Past celebrating the unimaginable advertising and marketing minds behind among the UK’s finest lodge advertising and marketing campaigns and lodge web sites, this week’s Resort Advertising and marketing Affiliation Awards, held at The Savoy in London, introduced collectively a stellar panel of business leaders – Alex Polizzi, Suzie Thompson, Mike Baxter and Matthew Saunby. Expertly moderated by Ryan Haynes the panel delved into among the urgent points shaping lodge advertising and marketing immediately.
Whereas subjects like advertising and marketing and AI had been on the desk, a transparent and resounding message emerged: the human component stays irrevocably on the coronary heart of outstanding visitor experiences.
As Alex Polizzi of The Polizzi Assortment and The Resort Inspector succinctly put it, “that is an business for drawback solvers,” a sentiment that actually underpins the dynamic, usually difficult, nature of hospitality.
A big theme echoed by each Polizzi and Suzie Thompson of The Crimson Carnation Resort Assortment was the paramount significance of a well-cared-for crew. “Now we have an unlimited wage invoice as a result of we merely can’t do issues with out folks,” famous Polizzi, including, “you need to actually take care of your folks.”
Thompson added “If folks love working in your lodge, that interprets into the visitor expertise.” This deal with worker well-being as a direct driver of visitor satisfaction was a core tenet, with Thompson fantastically defining luxurious as being intrinsically linked to “the happiness of the crew.”
The dialogue additionally highlighted the preciousness of a visitor’s time. Mike Baxter of Home of Gods emphasised that as hoteliers, “we’re custodians of individuals’s treasured time,” whereas Polizzi added that with each minute of free time being so helpful, visitors usually have “wildly unrealistic expectations of their keep”. It actually underscores the necessity for hoteliers to be “laser-focused in your clients and what they need”, Polizzi concluded.
On the subject of know-how, significantly AI, the panel supplied a nuanced perspective. Whereas Alex Polizzi, a self confessed AI detractor, famous that whereas she in fact noticed the advantages, “AI needs to be used with warning”. Suzie Thompson embraced its potential, suggesting it’s “nothing to be feared, one thing to be embraced, because it frees up your time so as to add to the visitor expertise.”
This was significantly evident within the dialogue round pre-stay engagement. Thompson famous that “anticipation is such an underserved a part of the keep,” figuring out that for Crimson Carnation Resorts “an actual alternative has been diving into the pre-stay piece.” She shared how AI can be utilized to assist construct itineraries for a visitor’s upcoming keep, permitting groups to deal with the deeper human interplay that Crimson Carnation Resorts are famed for. Baxter of Home of Gods mirrored this, advocating to “use know-how to release your groups time to truly communicate to your visitors” – important after they’re to be handled like rock stars!
An artistic method to social media advertising and marketing additionally surfaced, with Suzie Thompson highlighting that “all of our crew are artistic, not simply the advertising and marketing crew,” and detailing how Crimson Carnation Resorts empower crew members to share social media content material by means of WhatsApp to assist assist the central advertising and marketing crew. A method mirrored by Alex Polizzi at The Polizzi Assortment.
In the end, the consensus, as expertly summarised by Ryan Haynes, was clear. Regardless of technological innovation, “persons are on the coronary heart of every thing that hospitality has to ship”.
The overriding feeling was that whereas know-how provides highly effective instruments, the flexibility to succeed in folks emotionally will likely be extra vital than ever as AI’s function grows, reinforcing that genuine human connection stays the final word luxurious.