When a new team member joins SnapShot, our training includes educating new colleagues on the major concepts and terminology of our corner of the industry. Whether we came from the hospitality industry or from the tech space, there's always something new to learn. Afterall, we're an industry that is certainly well-versed in acronyms, complex business terminology, and quickly evolving technology. 

The most challenging part of the learning process is often in developing a comprehensive overview of the Hotel Tech space. Who are the players and in which areas do they specialize? What software and technology solutions are out there? What are key terms I should know so I can keep up with the hot industry trends of the moment? 

We're in the information age. There's no doubt about it. Yet, with all this data supposedly flying around us, it's hard to know just what to do with it. Even if your PMS is collecting all the right stats, you're on top of your web traffic and social media interactions, and you know what your comp set is up to, it can be hard to understand how to actually read the data. What does it mean? And more importantly how can you use it to make better decisions? 

It's an unfortunate truth that hotels are sometimes behind the curve when it comes to adopting the latest techology. This makes sense, as hoteliers are first and foremost focused on the human side of the business: taking care of guests. After all, it is called the hospitality industry. In the end, this delayed adoption of new tools can work in favor of hoteliers, as new tech is tested by other more adventurous users before being adopted by the wider hospitality industry. Yet, hoteliers who wait too long miss out on innovative new ways to increase guest satisfaction and revenue.