From AI search and advertising to website production and regulations, Influence Society says the mechanisms connecting hotels with travelers are becoming increasingly fluid, making a clear, distinctive and recognizable brand more critical.
PARIS, 6 October 2026 – Influence Society, a leading digital marketing agency serving high-end hospitality brands, has released the seventh edition of SOCIETIES, examining how artificial intelligence is reshaping hotel marketing. The report argues that developments such as AI-powered discovery, generative content, new advertising formats, faster website production and regulations including the European AI Act are not isolated changes. Together, they show that almost every mechanism around a hotel brand is becoming more fluid, while the need for hotels to be clearly recognized, understood and differentiated is increasing.
For hoteliers, the most immediate change is discovery. A traveler may now ask an AI assistant where to stay, which neighborhood suits them and which hotels fit the experience they want before ever reaching a hotel website. AI systems can increasingly interpret a property’s story, compare it with competitors and influence consideration. This means visibility depends not only on having a strong website, but on having clear, consistent and distinctive brand information across websites, editorial coverage, reviews and social platforms.
“AI is changing the process much faster than it is changing the purpose. Hotels still need to create desire, communicate what makes them different and give people a reason to choose them. What is changing very quickly is everything around that brand: the interfaces, the channels, the production methods and the systems interpreting it.”
— Sébastien Félix, Founder & CEO, Influence Society
The same shift is happening in content and website production. Influence Society’s AI Studio can transform an existing hotel image by changing season or time of day, introducing carefully art-directed protagonists or creating new visual narratives without a traditional shoot, while new AI tools are making websites and digital experiences faster to build and adapt. As these capabilities become more accessible, execution alone becomes less distinctive. What is harder to replicate is a clear point of view: a recognizable identity, a strong sense of place and a brand that travelers — and increasingly AI systems — can understand and remember.
For Influence Society, this is where hotels need to change how they approach AI. The objective is not simply to use more AI, but to use it in ways that amplify a clearly defined brand rather than flatten it into the same visual, verbal and informational patterns as everyone else. SOCIETIES is designed to help hotel leaders identify what should remain distinctive, understand how new technologies are changing the channels around them, and apply those changes in ways that strengthen rather than dilute the brand.
“The more technology can generate, execute, optimize and distribute, the more valuable the human decisions behind the brand become. Hotels do not need to become experts in every new AI tool. They need the right expertise around them so they can remain focused on what should not change: what the hotel stands for, who it is for and why someone should choose it.”
— Sébastien Félix, Founder & CEO, Influence Society
This latest edition of SOCIETIES also looks beyond technology to show why distinctiveness matters. From Hotel Cipriani’s enduring identity in Venice to Kyoto’s ability to evolve while preserving its cultural foundations, the strongest examples are those that remain recognizable even as the channels and formats around them change. Influence Society’s conclusion is simple: the tools will change, the interfaces will change and the funnel will change, but the brand is what has to survive all of them.
Read the latest SOCIETIES to see how hotels can use AI to strengthen rather than dilute their identity; defining what makes their brand distinctive, translating it consistently across new digital channels, and increasing the chances of being recognized, recommended and chosen.
About Influence Society
Influence Society is a creative agency at the intersection of marketing, technology, and hospitality. Helping extraordinary establishments craft compelling brand narratives, blending aesthetics with cutting-edge digital strategies. Through visionary storytelling, innovative marketing, and deep industry expertise, the agency enables hospitality professionals to stay ahead in an ever-evolving landscape. For more information about Influence Society, visit www.influence-society.com.
