Hotel revenue management is changing quickly but not quickly enough. According to our sources less than 1 in 10 hotels in 2018 are leveraging revenue management software to price their rooms. Dynamic pricing went mainstream with Uber's "surge pricing" model; however, it's been used by airlines, hotels and other industries for decades.

Online travel brands generally get most of the attention on their financial performance when reporting their latest earnings four times a year.

Tour buses bring thousands of people to Rome each day, but many increasingly run on cleaner fuels than their passenger car counterparts. Buses also replace some of those cars and probably know the traffic laws better than the average driver, another reason that has us scratching our heads at Rome's plan.

Every year, thousands of hotels fail to make their guests happy. Some are because of factors that are hard to change such as location, but many fail because they don’t keep up on what their guests want. With technology opening up almost endless possibilities, guests’ expectations are changing.

Phillip Jones, president and CEO of VisitDallas, joined Greg Oates, SkiftX's editor-at-large, at Skift Global Forum 2018 to discuss the value in banding together with fellow organizations and stakeholders to fight discriminatory legislation.

Risk management is a dedicated preparedness rather than simply a mental exercise, according to Lisa Sommer Devlin, the most recent Smart Meetings webinar host. In her talk, “Risk Management 101,” she outlined strategies for dealing with the risks of the industry, as well as how to actively avoid them.

Amid the flurry of November’s falling leaves, the avalanche of activity surrounding your 2019 budget preparation is most likely in full force. New technologies and digital innovations continue to disrupt the hotel industry, and savvy hoteliers are turning to advanced solutions to help them better navigate the budgeting process. The right technology streamlines and improves many budget-related activities, particularly when it comes to identifying trends. Understanding your performance over time helps you build a solid foundation for your budget plan.

In my last newsletter, I explained the pros and cons of modular elevators. Today I want to address a rising concern in the industry—U.S. tariffs on furniture, fixtures, and equipment (FF&E) used in hotels.

As digital assets in the form of documents and rich media such as images and video continue to grow, the resources and people needed to maintain these assets grows larger by the day. Adopting a Digital Asset Management solution can drastically improve efficiency and help free up resources needed in other parts of your hotel’s infrastructure.

The HFTP 2018 Annual Convention is officially over, and I am now back to my routine in the other part of the world — Muscat, Oman. The blog I wrote before departing for Louisville, Be Prepared: Have an Action Plan for Professional Development, reflected on the educational sessions I was really looking forward to attending: The Hotel Pre-Opening Process and Alphabet Soup: An Update from the HFTP HFAC and AH&LA Financial Management Committee, along with other technology-focused sessions.

When it comes to the hotel industry, suppliers and vendors are at the heart of many processes and activities and as such play a key, if not a critical role in your hotel’s success. Hotel operators and suppliers alike agree that forging strong, long-term relationships is critical to success. But like any relationship, it takes work. All relationships require effort to maintain, and accountability is probably the single most important element fuelling truly successful business relationship.

TravelBird, an online deals service that was one of the longer term survivors of the early flash sales era, has shut blaming a lack of funding.

This week's Update includes a story detailing yet another state’s efforts to close existing tax loopholes so that it may collect proper sales/occupancy taxes from OTAs. I hope you enjoy.

AppZen wants to remove the stress from filing monthly expense reports at companies worldwide, and it applies artificial intelligence to address the problem in a way that sounds compelling.

So, you are close to selling your company, and counting the profits a bit early. Well, that’s human nature. Here’s a thought for you to recall later when and if the event happens. Remember thosewho got you there. And for tax reasons, remember them before the closing of the deal, so that you can do so by sharing a bit of your proceeds without paying personal income tax upon those amounts.

The HFTP 2018 Annual Convention finished with a “grand finale” on Friday night, and what a remarkable event — delicious food and a beautifully decorated ballroom filled with some of the best attendees ever. What a great time, and the perfect ending to a fantastic week!

Have you been running PPC Campaigns for a while and results aren’t meeting your expectations? It might be time to revamp! Instead of casting a broad net with search keywords that could be stretching your budget thin, it is essential to review the data and find those keywords with most lifetime impressions.

Regardless of the cultural climate, the reality is that business conference organizers know that many attendees relish seeing half-nude women dance at evening events. There's no quick fix for the structural sexism ingrained into the business world.

Far too often, companies are forced into a solution that doesn’t meet the needs of their business. You don’t want to use an exhaustive enterprise tax software for your individual filing, nor does a corporate audit business want to be forced into using software focused on personal finance. The needs of a consumer and business are unique and very different.

I am happy to share some of my insights with you from the HFTP 2018 Annual Convention in Louisville, Kentucky. HFTP has done it again! From what I have experienced, the Annual Convention so far has been a huge success. From registration to each session and keynote, the floor has been manned with staff and many volunteers working tirelessly for hours to ensure that the convention goes without a hitch. Sessions were well-planned and and perfect for today’s financial and technology professionals.

Although I have been preoccupied with getting in the education sessions purely related to hospitality finance, technologies and hotel pre-opening, I made sure to participate in Fun with Fraud and Enchanting Employee Embezzlement in Clubs and Hotels presented by Jerry Trieber, CPA, CHAE, CFE, CFF, CGMA, HFTP Global past president and director of audit services/support at HEI Hotels and Resorts.

Although B2B marketers may see an ROI from basing their strategies on lead generation, new research suggests that it may be best to build a foundation on revenue instead.

The Asia Pacific region is on track to benefit from an investment bonanza as “forward-thinking” hotel owners seek to either reposition or reinvest in stalling properties, according to the Hospitality Asset Managers Association (HAMA).

Sears Holdings, once the largest retailer in the world, has filed for bankruptcy, signaling that the fast-changing retail business isn't waiting for anyone to catch up.

Luxury retail has grown significantly in Southeast Asia and China. Other airlines will likely follow Asiana's example with bag restrictions if the market isn't more carefully regulated.

I am currently making my travel arrangements for Louisville, Kentucky next week, as are the rest of my fellow HFTP 2018 Annual Convention attendees. The process has brought back memories from the 2017 HFTP Annual Convention in Orlando, Florida — where I was a first-time attendee and first-time guest blogger.