Our Hospitality Stories – The Future is Digital

The future is digital, and Alpin Resort Hotel concentrates all its forces to develop and grow linearly on social platforms and in the online environment.

Alex is the main person responsible for growing the online image and maintaining the Alpin brand identity.

In this article, we will present the challenges he faces daily to respond to each guest in the online environment, but also the area of ​​creativity with which he expands his innovation horizons in this environment.

Alex’s story in the hospitality sector began 2 years ago, after he launched his own business in the “Digital Marketing” sector.

A few weeks after starting his activity, Alex started collaborating with a giant brand in the hospitality industry, Alpin Resort Hotel.

More precisely, he took over the coordination of the digital services of the Alpin brand, with the arrival of the unexpected crisis on the international business market, caused by the COVID-19 virus.

It was a harsh period and hard to overcome for most businesses, on a global scale, the hospitality industry remaining among the most affected economic sectors.

A few weeks away from the general quarantine and the closing of all businesses in the field, Alex put together online marketing strategies to be closer to all those who, due to the restrictions, could no longer step on the threshold of the much-loved Alpin Hotel.

Therefore, he took over the position of CDO (Chief Digital & Marketing Officer) and started developing campaigns aimed to attract as many guests as possible and make them loyal to the brand.

The beginnings, as he told me, were full of unexpected things (not necessarily in a negative connotation), but, being new in the luxury hospitality environment, there were serious challenges that he had to face.

One of the biggest challenges he experienced was caused by the huge flow of guests that passed through the hotel’s door each year. He had to constantly think about offers, promotion strategies and visual illustrations that will attract a large audience of visitors, both new and returning guests.

-“What were the expectations of the market, what did people want after the reopening of the hotel? Benefits, promotional discounts…?” (Blogger)

-“It is very difficult to figure out what the guests expect from you, however, many appreciated the promotional discounts offered for accommodation and the various facilities. With the reopening of the hotel’s doors, we launched the most attractive offers found in the luxury hospitality area on the market.” (Alex, CDO)

-“There are challenges that we face daily, the satisfaction of demands does not always take into account the conditions, services and facilities that you offer! That’s why we try to do a complex analysis of the market before coming out with any type of offer.” (Alex, CDO)

-“All our offers are segmented for all types of budgets, we propose complex packages but also a variety of facilities, designed to delight and satisfy the tastes of the most demanding guests.” (Alex, CDO)

Alex believes that the future is digital, as long as you have an impeccable & easy-to-read distributed content, any consumer will be delighted to “engage” with your advertising campaign.

He goes by the slogan “If we assume that content is synonymous with fire, then Social Media is gasoline” (inspired by Jay Baer’s quote).

He also believes that any type of B2C (Business to Consumer) interaction is impossible without having an identity, status and image of the brand presented online to the smallest detail.

-“The details make the difference, that’s why we focus on offering small gifts or extra facilities through each campaign. The voice of our guests is the most important! (Alex, CDO)

-“Two summers ago, we listened to the ideas of all the guests (those who wanted to state them at check-out) and we created a campaign through which we chose the best upgrade ideas for the hotel (for all the guests to enjoy) …the ideas turned into projects, which then turned into reality… the “Gatsby” terrace and pool were later appreciated and are still loved by countless guests of the complex.

The wonderful guests who suggested this project to us were invited to the Hotel, for a relaxing stay, where they fully enjoyed the comfort, hospitality of the house and our surprises, as the innovation started from their idea.” (Alex, CDO)

-” We will repeat this type of campaign, considering that the most important feeling a guest can have is to see that his “voice” really matters!” (Alex, CDO)

After Alex explained to us what role he has in transmitting information to clients and generating new weekly marketing campaigns, we wanted to find out what his daily activity is.

-“I start my day by allocating an hour for brainstorming with the managers from the other departments, reflecting on the objectives they want to achieve that day and thinking of an option through which we will be able to present and promote their work to clients, through an online campaign.” (Alex, CDO)

He also explains to us how important the close connection with the rest of the team is:

-“They can help you reach your goal more easily. We all have the same common denominator, for example, any campaign must include all the services and facilities we offer, therefore, obtaining the “special ingredients” for social media networks comes from several departments.

“We have the departments of F&B (Restaurants), entertainment (Alpin Magic Land & Adolescent Club), SPA (Vitarium SPA), Ski & Snowboard (in winter, Alpin SKI ACADEMY), which all together contribute to the development and growth of the brand’s reputation both nationally and internationally.”

An essential element in his daily activity is creativity. Alex draws inspiration from marketing campaigns from niche hospitality brands that have an iconic reputation internationally. Another source of inspiration for him comes from various portfolios of visual illustrations presented online by various graphic artists, from specialized literature and not only…

The final product, as he says, must be original, but well “polished”, it must pass through several brainstorming filters (having the overall vision of his colleagues from other departments as a decision-making factor).

Usually, after completing any campaign, Alex prefers to view different creative social media pages. This recreation method helps him for the next day (when the campaign will be distributed) to be convinced that the visual approach and the content are exactly what he would like to see, if he would be in the guest’s “skin”.

From the discussion I had with Alex, I noticed how important passion, dedication and creativity are, but also attention to details, in order to have a productive evolution both personally and for the brand he represents.

Alex expressed his affection towards all his colleagues and wants to thank them (perhaps more than he manages to do verbally) through this post, because the respect he has for them is more than what is visible to the eye.

-“I would like to thank all the people who supported and encouraged me when I lacked confidence in success, when I faced exceptional situations, and time was not my best “ally”! These people not only managed to make me feel welcome, but also made my daily goals, as well as the annual ones, easier to achieve!”