140 - To automate, focus on what not to automate
What should one automate, and what shouldn't be automated? Agentic commerce is coming. The Marriot vs citizenM customer clash. Airbnb's public market problem and more.
Hello,
There’s so much we can do with AI and agentic and automations. And often the easiest things to automate are those we shouldn’t. But where do we draw the line? It’s been on my mind and maybe this week’s column has some answers. Have a great week.
Best, Martin
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Agentic Commerce Is Coming
When AI handles everything from discovery to checkout, entire operating systems need rethinking. Amazon has been testing this with their AI, Rufus (the name isn’t my fault) and here are some stats on what happened. As I mention later in the newsletter: Travel is quite different to a $5.99 pack of batteries. But still, travel should pay attention—this playbook will be reused. The data here is quite interesting.
AGENTIC COMMERCE
About me: I'm a fractional CMO for large travel technology companies helping turn them into industry leaders. I'm also the co-founder of 10minutes.news a hotel news media that is unsensational, factual and keeps hoteliers updated on the industry. Beautiful Hotel Maps (and Why They Matter)
Design details like maps and crowd displays seem small, but they improve guest confidence without adding friction. And if you’re a regular reader of this newsletter you might remember my column about the flow. Anything you can do to push the flow forward will help. Hotel Nuggets newsletter also shows how Gemini can help you generate your own cool hotel map. Really, there’s a large opportunity for hotels and AI image generation.
HOTEL DESIGN TOOLS + AI IMAGES FOR HOTELS⁺
What Marketers Should Focus on in 2026 (But Won’t)
Agentic AI changes a lot of things in marketing, from reporting to decision-making. Many tasks can be automated. Many critical ones in marketing shouldn’t be (see my column below). This requires humans to define strategy while machines execute and optimize. Revenue management is a prime example of how automation is about to change a lot, so much of that domain is still a human attempt at automating.
AGENTIC MARKETING + AI WIZARD⁺
LLMs vs Marketplaces
AI chat (ChatGPT, Gemini etc) are challenging marketplaces (OTAs, Etsy, Amazon etc) by moving the discovery and decision-making into a single layer. Travel is exposed because of low frequency, but on the other hand is not because of high complexity/risk/cost (see lower). Marketplaces that survive will offer value AI can’t easily replicate (refund guarantees?). Everyone else risks becoming invisible infrastructure. This article doesn’t seem to really understand the hotel and OTA space that well. But still has a some really interesting points.
AI MARKETPLACES
American Marriott customer discovers citizenM
This critique of a citizenM room is probably not deserved. But it shows that there’s a brand promise gap. A regular Marriott Bonvoy customer expected something else, and the price he announces seems steep - but that’s relative isn’t it? Here’s a great example of a real brand (citizenM) that has meaning, a product, a repeatable experience etc - being absorbed but another. Could this become a lesson in how to maintain such a brand? Or will be yet label in a chart for Marriott? Oh and the comments…
HOTEL BRAND DESIGN
Airbnb’s Public Market Problem
I’m a big admirer of Airbnb’s success. They’ve taken a category that existed somewhat and made it a global phenomenon and done it with marketing and technical skill that few can match. But there’s no arguing that the road ahead is not quite as clear. They need to grow, will they compete against the OTAs? Or get the Experience category moved like they did with rentals. Or should they just buy their growth? Some sharp takes here:
AIRBNB STRATEGY + AIRBNB HOTELS
Is recovery the New Luxury?
I’m conflicted on this idea. Yes mistakes are inevitable, and yes, recovery is optional. The problem is what we consider the best GMs are those who can put out “fires” best. But then we’re basically wishing for more fires all the time. What if the best GM was the one who never had fires because things were so well organized? I remember speaking to a personal security guy (body guard), I asked about all the action he sees, and he explained that the best in his industry see no action. Because “fires” dont even come close, seeing action meant one had failed a long time ago…
SERVICE RECOVERY
Booking.com’s AI Takeover
Response speed is becoming a ranking factor, not just service quality. This pushes hotels toward hybrid AI-human workflows whether they like it or not. But what should you automate or not? I put more thoughts in my column below.
OTA AI STRATEGY + EXPEDIA AI PLAYGROUND
Guest Experience Benchmarks for 2026
More reviews, faster feedback, and rising expectations. Response time is becoming as important as quality itself. Data at this scale changes how performance is managed. Interestingly higher occupancy and still higher satisfaction. Which is rare.
GUEST EXPERIENCE⁺
Why travel isn’t booking on AI yet
While travel is the pioneer of ecommerce, it behaves really different. Low repeat rate, high cost. Basically murphy’s law is strong with travel booking. The chart shared in TTE’s newsletter shows it much better than all the words I can write here. But people do buy cars online now, so it is probably just a matter of time?
AGENTS BOOKING TRAVEL
Opinion
What you shouldn’t automate might matter more
One of the most helpful ways to define automation is by looking at what shouldn’t be automated.
It’s tempting to automate everything. Tools keep getting better, AI keeps getting faster, and workflows keep promising “10x productivity.” But in the process, we risk automating the very things we shouldn’t.
Here’s a principle I think could work: if the end goal is to move a process forward, automate it. If the end goal is to move a person, don’t.
We should absolutely automate repetitive procedures: rate updates, inventory pushes, internal reports, invoice emails, check-in messages. These are inputs and outputs that follow a predictable path. Systems love predictable paths.
And humans do too.
However, human communication doesn’t (whether it’s a guest email, a marketing post, a social media reply, or even the photo you choose to lead an ad) isn’t just an output. It’s a signal. And people have a sixth sense for knowing when that signal is fake. Just like we notice when the physics in a CGI jump are a bit off, or when an actor lands weirdly in a motion graphic, we might not know why, but we instantly know that something’s wrong.
This is exactly what happens when content meant to connect with a person is pushed out automatically. Sending out an invoice or a confirmation isn’t meant to connect.
AI imagery isn’t the issue. Automation isn’t the issue. The problem is when the communication or action is triggered by automation. When the machine decides the timing, the tone, the delivery (while it’s meant for a human) we can feel it is off.
Even hyper-personalized recommendations (yes, Spotify, Netflix, Youtube I’m thinking of you) still feel mechanical. You know it’s a machine pretending to know you, not a person who actually does. We have accepted that the machine is about 20% right, but we wouldn’t accept a human doing that.
I think the most dangerous form of automation (reputationally) is the one that tries to fake human intention. Because humans feel intention. And when there is none, trust breaks.
So, automate all you want, just don’t automate the human parts. The email that’s meant to move someone. The social media post that’s meant to engage. The welcome that’s meant to help them feel appreciated. The concierge that is just a search bar. Those need intention. And intention is still (for now) a human job.
Because the moment people realize they’re on the receiving end of a system (not a person) they disengage. That’s when automation becomes spam.
So looking at what not to automate might give you more ideas of what you should automate. And as Chaplin satirizes well above, we can’t quite automate everything.
• Fun exploration of clothing styles from 1980 to 2025 - Link
• Brilliant GPT released by Mauricio Prieto, try it - Link
• The Global Hotel Supply in 2025 - Link⁺
Did you know?: The word "loyalty" comes from the Old French word "loialté," which means faithfulness or allegiance. It is based on the Latin word "legalitas," meaning "law" or "legality," which reflects the idea of being true to a promise or duty. Over time, the word broadened to mean faithfulness to people, groups, or ideas, not just legal duties. Defined using Lomar Dictionary⁺