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Current Situation
COVID-19 has truly changed the whole world. Some countries are under total lockdowns while others deal with quarantine waves. The majority of industries have been affected by this global pandemic and every company tries to endure during these hard times. This is especially applicable to the hospitality industry as the global tourism industry is basically paralized. Still, it is possible to operate even under these conditions. However, hotel businesses have to follow some imperative precautions during the whole COVID-19 situation.
Following the official guidelines regarding managing hotel business during a pandemic is a logical idea and you should definitely do that. However, if your hotel is known for something very specific like wine-tasting events, it is important to become creative and you can learn more here. With that being said, there are some precautions that could stabilize your business.
New Rules Are Here to Stay
First things first — it’s important to understand that some changes caused by the pandemic will be permanent. This means that the hotel industry will have to embrace some things that people may not find to be enjoyable. This, of course, implies habits like social distancing and increased hygiene requirements that come with some costs — sanitizers and other stuff.
Analysis and Response!
The next thing regarding precautions during COVID-19 is to properly analyze your current situation and what’s going on on the target market. This way, you will be able to get a hold of the local government’s requirements regarding the hotel industry while assessing what could be done to remain afloat.
Individual Hotels
If you’re an owner of an individual hotel, you’re likely to deal with lots of things like cancellations of both accommodation and events. When it comes to canceling room bookings, the best decision is to provide guests with some sort of incentive to return back thus ensuring long-term loyalty. There are numerous ways to do so including welcome-back packages and other benefits.
As for the events, the situation is kind of different. The best decision is to try and negotiate with the clients instead of basically accepting a cancellation. There are different options such as postponing an event or providing a client with some form of precaution. It all depends on an individual situation, however. That’s why each case should be viewed as a separate one — there’s no universal pattern.
Hotel Chains
If you’re a part of a larger hotel chain, the situation is different. First of all, it is imperative to assess how the target audience is reacting to the COVID-19 pandemic. A hotel chain that aims at domestic travelers is not likely to suffer significantly from the travel restrictions. Hotel chains that cater to international tourists, however, are in a different situation. The best decision is to come up with an effective marketing campaign to minimize the consequences of lockdowns and to follow official guidelines regarding precautions.
While price reduction seems to be a natural decision that will bring in more people, it’s only effective from a short-term perspective. Dramatic price reduction is highly likely to cause some pain in the back for the hotels as they won’t be able to cover the potential expenses. That is why it’s imperative to do some research and reduce prices cautiously. A proper market analysis is what usually works best with such stressful situations. So, having an effective pricing strategy can save your hotel business, just don’t overdo it!
The next thing is cost management. One of the most important precaution actions that a hotel business can take. To effectively counter the damage caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, you should consider tighter cost control. This way, coupled with a previous tip, you will be able to retain a healthy cash flow. Still, as with previous pieces of advice, it’s important to not overdo it. A responsible hotel owner will manage costs so there is no damage to the hotel in a long-term perspective.
Final Thoughts
The whole COVID-19 situation is horrible indeed. Global tourism and hotel industries have suffered some great losses but the situation seems to stabilize, sort of. Although there are lots of different restrictions and some countries are under lockdowns, the international tourist movement seems to adapt to the new realities.
That is why hotel businesses should do the same. New rules mean new challenges and a need to overcome them. As a result, hotel owners have to become creative when deciding how to battle the consequences of the pandemic. Still, there’s also a need for business intelligence. Today, business analytics and market research are some of the best precautions that a business owner can do. The statement is applicable to both individual hotels and large hotel chains — the ability to adapt is the key to survival.
