The Anything Group introduces ALBIE© We want to make experiential travel easy!”

BY SIMONE J. SMITH

As much as many of us like to travel, we can all admit that sometimes the process can be tedious, finding the right airline, the right hotel, the right car rental service…

What if I told you that finally there is a platform that offers innovative features that: streamlines booking processes, enhances guest satisfaction, and maximizes occupancy rates at hotels; a win, win situation for everyone involved. I believe that travel should be easy, friction-free, and seamless, and I am about to introduce a team that is currently implementing a streamlined service that represents a significant advancement and giant step forward in the hotel booking journey. Yes you!

For the first time with this service, guests can seamlessly book rooms and activities across multiple hotels and dates within the same group, or partner hotels, all in a single transaction. This unique flexibility eliminates the hassle of navigating multiple booking platforms, and multiple reservations, saving guests valuable time and reducing that frustration that we feel preparing for our trip.

The Anything Group (TAG), is a premier full-service marketing agency specializing in hospitality solutions. Most recently they proudly unveiled ALBIE© designed to prioritize guest experience and hotel success, ALBIE©. With ALBIE© they are enabling hotel groups and independent chains of hotels to partner with others, creating in-house, low-cost OTA-style referrals. This approach maximizes profit and occupancy while minimizing expenses.

“I have always been at the forefront of creating guest-centric software to make travelers’ lives easier and hospitality venues more connected.”

I had a chance to speak with Rich Tuckwell-Skuda the CEO and Founder of The Anything Group (TAG). As a visionary thought leader and known for his leading entrepreneur spirit and remarkable track record spanning the: travel, hospitality, and tech sectors, Rich has successfully launched numerous brands for TAG clients and companies.

With his leadership TAG has emerged as the preferred agency for three major software providers and one of the world’s largest hotel groups, transforming TAG into one of the highest performing agencies in North America and the Caribbean within three years of launching.

As CEO of TAG, he leads a team responsible for managing tech solutions and digital marketing for more than 250 clients worldwide, achieving impressive increases in: profitability, revenue, operational best-practices, and marketing ROAS, whilst decreasing operational expenditure, negative reviews and marketing costs.

Prior to founding TAG, Rich accumulated extensive experience in various roles across these industries with remarkable results regarding excellence and the best marketing standards. He is a highly regarded speaker and thought leader, having addressed over 300 industry events and conferences since 2018, including: HITEC, Direct Booking Summit, and Hotel Data Conference. Renowned for his expertise in revenue management, digital marketing, and hotel technology, Rich is frequently sought after for insights by industry leaders and media outlets.

When I finally had a chance to get him on a call, I experienced his passion in full force, and he openly shared his journey. “Can you share your journey in founding The Anything Group and what inspired you to enter the travel, hospitality, and tech sectors?”

“I have been attached to this sector for 25 years,” Rich tells me. “I was exiting the tech sector at the time, and I felt like we had not gone far enough. I had a marketing agency at the time, but I wanted to create something that was guest centric. We partnered with the best in the industry to ensure that processes were smooth. Guests can do whatever the guest and booker want to do in any order. The platform is designed to make things easier for everyone.”

“Our first day we had 300 hotels sign up. Island governments have come to us and said, this is beneficial. We have the technology that allows travellers to do everything in one place.”

“How do you see the future of the travel, hospitality, and tech sectors evolving, and what role do you envision TAG playing in that future?”

“AI is massively overplayed but will have a huge impact on the sector. We have hugely impactful companies telling the world how to do things. I don’t have to reinvent the wheel. People don’t need more choices. Don’t tell me 15 different things I want. Tell me five things that impact a large amount of people. I want to use AI, and algorithm to make things easier for everyone. We don’t want to give them more choice, just better options.”

I am happy that the Toronto Caribbean Newspaper has the opportunity to introduce ALBIE©’s Cart System.  By enhancing guest satisfaction and offering a broader range of booking options, ALBIE© enables hotels to maximize occupancy rates and boost direct revenue. Guests can customize their experience by reserving rooms, activities, or a combination of both in any order they like, all in one streamlined process, and because it’s guest-centric, they will be able to create their own experience.

ALBIE©’s Dynamic Stay Optimization takes the guesswork out of planning. The system automatically searches for available rooms within the same hotel on alternative dates or suggests other hotels within the group through its “flexible days” feature if occupancy levels mean the desired dates aren’t available. For larger groups, ALBIE© prioritizes availability across all hotels within the group.

ALBIE© also includes a Group Recommendation feature, suggesting other hotels in the group that are close to the original search location to maximize sales opportunities. Additionally, ALBIE© offers a “Waitlist” feature, informing guests when their desired dates become available, ensuring they never miss out on their preferred stay.

“This is why ALBIE© has been built to not be expensive for the guest, or the hotel. Travel is all about the experience. We want to make experiential travel easy.”