but securing it in such a way that it provides value ,” Raj says .
Another best practice for hotel marketers when it comes to collecting sensitive information through traditional communications ( not a mobile app ) is to give clear and concise terms and conditions , Raj says about the kind of information being collected , how it ’ s being collected and stored , and for how long . Raj also advises hotels to be proactive and send out quarterly updates about the information they have on file for a guest and whether they can continuing using it .
“ Many companies are afraid to do that ,” he says . “ But just the act of being so transparent will increase the level of brand trust .”
As for how willing guests are to turn over their personal information , the younger generation , is not surprisingly , more comfortable with this than older generations – but only slightly . According to a 2016 SAS Customer Intelligence report , 68 % of individuals 40 and older are concerned with what businesses do with their personal information compared with 58 % of individuals under 40 .
LET ' S MAKE A DEAL One hotel sales and marketing executive for an independent hotel in New York City who
SWITZERLAND : Switzerland first took steps to protect personal data in 1992 when the government enacted the Federal Act of Data Protection . Since then , other laws provided for restricting the process of personal data . The country is revising its Data Protection Act to be on par with the GDPR , which it plans to implement in 2018 as well .
BRAZIL : Brazil has no statutes that regulate data privacy , although two bills are being considered . The Brazilian Internet Act , signed into law in 2014 , restricts the use , collection and sharing of users ’ private information . didn ’ t want to be named says his guests don ’ t seem to mind submitting their personal information if it means a deal or discount might be offered . Other guests are often too busy to be bothered with sending all that information along , he adds .
A sales and marketing executive for a California-based hotel group also says its guests were willing to exchange information for the sake of a more personalized stay . “ Guests are open to sharing preferences because they trust Palihouse will deliver a curated , enriching experience ,” says Christine Alvarez , vice president of sales and marketing for Paligroup , a hotel developer and operator . Casey Ueberroth , chief marketing officer of Preferred Hotels & Resorts , says his company has eliminated the hurdles to joining the iPrefer loyalty program . Previously , iPrefer asked guests
THE HOTEL INDUSTRY NOW HAS THE OPPORTUNITY TO ACTUALLY DESIGN THE OFFERINGS OR SERVICES WITH TRANSPARENCY AND DATA PRIVACY IN MIND FROM THE GET-GO .”
WILSON RAJ , GLOBAL DIRECTOR OF CONSUMER INTELLIGENCE , SAS
JAPAN : Japan recently amended its Act on Protection of Personal Information to give consumers more ways to consent to what kind of information is collected about them . Like the GDPR , the scope of what is considered personal information has been extended . However , Japan has allowed anonymized personal data to be transferred to third-party companies without the individuals ’ consent , although such a transfer must be publicly announced . for detailed personal information , but today all that ’ s required is an email address . Once guests hand that over , they can earn points and access members-only rates at more than 600 properties . After that , iPrefer will follow up and ask them to create account log-ins where they can enter more information if they like .
“ We ’ re trying to be as polite and thoughtful as possible ,” Ueberroth says about respecting guest privacy while still collecting rich data . “ Once you ’ ve nurtured a list of enough quality guests , you really want to keep them happy .”
Neil Flavin , senior vice president at HVS Asset Management , says guests are more reluctant to have their driver ’ s license or credit card photocopied , a common practice years ago that has been replaced with technology and is done rarely today .
And like anything else with hotel operations , keeping guest data security requires consistentcy in one thing . “ Training , training , training is key ,” Flavin says . “ The more information the hotel and the front desk have regarding the security of data relating to the guest is better .”
May 2017 hotelsmag . com 49