🤩 Radisson Launches Influencer Marketplace

AI now answers the question before your hotel’s website loads. Cendyn’s new report Generative Engine Optimization: A New Frontier for Search Visibility highlights how AI-generated responses are driving a sharp rise in zero-click searches where users get their answers without visiting a single page. If your hotel’s content isn’t structured and cited properly, it won’t make the cut.

This isn’t a tweak to SEO it’s a shift in how search visibility works. GEO is your competitive edge in the AI-first era.

👉 Get the GEO strategy guide from Cendyn and learn how to future-proof your hotel’s digital presence

A new report from The Josh Bersin Company shows that front-line workers—who make up 70% of the U.S. workforce—are increasingly difficult to retain. According to the study, 75% feel burned out, and 51% say they “feel like a number, not a person.” Particularly in hospitality, where turnover and burnout can directly impact guest service, brand reputation, and operational costs, it’s important to solve these challenges.

🎯 Why it matters: For hotels, front-line roles aren’t just labor. They’re the frontline of guest experience. If these workers feel disconnected, unrecognized, and overworked, it hits service levels, employee morale, and ultimately, guest satisfaction. With traditional HR systems often built for office workers, there’s a growing mismatch between how front-line staff operate and how they're supported by HR technology.

🔑 Key takeaway: Hotel leaders should lean into technology not just to automate, but to engage and retain front-line talent. A modern tech stack that supports scheduling flexibility, mobile training, and self-service HR will make these roles more attractive to candidates and more sustainable for employees. Positioning digital tools as a benefit, not just a utility, can help you win the labor battle and build a more stable, motivated workforce. Read More →

A new analysis maps out 24 real-world AI applications across the full traveler lifecycle — from inspiration and planning to ground transport, booking, and post-trip loyalty. AI isn’t just helping users plan trips; tools like Mindtrip (creator-driven planning), Expedia’s Instagram trip matching, and Google Maps’ screenshot-based itineraries show how deeply the technology is embedding itself into inspired and conversational travel.

🎯 Why it matters: For hotel operators, this means the guest journey is being “agent-ified.” Travelers may soon rely more on AI agents (not traditional OTAs or direct websites) to inspire, plan, and book stays. The places your property shows up, and the booking paths it supports, must therefore be optimized for AI-driven discovery if you want to remain relevant.

🔑 Key takeaway: Hotels must prepare to surface in AI-native channels, not just conventional search and OTAs. That means ensuring your data (inventory, rates, amenities) is structured and machine-readable, and building partnerships or tech readiness for integration with these AI tools. In the emerging travel ecosystem, visibility through AI agents may become just as important as your direct site. Read More →

Radisson debuted their new “Creator Hub,” a platform that connects “nano” social creators (1,000–30,000 followers) with its global portfolio of hotels in exchange for stays, not cash. In return, these creators produce authentic, brand-aligned content that emphasizes Radisson’s pillars of design, wellbeing, local culture, and gastronomy. The program includes VIP perks through Radisson Rewards (i.e. upgrades, early check-in) and gamified incentives to encourage consistent, high-quality storytelling.

🎯 Why it matters: This initiative signals a strategic evolution in how hotels generate marketing content. Rather than relying solely on polished, paid influencer campaigns, Radisson aims to tap into a more community-driven, authentic model that can scale across their portfolio. For hotels, that means more on-brand, evergreen content tailored to real traveler experiences, not just what sells on paper.

🔑 Key takeaway: Hotel executives should evaluate how to make storytelling a two-way street. Integrating a creator-driven content model gives hotels a pipeline of fresh, social-native visuals and narratives without always paying top-dollar. Brands that lean into these emerging voices (not just mega-influencers) stand to build deeper engagement, stay relevant with younger travelers, and maintain a competitive content edge in a crowded digital space. Read More →

✅ Cendyn: Digital marketing partner that helps boost AI visibility with GEO-driven content strategy

✅ Cloudbeds: All-in-one hotel management software at the speed of AI.

✅ Hapi: Fix messy guest data to personalize stays and boost bookings.

✅ Tripleseat: Manage hotel group bookings, catering and event sales with AI.

✅ Canary Technologies: Powerful but simple AI powered digital guest journey platform.

✅ Actabl: Turn powerful BI data into actionable insights that maximize profits.

✅ Clickmaint: Simplify maintenance tasks with user-friendly software for hotel operations.

✅ ROH: Automate sales and finance to save time and capture more revenue.

✅ Vouchercart: Turn gift vouchers into prepaid revenue across rooms, dining, and spa.

✅ Plusgrade: Unlock new revenue by automating targeted guest upgrade offers.

✅ Entryready: Assign secure mobile and staff keys, cut lost keys and delays.

🧠 Anthropic thwarted a recent AI cyber attack, ringing alarm bells about new types of cybersecurity threats.

🌐 A major Cloudflare outage knocked key platforms offline, exposing internet infrastructure risks.

📈 Hotel Q3 results show mixed earnings trends as margins tighten despite resilient demand.

✈️ Cost concerns push companies to optimize travel amid airfare increases and tighter budgets.

🎯 Target puts its next store inside ChatGPT, a first for retail

🥗 Sweetgreen launches a drive-thru powered by an automated kitchen to speed service and cut labor needs.

📊 Hotels are rethinking guest journeys using insights from the new Mews report on AI-driven transformation.

🏨 Mandarin Oriental’s CEO says luxury relies on human connection over algorithms despite rising tech adoption.

🛒 Airbnb partners with Instacart to pilot a pre-arrival kitchen-stocking service.

🗺️ Boop’s new app turns social tips into bookable itineraries for seamless planning.

📅 Google is rolling out agentic travel planning that generates personalized trip options instantly.

📉 Trip.com saw strong Q3 results fueled by rising international demand across key markets.

🤖 Hotels boost profitability with widespread AI automation across labor and operations.

💸 UK hoteliers warn a proposed hotel tax increase could pressure operators already facing rising costs.

📉 CoStar downgraded its outlook as U.S. hotel performance softens amid broader economic headwinds.

🌆 Singapore unveiled a long-term vision to become the leading MICE city by 2040 through major infrastructure and events investment.

What happens when the Chief Commercial Officer of the world’s largest hotel franchisor rethinks the entire guest-to-tech relationship? In this episode, Wyndham CCO Scott Strickland reveals how a single global tech stack, empathetic AI, and vendor co-development are quietly reshaping hotel operations at a scale few brands on earth can match.

Key Takeaways:

👉🏼 Check out the interview on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

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