Hilton understands the true conundrum of running a hotel business: Customer preferences will always change faster than the market can react. That is why the company has invested throughout the customer experience, from booking to loyalty partnerships, to keep guests happy.
Cvent continues to stay on the forefront of new digital technology for meetings and events, but it still faces difficulties in user experience. At Cvent Connect last week, the company spoke about how it can use its new features to improve usability, as well as more long-term plans to get at the heart of the issue.
The concept of bleisure has gained increasing popularity over the past few years, but time remains an issue for travelers. Attendees want to do more than pass through a destination, and event hosts can go a long way in making that happen.
Event attendees need places to work, decompress, and put their food down. As obvious as it sounds, these spaces can be hard to find at conferences due to poor venue design. Not only does this have a negative impact on guest mood, it can also lead to more food waste.
Apps are a great way to provide event attendees with information, but they can easily get overwhelming. When it comes to tech, event organizers need to weigh pluses and minuses between depth and simplicity.
Hotel operators need to invest in new concepts to stand out as sites for meetings and business conferences. Hilton thinks its new ideas will resonate with franchisees, but time will tell if they are willing to make the investment.
Hotel companies are always looking for the next big trend. It's pretty hard to ignore business travelers' desire to meet in refreshed spaces and get some work done outside the guest room.
Millennials are starting to step into management positions at event companies, easing the way toward more sustainable events. But the industry still has a long way to go.