As the hospitality sector continues to rebound, many larger hoteliers are investing in international growth and expansion opportunities.
Read any hotel trade magazine and you will see a wide range of international expansion stories, such as Hilton seeking new opportunities in Malaysia and Marriott International’s plans to open its first hotel in Bosnia and Herzegovin.
Driving much of this expansion is the flow of investment dollars. According to Jones Lang of LaSalle’s Hotels & Hospitality Group, hotel investment volumes across Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) reached €8.2 billion September YTD 2013, a 53 percent growth compared to the same time last year.
“Q3 reported the strongest quarterly growth so far this year, with transaction volumes up almost 70 percent compared to the same quarter in 2012,” according to Jonathan Hubbard, CEO Northern Europe, Hotels & Hospitality Group.
As hotels expand their portfolios internationally, this is the ideal time to ensure that the right technologies are being implemented to help create brand loyalty in these new regions. Although hotels need to know and understand the local market, its culture and what it has to offer, the right innovations – from a frictionless guest experience to mobility – can serve as a true brand differentiator in these new regions.
By offering guests high-touch services, combined with strong personalization to guests in both the social and mobile environments, hotels have the opportunity to establish deeper connections with guests in any location around the planet.
With travel budgets expected to increase across the board, hotel brands will have more opportunities than ever to gain guest loyalty – not just in the U.S., but also across the globe.