What are the needs of the new generation travellers – The affluent backpackers? TSHS-017

We discuss with my guest Sehnaz Cehreli, authority and expert on the needs of the new generation travellers. They are socially responsible, believe in sustainability and living to experience the unique moment. What should the travel destinations and hotels do successfully market and serve the needs of the travellers.

How to recruit, inspire and retain new leadership talent for your hotel! TSHS – 016

Discussion with a recent hotel school graduates, how some interns perceive their time as trainees. Why is there some reluctancy and loss of passion to stay in the industry? How should we tackle this dilemma about the so called talent drain.
Here is the link to the report mentioned, about the expectations and gaps between the employers and talent.
https://www.yhsglobal.com/yhs-rankings

The changing landscape of the hotel industry!! TSHS-015

Hotel Talks is a monthly show co hosted with Abid Butt, a global leader in the hospitality industry. We discuss the burning topics that effect the global hospitality industry.
In this segment our topics are on the Macro level; Geopolitical Elements, Demographics, Safety Security.
We dig deep into Exponential Technology; Hyper Technology, Customer Journey and Service Delivery.

We touch on topics such as;

Virtual Communities

Sharing Economy

Online Travel Agencies

Digitised Guest Experiences

Booming Global Tourism

Demographics Gen Y & Z

Experience Economy

Sustainability

Impact of Corona Virus on European tourism industry! TSHS – 014

PHUKET: The narrow laneways and pastel-coloured shophouses of Phuket Old Town are usually bustling with Chinese tourists during the Lunar New Year holiday, but travel bans and local fears about coronavirus have largely emptied the streets this year.

Just a handful of tourists, many wearing face masks, strolled through the area during daylight hours this week. In the evening, foot traffic increased a little under the glow of the red lanterns strung across the thoroughfare, but remained far below normal levels. Tour bus operators say 300 of their coaches have been idled because there are no passengers.

“The impact is tremendous,” 45-year old Ausana Akaradachakul told Reuters as she waited behind the counter for shoppers in her store selling postcards, straw bags, clothing and jewellery.

“Only a few days after the news broke about the virus, the Chinese tourists were visibly few,” Akaradachakul said. “I think about 70% of them are gone.”

The beach resort of Phuket is Thailand’s second most visited destination after Bangkok and is usually a big draw for visitors from China, who accounted for 11 million visitors last year, particularly around the Lunar New Year holiday. This is familiar event bringing back memories when I was managing a resort in Phuket, Thailand in 2003.
While reading the news Jayanth Kolla, sent me a message, on Thursday January 30 that he was looking into some analysis of adverse impact of Corona Virus and China inbound travel shutdown on tourism in Europe for this year. The news update from world media has been reporting minute by minute on the spread of Corona Virus.
In this episode we are;
– We are reviewing the impact on business and more importantly on the general sentiment of the public in Europe.
– We reflect on the lessons learned from SARS epidemic how the hotel industry dealt with situation in 2003.

More importantly also providing some suggestions on the next steps to recover some of the lost business in 2020.

2020 Predictions with Tech Trend Watcher Jayanth Kolla! TSHS-013

Happy New Year 2020. May this year be full of happiness, less stressful, more truthful with less false news. Jayanth Kolla Technology Trend Watcher joins me for a conversation about Technology evolution and predictions for 2020 and onwards. Jayanth is an oft-quoted industry leader whose viewpoints and analyst notes are regularly published in leading business publications including Mint, Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Fortune and Financial Times. He is my go-to expert on everything dealing with tech.

Our discussion is on the ground level talking about understanding what is happening and how it will affect you our daily lives
We touching what are the latest news from Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas. How will the devices and voice activation improve our lives and for our customers.

False news aka fake news is a serious threat, as it is not any longer produced in many cases by humans, but through the rise of synthetic media. Jaynath explains the GAN, and how it works to produce videos and audios that are very convincing.

Discussion with Online Entrepreneur Greger Hillman! TSHS – 012

Greger and I are both live stream enthusiasts. We met couple of years in an online community to learn how to create live videos.
We sharing some anecdotes how it was to first go live. Greger being a teacher and musician told me had a lot fun doing his first live streams. I on the other got hit with the ¨live video adrenaline monster¨. We are sharing tips and tricks how to create your own show, while having some fun.

Why video content can separate your hotel from the rest! TSHS – 011

Great Customer Service Experience in hotels are not enough anymore!

The bold headline has some truth in it in the context of hotel marketing. We will have to be able to reach the fickle mobile driven customer looking to catch their attention, while the consider which hotel they will choose for their next stay. Video is the best way to tell stories and connect with a customer. But effective video marketing can be overwhelming task.

Vilhelmiina Mähönen, Finnish by nationality and based out of Copenhagen, video marketing strategist shares some tips and tricks how get started with video marketing.

The Good, Bad and Ugly Hospitality Aggregators, now what?TSHS – 010

We talked about the evolution of the travel aggregators aka. OTA that is a way of hotels t become ever so more visible online.

Travellers find the websites useful as they can compare rates, reviews and availability of many different accommodation options at one glance, and book them quickly and easily in just a few clicks.

The hotel can be usually listed free of charge, and add nice pictures, description, room rates etc. You can choose how many rooms you want to sell online.

Many newly opened hotels like to use this as a way to kick start the business. It is not uncommon that OTA represent 60-80 % of the bookings.

The down side are the commissions which are becoming a major expense for the hotel, restaurant.

Sam-Erik is sharing some practical tips on how to be more creative and entrepreneurial minded.

Jayanth Kolla is sharing some data from India about Oyo Rooms and other restaurant and buss ticket aggregators.

For the episodes of Jayanth Kolla report from Bulgaria Sustainable Turism Conference, Follow this  link

 

 

What should tourism business do to better to react to changes in travellers habits! TSHS_009

What happens to tourism businesses that do not listen to changes in travellers habits? Sadly we know the answer to that question, they collapse. The leading hotelier association in Spain are crying foul. Also there is a claim that Thomas Cook in this case ruined the booked trips when the news was announced. In this episode we talk about what believe is the probable reason. More importantly what tourism business can learn from this so they do not suffer the same destiny. We share some tips and tricks especially for hotels on lessons learned.

How to best define the problem you are going to solve, without putting the people to sleep! TSHS_008

 

CHUSOK. We were celebrating September full moon aka the Harvest Moon. The celebration was  our modest version of  Chusok compared to the traditional  Korean Thanksgiving celebrated over 3 days in Korea.

The tradition calls for visit to  ancestral graves during the three-day holiday September 13 – 15. Festive occasions, such as Chusok, demonstrate the importance of family to Korean society. Family members, usually from the paternal line, get together to prepare food, honor their ancestors, and cherish relatives, both living and deceased. Chusok is a reminder that families are connected and bonded in the same fortune and ancestors live through the offspring as part of people’s daily lives.

We celebrate Chusok at our home wherever we are in the world in honor of our parents that passed away, by preparing a morning  meal with dishes that they enjoyed. One of the favourites were song pyun, ricecake which are  made with finely ground new rice as the basic dough, which is filled with toasted sesame seeds, chestnuts, or peas sweetened with honey or sugar. I also added something my father enjoyed, namely Marabou double nougat, quite a sweet treat for breakfast.😀

🔴Personal Branding. What are the key questions you should ask yourself and get answers to. Defining the Problem You Solve

The genesis of a personal brand is being able to answer one simple question with one word: What problem do you solve?

You can easily write an entire book but explaining it in one word or a single sentence is tough. It’s hard work but it’s a necessary exercise to describe yourself to the world. It’s also a litmus test for defining your entire identity as it relates to a personal brand. https://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/personal-branding-how-to-successfully-build-brand-rory-vaden/

 

🔴September hotel opening announcements worldwide. https://tophotel.news/september-hotel-openings-over-180-new-hotels-expected-to-launch-worldwide-infographic/

Mediterranean Stars Festival.

🔴MEDITERRANEAN STARS FESTIVAL powered by RADIO ITALIA LIVE – IL CONCERTO. FREE TICKETS

  • Date: 4th October 2019

Pop stars featuring, Khaled,  Alessandra Amoroso, Gigi D’Alessio, Elisa, Emma, Francesco Gabbani, Guè Pequeno, J-Ax, Mahmood, Max Pezzali, Raf, Umberto Tozzi and also Maltese artists such as Ira Losco and other representatives of a musical genre of fusion between the Mediterranean tradition and the European pop.
As for the other appointments of RADIO ITALIA LIVE – IL CONCERTO, the musical direction is the one and only Maestro Bruno Santori who will conduct the Mediterranean Orchestra composed of more than sixty professional musicians. http://medstarsfestival.com/en/home/