BELLEVUE, Wash., Oct. 1, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- According to a
new survey of more than 1,200 hoteliers by Expedia Group, the
world's travel platform, chain hotels1 are nearly twice
as likely as small independent properties2 to prioritize
technology investment. Alternatively, small independent properties
are 1.5 times as likely as chain hotels to prioritize room
renovations – indicating a gap in technology investment strategies
among different hotelier segments.
Reliance on technology is becoming increasingly important in the
lodging industry as hotels begin to recognize how they can gain key
competitive advantage with strategic technology investments.
According to the latest report by Hospitality
Technology3, 54% of hotels plan to increase their
technology budgets for 2019, while only 8% plan to decrease.
However, cost continues to be the key barrier with technology
adoption for many hoteliers, with nearly half of the small
independent hotels surveyed indicating that technology investment
decisions are based on affordability and value. In contrast, more
than half of the chain hotels prioritize technology that seamlessly
integrates with their existing systems.
"We're witnessing chain hotels place significant investments in
technology, which opens the potential for a greater divide between
properties that are not able to match those investments," said
Ait Voncke, senior vice president, Expedia Group.
"Technology has the power to level the playing field for hoteliers
of all sizes. We continue to listen to our partners' needs and
invest in how best to serve all our partners so even the smallest
of properties can compete effectively and find opportunities to
succeed."
Among the small independent hotels surveyed, 1 in 4 cited
complexity as their biggest challenge when adopting technology,
with 1 in 3 saying ease of use is a priority when evaluating
solutions. To remove these barriers, Expedia Group is making
enhancements to its platform so partners not only have the right
resources whenever and wherever they need it, these solutions are
delivered through intuitive and easy to use tools.
Recently, the company released new user-friendly features on
Expedia Group Partner Central platform to further streamline
everyday tasks and provide suppliers instant access to relevant
information so they can make real-time, informed decisions. New,
enhanced features include:
- Partner Central Mobile App improvements – a series of
upcoming enhancements will make managing rooms and rates easier
with modified calendar navigation, the ability to view inventory
and availability and make real time updates to reduce errors.
Suppliers can also receive mobile notifications for bookings,
cancellations, guest messages and prioritize with easy to use
filters.
- New "Rooms and Rates" overview page – the simplified
view streamlines information and tasks related to rooms, rates and
inventory. The new page reduces the number of links and helps
suppliers determine where to take action with business alerts and
high-level insights.
- New "Marketing" overview page – suppliers currently
using marketing tools will see reporting on their results, while
suppliers that are not will be educated on the various tools
available to influence their availability and increase conversion.
The page brings the top five countries with the greatest booking
opportunity and raises awareness of their property within the
marketplace.
- New adaptive home page – designed to provide customized
recommendations for partners based on their current familiarity
with Partner Central. This personalised experience that enable
suppliers to identify certain time-sensitive tasks they should take
to accelerate booking potential on Expedia Group's marketplace.
This will be made available to majority of properties at the end of
the year.
- Multi property portfolio dashboard – provides a
portfolio snapshot for suppliers managing two or more properties.
The dashboard indicates the list of accommodations associated to
the user, provides insights for each property and signals when and
where action is needed.
Lodging partners can learn more about Expedia Group Partner
Central on Discover EPC and download the Partner Central
Mobile App.
Methodology
The study polled 1,215 global
hotelier participants in July 2019
for a choice based study to determine how hotel properties are
prioritizing their technology investment spend. The study leveraged
Expedia Group's global hotelier panel in order to compare
technology spending between chain hotels and small independent
properties. Chain hotels are classified as properties self-selected
as part of a chain affiliation or group of properties with more
than 100 rooms, while small independent properties are classified
as properties with no chain affiliation and 100 rooms or less.
Note to the editor: For more details about the
research methodology, please visit our blog:
discover.expediapartnercentral.com/power-of-tech.
About Expedia Group
Expedia Group is the world's
travel platform. We help knock down the barriers to travel, making
it easier, more enjoyable, more attainable and more accessible. We
are here to bring the world within reach for customers and partners
around the globe. We leverage our platform and technology
capabilities across an extensive portfolio of businesses and brands
to orchestrate the movement of people and the delivery of travel
experiences on both a local and global basis. Our family of travel
brands includes: Brand Expedia®, Hotels.com®, Expedia® Partner
Solutions, Vrbo®, Egencia®, trivago®, HomeAway®, Orbitz®,
Travelocity®, Hotwire®, Wotif®, ebookers®, CheapTickets®, Expedia
Group™ Media Solutions, Expedia Local Expert®, CarRentals.com™,
Expedia® CruiseShipCenters®, Classic Vacations®, Traveldoo®,
VacationRentals.com and SilverRail™.
© 2019 Expedia, Inc. All rights reserved. Trademarks and logos
are the property of their respective owners. CST: 2029030-50
1 Chain properties: properties
self-selected as part of a chain affiliation or group of properties
with more than 100 rooms.
2 Small independent properties: independent
properties with no chain affiliation and 100 rooms or less.
3 2019 Lodging Technology Study, Hospitality
Technology
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SOURCE Expedia Group