In the hospitality world, hotel brands like AccorHotels, Marriott, Hilton, and IHG aren’t just competing with one another. The real competition is with technology giants like Google, Facebook, Amazon, and even Netflix.

And that’s why a company like AccorHotels is transforming itself, said Steven Taylor, AccorHotels global chief brand officer, speaking at the inaugural Skift Tech Forum Tuesday in Santa Clara, California.

“We’re watching large technology platforms very carefully,” Taylor said. “They have ever- increasing influence in the travel space, and that’s why we’re focused on building these ecosystems of brands and loyalty to compete.”

He also said he believes that voice assistants have the ability to change the way people search for and book hotels entirely.

ACCORHOTELS’ DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION 

“A large hospitality group can’t compete with large technology platforms without comprehensive brand portfolios that cater to every single human need,” Taylor said.

It’s why, increasingly, brands like Accor, Marriott, Airbnb, and others have added new businesses and services and transformed themselves into complete experience platforms, as Skift noted in this year’s 2018 Megatrends.

The company has also developed a number of initiatives, including a program it calls the Accor Customer Digital Card (ACDC, not to be confused with the band of the same name), to make it easier for hotel employees to better personalize guests’ experiences.

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