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BITAC Luxury Real-Time Poll Reveals Surprising Results We polled our attendees at the sold out BITAC Luxury to uncover the true state of the industry. Monday, March 11, 2013 Glenn Haussman

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The hotel industry is not just doing well, its feeling good too. That is, industry buyers and suppliers are feeling pretty jubilant about the state of the hotel economy and for the most part the global economy as well. Even with a continued poor attitude toward Congress industry insiders are looking forward to a robust and profitable few years.

Demand is setting record levels, more hotel rooms are being sold every month than ever before, hoteliers are pushing rates skyward and financing and new construction are starting to shows signs of life as well. All that adds up to this being an amazing time to be in the lodging industry!

So by now you are saying how do we know all this good information? Well not only do we follow the industry voraciously we can also cheat a little bit. Using cutting edge technology, we were able to take the industry’s pulse this morning at BITAC Luxury utilizing a real time voting system. It gives us the ability to uncover from our record breaking sold out crowd what is really going on with critical industry trends.

BITAC of course is the industry leading one-on-one meetings and relationship building event. And at our BITAC Luxury event being held this week a record breaking crowd is making this our biggest and best event in the near nine years that BITAC has existed. But this crowd was not only record breaking; attendees here represent the crème de la crème of the lodging industry. Call it the ultimate group of insiders and decision makers. And they were all here to come together for the most exciting BITAC to date to network, sign deals and swap their thoughts they believe will move forward the quality of experiences for hotel guests while adding profits to the bottom line.

That’s because BITAC is the must attend fundamentally focused idea exchange where buyers and suppliers can work through solutions together that yield both sides more profitable results.

A cornerstone of every BITAC event – there are currently nine annually (http://www.hotelinteractive.com/article.aspx?articleid=25173) – are our educational panels that cut through the clutter to educate and empower hoteliers to be more successful both personally and professionally.

And at this year’s sold out BITAC Luxury we looked to the conference’s brain trust to make the news. That’s right, we love engaging our attendees by asking attendees their opinions regarding some of the most critical issues facing the hospitality industry today. For today we thought we’d share how leaders in hospitality that attended BITAC see the trends. Here is what BITAC attendees believe about the issue and what they think will happen:

1. What is your #1 concern for 2013?
Sequestration – 22.5%
Expanding ADA requirements – 13.6%
Inability to push rates – 21.1%
No worries, 2013 is going great – 42.7%

2. Do you think the current Congress will get its act together and actually get something done to remedy the Sequestration situation?
Yes -17.2%
No – 82.2%

3. How are you feeling about the future state of the economy?
Bullish – 10.5%
It’s good – 25.9%
Neutral – 23.8%
A little worried - 35.6%
Freaked out – 4.2%

4. How do you feel about the state of the luxury hotel market?
Bullish – 9.6%
It’s good -  54.3%
Neutral – 27.4%
A little worried -8.2%
Freaked out – 0.5%

5. What is your perception of hotel owners’ approach toward raising rates?
Aggressive – 20.2%
Timid – 16.4%
Cautiously Optimistic – 63.4%

7. How much have you raised your ADR so far in 2013?
1-2% - 14.6%
3-5% - 34.6%
5-10% - 20%
10% or more – 5.4%
None – 25.4%

8. How long will it be until financing for new development is readily available again for luxury hotels in general?
6-12 months – 20.1%
12-18 months -30.4%
18-24 months -19.0%
It’s good now -10.9%
The financial markets will never be the same – 19.6%

9. If a brand has a strong focus on design, does it make it more appealing to develop?
Absolutely - 55.2%
Potentially – 33.8%
I’m not sure – 7.8%
No way – 3.2%

10. Has amenity creep gone too far?
No, it’s critical to have myriad items – 33.1%
No, the balance is right – 37.0%
Yes, but where to cut back – 21.4%
Yes, focusing on just a select few – 8.4%

11. In your hotel, what is the type item to renovate for the highest return of investment?
Energy management – 28.3%
Internet connectivity – 8.7%
Lobby – 29.0%
Upgrade Bathroom Equipment – 34.1%

13. Generally, are hotel companies doing a good job at creating distinct separate brands within brand families?
Absolutely – 6.7%
Somewhat – 54.5%
Not sure – 14%
Not at all – 24.7%