ShareShannon Burdine, Corporate Director, Digital Marketing, Sage Hospitality Group, Marketing RLC Member
Melissa Olson, Senior Marketing Manager, Equinox Hotel New York, Marketing RLC Member
A recent discussion of the Marketing Rising Leader Council explored a question many hospitality marketers are asking right now: When should AI be used to impact the guest journey?
The conversation started with how AI is already showing up in daily work. Participants shared examples ranging from content creation and caption writing to data visualization, meeting summaries, task management, workflow organization, research, and fact-checking. Most viewed AI as a practical tool that reduces manual work and helps teams move faster.
The discussion then turned to the guest experience. Participants pointed to chatbot experiences, AI-supported customer service, and voice-enabled guest assistance as examples where technology has become more useful and less frustrating than many early versions. Several noted that AI now handles simple requests efficiently, reducing wait times and helping guests find answers quickly.
The question wasn’t whether AI can improve efficiency, but where AI efficiency should stop and hospitality should begin. Many participants felt the strongest guest experiences combine AI and human follow-up. Technology can answer questions, capture preferences, and remove friction. Human interaction remains critical when personalization, empathy, judgment, and relationship-building are required.
One participant summed up the current moment this way: “It really feels like we’re in this everyone’s doing whatever they want sort of stage”
The group also discussed concerns around ethics and authenticity. Topics included AI-generated content, AI influencers, image manipulation, permissions, likeness rights, and brand voice. Several participants noted that policies and guardrails are still developing as adoption accelerates.
Another recurring theme was the risk of losing personality. While AI can support workflow and productivity, participants cautioned against relying on it for everything. Brand voice, community engagement, and guest relationships still benefit from a distinctly human approach.
The conversation ended with broad agreement that AI is becoming part of hospitality operations. The opportunity is finding the right balance between automation and authentic service.
Recommended Readings
- AI in the hospitality industry: how technology is shaping the guest experience
- The future of agentic AI in travel and hospitality
- How generative AI is transforming the tourism industry
Questions for Teams
- How are you using AI in your daily life?
- Where are you seeing AI implemented in daily life outside of work?
- Where have you noticed AI improving your own customer experience?
- Where have you noticed AI frustrating your own customer experience?
- Does AI risk removing empathy from luxury hospitality?
- At what point does AI content or AI-powered experiences become unethical?
- Where is AI going? How do you think AI will evolve over the next 6 months? 1 year? 5 years?
- What opportunities does AI create for hospitality?