The Proven Principles Hospitality Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

Luca is the Co-founder and CEO of Jurny, an AI-driven hospitality platform that seamlessly automates operations and guest experiences through vertical integration and connectivity. This is a company that has taken the traditional property management system and flipped it on its head.

The hotel industry has never been accused of being tip of the spear when it comes to technology adoption, but today, things seem different.

After the pandemic trained people to do work remotely, tools that were not so commonly used 3 years ago are absolutely part of the mainstream today. Well, AI tools like ChatGPT and Google Bard are rapidly becoming integrated into everyday tools we all use and very soon, they will be impossible to ignore.

So this episode is a little different than others... We discuss Jurny’s product and how it’s different from other PMS providers, but ultimately we start to scratch the surface on AI and how it’s starting to affect the hospitality industry. 

It may be too soon to see the true implications on hospitality, but company’s like Jurny are at the forefront of its integration and one thing is certain, it’s here, so now we need to figure out how to make it work for us, our guests and our operations.

About Luca

Luca Zambello is the co-founder and CEO of Jurny, an AI-driven hospitality platform that seamlessly automates operations and guest experiences through vertical integration and connectivity.

As a former host and operator with more than 12 years of experience, Luca brings a wealth of hospitality knowledge. He is a renowned Forbes contributor for his expertise and industry acumen and has been featured in Entrepreneur, Bloomberg, Business Insider, and other publications.

Luca was recently chosen as an Advisory Board Member for Entertainment and Hospitality Management at California State University, Fullerton, where he also delivers lectures as a guest. Furthermore, he has received multiple awards and nominations in the hospitality field, including the Titan Award and the American Best in Business Awards. Most recently, he was listed as one of the top 10 Notable Entrepreneurs in Los Angles by LA Weekly.

Links

Website: https://www.jurny.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucazambello/

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Contact us to learn more: https://recreationstays.com/refer-a-friend/

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For past episodes, show notes or if you’ve got a story that might make a great episode, head over to theprovenprinciplespodcast.com. We’d love to hear from you.

You can subscribe to the show wherever you get your podcasts, even on YouTube... and if you haven’t already, don’t forget to leave us a rating and a review. 

Thanks for listening to The Proven Principles Hospitality Podcast.

Juliana is a content creator and copywriter specializing in writing for the hospitality and tourism industry. 

If you’ve ever been responsible for writing an email to a guest, promoting a new offering, or creating content for a website, this episode is for you. 

Like many, I’ve been frustrated with the process of creating content only to have it miss the mark. It’s no easy task to create content that gets your message across in an engaging way, but also compels someone to want more AND spend their money at your business. 

We’re talking about what effective copywriting means on this episode and it’s deeper than just putting words to paper. Juliana shares insights in to finding your target audience, what effective copy actually looks like and even touches on the rise of AI in guest communications.

And be sure to listen to the end because we cover some brands that are doing a great job who you may want to emulate in your own hotel.

About Juliana

Juliana Hahn is a content creator and copywriter specialized in writing for the hospitality and tourism industry. Before diving into the world of copywriting several years ago, she studied hotel management and worked in hotels around the globe. Today she leverages her industry experience to craft engaging content for hospitality tech companies, hotels and online publications. Recently she published her first eBook, Impactful Hotel Storytelling.

Links

Website: https://www.hospitality-copywriting.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/julianahahn/

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Thank you to SiteMinder for sponsoring this episode. They are the world’s leading hotel commerce platform that provides hoteliers like you with the tools you need to sell, market, manage and grow your hotel business, all from a single dashboard. 

To see how SiteMinder can help you and your hotel, AND get 6 months free with a 12 month contract, visit siteminder.com/principles.

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Do you know someone looking for a vacation rental management company?

If so, Recreation Vacation Rentals has got a referral program that you might be interested in! You can earn $1,000 for every referral you make to Recreation Vacation Rentals.

Contact us to learn more: https://recreationstays.com/refer-a-friend/

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For past episodes, show notes or if you’ve got a story that might make a great episode, head over to theprovenprinciplespodcast.com. We’d love to hear from you.

You can subscribe to the show wherever you get your podcasts, even on YouTube... and if you haven’t already, don’t forget to leave us a rating and a review. 

Thanks for listening to The Proven Principles Hospitality Podcast.

Mentioned in this episode:

SiteMinder

--- Thank you to SiteMinder for sponsoring this episode. They are the world’s leading hotel commerce platform that provides hoteliers like you with the tools you need to sell, market, manage and grow your hotel business, all from a single dashboard. To learn more about how SiteMinder can help your business succeed, visit https://www.siteminder.com/principles

SiteMinder

Thank you for listening and supporting the show for 100 episodes! Here's to 100 more!

Links

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-proven-principles-podcast/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theprovenprinciplespodcast

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theprovenprinciplespodcast

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For past episodes, show notes or if you’ve got a story that might make a great episode, head over to theprovenprinciplespodcast.com. We’d love to hear from you.

You can subscribe to the show wherever you get your podcasts, even on YouTube... and if you haven’t already, don’t forget to leave us a rating and a review. 

Thanks for listening to The Proven Principles Hospitality Podcast.

On this episode we talk to Casey Pearce, President of Contract Services Group, a commercial janitorial services company based in Southern California about cleaning during these times of COVID-19.

With cleanliness and sanitation at the forefront of everyone’s mind as we start to reopen our economy, Casey’s company offers a service that people will expect to see out in full force as part of our new normal.

We dive deep and talk about what his company is doing to stay ahead of the curve when it comes to providing cleaning services for hotels, office buildings, apartment buildings, and other places where people gather. Some of the items we discuss include:

• What's happening from a regulatory perspective that people need to be aware of.
• How the commercial cleaning industry is changing.
• How businesses can prepare to operate in these new times.
• The innovations that are expected to emerge
  

Resource Recommendation

• Building Service Contractors Association

About Casey

Casey’s career in the commercial cleaning industry started at the young age of 16 when he was responsible for washing the company vehicles and the weekly cleaning of a statue in front of a client’s building. Since that time, Casey has gained a wealth of knowledge and experience regarding every aspect of the business.

After graduating from the University of Nevada Las Vegas, with a Bachelor’s Degree in Communications , Casey’s primary focus was acquiring new business and growing the organization’s portfolio as a sales associate. He quickly realized that in order to sell new services and retain current customers he would have to learn everything he could about the cleaning business- operations, marketing, sales and relationship management.

Casey believes that his 20 years of experience and learning the business from the ground up gives him a unique understanding of the challenges and intricacies of maintaining facilities in the safest, most efficient way possible.
Even after being promoted to President in 2006, he still maintains the same philosophy of business that made him a successful sales associate. Casey is passionate about customer satisfaction and building a strong working relationship at each account. His hands-on approach differentiates CSG from its competitors. Casey is proud to be part of the dynamic leadership team of Contract Services Group- a company where “Excellence is not our goal. It’s our standard”.

Website: https://www.csgcares.com

LinkedIn: @caseypearce

knowinghospitality.com

On this episode Clarence McLeod, Director, Customer Experience at Silver Lining Marketing joins us to talk about how to navigate service delivery in this new age of social distancing and how returning to the fundamentals of anticipatory service will light the path ahead for businesses. Clarence has a wealth of knowledge and brings his real world experience to bare as he demonstrates tried and true methods of showing genuine care for people. He shows us how to adapt fundamentals like a welcoming smile for the new age of PPE covered faces and how a return to the basics will rebuild your foundation for success. A few of the topics we cover include: Anticipatory service Body language when typical visual cues are covered up by PPE Dealing with difficult situations Effective problem resolution Post experience engagement About Clarence Former Chef Concierge and Corporate Director of Fairmont Gold at Fairmont Hotels and Resorts. A leader in international hospitality operations, Clarence brings a touch of luxury to any industry he touches and helps them shine in delivering top-notch customer service. Clarence is an honorary member of Les Clefs d’Or Canada, and the only Guilded Butler in Canada. Clarence has been in service to celebrities, heads of state and royal families. In 2002 he served as Lead Aide de Campe for her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II's Jubilee visit to Winnipeg Manitoba, Canada. A recipient of many service-based accolades Clarence has been featured in Time Magazine, the L.A. and Washington Times, and The Globe and Mail. In addition, he has made appearances on CTV's The Social and an ITV British Service Documentary. Clarence strives to create memorable moments and is an adamant believer in Maya Angelou’s adage: "People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." LinkedIn: @ClarenceMcLeod A little more about Silver Lining Marketing Guided by the hallmarks of great hospitality, we take brands from relevant to remarkable by increasing their emotional connection with consumers. CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE TRAINING EXPERTS: Guided by the timeless principles of hospitality, our training programs enhance customer experience and create brand connections. DATA-DRIVEN: We analyze digital behaviour and industry trends to identify white space opportunities that expand market share and drive new avenues for profit. DISRUPTIVE & CLEVER: Our strategies are insights-led, clever, disruptive and profitable. PARTNERSHIP STRATEGISTS: We deliver and manage purposeful partnership strategies as a cost-effective way to extend brand reach. SALES MINDED: Our programs and strategies don’t live in an ivory tower. They are all created to increase revenue and improve the bottom line. Website: https://www.silverliningmarketing.ca knowinghospitality.com

On this episode we talk to Elizabeth Raines, Creative Director at EBR Graphic Design about branding.

This often misunderstood subject can be a huge challenge for businesses, with many not knowing where to start or how to clean up a poorly executed project.

We dive deep and discuss what people truly need to know when branding a business and common pitfalls that result in bad design, why it’s best to seek out the help of a dedicated designer rather than trying to do it in house and the value proposition that an outside designer brings when developing a logo or other company collateral. We also talked about what to look for when trying to find the right person to guide a company through the branding process and how organizations large and small can tell their story through well thought out branding and design.

• About branding a business? (6:42)
  
• What types of collateral should be considered (9:45)
  
• What are you buying when you outsource branding and design? (14:53)
  
• What makes for good/bad branding and design? (16:25)
  
• What is the typical process for developing a brand story? (18:02)
  
• How can companies ensure continuity of messaging, especially with multiple locations? (20:46)
  
• What are “Brand Guidelines”? (23:00)
  

Book Recommendation

• Designing Brand Identify by Alina Wheeler
  

A little more about Elizabeth

Elizabeth Baizer Raines is a graphic designer by trade and creative director for her business, EBR Graphic Design, a strategic creative design firm, with emphasis on holding true to what she considers “good design values.” With a start at Rhode Island School of Design, she has practiced for over 20 years in both her home city of San Francisco and her current home: Dallas, Texas. Throughout her career, she’s had a variety of significant and meaningful projects including those for boutique hotels, luxury retailers (such as Neiman Marcus), beauty retailers (such as Sephora and Mary Kay), and nonprofits (projects for world-class museums and highly sought-after civic projects, such as Dallas’ Trinity River brand, logo, and wayfinding). Her expertise in graphic design includes branding, corporate identity, advertising design, digital & traditional media, and environmental graphic design (including: signage and wayfinding).

Website: www.ebrgraphicdesign.com/

Instagram: @ebrgraphicdesign/

LinkedIn: @elizabethbaizerraines/

https://knowinghospitality.com

In this fantastic and info packed episode with Theresa Ito, Principal at Blue Mountain Solutions shares how to create a thriving internal culture of support and training, the importance of self-driven professional development, setting new leaders up for success, what successful companies do to drive an organizational culture of development and how to keep it alive when the “culture keepers” move on.

It’s filled with tactical and actionable steps you can take today to make a difference in the organizational culture of your company.

A little about Theresa Ito, Principle at Blue Mountain Solutions

Theresa Ito is passionate about people, having worked in hospitality internationally for over 30 years, she loves nothing better than being part of people’s growth.

And that is why she has been successful with her company Blue Mountain Solutions, developing leaders and teams.During her illustrious career in hospitality, Theresa has successfully led teams in iconic brands including Fairmont Hotels, Le Meridien, Sandals Resorts and Hilton International.

Theresa is a qualified certified facilitator for "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People" and was an instructor at Royal Roads University. Now based in beautiful Vancouver Island, she enjoys servicing a host of local and international clientele, assisting them to thrive in hospitality.

Theresa is energetic and her training is always filled with industry best practices, useful anecdotes and a dose of humor 😊

Website: www.bluemountain.solutions

Instagram: @bluemountainsolutions

Facebook: @Theresa.Blue.Mountain.Solutions

https://knowinghospitality.com

Financial acumen and financial leadership are critical to anyone trying to advance in their career. On this episode, David Lund, The Hotel Financial Coach, takes us through the details of financial leadership, the importance of creating an environment that celebrates learning and growing financial skills and how financial acumen benefits all aspects of life. He also makes a generous offer to our listeners at the end of the show…

A little about David Lund, The Hotel Financial Coach

David Lund is a hospitality financial leadership pioneer who has branded himself “The Hotel Financial Coach.” Just as any great hotel is true to their brand, so is David. His client commitment is about exceptional service. And his #1 focus is to help his clients be more prosperous as individuals or teams.

David’s background includes over 30 years as a Regional Controller, Corporate Financial Director, Hotel Manager and Controller throughout North America at multiple locations.

His services include Financial Leadership Workshops, Personalized 1:1 Financial Leadership Coaching, Professional Speaking, Financial Statement Design, Financial System Design, Policy Manual Creation and Hotel Financial Consulting.

David has a weekly blog that he publishes on his website https://hotelfinancialcoach.com as well as an online training course at https://www.ahla.ca/financial-leadership-david-lund/

Check out his blog and media pages for more: https://hotelfinancialcoach.com/blog/ or email him at david@hotelfinancialcoach.com

https://knowinghospitality.com

Whether it’s to drive customer loyalty, increase sales or improve online reviews, connecting with customers on a more personal level is something that most businesses strive for but most don’t know how or where to start when elevating their service levels.

This show gets in to the weeds and pulls out actionable and sustainable practices you can use right away to train your staff and optimize your operation for better service.

In the show we discuss:

• Understanding emotional triggers along your customer journey
• Focusing employee training on being curious about your customer
• Empathy
• Having a higher level self awareness
• How to optimize the workday for each position so nothing falls through the cracks

https://knowinghospitality.com

On this episode we discuss why you need a customer review strategy. Be it TripAdvisor, Google Reviews, Yelp, OTA reviews, or any of the other countless platforms out there, understanding how your customers interact with and experience your business and how you respond is vital to your success. This is why reviews are so useful… because they give you intel you may not normally have.

https://knowinghospitality.com