Data Analytics of Yesteryear: What Is New Is Old

Many of us go on big trips to celebrate milestones in our lives – birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, graduations, retirements.

My husband, Bob, and I were no different. Our trip to Boston celebrating my birthday over the 4th of July to experience the magnificent Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular and sail on the USS Constitution inaugural harbor sailing that marked her restoration. Our trip to Scotland – the birthplace of golf – celebrating his birthday to play the venerable Old Course, The King’s Course at Gleneagles, Royal Troon, and Turnberry (my personal favorite).

And every fifth anniversary, we would search travel sites to find a special place to mark the milestone, excitingly making reservations, packing our bags, boarding a plane, and heading somewhere memorable too. From riding the three-stage cable car up the Titlis mountain in Switzerland to climbing the Uluru (i) (also known as Ayers Rock) near the center of Australia, the words that legendary vocalist, Dean Martin, made famous came to life for us – Memories are made of this.(ii)

One of our anniversary trips took us to, what was then, still the Soviet Union. (iii) From the Cathedral of Vasily the Blessed (known in English as Saint Basil’s Cathedral), with its flame-shaped roofs which are said to be based on the colors describing heaven in the Book of Revelation, to the majesty of The Winter Palace in St. Petersburg, home to the world-famous Hermitage Museum, our time there was a perfect way to celebrate our life together. Even the overnight train from Moscow to St. Petersburg, with its bunk-styled beds, its definition of a bath towel (akin to we think of as a face towel), and its bumpy ride over uneven tracks was a testament to the adventure of our celebratory anniversary trip.

On our way home, we decided to relax with a long weekend in London. Deplaning our Aeroflot plane and finding our bags, we hailed a hackney and were off to our historic boutique hotel. As we pulled up to the front of the hotel, the door attendant walked over, opened the door, and in his very British voice, said, Dr. Knutson, Mr. Knutson, welcome to your home while you are in London. We trust your trip to the Soviet Union was pleasant.

Huh! How did he know who we were, or where we had been? We did not have name tags on us. Our bags had not been unloaded yet so he could not have seen our luggage tags. We were not even wearing logoed sweatshirts or jackets. And this was before the days of social media, of online reservations, of artificial intelligence, and of data analytics as we think about it today.

Come to find out, it was a telephone call.

All our reservations were made by our travel agent (who I still use today). So the hotel manager simply made an overseas call, learned our itinerary, and our flight information. He knew approximately how long it would take us to retrieve our luggage, hail a hackney, and get to the hotel at that given time of the day. And they made an educated guess that we were the Knutsons.

Welcome to Data Analytics of yesteryear. What is New is Old.

But analyzing data is much older than “yesteryear.” In fact, the ancient Egyptians kept detailed records on papyri as spreadsheets and checklist to help them manage the workforce and resources efficiently. They also managed to transport massive blocks of limestone and granite across the desert and lay them with precision. This required data analysis to ensure that each block was placed correctly to maintain the pyramid’s shape and stability. Their masterful use of data analytics to construct the pyramids – including the Great Pyramid of Giza – is still admired today and reflects their expanded understanding of mathematics and organization skills.

In the 19th Century, Frederick Winslow Taylor, often referred to as the father of scientific management, used data analytics to advance the understanding of time management. This understanding led to increased productivity and efficiency, giving rise to time studies and industrial engineering. And we all learned about how Henry Ford broke down the assembly of a car into precise, repeatable steps and introduced the moving assembly line in 1913. This breakthrough in manufacturing efficiency reduced the production time of a single vehicle from over 12 hours to about 90 minutes.

Modern data analytics began to take shape in the business world with the advent of computers in the mid-20th Century. Simultaneously, the development of databases in the 1906s and 1970s took a giant leap forward, which enabled organizations to digitally develop, store, organize, and manage large amounts of information. These two movements led to more tools that enabled organizations to make data-driven decisions.

Fast forward to today as two factors are impacting hotels in tandem. First, the volume of human knowledge being generated is estimated to double every 12 hours. In 1945, the doubling rate was 25 years. What your college interns learn in their freshman year is out of date by the time they become juniors. What and how you train, pay, and reward your staff today will need to be revised within two years. And what your guests want – make that require – today will not be what they expect by the time you start working on your next strategic plan. Second, the speed with which technology is progressing is upending careers in the hotel industry, transforming lives of employees and guests, and totally disrupting “the way it used to be.” The growth of hotel intelligence has significantly evolved with the development of big data, data warehouses, cloud computing, along with newfound software and hardware. It will continue to do so.

Data analytics is both a field and a discipline. It incorporates techniques and processes from mathematics, statistics, and computer science. Its value to your hotel lies in how it can quickly apply statistical analyses and technologies to data so that your can spot trends, see patterns, identify opportunities, and solve problems that can help your hotel. Because it can do so much, the thought of starting down the data analytic road can be daunting. So before you start down that analytical road, be sure you answer these three questions. They will keep you on the right road. They do me.

1. What Are You Going to Do With The Information

For example, what decisions will you be making with the information? Will you be launching a new media campaign? Is your restaurant getting a little outdated and in need of an update and revised menu? How can employee-facing technology (modern interfaces with gamification, user directed, and cloud-based apps) help in attracting and keeping a great service staff? Each of these questions will require different data sets and analytical tools.

2. What Information Do You Need to Make The Decision?

For instance, to measure the success of your upcoming media campaign, you can leverage several internal data sources. Metrics such as traffic on your website, click-through rates, and social media interactions can indicate how engaging the campaign is for potential guests. Comparing changes in occupancy and revenues before, during and after the campaign can translate raw data into actionable insights. Analyzing guest feedback from online reviews and surveys, you will gain insights into the campaign’s reception and possible areas for improvement.

If you are thinking about revising the restaurant, Menu Engineering can be particularly useful. And, of course, collecting and analyzing all forms of customer reviews will provide additional data points to analyze specific dishes as well as the overall dining experience.

To help you decide whether to adopt employee-facing technology, you can go to various external databases and resources that offer insights into technology, trends, employee satisfaction, and industry benchmarks. These might include comprehensive reports like The Current State of Technology in Hotels, meta-analyses and research articles on technology adoption among hospitality employees that are published in academic journals, and the surveys conducted by hospitality associations and/or consulting firms.

3. Where Do You Get The Information You Want/Need?

The answer to this question will help direct you to the most useful data sets and analytical programs. As shown in the previous question, some may be internal to your hotel; others may require outside consumer data (primary or secondary), and still others may come from government, industry, or association databases. A feature I always look for in data analytical programs is whether its output can be shown in a visual or pictorial way. If you have ever stared at a massive spreadsheet of data but could not see a trend or a pattern, you know how much more effective a visualization can be. As the old saying goes, One picture is worth a thousand words.

Without endorsing any program, these three can help transform complex data sets into more visually understandable formats, helping in better analysis and decision-making: [1] Tableau, known for its ability to handle large amounts of data and its user-friendly interface; [2] Power BI enables users to connect to various data sources, simplify data preparation, and drive ad hoc analysis; [3] Google Charts offers a variety of chart types and is integrated into Google’s ecosystem, making it easily accessible if you are also part of its ecosystem.

The utilization of data analysis in hotels is invaluable, transforming raw data into strategic insights that will drive informed decision-making. By leveraging data analytics, you will have a clearer understanding of guest preferences, market trends, and operational efficiencies. This can lead to more personalized guest experiences, improved revenue management, and give your brand a stronger competitive advantage. Ultimately, the integration of data analytics into your hotel operations is not just a trend; it is a pivotal element that can significantly improve service delivery, guest satisfaction and profitability.

Your REVPAR will thank you!

(i) Climbing the Uluru is no longer allowed. It was banned in 2019 as it is sacred to the local Anangu people.

(ii) Written in 1955 by Terry Gilkyson, Richard Dehr, and Frank Miller, members of a three-piece back-up band for Dean Martin.

(iii) On December 25, 1991, the Soviet hammer and sickle flag was lowered over the Kremlin and replaced by the Russian tricolor

Reprinted from the Hotel Business Review with permission from http://www.hotelexecutive.com/.