Hotel Mobile News for Marriott and Four Seasons

A couple of posts in a similar vein came on to my radar today and are worth reading.

First up is more news on Marriott that continues to make waves in mobile this time with Netflix:

https://www.yahoo.com/tech/s/marriott-offer-netflix-access-hotels-121124765--finance.html?src=rss

Here is a snippet from that piece:

Select hotels will allow guests to use Netflix by signing into their existing accounts through the Netflix app on the Internet-connected televisions. Guests can also sign up for a new subscription if they don't already have one.

Next up is Four Season taking mobile to the luxury market globally:

http://www.luxurydaily.com/four-seasons-makes-up-lost-mobile-ground-through-global-app/

Here is a snippet from that piece:

Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts is encompassing the entire consumer journey in its long-awaited, portfolio-wide mobile application.

From bookings to in-room requests, the app rapidly changes how Four Seasons guests will use mobile. The luxury hotel sector is not known for mobile mastery, so the new app propels Four Seasons to among the top in the field.

Hotels and mobile.  A good fit.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Marriott Hotels and Mobile

Excellent write-up available today through Mobile Marketer that talks a lot about what Marriott is doing in mobile.  Well worth the read for a "state of the industry" piece.

http://www.mobilemarketer.com/cms/news/software-technology/20608.preview

Here is a snippet from that piece:

Marriott International has become a mobile leader by taking the time to think about the customer experience at a hotel and finding ways to simplify it, but needs to improve an inconsistent user experience, Mobile Marketer’s analysis shows.

The hospitality brand has introduced many mobile features in recent years, including keyless check-in, which allows consumers to skip the check-in at the registration desk and unlock hotel room doors with their phones. Although its app has a low Apple app store rating, Marriott, with about 4,100 properties in 80 nations, is a model for hotel brands that are working to shift bookings back to their own court as consumers gravitate toward online travel agencies such as Priceline and Expedia.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Mobile News from Marriott

One million check-ins through mobile since it was released 2 years ago.

Wow!

Marriott is proving to be a leader in mobile for their vertical.  Very impressive milestone, and I believe there is much more on the way.

Here is a little story on that:

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/marriott-celebrates-1m-mobile-check-ins-with-rewards-points-sweepstakes

Here is a snippet from that piece:

Mobile is transforming the hotel check-in experience, with 1 million Marriott International customers having checked in to their rooms on their mobile devices since the option was introduced nearly two years ago.

Marriott International is celebrating the accomplishment with a sweepstakes across its brands giving Marriott Rewards members who use mobile check-in a chance to win a share of millions of rewards points. Mobile check-in is still a relatively new offering, but it has quickly been embraced by a number of hotel chains including La Quinta and Hilton in addition to Marriott.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

Best Reading of the Day - Entry 0159 Marriott Mobile

Marriott hotels has been doing some very fun things in mobile with much more planned in the future.  The folks over at Mobile Commerce Daily have an excellent write-up:

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/marriott-seeks-mobile-contextual-moments-that-matter

Here is a snippet from that piece:

A Marriott International executive at the Mobile Shopping Summit 2014 said that figuring out what are the right contextual moments on mobile to engage with customers is a big lesson that needs to learned.

During the panel discussion, “From First Click To Last Click- Overcoming The Disconnect Between Discovery And Purchase,” executives from Marriott, Staples, Swrve and ZineOne touched on how to drive ongoing engagement with mobile users.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

MS Windows 10, Beacons, PayPal, and the New York Times

Quite a few pieces of news.

First is word on the next iteration of Windows, dubbed "Windows 10" by Microsoft recently (yes they jumped from Windows 7 to 8 to ... 10).  I'm on record saying Microsoft badly handled the advent of tablets with Windows 8, leaving desktop users and the Enterprise out of consideration.  Here is a good article on Windows 10:

https://www.yahoo.com/tech/windows-10-undoes-the-disaster-of-windows-8-mostly-98835840904.html?src=rss

Next is news on eBay spinning off PayPal.  Looks like the move to integrate PayPal with Samsung TouchID technology spurred Apple to kick PayPal out of Apple Pay.  The NYT is stating Apple Pay is changing retail permanently.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/01/technology/apple-pay-signals-new-era-at-cash-register.html

Beacons are in the news again in a few ways.

Beacons deliver for Marriott Hotels:

http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/235116/beacons-deliver-local-perks-at-marriott.html?edition=76551

Shopkick is acquired:

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/shopkick-acquired-amid-growing-importance-for-beacon-enabled-shopping

Macy's doing much more than just Beacons:

http://risnews.edgl.com/retail-news/Macy-s-Rollout-Goes-Beyond-Beacons95568

Facebook has added the ability to purchase items directly from your news feed.  As someone who cut back to weekly or monthly visits to Facebook I view this as one more bad idea from Facebook.

http://www.mobilepaymentsinsider.com/2014/09/26/facebook-adds-buy-button-to-news-feed/

Finally is a bit about the continuing problems traditional printed news is having. The New York Times is laying off staff to cut costs.

http://recode.net/2014/10/01/the-new-york-times-app-plan-isnt-working-so-its-laying-off-staff/

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant

More Beacon News and Mobile Usage Data

A bit of news around iBeacons/Beacons or Bluetooth Low Energy.

For mobile payments:

http://www.digitaltransactions.net/news/story/How-Bluetooth-Beacons-Are-Central-to-GoPago-And-Slyde-Mobile-Payment-And-Offers-App

For Marriott:

http://www.mobilecommercedaily.com/marriott-expands-mobile-platform-to-integrate-with-ibeacons

Next up is some mobile usage data that won't surprise anyone.  People are increasingly reliant on their smart phones for their in-store experience:

http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/229888/mobile-apps-used-in-store-to-confirm-or-find-alter.html?edition=74407

Here is a snippet from that piece:

According to the CFI Group’s Retail Satisfaction Barometer, the use of mobile applications for shopping purposes doubled in the past year, with 41% of consumers actively using mobile apps to hunt for information while shopping. Mobile provides an additional channel for shoppers looking for the most convenient avenue to purchase relative to their lifestyle. Furthermore, the study found that checkout is the most impactful driver of the customer experience.

The information in that study on the impact of mobile may be the most interesting.  We are seeing a huge impact across the board, from channel to channel, by mobile usage.

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant