Faculty & Research
Marketing Roundtables
May 7-8, 2008: Fourth Annual Marketing Roundtable
Marketing Roundtable Photographs
Hospitality marketers must rise to the challenge of determining how to use web-based social media to support marketing objectives, according to participants in the fourth annual Marketing Roundtable. Chaired by Lisa Klein Pearo, a faculty member at the Cornell School of Hotel Administration, the roundtable explored the relatively uncharted marketing terrain created by social media.
“The overarching objective of the day was to generate new frameworks that could help marketing practitioners and academics evaluate the role of social media in marketing plans,” explained Pearo.
Professor Pearo started the day by briefly exploring how marketing academics teach social media. She noted that existing textbooks provide no guidance beyond trying to fit social media into rigid frameworks which divide communications by medium rather than by more embracing definitions which encompass communication methodology and objectives. Cindy Estis Green of The Estis Group then kicked off the thematic discussion of practitioner models by examining users and uses of social media. She offered essential definitions of social media and social networking, as well as examples of best practices from hospitality and non-hospitality organizations.
Participants agreed that the critical challenge for marketers is to find ways to encourage consumer involvement in and excitement for collaboration with the organization and with other customers. This is particularly difficult, because the customers define the nature of the interaction. As Tim Peter of Leading Interactive Reservations explained, “ ‘Social’ must be defined by ‘people’ and engagement with customers is the key.
Hotel chains are still seeking the way to make the “big hit.” As Susan Thronson of Marriott International pointed out, Marriott has delved into social media, but this remains a relatively small investment at the moment, until the firm identifies the best way to engage this new tool. Marriott International is a partner of the Cornell Center for Research, which hosts the roundtable. Partners’ representatives have a seat at all of the center’s roundtables.
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Roundtable participants demonstrate their concept of social media. Left to right: Julie Cottineau, Jonathan Copulsky, Kyle Reardon, Kim Ehrlich, Angeline Stuma, and David Atkins |
Looking at ways to use social media, Julie Cottineau of Virgin USA, Inc. explained her firm’s use of social media, including consumer photo sharing opportunities on aircraft prior to the launch of Virgin Atlantic and MySpace collaboration for Virgin comics.
The roundtable concluded with a spirited debate on the question of consumer control. Participants discussed whether consumers have more control individually than formerly, or whether the impact of social media is based on the magnitude of consumers’ interactions. With that issue unresolved, the participants did agree that a systematic process is needed to facilitate media selection and evaluation decisions for social media, as well as ROI calculations for campaigns in social media.
May 10, 2007: Third Annual Marketing Roundtable
Marketing Roundtable Program
As hospitality industry marketers seek to innovate and improve operations, most work hard to learn what their customers want - often asking them directly through surveys or focus groups. The problem with that approach, according to some industry marketers, is that customers are too likely to tell you what you want to hear, rather than what you really need to know. Finding and implementing innovative ideas was one of the sessions at the annual Cornell Marketing Roundtable, held in May 2007, at the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration. Chaired by Lisa Klein Pearo, assistant professor of marketing, and sponsored by the Cornell Center for Hospitality Research, the Roundtable was attended by marketing leaders from the hospitality industry.
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Left to right: Scott Booker, vice president, customer marketing, Expedia, Inc., hotels.com; Ashwin Kamlani, vice president of distribution, Sol Melia Hotels & Resorts; and Chekitan Dev, associate professor, Cornell University School of Hotel Administration |
Examining the industry’s obsession with customer feedback, Howard J. Wolff, senior vice president, Wimberly Allison Tong & Goo (WATG), warned that companies can be steered in the wrong direction trying to listen to their customers, especially because customers typically say that they want faster, better, or cheaper and can't easily articulate what features and services they might love but haven't thought of. “Successful companies innovate not from what customers say, but what they don’t say,” said Wolff. The participants also concluded that most customer surveys are too long, failing to focus on action items.
Dean Michael Johnson, E.M. Statler Professor of Hotel Administration, chaired the Roundtable session that focused on customer service lessons learned from outside of the hospitality industry, particularly, retailing. Roundtable participants noted that the key to "borrowing" ideas from retailing is to understand how operations would need to be adjusted to make implementation feasible. The comparative complexity of hotel and restaurant operations makes it difficult to borrow ideas from retailers. In this regard, Ashwin Kamlani, vice president of distribution, Sol Melia Hotels & Resorts, gave the example of Wal-Mart's greeters. "They can focus entirely on assisting customers without other operational responsibilities," Kamlani said, noting that typically hotel employees have to juggle both.
A third session focused on defining “hospitality.” Definitions offered ranged from “creating transformational experiences,” as offered by John Hach, vice president, product management, eMarketing Solutions, TravelCLICK, to “distinguishing customer wants,” as suggested by Cindy Estis Green, managing partner, The Estis Group, as well as “doing unto others,” according to Kathy Misunas, founder, Essential Ideas. Regardless of where innovative ideas arise, Roundtable participants agreed that newly hired employees cannot be trained in hospitality. Instead, a person’s “hospitability” must be a criterion in the hiring process.
July 10, 2006: Second Annual Marketing Roundtable
Leading hospitality marketing executives and marketing professors at the Cornell Hotel School's second annual Hospitality Marketing Roundtable recently examined how to use technology to improve service and how strategic alliances can boost a hotel brand.
In one session, led by Professor Lisa Klein Pearo, participants addressed the impact of self-service technologies on guest satisfaction. Attendees agreed that one key to successful integration of self-service technology is segmenting the marketplace. One attendee held that some hotel customers might prefer an automated experience, while others, particularly in the luxury segment, would opt for a personal interaction.
In a bid to satisfy all segments, some hotels are trying to blend technology with personal service. Starwood, for example, has introduced what it calls the "universal service provider," a wired individual who attends to guest needs in a lobby with check-in kiosks. The panel agreed that as technology advances, companies must educate consumers on how to have a positive experience with the self-service technologies they offer.
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From left to right: Oral Muir, director of global eCommerce channels, Marriott International; Bill Carroll, senior lecturer, Cornell School of Hotel Administration; Victoria Starr, president, Starr Map Company LLC; and Donald Smith, vice president, hotels, SideStep, Inc. |
A second session focused on the growing practice of co-branding in hospitality. Citing as examples the alliances between Renaissance Hotels and Starbucks, Hilton and Neutrogena, and W Hotels and Bliss, Professor Robert Kwortnik described how co-branding is becoming a common practice, especially on the high end. Kwortnik stressed that one way to grow a brand is to differentiate it, which is what companies hope to achieve through co-branding. The key to a successful co-branding strategy, says Kwortnik, is for companies to link up with partners whose consumers are a natural fit for their brand. Once the partnership is established, he says, partners need to create a co-branding strategy and aggressively market to those consumers.
In another session, Professor Bill Carroll evaluated the benefits of dynamic packaging on the Internet. While research shows that few travelers make dining or shopping decisions before they arrive at their destination, the Internet may lead to a higher degree of pre-trip planning. In fact, it may be that when travelers book their hotel online, they will also book their meals, show tickets, spa packages, and tee times. Carroll said hotels could use such a tool to generate more revenue and enhance the guest experience.
August 3, 2005: First Annual Marketing Roundtable
Marketing executives from leading hospitality companies and marketing professors from the Cornell Hotel School gathered recently at the school to discuss the challenges they face in building and marketing their brands. This was the first Hospitality Marketing Roundtable held by the school's Center for Hospitality Research.
"We were pleased to host what was a spirited discussion on the subjects most important to marketing leaders as they seek to build and enhance their brands," said Lisa Klein Pearo, professor of marketing at the Hotel School, who chaired the event. "It was most productive to have faculty members and industry leaders together to share different perspectives and to learn from one another."
In a segment led by Professor Pearo, attendees discussed the evolution of the merchant model, online branding, and online consumer behavior. While there was much debate about the long-term viability of the merchant model, participants agreed that brands could benefit from treating these intermediaries as partners. One participant pointed out that allowing intermediaries to focus on the customers they can most easily reach and influence allows brands to pursue other market segments, and thereby maximize distribution.
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From left to right: John R. Hach, vice president of marketing and travel agent media product management, TravelCLICK; and Richard Hanks, chairman and president, Mindshare Technologies, Inc. |
In a discussion on branding led by Professor Chekitan Dev, participants agreed that a key to any strategy is making sure that employees understand the strategy and abide by it in their work. "Are there enough consumers who have the potential to be passionate about your brand, or should we be focusing on employee rather than consumer passion?" asked one attendee.
In a session led by Professors Rob Kwortnik and Gabe Piccoli on customer relationship management, attendees agreed that customer data can help providers respond to known guest needs. The point was made, however, that it is not yet clear that collecting data can be helpful in anticipating guest needs. On a related point, the group discussed the sometimes-invasive nature of data collection and the need to collect data in ways acceptable to the consumer.
"The roundtable was a welcome opportunity to step outside of our daily routines and discuss relevant issues and trends," said Thatcher G. Brown, executive director, brand marketing at Fairmont Hotels & Resorts.