel UX Web Design (4 Things that Are Important to Your Visitors) | By Nina Simons That said, your website is not only a powerful tool for conversions and establishing a trusting relationship with visitors, but its role in the overall customer experience means it's also one of the deciding factors in getting positive reviews once they've left your hotel.
The hotel business rebuilds servuction
Having recently attended this year's HITEC as a media representative, I was bombarded with hundreds of emails over the past few weeks from those interested in garnering just an ounce of my attention to have me publish their materials. How can any si
From Tech Dependent to Tech Savvy: How Hotels Can Get Ahead of the Curve | By Margaret Ady – Hospitality Net
Patrick Fisher of Thomson Reuters notes that, "As technologies become more and more pervasive across industries and functions, companies as varied as Goldman Sachs, Exxon, GE, Citi, and Walmart are all becoming technology companies as well." Hotels may not be peddling technology, but they are profiting off of their ability to offer guests innovative technology solutions as well as their ability to use technology to do better business.
The Year in Review - 2017 Most Read Stories on Hospitality Net
Opinion Article29 December 2017The Year in Review - 2017 Most Read Stories on Hospitality Net Comments As 2017 comes to an end, we took an opportunity to look back at what sparked our readers' interest this past year on Hospitality Net. We would like to share the top opinion articles published on our website in the last 12 months. Click on the links below for the full article.
Putting an End to Silos: How To Wow with Integrated Technology : 4Hoteliers
The problem is that silos suggest order. Some logical grouping of like things. But this is hardly what we have in hospitality anymore. The spaghetti chart illustrates the reality of the situation. The property management system (PMS) continues to be at the core. Then channel management, revenue management, reservations software, CRMs, mobile technology, and a multitude of other tech pieces swirl around the PMS haphazardly. Hoteliers struggle just in managing the technology.
Leveling the Data Field: How Hotels Can Compete with Better Data Access
By Margaret Ady Amazon’s purchase of Whole Foods took over the business news this fall. A behemoth retailer acquiring a well-known but much smaller-scale grocer inspired a lot of speculation about what would change for Whole Foods and how. Of course, Amazon can afford to slash prices to grow the grocer’s market share, but clearly, Amazon must do something that makes Whole Foods’ model more sustainable.
Leveling the Data Field: How Hotels Can Compete with Better Data Access
Amazon's purchase of Whole Foods took over the business news this fall. A behemoth retailer acquiring a well-known but much smaller-scale grocer inspired a lot of speculation about what would change for Whole Foods and how. Of course, Amazon can afford to slash prices to grow the grocer's market share, but clearly, Amazon must do something that makes Whole Foods' model more sustainable.
Analysis to Action: The Smart Way Independent Hotels Can Manage Distribution
By Margaret Ady You’ve surely heard before that the big brand investment in direct booking campaigns trickles down to independents (by way of travelers being more aware of the value of booking directly). Hotel brands have poured billions of dollars into direct booking campaigns, and a report by Hitwise in May of this year shows that for some of the major players, direct bookings are looking up. For everyone else, not so much.
The Smart Way Independent Hotels Can Manage Distribution. : 4Hoteliers
For everyone else, not so much. OTAs still achieved an almost 3% gain in market share, while hotels lost 3.87% (Skift). So while ad campaigns may have paid off for the Wyndhams and Hiltons of the world, when it comes to smaller brands and independents, the battle for direct bookings is still raging. For independent hotels, the option to throw massive amounts of money at traditional advertising isn’t usually an option.
Analysis to Action: The Smart Way Independent Hotels Can Manage Distribution
You've surely heard before that the big brand investment in direct booking campaigns trickles down to independents (by way of travelers being more aware of the value of booking directly). Hotel brands have poured billions of dollars into direct booking campaigns, and a report by Hitwise in May of this year shows that for some of the major players, direct bookings are looking up. For everyone else, not so much. OTAs still achieved an almost 3% gain in market share, while hotels lost 3.87% (Skift).
How to Keep the Heart of Your Hotel Beating
By Margaret Ady Julia Child called the kitchen "the beating heart of the household." Cooking is essential to our lives. Though we can get away with being disorganized in the kitchen, everything flows better when there is a clear, logical place for all of the tools and when you understand how they all work together because no one tool does everything on its own. Technology is the beating heart of the hotel. Without a PMS, how would we even begin to serve guests?
How To Keep The Heart Of Your Hotel Beating.
Julia Child called the kitchen 'the beating heart of the household'; Cooking is essential to our lives, though we can get away with being disorganized in the kitchen, everything flows better when there is a clear, logical place for all of the tools and when you understand how they all work together because no one tool does everything on its own. Technology is the beating heart of the hotel. Without a PMS, how would we even begin to serve guests?
How To Keep The Heart Of Your Hotel Beating
Julia Child called the kitchen "the beating heart of the household." Cooking is essential to our lives. Though we can get away with being disorganized in the kitchen, everything flows better when there is a clear, logical place for all of the tools and when you understand how they all work together because no one tool does everything on its own. Technology is the beating heart of the hotel. Without a PMS, how would we even begin to serve guests?
High Tech or High Touch? What Hotels Need to Know About Technology Adoption & Guest Service
Hotels worldwide are playing with just how much can be automated. Comfort Hotel Xpress in Oslo opened in 2011 to media fanfare over an almost entirely automated process—check-in, key, checkout and so forth. Housekeeping comes every four days. There's no restaurant, but there is some food in the lobby. It sounds from reviews like they ended up needing a floating staff person downstairs. Not a surprise. So exactly how much can be automated, or more to the point, how much should be automated?
No More Spaghetti: Where Hotel Technology Must Go in 2017
By Margaret Ady A fly on the wall of a conversation about hotels and technology will almost invariably hear the word silos. How are technology silos holding us back, for instance? Data silos are a barrier in any organization, but this term doesn't adequately convey the true mess that the hospitality finds itself in. The problem is that silos suggest order. Some logical grouping of like things. But this is hardly what we have in hospitality anymore.
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