In this episode of Foundry Talks, we sit down with Laurean Sahilices, founder of The Hotel Marketing Lady, to unpack what hotel marketing actually looks like beneath the surface. With 15+ years at luxury brands, Laurean shares why most hotels misunderstand marketing's role and how that's costing them revenue.

Laurean breaks down why vanity metrics don't pay the bills, how to plan festive seasons six months in advance (not in November), and why 90% OTA dependency should make any GM nervous. She also introduces practical frameworks for attracting the right guests at the right time on the right channels and explains why marketing foundations matter more than AI optimization.

If you're a hotel marketer drowning in tasks or a GM who thinks marketing is just social posts, this conversation will change how you approach revenue strategy. Laurean proves that when marketing is done right with clarity and strategy, it becomes the commercial engine that drives direct bookings and builds brand loyalty.

Connect with Laurean on LinkedIn or visit thehotelmarketinglady.com. Subscribe to Foundry Talks on Apple Podcasts and Spotify for more conversations with hospitality leaders shaping the future of travel.

In this episode of Foundry Talks, we sit down with Cory Falter, Partner at Lure Agency, to discuss why traditional B2B sales tactics are broken and what hotels and vendors should do instead. Cory shares the WINS method, a four-step framework that's helping his clients generate 5-20 qualified inbound leads per month by building trust before the pitch.

Cold calls, spam emails, and generic outreach no longer work. Buyers avoid sales until they're ready to engage, which means you need to meet them where they are in their journey. The WINS Method covers Website optimization with pricing transparency, Intel through organized data, Nurture with problem-solving content, and Sell through social selling.

One of the biggest revelations is how direct leads convert 10 times better than C-Vent leads. Direct website inquiries can convert at 20-50% because prospects have already self-educated through your content. Cory also shares that 50-70% of hotel business now comes from non-professional planners using Google and ChatGPT instead of traditional RFP platforms.

At the end of the day, hospitality is about human connection and trust. While AI and automation can streamline processes, they can't replace the relationship-building that closes high-ticket sales. If you're in B2B hospitality sales and feeling stuck on the RFP hamster wheel, this episode is your roadmap out.

Connect with Cory on LinkedIn or visit lureagency.com. Subscribe to Foundry Talks on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

What if a single press release could generate over 1,500 citations across ChatGPT, Perplexity, and other AI platforms? Sarah Evans, Partner and Head of PR at Zen Media, reveals how she's reimagining press releases for the AI era and why hotels need to act now.

Sarah shares the exact framework that transformed her results from zero ChatGPT leads to 3-5 per week. The secret? Stop writing for journalists and start writing for large language models. She breaks down the anatomy of an AI-ready press release: ditch dates, add schema markup, create FAQ sections based on actual search queries, and never link to your homepage.

Key insights include why you should send press releases every 28 days (AI models literally forget you otherwise), how to structure headlines around your prompt universe, and why syndication pickups that PR pros dismissed now signal credibility to AI.

Sarah explains the dual pathway approach: one traditional release for media, one AI-optimized for LLMs. She reveals why not all wire services work with AI platforms, how to audit your website for AI readiness, and why your highest authority page should be your press release link.

Plus: measuring results through prompt universe tracking, understanding answer share, and positioning your hotel to show up when travelers ask AI where to book. If you've wondered whether press releases still matter or how to prove PR ROI, this episode delivers concrete answers with real data.

Find Sarah's GenAI Press Release GPT and connect with her on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/prsarahevans/. Learn more at zenmedia.com.