The hotel industry was ever-growing and still is an integral part of the hospitality industry. It showed no sign of slowing down with more people wanting holidays and mini breaks in the UK. However, as the effects of the pandemic hit, the hospitality industry took a huge knock. As the UK was encouraged to stay at home, hotels were left redundant with no one to use them.
Yet, as the UK gradually comes out of lockdown and travel abroad is still a complicated process, staycations have increased in popularity. While families have missed trips away and couples have missed celebrations, people have rushed to book time away, with hotel bookings skyrocketing once again.
Despite this new-found success, the hotel industry still faces some challenges.
Competition from hotel industry alternatives
One of the biggest hotel industry competitors is apartment sharing sites such as Airbnb. In terms of value for money, Airbnb offers their customers individual units at the same rates as hotels offer one room. Therefore, customers get more space, privacy, and a unique experience for the same price or cheaper.
Not only this but Airbnb and others have apartments in the city centre and country locations – offering their customers more choice on location. As a result, Airbnb and other apartment sharing sites are absorbing the customers that would have once stayed in a hotel, becoming huge competition and determining their success.
With the rise of Airbnb, the hotel industry is scampering to keep up, from refining the booking and checking-in process to enhancing their amenities. In this highly competitive environment, customer experience is more important than ever. The hotel industry is now highlighting what sets it apart from Airbnb and other space-sharing rentals: the availability of amenities such as bars, gyms, restaurants, the convenience of having 24-hour room service, and security. Hotels are now promoting a family-friendly brand to encourage loyalty. Not only do they provide amenities for adults’ ultimate relaxation, but they are also providing facilities kids can enjoy, such as water amenities like commercial water slides.
Poor customer satisfaction
With technology advancing, there are now more ways than ever to share your opinion on the internet. Customers have space to leave positive reviews that encourage other people to visit a hotel. However, with this comes the option to leave negative reviews. We are all guilty of judging somewhere because of the reviews we see on sites like TripAdvisor. Once a hotel has bad reviews, it can be hard to regain the public’s trust, thus affecting its popularity. To be successful in the hotel industry, you also need certain qualities of a hospitality industry professionals that will rely on creating and maintaining strong relationships with their customers
Sustainability
There has been a recent shift in attitude towards combatting climate change. More people are staying in environmentally conscious hotels as protecting the environment is being rightly taken extremely seriously. However, some hotels have been reluctant to contribute to climate initiatives. As a result, they are losing business to eco-friendly and green hotels, causing a reduction in profit.
By updating existing structures and processes to reflect the government’s carbon-reducing initiatives and waste-reducing goals, it can help to reassure prospective guests that they can stay at a hotel guilt-free. Of course, it’ll be vital to have hotel insurance in place to protect new equipment and infrastructure against damage and ensure its longevity, so that guests can return for years to come.
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