Lodging Leaders

Caveau co-founder and CEO, Brian Dass, is a highly accomplished travel executive and entrepreneur widely recognized as one of the leading pioneers in the hospitality e-commerce and digital reservation industry. In his more than 20-year career, Brian has launched multiple online hospitality technology and marketing firms including Timeless Hospitality (acquired by TravelClick) and Open Hospitality (acquired by Pegasus Solutions). With Caveau, Brian is calling on his extensive experience and technical expertise to deliver cost-effective, customizable solutions to help travel businesses meet the challenges of PCI-DSS and GDPR compliance.

About Caveau:

Caveau is the fast, easy and affordable way to protect personal data, card-not-present purchases and bookings by eliminating the need to manually handle information through voice, email and faxes. Our comprehensive software platform helps maintain PCI-DSS compliance and reduces risks associated with GDPR. Caveau will lock down the security of your client data and financial transactions and protect your reputation, allowing you to focus on growing your business.

In This Episode, Brian Reveals …

* What GDPR is, what it means to you as a citizen – good and bad, and the things that hoteliers need to worry about.

* What to do if you determine you’ve been compromised, including first determining what type of data were included, how much data, how sensitive that data is, and some best practices around timely notification of a breach.

* The kinds of fines can you expect if you’ve been compromised, who is responsible, and some of the other consequences, e.g. your reputation, at risk.

* Some of the typical non-GDPR compliant mistakes hotel professionals make, and Brian gives some examples of what a modern/secure transaction look like.

Brian and his team prepared a free download for the listeners: “Getting a Grip on GDPR … Before It’s Too Late.”

This informative document includes What You Need to Know About GDPR, 7 Fundamental Principles of Safe Processing of Personal Data, and Managing and Maintaining GDPR With Caveau.

Download the FREE Caveau Guide

Getting a Grip on GDPR … Before It’s Too Late.

Resources & Links

Mentioned in this episode:

* 165 | Monetize Room Downtime and Improve Guest Experiences with Yannis Moati

* Free Download: Getting a Grip on GDPR … Before It’s Too Late

Brian Dass

* Email: [email protected]

* LinkedIn

* WhatsApp: +1 917-681-4627

Caveau

* Website

* Twitter

* LinkedIn

Andrew Gardella is chiropractor who has worked as an Access Consciousness facilitator since 2011. He graduated from school Magna Cum Lade with BAs in Biology, Psychology, Cognitive Science and then received a Doctor of Chiropractic from Palmer College of Chiropractic. Along with various chiropractic techniques, Dr Andrew also studied BodyTalk and is a certified practitioner. Since he was young, he has bought items from flea markets and sold them to generate more income, and this has evolved into buying and selling antiques alongside his Access Consciousness work. He realized some years ago that whether you have money or not is a choice, and since discovering this, has never looked back financially. He is now a certified Right Riches for You facilitator, a specialty program of Access Consciousness. He loves teaching others how they can make the choice to be in a better financial situation too.

In This Episode, Andrew Reveals …

* What Right Riches are, and why you DON’T want money.

* What’s really stopping us from being wealthy, how to uncover limiting beliefs, and what you can do to overcome them.

* That financial insecurity is really about the fear of financial insecurity, and Andrew reveals some strategies for working through it.

* How to manifest what we truly desire in our lives, how to discover possibilities that we’re not seeing, and open ourselves up to the many possibilities for the Universe to deliver it.

Resources & Links

* Andrew on LinkedIn

* Andrew’s Website

* Access Consciousness Website

Quentin McElveen is a graduate of the University of South Carolina, and holds a B.S. degree in Hospitality Management. He is a passionate Hotel Operations Manager who has excelled in several positions within full-service and select-service hotels. He believes that employee empowerment and communication is important to the success of hotels. As Quentin thrives in his career, he often encourages others to think big and follow their dreams, despite all challenges. Quentin’s dream is to become an owner of hotels.

In This Episode, Quentin Reveals …

* His hospitality journey and why he chose hospitality as a career.

* A couple fun strategies he uses to create what he calls a moment of truth with a guest.

* A time he dealt with a difficult guest, and what he did to make it right.

* How he establishes a good connection with his team, how he handled a difficult employee one time, and what he’s done to overcome labor challenges in his market.

* Some actionable advice for college students looking to pursue a career in the hotel industry.

Resources & Links

Quentin McElveen

* Email: [email protected]

* LinkedIn

* Phone: +1 (843) 992-4320

Yannis Moati is CEO & Founder of Hotels By Day, the premier provider of day-stay hotel spaces in the United States.

Yannis has nearly two decades of experience in travel, from guiding tours in Europe at a young age, to co-founding an exotic travel agency, to directing a New York-based global tour operator company. Having witnessed first-hand the important customer behavioral shifts of the ‘on-demand’ economy, Yannis realized that something could be done in boosting hotel revenues by selling un-committed inventory for the day.

And that’s the vision behind Hotels by Day – an innovative solution for both guests and hotels to seamlessly process & monetize flexible room inventory. Priced at a discount from a typical overnight, rooms booked on HotelsByDay give their guests flexibility, comfort, and a space of their own—by day, with all the amenities of a hotel, so their guests can relax, recharge & be productive anywhere.

In This Episode, Yannis Reveals …

* The vision behind Hotels By Day, the problem they’re solving and who they serve.

* How the service works, from hoteliers signing up for the HBD channel, to guests booking a day-stay.

* We talk about some of the common objections hoteliers have to offering day rates, including whether or not Brand will approve selling day rooms, whether rate parity is an issue, and whether or not offering day rates could attract the wrong type of business or clientele.

* And, you know I’m going to ask the cost for their service and whether there are any contracts to sign.

The Hotels By Day team prepared a free 11-page download for listeners that want to learn more about this valuable channel.

To get your copy, click here to download the free guide.

Hotels by Day

Download the FREE 11-Page Guide

Resources & Links

Yannis Moati

* Email: [email protected]

* LinkedIn

Hotels By Day

* Website

* Facebook

* Twitter

* LinkedIn

* Google+

* Instagram

* YouTube

Michael (Mick) McKeown is the Executive Director of the Homeland Security Advisory Council (HSAC) and Campaigns at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. He brought over fifteen years of expertise in state, city, and local government prior to his appointment at DHS. As Executive Director, Mick oversees the Homeland Security Advisory Council (HSAC) and its 40 Council members as well as the ongoing policy work of the subcommittees; He leads the Blue Campaign which heightens the public’s familiarity with human trafficking and its identifiers; and heads the “If You See Something, Say Something®” campaign which raises public awareness on the indicators of terrorism and terrorism related crimes and how to recognize them.

In This Episode, Mick Reveals …

* Where the “If You See Something, Say Something®” campaign came from, and what the DHS is focusing on.

* What suspicious activity is, what to look for, what to do, and how to report it.

* How the campaign effects us as both citizens and as leaders in the hospitality industry.

* How can folks get involved and help spread the campaign’s message.

Together, We Can Keep Our Communities Safe.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is committed to strengthening hometown security by creating partnerships with state, local, tribal, and territorial governments; the private sector; and the communities they serve. Campaign partners play an integral role in keeping our communities safe.

To learn how you can become a campaign partner, click here to download the free 1-pager.

Download the FREE Partnership 1-Pager

If You See Something, Say Something

Resources & Links

Mick McKeown

* Email: [email protected]

* LinkedIn

Department of Homeland Security (DHS)

* Email:  [email protected]

* DHS Website

* If You See Something, Say Something

* Facebook

* Twitter

* Instagram

* LinkedIn

* YouTube

Robert Russell has been an innovative leader in digital, social and mobile marketing for over 20 years. He has worked with major global brands and smaller companies in almost every aspect of digital marketing and e-commerce, including reservation and transaction software, mobile applications, social media marketing, search engine optimization, email marketing, and website user experience. His clients and leadership roles have included Hotels, Retailers, and Restaurant chains across the US, Caribbean and Latin America. He has been a featured speaker at leading hospitality technology conferences, such as HITEC, and written articles for many industry publications. He has recently published The Hotel Handbook For Online Revenue. Robert currently advises dozens of large and small hotels as President of Resort Income Optimization.

In This Episode, Rob Reveals …

14 ways to boost revenue and profits, including:

* Direct bookings may cost more than OTAs

* Deposits and cancellation policies may be scaring your customers away

* Discounting doesn’t have to mean lower revenue

* You get better promo results with “unique” offers for targeted groups

* High occupancy can signal a problem (prices are too low)

* Value-Add promos can be more profitable

* Your Facebook Followers are probably not seeing your posts (you have to pay)

* Email Marketing is still a killer app (and you own it)

* Content Marketing can be automated with software

* Google Maps is separate from Google

* You can place your direct booking engine on TripAdvisor, Google, Facebook, and other places

* Airbnb can be your friend

* Education is now in snack sizes – and perhaps better

* Revenue Management can be done remotely

Rob prepared a free 17 page guide for the listeners called Revenue Is Oxygen: Online Channel Management for Boutique Resorts

If you are struggling to understand how to combine channels, software, websites, clouds and services, then Rob’s Revenue is Oxygen guide is a great place to start.

Download the FREE guide: Revenue Is Oxygen

Online Channel Management for Boutique Resorts

Resources & Links

Rob Russell

* [email protected]

* LinkedIn

Resort Income Optimization

* Website

* Facebook

* Twitter

* LinkedIn

* [email protected]

* 1-678-534-7125​

Jordan Hollander is the co-founder of Hotel Tech Report, the premier global research platform for hotel technology. He was previously on the Global Partnerships team at Starwood Hotels & Resorts. Prior to his work with SPG, Jordan was Director of Business Development at MetWest Terra Hospitality and Research Associate at Sapience Investments where he covered consumer and technology stocks. Jordan received his MBA from Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management where he was both a Zell Scholar and Pritzker Group Venture Fellow. He holds a bachelors degree in both Philosophy and Political Science in from Williams College.

About Hotel Tech Report:

More than 45,000 hoteliers in over 50 countries have used HotelTechReport.com to research and vet technology products for their properties. The firm works closely with 350+ hotel technology partners around the world to leverage the power of transparency by collecting unbiased feedback from authenticated product users to help hoteliers make better technology decisions for their businesses.

In This Episode, Jordan Reveals:

* How hotels can protect themselves from disruptors

* Why any good hotel tech sales rep should help you compare their product with the competition

* Why your hotel should never buy closed ecosystem technologies

* How to quickly research and pitch technology products to property owners

* How to identify hotel technology vendors that will be true partners after the sale

Resources & Links

Jordan Hollander

* LinkedIn

Hotel Tech Report

* Website

* Twitter

* LinkedIn

* Facebook

Jeff Craven is a self-described copywriter, speechwriter and presentation whisperer. He is the President of Thoughtcraft LLC, a communications company that serves senior executives, consultants and business advisors.

In This Episode, Jeff Reveals:

The speech writing process he used while helping me prepare for my recent talk at the Vesta Hospitality Annual Meeting, including:

* Setting the experience of the event – The where and why, aligning or complimenting your speech with what your audience expects from that event.

* Setting the tone of the Speech – Will it be big concepts, vision and inspiration, educational or workshoppy, or reflective and encouraging.

* Setting the feedback from the audience – When you’re done talking, what feedback do you want to hear from the audience.

* Setting your topic – Let your audience’s shared interest guide you. Take a page from their diary so you capture their attention.

* Setting your unique Point of View – Focus on the kind of experience your audience expects, and what you can do if you’re not sure what it is.

Download the FREE guide: Zero to Speech

Make the task of writing your speech faster and much less painful

Resources & Links

Jeff Craven

* [email protected]

* LinkedIn

ThoughtCraft

* Website

Hoperator is a sales and messaging platform designed to help travel and hospitality businesses increase revenue, provide customer service and build guest intelligence by connecting with their potential customers and guests in their preferred messaging channel.

Chris Douglas – CEO/Cofounder

Prior to cofounding Hoperator, Chris built a career in advertising as a creative. During this time he managed creative and digital teams to develop digital campaigns and digital products for some of the world’s largest brands. His experience spans brand building, user experience, product development and digital strategy. He also holds a patent for a social gaming application.

Michael Foltz – CTO/Cofounder

Besides being an accomplished software architect, Michael owned and managed a group of award-winning hostels in Poland. During this time, he led the development of their own property management software that they licensed to other accommodations. With Hoperator, Michael combines his experience as a technologist with his passion for the travel and hospitality industry.

In This Episode, Chris and Michael Reveal:

* The vision behind Hoperator, the problem they’re solving, and who you serve.

* A few business cases for how their customers are using the platform, and how easy it is to use.

* How Hoperator integrates within the existing technology infrastructure at the property, whether integration required, and whether the platform is app-based, web based or both.

* The cost for their services.

Wanna learn how messaging can drive revenue for hotels? This is the first in a series of Hoperator reports to come where they analyze data from their platform, share how Hoperator is being used and the opportunities it creates for hoteliers. This version of the report is exclusive to Lodging Leaders listeners.

Download the FREE Report: What is the Cost of Real-Time?

How Sales-Focused Live Chat and Messaging Drives Revenue.

Resources & Links

Chris Douglas

* [email protected]

* LinkedIn

Michael Foltz

* [email protected]

* LinkedIn

Hoperator

* [email protected]

* Website

* Facebook

* Instagram

* Twitter

I just had the honor and privilege of speaking at the Vesta Hospitality Annual Meeting in San Diego, Calif.

Knowing that I’d be addressing their amazing team of GMs, Directors of Sales, and Corporate Office Executive staff, I decided to talk about the power of a tribe.

This episode is that speech. Enjoy!

In This Episode, I Reveal …

* The power of a tribe

* How tribal culture relates to your team

* How to build an amazing team

* Why you have to lead yourself first

Resources & Links

* Vesta Hospitality Website