Guest Contributor

📖 2020 Zeno study found brands with a strong purpose increase consumer likelihood to purchase by 4x and champion the brand by 4.5x. In 2023, a Kantar study revealed 52% of 12-29-year-olds prefer classic brands, contradicting the belief they only resonate with older audiences. Timeless brands like Four Seasons and Hermès maintain consistent values and cultural relevance while evolving. Key attributes: clear values, consistent identity, emotional resonance, consistent quality, iconic design, strong branding, and cultural relevance.

📈 Hotels can turn lost bookings into opportunities by analyzing data from booking engines, metasearch platforms, SEO, and digital ads. Key strategies include user experience audits, personalization, competitive positioning, keyword analysis, and A/B testing. Understanding guest behavior through these channels enables hoteliers to refine approaches, improve conversions, and develop long-term guest relationships. Insights from data can transform digital strategies in the fast-evolving hospitality landscape. Article contributed by Rosalie Stahley, Vice President, Digital Strategy and Innovation at ComOps.

🏨 Leisure travel has proved resilient, with outdoor destinations like ski resorts seeing strong demand and increased room rates. Business travel, particularly in cities like Seattle, San Francisco, and Chicago, suffers due to permanent changes in corporate travel policies and a slow return of conferences. The U.S. anticipates a 5.5% decline in inbound international travel for 2025, with Canadian and European visits dropping potentially due to tariffs, currency issues, and political dynamics. Economic pressures and geopolitical factors threaten both international and domestic leisure markets, raising questions about the hospitality sector's continued recovery and the potential increase in "bleisure" travel.

🏨 South Africa's hotel occupancy rates hit 62.5% in early 2024, with a 12.3% year-on-year increase in RevPAR. A McKinsey report suggests hyper-personalization could boost direct bookings and guest retention by up to 30%. Sustainability is key, as 83% of global travelers prioritize it in accommodation choices. Cloud-based hotel management systems improve revenue and efficiency by 20-25%. Domestic overnight trips in South Africa surged to 38 million in 2023, with a 22.4% rise in spending to R121.4 billion.