Trends shaping hospitality in the second quarter of 2017

Phocuswright states that hotels represent nearly 40% of the global travel market. This represents great potential for hoteliers and other hospitality players such as Online Travel Agents (OTAs) to create more revenue conversion as the financial year-end draws near. The following are some of the trends that continue to shape the hospitality industry.

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Personalisation

In a previous article, we discussed how providing a personalised experience to guests is key to having a competitive advantage in the hotel industry. This aspect is burgeoning steadily, as proprietors embrace the manifestation and upshots of giving personalised services and products. “From elevating the in-room atmosphere by, for instance, installing an in-house plugin for personal guest devices to ingeniously attaching rewards to risk-free rates, personalisation is a trend that will not be fading off soon,” says Cyrus Onyiego, the country manager of Jumia Travel Kenya.

The incessantly demanding millennials as well as a rising class of Generation Z that seeks more experiential travel, play an assertive role in making hoteliers proactive in offering tailor-made services for their customers.

Personalising hotel guest experience by leveraging tech

Josephine Wawira  17 Feb 2017

Chatbots and robots

Today, hotels are highly driven by the need to avail services to guests in the most accessible way. This has led to more technological automation, enabling almost everything to become digitalised. While digital check-ins’ existence already feels antique, almost everything else such as ordering room service is now making hotel stays a delight using chatbots and robots.

Making hotel reservation is no longer a fuss, and neither is the entire boarding experience with the use of chatbots. The ability to increase hotel guest engagement at all stages of their stay through technology helps in collecting valuable guest information which then facilitates in providing a personalised experience as discussed above. This also guarantees that your customers will receive other information such as applicable offers/deals, thus improving loyalty and increasing the number of returning guests. Therefore, hotels that have embraced chatbots and robotic technologies are expected to experience a surge in revenue conversion rate in the second quarter of 2017.

Simple is smart

It always seems that when one inclination becomes a sort of a liability, then the old is regenerated. For instance, in the past and as recent as a decade ago, hotel stays were often labeled a ‘luxurious experience’ only applicable to individuals of certain high class. However, a half turn is easily seen in the current day hospitality sector, with travelers of all backgrounds increasingly warming up to the aspect of vacationing and staying at hotels. It is no longer a luxury but rather a necessity for a majority to break from their day-to-day chores to invigorate themselves in completely different environs, and hotels make a perfect hideaway.

To accommodate each of these guests, most hotels have transformed from the previously intricate nature especially regarding revenue management, with incorporating special resident rates. Other facets include offering discounts and packages, special club membership rates, specialised amenities such as to accommodate people with special abilities, as well as different payment options. In any success trajectory in a hotel business and in the entire hospitality industry, simplicity is key and is especially smart.

The future of hospitality is indisputably more optimistic, and a simple choice such as modernising operations through the adoption of shifting trends can determine if a player will benefit from the benefits or not.