The Modern Hotelier #207: How Hotel Polaris Creates a Perfect "Bleisure" Experience | with Kevin Barosso
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Kevin Barosso: We mix in all of that leisure activity. So when you're here on business, you kind of see some of the offerings that we have with the spa and the pool and the flight sims and the games out on the lawn and you know, that kindles that spirit of, Hey, next time I'm in Colorado maybe I'll bring the family 'cause there's things for them to do while I'm at work.
Steve: We are now sitting down with Kevin Barosso, the Director of Sales and Marketing, Kevin. Thanks for sitting down with us. How you doing today?
Kevin Barosso: I'm good, thanks Steve.
Steve: Good. So, you know, one thing we were talking about earlier was the mix of leisure and business travel here. How are you positioning hotel players to fit both of those segments?
Kevin Barosso: Yeah, so the hotel is really set up well for both segments, right? We've got, um, a variety of different restaurants. So if you're that business traveler and you just need a quick coffee and a muffin on your way out the door to that office, you're going to visit. We have that in Levy's market. Uh, we have different restaurants with different food items and different concepts.
So again, if you're here multi night or mul for multiple nights on business, you can dine however you like to dine. Uh, so we've created that flexibility, um, within the hotel and not having to. Uber somewhere or walk the streets to get to a restaurant. Uh, and then we mix in all of that leisure activity. So when you're here on business, you kind of see some of the offerings that we have with the spa and the pool and the flight sims and the games, um, out on the lawn.
And you know, that kindles that spirit of, Hey, next time I'm in Colorado, uh, maybe I'll bring the family, 'cause there's things for them to do while I'm at work. And really turn that, yeah. Business, stay into a bleier type stay. Nice. 
Steve: I know we've been here for filming and business, but next time I'm back for fun. I'm definitely staying here again. So that's, that's a hundred percent true. There's lots of fun. 
David: So tell us what makes your meeting and events spa space unique compared to other hotels? 
Kevin Barosso: Yeah, so, well, one of the things is the amount of space. Uh, we we're the second largest hotel in the springs. And so both our grand ballroom, uh, second largest ballroom in Colorado Springs and just the variety and the way that we've laid the space out. Uh, so that whether you're one large group that takes everything over, or we have two groups that are next to each other that can be dis decent size, um, they're separated, right? Our junior ballroom and our grand ballroom, there's some space in between.
There's breakouts, and so we can really have two groups here. Uh, at once and they don't feel like they're on top of each other. All the space is on one level, it's on one floor, so you're not navigating escalators and elevators to get from your general session to breakouts and all that. So really tried to make it turnkey and functional for people.
Steve: That's great. And meetings, events, conventions bring a wide variety and a diverse group of people. How does your team really tailor those expectations and those experiences to make them unique? 
Kevin Barosso: Yeah, so our conference service team, uh, does a great job at. You know, really treating every group as its own right. And, you know, sure, they'll draw on past experiences that other groups may have had, but they do a really good job of making sure that, you know, we're, we're giving you the experience and, and you're reaching your meeting goals for that particular meeting in that organization. We do have some great partners in the area as well, you know, through some local DMCs, local offsite venues, you know, whatever that group is looking for. We like to provide that and visit Colorado Springs, our CBB also helps us in bringing kind of the destination element in, if that's what the group requires. Or that's what the group needs. 
David: Yeah. So tell us a little bit more about how the flexibility of your space helps you attract a wide variety of events.
Kevin Barosso: Yeah, so, you know, we got everything from a giant ballroom, uh, down to a small, you know, executive boardroom. Uh, and so we're able to attract different sizes, different groups, and again, the way the space is laid out. You're not on top of each other, right? So I could have a group in one of our boardrooms that's 16 people, and I can have a group that's in our, you know, grand ballroom that's 400 and the two would never know each other. We're here. So that it really kind of lays out well that way. 
Steve: That's great. So from a marketing perspective, what strategies are you most excited about to get the word out about Hotel Polaris? You're under a year, year old, so you know, a fairly new property. 
Kevin Barosso: Yeah. You know, one of the, the strategies that, you know, obviously is taking shape, for all of us in the business is obviously artificial intelligence.
Right. And how do you tailor your messaging. Your responses to reviews online, what does your website say? What's that content look like that AI is starting to pick up? Uh, we're starting to see a pretty good shift in people searching through ai. You know, they're asking chat, GBT, where should I go stay in Colorado Springs? Or they're using one of the other AI systems to ask, you know, where, where are the best hotels? Where should I stay? And so if your content. Isn't reflective to capture that you're gonna, you're gonna miss out and it's only gonna get bigger. And you know, right now we're all kind of struggling with how much do you put behind SEO and how much do you put behind AI 'cause it is a little bit different in terms of search and how people look for things. Uh, and so we're kind of in that. You gotta play to both. But as we see that shift, I think that's kind of the exciting part for all of us, is where does that end up going? And how much of, of that search is influenced by what artificial intelligence is saying about your hotel.
So it really does put a premium on making sure that you're responding to, you know, reviews online. What is the response like? Um, are you, you know, positive, you know, that kind of stuff. 
David: Oh, thank you so much for sitting down with us. We really appreciate your time. 
Kevin Barosso: Oh, you're welcome. Thanks.
Steve: Thank you, Kevin.