Press Releases

Atlanta Marriott Marquis Unveils First-of-Its Kind VTX Virtual Tour For Events Industry

Atlanta, Georgia (PRWEB) March 9, 2017

Winner of the Consumers’ Choice Award For Customer Service Excellence Introduces Advanced Interactive Experience with Over 150 Points of Interest within 164,000 Square-Foot Space

Imagine putting an entire hotel in your back pocket and sharing it with anyone! This idea became the Marriott Marquis’ VTX, a virtual tour experience which provides their sales and events team with a groundbreaking new way to share their iconic property with the world. This innovative new technology layers ultra-high definition, 4K 360 video over an interactive experience, built on a gaming engine, allowing seamless travel throughout the hotel, right from your desktop or handheld device. This unique combination of cutting-edge technology makes it easier than ever to share the hotel like never before. A first for the Atlanta Marriott Marquis, and a global first for the hotel industry.

“At Marriott, we are frequently challenged to be innovative. Our team has taken that to heart in designing this thoughtful approach to connect with our meeting planners,” said Erica Qualls-Battey, General Manager at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis.

In late 2017, Meinrad (Rad) Lang III, Director of Sales & Marketing at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis approached Duane Tornquist, Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer with Artists of the Industry (AOFTHEI) with the vision of reaching a broader audience and creating a sales tool for his team. What started as a discussion about a unique high-definition video application evolved into a much bigger and bolder vision to create an immersive 360 capture of the entire hotel. Artists of the Industry had already been developing the framework for such a platform, and the Atlanta Marriott Marquis was the perfect location to let this new tech shine and become a reality.

“We had the belief that if the right user experience were created, the client, the sales team, and the hotel would all benefit,” added Lang. “With such incredibly taxing deadlines, schedules and budget restraints, this tool will completely replace site visits, saving time and money for everyone.”

This platform allows the Marriott Marquis to connect with more meeting and event planners in a realistic manner without having to be onsite. From 360 video in one spot to an interactive tour with panoramas in another, planners will be able to enter and explore rooms and travel up and down elevators while discovering so many different virtual aspects throughout the tour.

Artists of the Industry’s production team architected a 360 camera rig atop a remote-control rover to seamlessly capture the Marquis in all of its beauty. Such a production wouldn’t have been possible without their multi-disciplinary inventive and creative Chicago based production team and studios. With the help of the hotel staff, a plan to capture all of the 164,000 square feet of meeting space, architecture, outlets, and guestrooms with over 150 unique points of interest and every single area in-between was achieved.

“The need to capture one of the industry’s busiest hotels in full 360 was a challenge,” said Tornquist. “Communication and feedback between both parties is crucial during the design and build phase. Our Chicago and Los Angeles based teams were tasked with turning a massive amount of content into an easy to navigate, intuitive and fun interactive experience that showed off the hotel in just the right light. After several months of design and engineering the VTX we all feel like we have hit the nail on the head and are excited to unveil this to the world.”

With phase one of the VTX complete, work is now underway to create phase two, adding exciting new features, apps, customer controlled tours, augmented reality, additional information, and locations enabling the VTX scalability far into the future.

To view a behind the scenes video short of the Atlanta Marriott Marquis’ VTX experience, click here.

About Atlanta Marriott Marquis:
Conveniently located in the heart of the city’s convention and tourism district, Atlanta Marriott Marquis is an iconic destination hotel with bustling energy and a stylish vibe. Rising as the preeminent meetings terminus of the South, Atlanta Marriott Marquis boasts more than 160,000 square feet of newly refreshed meeting space as well as 1,663 modern guest rooms including 94 spacious suites featuring floor to ceiling windows with fantastic views of the Atlanta skyline. Countless amenities include five unique dining and lounge options including the locally-inspired and award-winning culinary programs of Sear and High Velocity, The Spa, and a 24-hour fitness center. Learn more about the Atlanta Marriott Marquis here or follow along on Facebook and Instagram.

About Artists of the Industry:
AOFTHEI is a creative technology B2B experiential content marketing agency and software developer with decades of experience in the hospitality, event technology, entertainment and creative content services industries. With production studios in Chicago and Los Angeles and staffed with event specialists, creative content producers, UI and UX designers and engineers, AOFTHEI works with fortune 500 companies to create new ways to communicate, create brand awareness and innovation in the workspace and beyond.

Media Contact: Tara Murphy | 360 Media, Inc. – 404.577.8686 or info(at)360media.net

About Consumers’ Choice Award:
Established in 1987, the Consumers’ Choice Award® identifies and promotes businesses that deliver customer service excellence. The Consumers’ Choice Award® has retained a leading independent research firm to conduct surveys in U.S. cities; Atlanta, Columbus, Cincinnati and Dallas. The winners are determined by consumers and not by a panel of judges. The survey covers a broad range of categories of interest to both the public and business communities. Its purpose is to publicly identify those establishments that have been voted by consumers as being their choice for excellence. The Consumers’ Choice Award® is a most prestigious tribute to local businesses that serve their communities well. The program is encouraged by all levels of government and by business leaders. Find out more about The Consumers’ Choice Award by visiting ConsumersChoiceAward.com