Why Hotels Need Emerging Ad Tech Header
Emerging Technology comes in many different formats. It is used in robotics. It’s seen widely in nanotechnology. However, Artificial Intelligence is the emerging tech that is taking center stage. And while it’s no secret that Immersive Ad Technology helps translate into more innovative and organic ways to drive consumers to book accommodations, AI and Machine Learning are often at the core, helping brands get smarter about how to increase ad engagement and attract new customers. The hospitality industry has superseded other industries in their efforts to stay ahead of the booking game. In their “Travel Brilliantly” campaign, Marriott encouraged visitors to start Re-Imagining the Future of Travel using an Augmented Reality app to showcase new lobbies and tech-enabled work spaces that prospective visitors could access from their mobile devices. Patrons would scan the ad with their smartphone, triggering a video to load that describes the hotel chain’s latest innovations.
Robot
Hilton Hotels Worldwide has been leveraging an AI-driven concierge since 2016. The robot, Connie, greets guests, helps describe features of the hotel, makes dinner recommendations, and suggests other attractions on the property. As more questions are asked, the robot becomes smarter, offering more knowledge over time.  This type of machine learning is helping the top hotel chain nail their future marketing and advertising campaigns because of their accessibility to real-time consumer data.

But why are top 10 hotel enterprises taking steps like this

if sales are already through the roof?

They’re continuously expanding. Huge hotel chains like Hilton Worldwide, are adding luxury hotels to their menu of brands. They’re also building new “upscale hostels” and more boutique hotels in the near future. Like most enterprise level organizations, they are matching the needs of their consumers and scaling their brands to fit those needs. This is exactly what Immersive Technology aims to do. It solves problems within a diverse set of industries, matching the needs of both the business and the consumer, and provides solutions to becoming more efficient in their industry! That’s precisely why taking advantage of Emerging Ad Technologies, like AI Immersive Smart Ad units, is attractive to large corporations, who can easily slot them into their media plans. They are also cost effective (cheaper than video), and provide a unique interactive experience leveraging a new “device motion” feature that helps drive longer ad engagement and more time spent with a brand.

Travel brands want stronger engagement now, to drive repeat business in the future.  We all have our favorite hotels. Everytime you go to London, you want to stay at X hotel close to your favorite part of town. Or everytime you and your family travel to Palm Springs, your favorite resort is X.  Whether it’s because you have to be at the hotel with the lazy river for the kids, or you love that spa at your favorite five star, there’s a reason why you keep going back. But is there a way to shape the consumer’s decision during the planning process? Of course. The great thing about Emerging Ad Technology is that it drives top of funnel (building brand awareness), middle of funnel (inspiring more interactivity and interest) and bottom of funnel (testing and optimizing ad creative or messaging). With 10 times more ad real estate than a standard ad unit, smart immersive ads become more than just a new way to play with creatives or experiential marketing efforts. Advertising with emerging ad technology provides a personalized way to scale 1:1 brand to consumer engagement.  
Hotel Pool

Hotels want to stay ahead of the curve like their competitors. Thankfully, boutique and resort style hospitality brands are realizing they can also have a piece of the emerging ad tech pie.  Testing new media technologies usually comes at a free or reduced rate. This type of “try before you buy” demo for brands provides a low risk way to go to market–making it easy for a company of any size to adapt to scale. And of course, price points for new media technologies often align with current budgets for media plans, making the transition even that much sweeter.

Let’s put it another way: approximately ⅓ of all hotel guests are millennials. Can you imagine what this number will grow to in 2 years? As such, these guests expect personalized service ranging from being able to control their “smart” rooms, to requesting their fitness needs be met within their room. It would be silly not to leverage emerging ad technology to educate your customers, help them make timely reservations, and offer them great deals up front to simplify the sales funnel.  And if you can manage to do this in a way that captivates your audience immediately, you’ve won them over before the booking process even begins.
Hotel Room with Emerging Ad Technology
So it’s really up to you. Do you step up to the plate and start requesting demos for tools you can use right now? Or do you keep crafting influencer programs and basic advertising that shows little return? Creating a unique way to enhance digital global Marketing and Advertising efforts through interactive consumer engagement will be the key to success of immersive advertising within the hospitality industry.

Sources:

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-08-03/hilton-s-new-luxury-hotel-brand-is-a-ghost-of-blackstone-s-past

https://www.mobilemarketer.com/ex/mobilemarketer/cms/news/software-technology/16391.html