Not every session at VISIT Summit 2026 was about adding something new. Some of the most useful ones were about why adding things can go wrong.
Four good decisions, one bad result
Suusify told the story of a long-established hotel with a new leader and a clear plan. Richer conference proposals. A new PMS. Automated revenue management instead of an external consultant. Advertising built on mood rather than direct response. Each decision was sensible on its own. Made together, in the same year, they sent revenue down while the market around the hotel grew by 15%.
Nothing was broken in isolation. The connections between the decisions were. The new pricing did not match the new proposals, the new system changed how the team worked, and the new advertising did not bring in the guests the rest of the plan relied on. Suusify’s advice was to diagnose before you prescribe: find out what is actually wrong before choosing the fix.
Systems should make hosting easier
Several speakers who were presenting technology said the same thing about it. ESS Group, showing how Ellery Beach Resort runs its guest journey, said the system is there to make it easier for people to deliver hospitality, not to replace them. They also shared what went wrong at the start: too many automated actions for the team to keep up with. They started over with fewer and got better results.
VISIT Reputation, which sells AI tools for review replies, said openly that it does not recommend fully automated responses. And Carl Bjerkne from GuestXP ended the final session of the Summit by saying that AI will not change hospitality on its own. The memorable moments still come from people. The job of the technology is to help create them.
What really engages guests
Inside Labs looked at why guests take part in loyalty programs and games. The usual answer is that it is fun. Their research found that achievement and progress matter more than the size of the reward. A well-designed challenge can do more than a bigger discount.
And Nets by Nexi, a payments company presenting its own roadmap, brought the most unexpected number of the week: 81% of young people say they are tired of the digital world. Screen time is falling. More technology is not always what guests want more of.
What to do
- Before choosing a fix, spend time finding out what is actually wrong.
- Change one thing at a time, so you can see what worked and what did not.
- Choose systems that make your team’s day easier, and start with fewer automations than you think you need.
- Reward progress, not just spending, when you design loyalty and engagement.
Heard in: From Friction to Action (Suusify) · Hospitality 2.0 @ Ellery Beach Resort (Theodor Axelsson Lindgren and Sina Ahadi, ESS Group) · How to Build an Engagement Engine That Converts (Inside Labs) · Payments Today and Tomorrow (Patrik Müller, Nets by Nexi) · The Grand Finale (Carl Bjerkne, GuestXP)