HOTEL 718 – Urban Boutique Brooklyn, NY Hotel 

Background: In the heart of historic Brooklyn, NY a new gem is being developed – Hotel 718. With a free-spirit and sense of its community, this urban boutique hotel will embrace upscale style, comfort and the edgy and eclectic artsy-ness of its surroundings. Before launching into boutique hotel super stardom at its grand opening early in 2012, Hotel 718 needed a fresh, modern interim website.  With little more than a logo and color scheme, Screen Pilot was given the challenge to create Hotel718.com

The Challenge: Hotel 718 needed a progressive interim website with the ability to leverage Brooklyn’s community, its spirit and attract visitors who seek an alternative NYC experience while remaining close to Manhattan.

Result: Beautiful on the Inside & Outside – Stunning Design meets Innovative, Intuitive User Interface
Screen Pilot’s collective intellect developed a visually stunning website designed to accommodate just the right amount of information presented in an understated and clearly defined layout. The Hotel 718 project required a careful choreographed balance of well-planned branding, social networking integration and an elegant user interface using the latest CSS and HTML5 technologies.

The Good Looks – Design
To establish the mood of the site, images were painstakingly selected. Color choices balance the upscale, comfort and welcoming nature of the community-based boutique hotel whilst remaining on-brand. For this reason, the eclectic traveler searching for the “real” New York stay and the famous celebrity looking for a luxurious new boutique hotel in the heart of Brooklyn will equally indulge in the Hotel 718 experience.

Navigating through this modern, clean site is straightforward and effortless. Engaging pages capture the nuances of the Hotel 718 brand. The “count down” timer was designed as an invitation to join Hotel 718 once the long awaited boutique hotel opens its doors.

The Brains – Technical Innovations
‘Non-Geeky Speaky’ – Hotel718.com offers a web browsing experience that is intuitive and radically simple. Whether you are viewing it on a Mac, PC, smart phone or tablet, it loads quickly and has the same feel across fixed and mobile devices. Hotel718.com gets a gold star for its “intuitive user interface” which allows you to scroll through the interior by swiping your finger on the mobile screen. In techie-talk, the site was built using HTML 5 and CSS 3, along with progressive enhancement using jQuery and a hand-full of jQuery plugins. It has an intuitive user interface that doesn’t compromise the user experience. Everything on the site is pure HTML and it renders consistently across multiple environments without the need of third-party plugins.

Final Words on Hotel718.com
After carefully analyzing the Hotel 718 brand, location and background, Screen Pilot developed a fully customized, visually stunning and technically progressive website to communicate with the virtual and physical Brooklyn community and prospective guests. It provides an intuitive user interface, attractive design and an engaging social media strategy ensuring people can engage and interact with the brand before its real-world grand opening in early 2012. If an artist and a techie had a baby it would be Hotel718.com

Screen Pilot looked into its very own crystal ball and returned with a few interesting predictions for 2012. It will be a year where mobile will go beyond anything we have experienced previously. As time progresses, we forget what the world was like when we didn’t multi-task all the time, simply interacting face-to-face. Although this may be creating challenges for our human interactions, it is providing new opportunities in marketing. Here are a few trends we expect to see in the marketing world of 2012:

Mobile

Mobile marketing is growing at an alarming rate. As more mobile devices flood the market, people are using them to shop, buy, and search the web. Forty percent of Google mobile search queries are local, according to Screenwerk. You simply must incorporate mobile into your marketing strategy, no excuses.

Also, the time has come to create a mobile website for these devices. Your big flashy site may look great on a PC but when viewed on a mobile device it probably doesn’t render correctly or it may involve lots of scrolling putting off your potential customer. Again, we aren’t joking, this isn’t going away and you must stay relevant.

Let’s use Hotel 718 as an example of a standard site and a mobile site:

Main site:

Mobile Site:

Social Media

As more smart phones flood the market, more people are going to find it easier to participate in social media. Facebook is everywhere with advancements in the Facebook Open Graph. In case you haven’t noticed when you are signed into Facebook and traveling around the web, sites cater information to you and address you personally.

Here is an example of the open graph in action:

You can see what are friends are doing from the TripAdvisor site when you are signed into Facebook. It has personalized the experience for you so that you can do more than just “Like” something or share it. With Facebook integration appearing on many sites, it is essential to integrate social media in your own website.

Hotel 718, a boutique hotel in Brooklyn NY is an excellent example of social media integration with their CONNECT page. The guest is able to connect with Hotel 718 on the various social networks and even sign up for email marketing, providing the hotel a simple way to develop relationships with their guests.

With wondrous new smart phones’ advanced video and photography capabilities, there will be growth in multi-media social networks like Instagram, Viddy, Pinterest and more are sure to come.

Also, keep your eyes out for more QR codes. I expect with more people owning mobile devices and smart phones, we will see those popping up in advertising and marketing materials everywhere. You will first want to have a dynamic mobile website and then you can venture into the world of the funky little QR codes. Use your QR codes to provide interesting content to your customers and be sure to include all pertinent information. There are sites to help you build a QR code or you can always contact an expert, like us at Screenpilot.

2012 is going to be an interesting year with an overall increased mobile emphasis across all marketing and advertising initiatives.

We hope that 2012 is a joyful and prosperous year for you, your family, and your business. Happy 2012 from all of us at Screen Pilot!

If you would like to read more about what to expect in 2012, check out the sources that helped us put together our predictions:

http://socialmediatoday.com/johnserpa/414660/social-media-and-2012

http://socialmediatoday.com/jasonbaer/410876/4-nearly-guaranteed-2012-social-media-predictions

http://mashable.com/2011/12/27/5-tech-trends-to-watch-in-2012/

http://searchenginewatch.com/article/2133514/Search-Mobile-Marketing-Trends-SEO-Apocalypse-2012

The time has come when an irate guest can no longer be appeased by a sincere apology and a complimentary night’s stay. Now, rather than just spewing anger towards your establishment to their friends, they can share it with the world through sites like Tripadvisor, Yelp, Google Places, etc. Your guests have the opportunity write a thesis on the horrors of the resort fee or the insidious auto-grat. Luckily, you have an opportunity to show the online world your magnanimous side.

We don’t like to focus on the negative; however positive comments simply require less action. A simple thank you and invitation to return is sufficient.

The challenges you face with reading the angry words of your guests and wishing you would have known sooner can be addressed by an active CRM program. So wipe your tears and take action through reading and responding to reviews. Not all sites allow management responses but the big ones (Tripadvisor, Yelp, Expedia, Google places) certainly do.

As a diplomatic and compassionate hotelier, you always want to put your best voice forward, even when you really don’t want to. If you address the problem at its source, hopefully the issue will be resolved. Here are some common scenarios for hotel reviews and our ideas on the best ways to handle the negativity when it’s flung at you.

Scenario #1 -  A guest complains about a mandatory fee (i.e. a resort fee, auto-gratuity, parking, etc.). This fee is clearly stated on your website and any other OTA’s, even if placed in the fine print or “Terms & Conditions” sections.

We recommend:  Thank the guest for taking the time to share, acknowledge the issue, validate their emotions and provide an explanation for the fee and/or describe its value, and, of course, invite the guest to return.

Scenario #2 – A guest is unhappy with the service they experienced.

We recommend: Thank the guest for their business, acknowledge and address the issues they experienced while offering reassurance that their issue will be shared with staff to improve training and service. You can always say, “We’re sorry to hear that you felt disappointed with your stay.” Or something along those lines and it appears you are both sympathetic and apologetic; however you aren’t saying that your hotel didn’t perform. You are simply apologizing for their disappointment, as you don’t want any guest to be disappointed.

Scenario #3 – There was something out of your control that happened during the guest’s stay – other disturbing guests, A/C broke, spa flooded, bad weather, etc.

 We recommend: Demonstrate your understanding of the guest’s frustration and that sometimes these things happen which are out of the hotel’s control. Assure them that these aren’t common issues and invite them to experience the hotel another time.

These are just a few examples of different scenarios and good ways to handle them. Your organization will have to develop their own formula for responding to review sites. Stay sincere and don’t just repeat the same message over and over and over. Remember to always join the conversation. Most reviews are positive; unfortunately we tend to remember the negative over the positive. Show an interest in your guests and they will show an interest in you.

Customers can now virtually stroll through your lobby or entrance with the help of Google’s virtual tours.  As we mentioned in our previous post, branded search terms that match exactly with your Google Places listing will result in a SERP with a Places page preview including thumbnails of your photos and 360° virtual tours. No longer will someone have to take that next step and click into your page to view photos, tours, or reviews. Let’s use Riviera Palm Springs as an example, to demonstrate the SERP display and virtual tours. You can see the thumbnails in the SERP and once someone clicks on a thumbnail they are directed to the virtual tour.

We know it’s challenging for many businesses to balance their marketing budget and maintain current photography, a cool website, social media campaign, the list goes on and on. Google Photos and Virtual Tours are an economical and cool way for your business to receive added exposure on Google without the pain of an expensive photo shoot. At the moment, Google is still expanding their business photo shoot locations but right now are they available in select cities in the US and other countries. Below is an example of the Virtual Tour that is created by Google.

You simply have to apply for a Google photo shoot of your business. We encourage you to fill out the short application even if you aren’t in one of the current select cities, so we can show Google where they should go next.

Photo shoots can be overwhelming and sometimes things go awry, but hopefully with proper planning it will go smoothly and result in a beautiful product.

Here are some general suggestions in the hopes that your shoot will be stress-free:

• Schedule the shoot when you expect to have little or no traffic through the areas you have selected for the shoot
• Alert any clients/guests that may be present during the shoot
• Inspect each area of the shoot – make sure everything is displayed perfectly in that area and in any peripheral spaces such as the patio outside which is seen in the background of the photo
• Assign a liaison to be present with the photographer. He/She can assist the photographer with any questions or needs, as well as talk to any guests or customers that weren’t aware of the shoot
• Inform your staff of the shoot so they can double-check their areas pre-shoot and they can be prepared to answer questions from customers and guests.

Remember that you want this to be the very best representation of your property and a realistic one too. It can look like you’re trying too hard if you add bouquets of flowers or new items to the areas that aren’t normally there. This is encouraged for an advertising photo shoot for use in your website and collateral materials; however with virtual tours and photos from a third-party such as Google it is more journalistic in nature.

If you aren’t lucky enough to be in one of the major cities that Google has selected to qualify for their business photo shoots, you can always add your own photos to your Google Places listing. This will enhance the relevancy of your listing and add those lovely little thumbnails to your listing in branded searches. SEO is an important part of your marketing strategy and these little details come together to help your business succeed in a virtual world.

In Google’s continued search for the right balance between form and function, they are trialling a different layout for the main SERP results. The main item they are ‘nip tucking’ is local results this time. Specifically, how the map element and content in local listings is displayed to users. Best way to explain, is to show.  So, here is a hospitality example:

1. For a branded hotel search phrase,  for example “hotel contessa“, we see local listing content brought directly into the main user interface.  Item 1 inside the screen shot is perhaps the most important update. If a branded search exactly matches, then Google now bringing in product imagery that before was only accessed by visiting the local listing itself – which was a click away.  Now, thumbnails exist just underneath the map on the right hand-side. (Hint: Best make sure your best pictures are being used!) by default. No interaction needed. Item 2 is bound to appease the OTAs (online travel agencies).  Recent ‘GTravel’ proposition related rumblings inside the ‘plex have annoyed OTAs. Also, the fact that a couple of months ago Google stopped calculating review/OTA sites in their approach to ratings/reviews, we still see they’ve kept these links hanging around. The fact that Google in theory doesn’t take much (or supposedly, any) notice to 3rd party review content – instead focusing on Google User Reviews – these 3rd party links still retain primary content in this new UI.   (Money clearly talks still).

2. For unbranded searches such as this example below, we see less of a significant change. There are some subtle difference between the UIs on high level generic phrases such as ‘san antonio hotels” versus “san antonio riverwalk hotels”. The local listing for the longer phrase expands to include 2 line descriptive text, headline font is marginally larger than generic geo-sensitive search and headline text itself isn’t the business name associated with the local listing account. It’s more akin to page title description text (not that this is new by any means but pointing it out for those who never knew).

Of note, in this hospitality example of the UI changes, is the integration of the “travel Dates” feature. Interacting with this widget allows you to adjust the travel dates and updated rates for the revised date selections made. Now, why is that important? Google has now enabled users to shop rates between hotels without needing to go to maps where this feature traditionally was placed. So for the rate conscious user, this is a nifty results page feature. Rolling over the ads shows a roll-over with the main OTAs (Expedia.com, Hotels.com, Travelocity.com for the most part) with a link to the hotel website direct too.  The hotel direct rates are (still) not introduced into the this roll-over and so assumed into any element of Google’s pricing content. This is a longer standing issue and something I know many Revenue Managers aren’t ecstatic about.

So, all in all, some subtle design changes, moving around of local listing content elements, different results based on context and geo-proximities, moving local listings around in random fashion in the list are the main takeaways.

Mainly though, what Google are doing is bringing local content that was once behind a second click to the forefront and adding in the Travel Dates feature. As a firm that drives direct internet distribution for hotels and resorts, the one thing we don’t like and have asked to see change is the rate-pulling from OTA’s APIs and not those of the independent properties. It’s been quite a while now that rates have been introduced into the content stream, but yet nothing to support rate provisions from non-global brands or OTAs. Shame.

One thing you can expect to see is if your business is getting Google to do 360s and photos of your business location, you can bet it’s going to end up in this updated UI.  You can request your business photos here. Then on this topic, expect video and other content to work it’s way over time into the front page SERP results we expect. On a side note, nothing on the mobile search UI front in these scenarios. That remains as-is for the minute.