In a 45 minute interactive presentation we touch several social media (platforms) such as Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, and uncover the various benefits for your business, demonstrating its critical place in your overall internet marketing strategy.

The time to get involved is now, so please join us for this highly interesting event!

Date: Thursday November 26, 2009
Time: 5.30 – 7.30 PM, including snacks, drinks & networking opportunities
Speakers: Dragonfly Media
Venue: Amalia Room, Floris Suite Hotel Curacao
Price: HSMAI Members FREE, non-members Nafl. 45.00

Who should attend: if you are involved in any way in sales and marketing, this presentation is a must-see.

Please confirm your attendance by e-mail to info@hsmaicuracao.org or by calling CHATA at 465-1005.

“In these tough economic times, the island of Curaçao is actually doing well,” says Brenda Benjamin, Director of Marketing, at the Curaçao Tourist Board. “The Hidden Treasure Campaign is our little island’s way of a providing a big bailout for U.S. travelers. It is also our strategy to build awareness of Curaçao in the marketplace and make the island more accessible to Americans – we could not be hitting the market with this campaign at a better time.”

The Curaçao on-Island Treasure Hunt will be a comprehensive island-wide event that will allow Curaçao to showcase its many hidden treasures to the international community expected to be on-hand for the Hunt. Visitors will have the opportunity to experience first hand the island’s many “treasures” at several significant locations.

“At a time when there is so much grim news everywhere, the Curaçao Treasure Hunt is a fun event that will prove lucrative to one lucky winner and will put Curaçao front-of-mind and tip-of-tongue with travelers and the media,” notes Benjamin. “This is a great way for American travelers to become more familiar with Curaçao, often referred to as the Caribbean’s hidden treasure because of our exquisite beaches, remarkable history and our capital Willemstad’s distinction as a UNESCO World Heritage site.”

The Curaçao Treasure Hunt will be supported by a print, online and television ad campaign that hits this month. To learn more, visit www.curacaotreasure.com.

Caribbean Week in New York is a celebration of the sights, sounds, colors, culture and unique vacation attributes of the Caribbean. Tourism Officials, the media, artists, performers, celebrity chefs, sponsors and strategic partners converge on New York for a week of Caribbean hospitality and vacation special offers. Arranged by the Caribbean Tourism Development Company, the Week combines business sessions and sponsored events with food, entertainment and a Caribbean wedding! The week culminates with the popular Governments of the Caribbean State Ball at the Plaza Hotel. Caribbean Week in New York typically attracts over 10,000 participants. In addition, extensive media coverage of the various events reaches local, national and international audiences in the millions.

The overall objectives of Caribbean Week in New York are:

• To provide a platform for the sale of Caribbean vacations;
• To create events that attract significant amounts of positive media attention for the Caribbean;
• To provide opportunities for all members to promote their individual products and services;
• To engage the Caribbean Diaspora;
• To generate revenue.

For more information please visit onecaribbean.org’s events calendar.

The Sales Manager
As the local, on property sales contact for local and intra – Caribbean customers, the Sales Manager is responsible for proactively soliciting and managing local transient and intra – Caribbean transient (wholesale and leisure)/group and catering related opportunities.
Download the complete vacancy.

The Reservations Sales Agent
Providing the guests with the highest service possible by handling all reservation requests via telephone, fax, mail and Internet in a friendly, efficient and prompt manner.
Download the complete vacancy.

Full time marketing & Sales Representative
Full Time Shop Coordinator

Full time Marketing & Sales Representative

In this position the candidate will be responsible for both local and international multi media based promotion of the company.

Duties:

• Maintain and update the Ocean Encounters website
• Write and implement marketing and public relations plan for advertisement throughout America and Europe
• Building a database with customer information and using this for market research
• Creating and sending out newsletters
• Responsible for organizing customer and company events
• Taking care of all e-mail and telephone correspondence with customers regarding reservations and pricing

Requirements:

• Marketing degree
• 3 years minimum experience
• Fluent in English and Dutch
• Proficient in multi media marketing

Full Time Shop Coordinator

Activities:

• Providing information to, and registration of customers for the dive/snorkel trips and courses we provide
• Administration of registered customers
• Selling dive and snorkel products
• Planning of customers, staff and logistics for different trips.

Requirements:

• Service oriented, social skills, representative and able to work under stress
• Good verbal and written knowledge of the English language and Dutch is a plus
• Computer skills, Word and Excel
• Interest and/or experience in diving and water activities is a plus
• Experience in a similar job is a plus

For both vacancies we offer:

• Competitive salary
• Stability
• Dynamic working environment
• Growth opportunities
• Company savings program

For more information about our company please check our website www.oceanencounters.com

To apply for one of these job please send your resume and application letter before October 12th to:

Ocean Encounters
Afdeling Personeelszaken
C/o Lions Dive and Beach Hotel
Bapor Kibra z/n

or e-mail reservations@oceanencounters.com

Thank you everyone, for your time.

Take some time to let it sink in while we’ll keep you updated with interesting info!
Like this article from hotelmarketing.com: How user friendly are your top internal entry pages?

The Renaissance Curacao Resort & Casino has the following job and career opportunities on short term:

Local sales and event manager

Marketing manager

Source:hsmai.org

Show me a successful, highly respected hospitality Sales professional and I’ll show you someone who has mastered the art of developing referrals.

No greater compliment can be paid to a hospitality Sales pro than to have a prospect call to book a piece of business because “John Jones (a client of the Sales pro) told me I should call you.”

Now keep in mind, referrals don’t just “happen”. They develop from a process that usually takes time.

Referrals have to be earned

Good hospitality Sales pros develop referrals by taking care of business first:

Exceed Client Expectations. After you’ve booked a group, do everything possible to see that your client’s expectations have been exceeded. How will you know that? The client will tell you. If the client doesn’t, you have to ask.

Personal Contact. Never let the client depart from your property without meeting personally, making sure the client has everything needed, and say “thank you” for the business. Post-convention or conference meetings don’t count. You must do it in person, one-on-one.

Follow Up. Send a hand-written personal note to the client to be received a day or two after the event. A phone call and/or personal Sales call to the client’s office within two weeks at which time you can ask about feedback and any success stories since the event. You can use that valuable time also to reconfirm a repeat booking (if applicable), in case you didn’t nail that down at the event’s conclusion.

Drilling into the Account. If you have not done so before, this is an excellent opportunity to “drill” into the account – - “up, down, and out”. Ask for the names of (and introductions to) other executives and event planners in or connected with that organization.

For example (up), perhaps the CEO or general manager serve as board members or site selection committees of national, regional or state associations and professional societies.

Perhaps (down) a Sales manager lower on the totem pole at that company has a Sales meeting coming up with no property in mind.

And perhaps (out) this particular organization has strategic partners, website linked or not, or preferred vendors, some of whom may have new business to book.

Testimonials. Many clients – - typically upon being asked – - will write testimonial letters after a very successful event and/or when the Sales pro or the property staff exceeded the client’s expectations. Testimonials can be extremely useful tools when soliciting similar-type business.

Referrals have to be earned

But the best Sales pros are always on the lookout for those great referrals. Referrals represent instant credibility and value with the potential buyer.

Why are referrals so valuable? Because typically they come so unexpectedly. You didn’t have to expend the time, money nor effort to get the booking. No, the referral came because of the work you’ve done previously and because you earned it.

Timely referrals can lead to bookings when the Sales pro is having a slow (booking) month or quarter and is in need of making his/her numbers.

The very best time to ask

When is the best time to ask a satisfied client for a referral? At the very moment the satisfied client has given his/her thanks for a job well done.

“I can’t thank you enough for all you’ve done”

“This was by far the best meeting overall we’ve ever had”

Hearing those words – - that’s when the very best Sales pros respond with:

“Thank you. You know, the best thanks of all would be to give me the names of 2-3 decision makers/planners so we could do the same good job for them!”

In my four decades of experience in hospitality Sales, I have yet to come across a satisfied client that – - upon being asked to do so – - failed to supply a couple of names and contact info that led me to booking new business.

Never forget that planners talk to each other and they share the good and bad experiences.

Some satisfied clients will take ownership of the whole referral process. I’ve had satisfied clients make phone calls to prospective clients, give great testimonials, some have even arranged introductory lunch meetings. And insisted on picking up the tab, to boot!

Be sure and look for referral opportunities everywhere and anytime. I recommend one a month, 12 a year for new hospitality Sales professionals. If you can pick up 12 referrals a year, you are on your way to a long and successful career in hospitality Sales. And don’t be surprised if a referral comes some day from one of your competitors who can’t accommodate and who holds you and your property in high regard.

What’s next? Sales Lesson #8: Dealing with today’s new meeting planner.

© Copyright 2007

David M. Brudney, ISHC, is a veteran sales and marketing professional concluding his fourth decade of service to the hospitality industry. Brudney advises lodging owners, lenders, asset managers and operators on sales and marketing “best practices” and conducts reviews of sales and marketing operations throughout the U.S. and overseas. The principal of David Brudney & Associates of Carlsbad, CA, a sales and marketing consulting firm specializing in the hospitality industry since 1979, Brudney is a frequent lecturer, instructor and speaker. He is a charter member of International Society of Hospitality Consultants. Previously, Brudney held sales and marketing positions with Hyatt, Westin and Marriott.

CONTACT
David M. Brudney, ISHC, Principal
Phone: 760-476-0830
Email: David@DavidBrudney.com

ORGANIZATION
David Brudney & Associates
http://www.DavidBrudney.com
2938A Luciernaga Street
USA – Carlsbad, CA Phone: 760-476-0830
Fax: 760-476-0860
Email: David@DavidBrudney.com

In today’s dynamic market where occupancy rates and ADRs depend on how well hoteliers utilize Internet marketing, it is no longer sufficient to measure basic website traffic stats like visitors, page views, or campaign stats like banner click-through rates and PPC clicks.

Marketing is all about results. Unlike offline marketing, we can track and analyze ROIs from our online marketing campaign results quickly and accurately over the Internet. There is no medium that allows tracking like the Internet does, yet in hospitality, we didn’t adopt these tracking technologies as soon as they were available. Instead we relied on cheap or free analytical tools to provide us with the information that management uses to make decisions. As a result, we are often basing important marketing decisions on inferior information.

We consistently receive numerous questions from hoteliers concerning how to most efficiently track and measure the ROI of online marketing efforts down to the reservation process. What metrics should hoteliers measure and pay attention to? What are the best practices in measuring ROI from the hotel’s marketing efforts? Or ROI from the hotel website? What are the best analytical tools out there?

Metrics That Matter

In today’s dynamic market where occupancy rates and ADRs depend on how well hoteliers utilize Internet marketing, it is no longer sufficient to measure basic website traffic stats like visitors, page views, or campaign stats like banner click-through rates and PPC clicks. Website and campaign conversions, ROIs, pathing and behavioral metrics have become standard and many hoteliers are adopting sophisticated analytical tools that are required to measure these essential metrics.

Here are some of the metrics that matter as per latest best practices in hospitality:

Conversions on the site from:

- Hotel website activity
- Organic Search
- Paid search marketing campaigns
- Strategic linking
- Email marketing to own opt-in lists
- Email/online sponsorships
- Display ads
- Offline/online conversion campaigns
- Cross-sells and up-sells
- Lifetime conversions

ROI of Internet marketing campaigns:

- What works
- What does not work
- Real-time ROI analysis
- Comparing ROI of different campaigns
- Setting up business rules to focus on highest ROI keyword terms and campaigns
- Post-click activity
- Post-impression activity
- Lifetime ROIs

Pathing Reports and Other Metrics:

- Click-stream analysis of the website
- Behavioral mapping of website users
- Origins of bookers
- Post-click activity
- Cross-sells and up-sells
- Abandonment rates
- Points of “weakness” on the site

And Naturally, the More “Pedestrian” Metrics, such as:

- Unique visitors and visitor sessions
- Page views
- Time Spend/visitor
- Entry/Exit Pages
- Referrers
- Keyword Analysis

How About “Free” Analytical Tools?

Most website hosting vendors provide a basic or free analytics tool (e.g. Webalizer). These tools provide basic metrics with little practical use. For example, they count search bots as website visits and still treat “hits” as a valuable metric. Furthermore, is it really important to you that your site gets 10,000 visitors if a) you don’t know who is booking and why, b) where the bookers came from, or c) you don’t know how to identify who the 20% of the bookers are that generate 80% of the bookings?

These analytic tools do not help with paid online marketing either. If you spend $5,000 on a search campaign that brings 5,000 visitors to the website, and you don’t know that these visitors only generate $2,500 of revenue, does it make sense to continue with this campaign? How can management determine the efficacy of its paid search strategy, and make sound decisions on whether to increase or decrease the budget for next year?

Another trend over the past year is the use of Google Analytics on hotel websites. Google Analytics is a “free” service and used in conjunction with an AdWords campaign account. Google Analytics is based on Urchin—at one time a popular yet basic website analytical tool purchased by Google in 2005. Many people assume that Google, with an army of research scientists and deep pockets (well over $100 billion market capitalization) must be doing something correct. This assumption has won over many to adopt Google Analytics, and being free has also helped.

Our experience with Urchin dates back to 1997. This application was meant for simple websites (e.g. a small single hotel website) and provided reporting features and tracked simple “pedestrian” analytics like visitor sessions, page views, main referrers, etc. The overemphasis on such basic data detracted from the important types of data hotel professionals really need to know.

In our view, the two main problems with Google Analytics are that a) Google did not and does not spend resources to enhance and support the Urchin Technology to at least try to compare with the professional analytical vendors, and b) it is free (on the web and in life in general, free means unreliable, unsupported and inaccurate).

HeBS was chosen to be one of the first companies to test Google Analytics. Our hotel clients have used Google Analytics as an interim solution, one of them being a 120-property strong resort brand. What we discovered over the past year with this basic tool is its limited capabilities and lack of apparent investment to improve on the technology:

- It can track only a single website
- It tracks only Google AdWords campaigns, not always accurately, and not other search marketing or online advertising campaigns (Yahoo, MSN, others)
- There is no customer service or support of any kind
- Tracking breaks down without any logical explanation (no changes on the website to cause some kind of a code corruption)
- Tracking fails or misses data resulting in erratic traffic patterns: does not report as many as even 30%-40% of the visitors to the site; does not report results and conversions for even major online campaigns e.g. Top 20 email blast to 2.5 million recipients
- In cases where the property website uses a third-party booking engine (most hotel websites do) Google Analytics has difficulty reporting credible results
- Many third-party booking engine vendors refuse to install the Google Analytics codes due to the above

Overall these “free” analytical tools report only very basic data that does not allow the hotelier to see the bigger picture, to track conversions, ROIs or user behavioral trends.

Paid Analytical Tools and Mastering Internet Marketing

In all industries, measuring and quantifying results from marketing campaigns is of utmost importance. This is even more so in a bottom-line oriented industry, such as hospitality. With over a third of hotel bookings generated online in 2007, and another third influenced by Internet research, it is vital to measure results and focus marketing spend on online advertising formats with the highest conversions and ROIs.

For some time now hoteliers can utilize sophisticated analytical tools to measure efficiency and ROIs from their Internet marketing campaigns. Here is a quick summary of what today’s sophisticated analytical tools excel at:

- Track ROI of Internet marketing campaigns
- Track search marketing campaigns other than Google’s (e.g. Yahoo, MSN, etc)
- Track conversions and ROIs from banner ads
- Track conversions and ROIs from email marketing campaigns to the hotel own opt-in email list
- Track effectiveness of the hotel eCRM program i.e. pre-arrival emails, post-stay emails, comments cards, sweepstakes, etc.
- Track effectiveness of directory listings/strategic linking
- Track origins of bookers (did they come from the NYTimes.com admail or from a referral from MSN?)
- Track post-click activity (what happened after the user clicked on your PPC listing or banner ad or listing on the CVB website and did not book right then–did they book later e.g. 2 days later or 2 weeks later?)
- Employ intelligent agents and business rules to serve only the ad with the highest ROI (e.g. if this PPC listing does not produce any bookings within 24 hours, remove it from my campaign)
- Pathing reports and click-stream analysis of the website (which pages work, which do not, which pages or page elements produce highest ROIs)
- Behavioral mapping of the website user–who goes where and who does what on your site
- Track cross-sells among various hotel sites: e.g. who came from hotel A and booked hotel B or vice versa, ideal for hotel clients with multiple hotels (Google Analytics is a single property application)
- Track Flash websites and highly visual Flash/HTML hybrid sites
- Provides a dashboard to monitor all your Internet campaigns, stats and ROI
- Present in an interactive dashboard all of the Internet campaigns, stats and ROI
- Provide unlimited reporting

World-Class Analytics = Smarter and More Efficient Marketing

No doubt a sophisticated analytical tool can save hoteliers a great deal of marketing dollars, but this tool can also exploit marketing opportunities. This level of intelligence can redirect limited marketing dollars to more profitable centers. It can transform the hotel Internet marketing strategy and take it to the next level.

HeBS utilizes the industry’s leading analytical application tool for its clients, a sophisticated tool that is utilized by many of the major hotel brands (Starwood, Choice Hotels, Mandarin Oriental, etc.) and online intermediaries such as Expedia. Through HeBS our client hoteliers can now enjoy the same state-of-the-art analytical tool as the major hotel brands and online intermediaries at a fraction of the cost (e.g. 10+ times lower).

Conclusion:

Best practices and common business sense require hotel marketers to constantly track and analyze website and campaign conversions, ROIs, pathing and behavioral metrics, and shift marketing funds from less effective marketing campaigns to campaigns with higher ROIs. This complex analytics is impossible to perform with existing “free” analytical tools. Therefore hoteliers have to adopt sophisticated analytical tools that provide the capabilities mentioned in this article. When budgeting for Internet marketing, hoteliers should include a separate line item for website and marketing analytics.

Consider seeking advice from an experienced Internet marketing hospitality consultancy to help you take advantage of the marketing opportunities that result from using a sophisticated web analytical tool. The end results will include the capacity to determine your most important and valuable customer segments and the ability to effectively measure the success of your online marketing campaigns. Most importantly, a sophisticated web analytical tool will drastically increase customer conversions on your hotel website and enable you to track results in real time ROIs from your online marketing campaigns.

Max Starkov is Chief eBusiness Strategist and Jason Price is EVP at Hospitality eBusiness Strategies (HeBS), a leading Internet marketing strategy consulting firm for the hospitality vertical, based in New York City (http://www.hospitalityebusiness.com).