Customer Experience/Service

Whether it is in a lounge, the lobby or a convention center, technology is slowly but surely creeping into hotel common spaces. From touch-enabled table tops to digital signage displays and everything in between, operators share the top technologies that can boost customer satisfaction and foster guest interaction in a public way.

According to a 2009 survey conducted by Orangesmile.com, women and senior citizens are increasingly turning to the Internet to make their travel and hotel reservations.

Cap Juluca, a five-star resort on Anguilla in the British West Indies, selects UniFocus' advanced survey analytics tool to relate guest satisfaction to its bottom-line.

In need of a targeted strategy to cross-sell and up-sell properties within the Destination Hotels & Resorts collection, the company turned to AIR Marketing to assist in launching a new customer loyalty program, Destination Delivers. Since its debut, the program has garnered a membership of more than 6,500 Destination guests, who have contributed to booking more than 1,360 room nights.

To maintain rate parity and maximize occupancy, Britain's Forestdale Hotels has installed RateTiger's online channel management products across 13 of its 18 properties.

By partnering with Cvent, San Antonio will be able to promote its latest meetings offer to thousands of meeting and event planners.

A recent survey conducted by Carlson Hotels Worldwide found that 58 percent of guests are willing to book a hotel room that is environmentally friendly. From Energy Star and LEED, to the Green Supplier Summit and more: go inside the many initiatives that have Carlson Hotels hot on the trails of sustainability.

Recessionary trends are driving a steep contraction in business travel in 2009, resulting in a 15% decline in the U.S. corporate travel market to US$85 billion according to PhoCusWright's U.S. Corporate Travel Distribution Fourth Edition.