StayBoutique© Twitter Chat Highlights

On Friday September 25th, BLLA (@BoutiqueLodging) hosted our first monthly #StayBoutique Twitter Chat and it was a rousing success! With over 300 tweets shared on the topic over the course of the hour we had participation from some fantastic tastemakers and hoteliers around the world.  The event was co-hosted by Niki Leondakis (@Niki_Leondakis) CEO of Commune Hotels. If you missed it this time, we plan to do it monthly, so join us next time. In the meantime, check out some of the highlights below.

First Question:

Our answer:

Some of our other favorite answers:

Second Question:

Our Answer:

Some of our other favorite answers:

Third Question:

Our Answer:

Some of our other favorite answers:

Fourth Question:

Our Answer:

Other favorite answers:

Fifth Question:

Our Answer:

Other favorite answers:

If you want to see all the tweets, just type the hashtag #StayBoutique in your search bar on Twitter and you will see the feed from the chat in your feed. If you’d like to join in on the next one feel free to email us at info@blla.org and we will send you the questions out a few days in advance. Until then – #stayboutique!

Flash Sale: BLLA’s Leadership Conference 2015

For today (September 17th) and today only, BLLA is doing a one-day sale of $100 off an attendee pass to attend our fabulous annual Leadership Conference October 21-23 at the Fairmont Santa Monica, California.

Place “100BIC” in the registration box at checkout.  Follow this link to get $100 off.

To read more about the conference and how BLLA is raising the bar for all attendees check out this article.

See you in Santa Monica!

How the BLLA Leadership Symposium is Raising the Bar for Attendees and Sponsors

BLLA is excited to announce that we are changing the face of our conferences and taking the entire experience to the next level for both our attendees and our sponsors. The Leadership Symposium is happening Oct. 21-23 in Santa Monica, Ca and will focus on Leadership and Innovation.

BLLA is dedicated to taking a fragmented industry and uniting the world’s independent boutique and lifestyle hotels through a robust network of industry experts, thought-leaders, suppliers, and other resources. This conference is a chance for all of these individuals to meet in real-time.

Here are just a few of the ways we’re focusing on making the Leadership Symposium a better experience for both attendees and sponsors:

Content

We have curated amazing all new content this year and have an innovative conference prepared for you with expert speakers, boutique companies and inspiring discussions. These speakers include the Founder & President of Hawkins International PR, Managing Director of Hospitality of Related / Equinox, the Vice President of Gettys and many more. Check out the full list here.

Attendee gifts and gift bags

In past years, we have always handed out an “attendee bag” at the Registration desk at the conference. Additionally, many of you hand out items at your booth or table. We noticed that both of these models make it very difficult for attendees (to handle a bulky bag and walk into the ballroom or walk around the exhibit space at the same time). It’s very uncomfortable and distracting.

This year we’re changing the model around so that both attendees and sponsors have a better way of connecting.

  1. Welcome Gift Bag for attendees. This is for attendees checking into the Fairmont Hotel where they would find a nice surprise waiting in their room.
  2. Gifts for the conference opening session. These gifts will be placed at each seat in the Ballroom. Room will be set up classroom style, so the gift will sit on the table in front of each chair.
  3. You can also sponsor a morning beverage. As an example, we’ve had Bloody Mary’s served with a toast. Bellini’s could also be served as people enter the Ballroom. (We would assist with setting this up.)
  4. The fourth option is to have your items to be placed at the gala dinner. These gifts will be at each dinner place setting in the Ballroom. They must be small and compact in nature in order to fit at each place setting.

We are BOUTIQUE after all, so we’re excited to step up to a new method of connecting with attendees that last long after the conference ends! If you’re interested in sponsoring or exhibiting the conference, click here for more info. Interested in attending? Join us now!

BLLA was founded in 2009 to unite the world’s collection of boutique & lifestyle properties and the suppliers that sustain them. BLLA’s leading network helps give equal opportunities to those not normally able to compete in this chain-dominated industry. Today the association has more than 750 members.

Consumer Research Identifies Which Attributes Are Most Important to Travelers When Booking A Hotel

BLLA found the following article relating to guest reviews to be extremely beneficial for boutique hoteliers.  Written by Margaret Ady, Vice President of Marketing at TrustYou and Donna Quadri-Felitti, Ph.D., Director of the School of Hospitality Management at Pennsylvania State University.

Executive Summary
Review data has a significant impact on travelers’ booking decisions; 95% of travelers read reviews, according to a recent TrustYou study. This study was designed to understand which factors (e.g. cleanliness, service, WiFi, etc.) mentioned within those reviews have the greatest influence on travelers’ booking decisions. Eight different travel contexts (i.e, romantic get-away to business travel) were served to US travelers in simulating booking engine environments. The variables of price and quality were kept constant, and respondents were asked to choose a hotel in each scenario based only on a short review snippet containing a couple of words about hotel attributes, such as “great service,” “free WiFi,” “clean rooms,” etc. Booking choices were then analyzed using heat-mapping technology. Following the booking simulations, respondents were asked to rate the importance of each factor when choosing hotels. Data were gathered from 568 respondents in the United States.

READ THE ARTICLE.