This is still relatively new technology, so there is always something new to uncover. It's an exciting technology because it allows all businesses to compete and open up their customer base. This is especially true in the hotel industry, which is what I hope to demonstrate in this paper. .
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II. MICHELANGELO HOTEL - Introduction to Hotel/ Internet Strategy.
The Michelangelo Hotel is a small luxury hotel in the heart of Manhattan. With a .
great location on 7th avenue, right at the end of Times Square, you"d think it be easy to bring in new business. While corporate business remains strong, we still know that we needed a stronger presence on the web. The Michelangelo only has 178 sleeping rooms, 2 boardrooms and a small meeting room. They are not part of any national chain such as the Hilton or Sheraton and the only other hotels in their family are in Italy. Since they are not part of any recognizable chain, advertising can be a challenge because funds are not as readily available for large-scale advertising. The Michelangelo has to be creative in its" ventures and get the most for its" money.
The director of Sales & Marketing at the hotel has been here for just over 5 years. Prior to her arrival, they had little if any presence at all on the Internet and corporate and group business was almost non-existent. With her marketing background, she knew things had to change if the hotel was to be successful in years to come. With the help of a company called Hotel Internet Strategies, things were off and running. Since the property does no advertising on TV, radio or newspapers, they were prepared to dive into Internet marketing, yet they still wanted to be cautious with their dollars.
One of the upsides of Internet marketing is that you can spend a relatively small amount as far as advertising costs go and yet you can get your name and recognition out to thousands of people.