Munich, February 2022 – Technology, in particular, is developing at a breathtaking pace, and many wonder where it will all lead. For this reason, well-researched, critical articles are more important than ever to find one’s way through today’s technology jungle.
Even though I am the founder and CEO of a software company, I am also a passionate journalist and lecturer at various universities and am always on the lookout for new, well-prepared expertise. But where can you get that today?
What many people don’t realize is that most online platforms, magazines, events, and associations are largely financed by corporate partnerships, advertising, or sponsoring. So anyone who is surprised at the nonsense that is sometimes reported or presented on stages now knows why. Now, this is nothing new. But along with the decline in social norms, the level of content is also becoming more and more questionable in my view. Meanwhile, half-knowledge or even demonstrably false things are being reported, which makes my hair stand on end. The problem is that many people who are not so intensively involved with the whole issue do not understand what they see as advertising, nor is it identified as such, and thus regard the content as correctly researched and correct. This is disastrous and can have serious consequences!
Independent, good journalism is characterized by the fact that articles are professionally controlled, are not only published after advertising payments, and that journalists do not do PR work for companies in addition to their actual work. Otherwise, how could one write independent, critical articles?
Two examples: Months ago, an article on the topic of GDPR was published by a PMS provider on XXXX. This is technically incorrect. We have pointed this out to those responsible several times, but nothing has happened except lip service. Or on the website XXXX, the topic “PMS + CRS = Success is being promoted”. The PMS, as the name suggests, is a property management system, a system to manage transactions, and not a guest management or central data management system. Apparently, some PMS vendors have now discovered the importance of CRS integration and are marketing it under the buzzword of the need for a “central guest profile”. PMS and CRS are similar in many ways, both have one thing in common, they are not CDM. Various reasons speak against it: the inadequate data cleansing functionalities (DQM), tax aspects, performance aspects, interface problems with channel managers, etc. There are dozens of specialist articles on this. Where are the trade journalists who expose this rubbish and at the same time provide assistance for decision-makers?
One of the very few independent experts I know is Douglas Rice, his column is highly recommended. But who else is there?
I don’t want to make a red list, neither of hotel or marketing associations nor of trade fairs, events, or online platforms. What I want much more is a listing of content providers, where hoteliers, students and all those hungry for knowledge can find technically good and correct articles.
If you know of such a source, let me know and we will publish it afterwards.
Criteria are:
- Articles are not bought based on advertising payments
- Articles go through a professional review by experts before publication
- The journalist is independent and does not work for the company in question, e.g. as a PR consultant.
- Lectures at events are only titled as professional lectures if they are free of advertising and have not been bought through sponsoring.
A little tip on what to look out for if you don’t want to fall for every so-called expert. Check:
- Number of articles published
- Number of books published
- Number of scientific papers that have been reviewed by an expert panel
- Academic degree
- Lectureships at colleges and universities
- Lecturing activities at independent institutions such as Hotellerie Suisse
Please get in touch! I want to read good articles again and then share them with you!
About the author
Dr. Michael Toedt is one of the most renowned experts in the field of Big Data and CRM. He received his doctoral degree on the subject of CRM, respectively “The influence of communication on sales performance in the luxury hotel industry” from the University of Latvia. He lectures at the University of Applied Sciences in Munich about CRM & Hotel Technology for Bachelor- and Masterclasses as well as at Hotellerie Suisse in the NDS Management Program. Michael Toedt writes articles for international magazines and online platforms on a regular basis. Among others, he wrote the official CRM guide of the Austrian Hotel Association and the book “Big Data”, which has become a standard work for the topic of Data Management. He was elected by the HSMAI as one of the “Top 20 Extraordinary minds in Sales & Marketing” in 2016.
All his publications can be found here.