Posted 11/9/2009 - 2:20:59 PM
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NEW YORK—Panelists at a Cornell University School of Hotel Administration seminar here detailed how the weak economy has made consumers more value conscious when choosing hotels.
Entitled Providing Customer Value: How to Survive as a Hospitality Business Today, the discussion was the latest installment in the Cornell School's Dean Leadership Series moderated by Dean Michael Johnson.
Jeffrey Boyd, president and CEO of Priceline.com, told the 250 industry leaders and Cornell alumni gathered at the InterContinental Barclay that the leisure travel segment has come back much stronger than experts had expected at the beginning of the year. In large part, Boyd said travelers have been attracted by widespread discounting and valued-added, two-for-one type promotions. Stay-cations and drive-to vacations have also been a positive factor.
Thanks to the rise of social networking, consumers are more aware than ever before of hotels' quality. According to Paul Brown, president of global brands and commercial services at Hilton Worldwide, what used to be called word-of-mouth spreads much more quickly today because of the social networking sites. Consequently, brands can't risk setting over-expectations, Brown added.
Other participants at the discussion included executives from American Express, Hyatt Hotels, and Marriott International as well as Cornell School professors.
