Hospitality Property School

Operating a successful hospitality property just got easier…You’re a heartbeat away from the crucial training, advice & support you need to plan, create & grow a prosperous and rewarding hotel, resort, inn or bed and breakfast. Stay with me and I’ll explain how.Does any of this sound familiar? You have a great idea for a hospitality property, but don't know where to start or how to turn that into a real plan... You've spent countless hours working your business but your organizational structure is lacking and you’re tired of having to do everything yourself…Your employees are not living up to your standards and the good ones leave…Your marketing is not working as it should and you’re not reaching your target audience…You feel you’re a step or two behind your competition…If any of these things ring true, then you already know what a minefield it can be trying to get quality advice & support.You can spend weeks, months and even years researching this information or you can let me share with you a fa

Are you going to be as ready as your competition when guests slowly start to return? What can you do to ensure you’re going to be on top of their booking list? Check out this episode and I’ll tell you how.If you read, watched or listened to last week’s episode of Keystone HDCs Hospitality Property School, “9 Ways to Prepare for When the Guest Return” you would have seen a list of things you can do to get ready. If you haven’t, you should check it out.http://keystonehospitalitydevelopment.com/khdc190Whether you are a veteran or aspiring hotel, resort, inn or bed and breakfast owner or manager and your bookings are slow or non-existent, one of the suggestions I made is that you might want to consider was to upgrade or train yourself.For some of you, this suggestion is probably ongoing and you’re up on the strategies for success that have been proven over time. If not, you might be wondering, where can I find this type of information.You can spend hours researching this information or to save time, I can share w

It doesn’t look like a rush of travellers are going to be returning soon. Should you be sitting in the corner waiting for the influx? No, and I am going to tell you some things you should be doing in the meantime to prepare.There is no denying that the hospitality property industry is taking a major hit.Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, properties from all over the world are experiencing low occupancy rates or closing their doors until further notice. Either way, they are all experiencing a difficult time.While we are living in uncertain and unprecedented times and the immediate forecast for the hospitality businesses is not looking great, the only thing left to do is to be aware of the current situation and to look ahead.Not a day goes by that we don’t hear information on coronavirus and its negative impact on travel and hospitality businesses but this is not new to the industry.The hospitality property industry had to deal with many different crises and viruses in the past. For example, the SARS virus in 2003.

It does not matter if your guests are travelling for pleasure or business, there are times when getting a good night’s sleep can be a taxing proposition. I am going to share how you can help improve their sleep.According to the JD Power’s 2019 North America Hotel Guest Satisfaction Index Study, just 29% of hotel guests surveyed said they had a “better-than-expected” quality of sleep. The majority of guests who had a good night’s sleep at a property said they would return.I have always said, “At a basic minimum, every hospitality property has to provide a clean facility and a comfortable bed”.At some point, we are all hospitality property guests, whether it be in a hotel, resort, inn bed & breakfast, or Airbnb. It does not matter if we are travelling for pleasure or business, there are times when getting a good night’s sleep can be a taxing proposition. Sleep is critically important for general health and well-being of everyone and the better you sleep, the better you live, work and play. As a hospitality

You don’t think blackout curtains are important for your property? Think again! I’ll explain why.Today’s short episode is designed to make you think.As the pace of working life increases, it becomes all the more important that we get full and proper sleep whenever we can. This can be especially true for business travellers.Not only are blackout curtains enjoying widespread popularity in hospitality properties but are becoming increasingly common in private homes and commercial buildings. When thinking about blackout curtains for a hospitality property, quality control and professional installation is a must to avoid costly maintenance and unhappy customers. So, why should you consider investing in blackout drapes and what you should look for? Continue reading and I’ll tell you…⇒ TO READ OR LISTEN TO THIS EPISODE ON KEYSTONE HOSPITALITY PROPERTY CONSULTING: https://keystonehospitalitydevelopment.com/KHDC188Join one of our private groupshttps://keystonehospitalitydevelopment.com/private-groupsSay hi on social:F

Which is better for your hospitality property, an in-room tablet or a mobile app? Stay with me and I will help you decide.If you haven’t subscribed yet, do it now and make sure to hit the little bell so you’ll be informed when I upload a new video. You won’t want to miss anything designed especially for you.There is no doubt that in recent years the hospitality property customer service experience has changed considerably. In the not too distant past, often the only contact a guest would have with a property was telephone or face to face.This would hopefully built trust, loyalty to a brand and the personal touch.In the last few years, a new type of guest has emerged. •Online sources play an integral part of this customers booking experience and planning with 66% of travellers watching travel-related videos before booking their trip. •51% of travellers use online sources to decide on activities once at their destination, meaning that offering online solutions either in guest rooms, lobby area and good Wi-Fi f

Around the world, both big-brand and independent hospitality properties are feeling the sting of COVID-19.I’m going to show you how to turn this pain into a gain.If you haven’t subscribed yet, do it now and make sure to hit the little bell so you’ll be informed when I upload a new video. You won’t want to miss anything designed especially for you.As of the writing of this episode, the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak has infected 250,618 people, claimed 10,254 lives and spread to 182 countries and territories around the world and 1 cruise ship. As these numbers are certain to continue to climb in the coming weeks and maybe months, the disruptive impact on the global travel and hospitality industry is sure to be lasting and significant.The first area to feel the impact of COVID-19 were hospitality properties across the Asian Pacific region. It then spread to major global tourism markets like Italy and regional, business centres like Singapore and South Korea and now is working its way across the world. As a resul

With each step forward in the digital revolution, science fiction has become less like fabrication and more like reality. Let me explain how this will change hospitality property marketing.At the beginning of this episode, I stated that with each step forward in the digital revolution, science fiction has become less like fabrication and more like reality. That's in part because hardware engineers and software developers continue to improve their augmented reality technologies, making the line between real and virtual life ever dimmer. Augmented reality (AR), it seems, may soon be the true reality for us all.AR is the blending of interactive digital elements – like dazzling visual overlays, buzzy 3D touch, or other sensory projections – into our real-world environments. If you experienced the uproar of Pokémon Go, you witnessed augmented reality in action. If not, here is a clearer explanation.YouTube videoGoogle SkyMap is another well-known AR app. It overlays information about constellations, planets and mo

Virtual reality is one of the hottest things in hospitality and technology right now and I am going to explain why and how you can benefit.Virtual Reality is a natural progression following the internet’s love of video, and now VR hopes to bring realistic interactive video to life. In regards to the hospitality property sector, this often takes on the form of virtual reality video marketing. It is an amazing way to highlight what your property has to offer with the use of a digital walkthrough and now many hospitality brands are creating new experiences for their guests.It’s not a surprise that everyone wants to talk about their plans for the new tech.Virtual Reality – The Next Game Changer for Hotels – Hotel-OnlineWhy are VR hospitality property tours becoming popular?One of the main reasons why hospitality property VR marketing has taken on a viral tone arises from the fact that guests will be provided with a hands-on point of view when making important booking decisions. Using such technology clearly illus

You have made the decision to become more environmentally sustainable. Do you have an environmental policy in place? I am going to give you a template you can use.Over a number of episodes, I have referred to the importance of a property operations manual and how every property needs one. In fact, I honestly believe that you cannot have an efficient business without an operations manual.If you want your hospitality property to be competitive, one section that defiantly has to be included in your operations manual is your environmental policy.In our last episode, I talked about the three key areas of the environmental impact that properties should consider; energy, water, and waste.I gave you some examples of renewable power being used by the travel industry to lower operating costs and support a sustainable future.And I shared eight key components to establishing a program to effectively green your hospitality property:In today’s episode, I am going to look at some of the specifics you may want to include in

Is your hospitality property living up the sustainable efforts your guests expect? If so, Excellent! If not, I will show you how to create a place where every guest feels welcome. Investing in renewable & eco-friendly resources for hospitality properties used to be a luxury, but now is necessary. Today, it can help you improve your properties overall profit and patronage. Renewable power, including wind and hydroelectric power, are set to rise by 40 per cent over the next five years. While less than 2% of the world’s electricity is currently generated through solar technology, a recent report estimated that this figure could increase to as much as 13% by the year 2030.It’s clear that renewable energy is here to stay as more companies embrace it and in this group, the travel industry stands out. Without a program in place, hospitality properties can be very wasteful and consume a huge amount of resources but don’t panic, many greening initiatives are not expensive to implement and can provide substantial b

Do you like doors that are hard to open or loud? Neither do your guests. Stay with me to find out how to solve this problem.What does every hospitality property need to offer? Near the top of the list has to be convenience and security.How can hospitality properties evolve? With smart access solutions.Hospitality properties are more than just bricks and mortar, they move people. A busy property is the exact opposite of inactivity. With everything you have to deal with on a daily bases, one thing you might not notice but every guest notices it right away is: How does the door open? Am I really welcome? Do I feel safe here?Perfecting security and openness at the same time isn’t always that simple, so in this episode, I will share things you should consider.From family-run bed and breakfast, resort, inn, right up to luxury hotels – wherever you go the guests expect everything they have at home, and usually more. Paying guests want convenience and security without compromise. Most pick up on everything that makes

What to enhance your guest experience but not sure where to start. Today, I’m starting a brand new series of episodes of ways to enrich your guests stay while growing your business.This episode is going to be the first in a series of episodes about ways to enhance your guest’s experiences. I will be going into great detail on some topics such as… •Room technology •Property doors•Property windows•AI / VR•Going greenTo name a few.I will be sharing great information for those of you who follow my post, podcasts and articles and will be giving bonus detail to “Membership Property School Group” members.Let me start off the series with room technology. Greater personalisation in hospitality properties makes customers feel appreciated, not just another anonymous statistic on the balance sheet.A smart hospitality property offers exceptional opportunities to deliver personalisation. In-room hospitality technology trends can help you save money, attract more guests, and give those guests more of what they want to ensur

Life is 10% what happens and 90% of how you react to it. I will share with you 21 habits of successful people and how they react.Here’s an interesting fact, nearly all successful people have similar habits. You may not have recognized them, so I’m going to share with you a list of twenty-one of the most common habits of successful people. 1. Be Decisive I have mentioned this before – When you have a decision to make – make it!Big or small, this will affect your success remembering that these decisions complement your values.2. Set Daily Business GoalsAnyone who's serious about achieving monumental success in business needs to set business goals. But not just long-term business goals. They need to set goals for their business every single day. These act like markers or milestones on the way to the bigger, and more out-of-reach goals that seem so far off.3. Be Responsible Being responsible means taking control of the events happening in your life. It’s the difference between success and failure and will influen

Does this sound like you? You are operating your hotel, resort, inn or bed and breakfast and you think things are going well but you feel they could be better. Let me share with you how you can find out.Welcome to another edition of hospitality property school.I am your instructor, Gerry MacPherson.Does your hotel, resort, inn or bed and breakfast lack the consistency you feel you deserve? Are you not getting the return clientele at the same rate as your competitors? Does your marketing lack the oomph to get customers to book consistently?Wouldn’t it be great to talk with people who can relate to your pain point or others who are willing to share their best practices? Owners and managers who are in the trenches every day.We all have our strengths and weaknesses so wouldn’t it be great to be able to share what works at your hotel, resort, inn or bed and breakfast, while benefitting from the knowledge of what has worked for others.Look no further. We have the solution for you.We at Keystone HDC have heard your

We are into 2020, but what was popular in 2019? Stay here with me and I will share with you the top ten episodes for hospitality property owners and managers last year.Thank you for joining me for a very special instalment recapping the top 10 episodes of 2019. I like this episode because it gives me the opportunity to take stock of which topics resonated with you the past year.I will be counting down from 10 – 1 and I will give you a snippet from each episode to remind you of why they were so popular.If you go to KeystoneHospitalityDevelopment.com/KHDC177 you will find the show notes with all the links to the top ten episodes.So, without further ado, let’s dive into the top ten most popular episodes starting with #10…Ep. #151 - Go Green – How to Make Your Property Eco-Friendly Without an environmental program in place, hospitality properties are falling behind the times and may be losing business from customers who book using this as criteria when choosing a property.If this is the case with your property, d

Do you sometimes feel stressed? You can’t keep your thoughts together. Being stressed can affect you deeply in both mind and emotion, so what can you do about it?Stay with me and I’ll share some tips.Let me start by asking you a couple of questions.•Are you feeling stressed? •Does it look like there are constant obstructions in your way?•Does it seem like you have so much to do that you can’t keep them straight?•Do you feel like some insane existence is sabotaging you by preventing your progress?In this podcast, I am going to share some things to look for. Before I start I want to encourage anyone who is feeling extremely stressed to check with their doctor. What is it like when you feel stressed? You can’t keep your thoughts together, every problem is huge, and you feel overwhelmed, anxious and have trouble sleeping. You might feel like you have the weight of the world on your shoulders. Being stressed can affect you deeply in both mind and emotion. There is a really good chance that you would be hard-presse

So we are into a new decade. What do we have to look forward to in the hospitality property industry? Stay with me and I’ll tell you.We here at Keystone HDC, we want to wish you a Happy New Year and take a few moments to explore upcoming hospitality property trends in order to help you lay the foundation for your success in 2020.Here are the top things you should consider.Go greenA focus on environmental sustainability isn’t new, but the degree to which your guests expect eco-friendly products and services has grown.Simply suggesting that guests reuse towels for an extra day isn’t enough; today’s traveller wants to stay at properties that have integrated green practices in all aspects of their business. For example:•Qualifying for a “Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Certification”•Installing solar power•Improve water conservation•Cut back or stop using plastic•Implementing motion sensors that will turn off the power once no motion has been detected for a certain period of time.•More eco-fr

This has been an interesting year. Do you want to know what’s coming up in the future?Since our founding in 2012, we have been very fortunate to have been able to help many hospitality properties worldwide grow their business with organizational assistance, employee development, marketing and ways to review their own hotels, resorts, inns and bed & breakfasts.This year, with our posts and podcasts I have covered such topics as: Why Great Employees Quit Ways to Become the Best Front Office ManagerWays to Increase Your Restaurant BusinessCoping with Stress as a Property Owner How to Handle Customer Complaints Revenue Management Strategies Your Employee Training Procedure Marketing Ideas to Attract More Guests Storytelling Tips to Showcase Your Property Using Social MediaThe Keystone HDC blog posts and podcasts will continue to grow and next year, I plan on sharing more proven techniques to help your business flourish.For the next few weeks, we are going to take a little break from the weekly posting and pod

Are you losing great employees and are not sure why? The answer might be some of your rules.Welcome to another edition of Hospitality Property School. I am your instructor, Gerry MacPherson.There are hospitality property owners and managers out there who are doing things the way it always has been done because that is the way it has always been done.Over the years, these owners or managers might have driven their best people away and will continue to do so until they spot the connection between policies, passion, performance and profits. This is what I mean:•The more policies, the less passion you'll get from your team.•The less passion, the less exciting the team's performance will be.•The less exciting the performance, the lower your profits will be.Make sense?There may be policies and procedures you have in place that are causing more harm than good, restricting your employee’s performance and demeaning their state of mind.Continue reading to see my list of rules that do drive great employees away...https: