People love to travel, and when they travel, they need somewhere to stay. Hotels have long been the solution, but while chain hotels have boomed in the last couple of decades, smaller hotels have struggled. With services such as Airbnb and VRBO creating more competition, the task of attracting customers is even harder than ever. Still, there are ways to succeed. Read on to learn more about making your small hotel more competitive.
Invest in Equipment and Staff
Smaller businesses often need to cut corners to save money while meeting the same standards that bigger chains establish. Adapting to the competition is necessary for every industry, including hospitality, but trying to cut corners is often the wrong way to seek success. Skipping certain steps can be effective in the short term, but you quickly set your business up for failure. Hiring the cheapest staff and cutting hours will save money, but you’ll potentially have guest issues pile up with no one to respond to their complaints.
Trained staff can deliver high-quality service and care to your guests that they can’t find elsewhere. Empowering staff and maintaining quality requires a significant monetary investment, but you are setting yourself up for success in the future. Cheap equipment and untrained staff with high turnover rates are a recipe for disaster.
Embrace Technology
One of the easiest ways to make your hotel more competitive is by quickly embracing new technology. Guests are always looking for more convenient stays, and a lot of modern technology provides that benefit.
There are a few different ways that technology can improve hotel guests’ experiences. For example, apps allow guests to check in from their cellphones or customize their rooms to their liking before they arrive. Meanwhile, smart TVs allow visitors to enjoy whichever streaming service they prefer, and modern HVAC systems allow guests to make the room as comfortable as possible!
Technology, whether through an app, email, or review site, also makes it easy to get feedback from guests about their stay and what you can do better in your establishment.
Never Lose Sight of Your Competition
Every business must follow a key tenet to stay competitive: be aware of each competitor’s actions. If you wear blinders and fail to see or understand what your competitors are doing differently from you, you are more likely to make some of the same mistakes. For example, if a competing hotel suddenly goes under, you’d want to know what they were doing so that you can manage your business differently and avoid that same fate. Understanding what is happening within the industry also helps you adapt as quickly as possible.
These are some of the most effective ways to make your small hotel more competitive, but they will take some time to implement. It’s not always easy, but you must look at the future to make your hotel competitive. You still need to focus on the day-to-day while planning for development and growth far in advance. Otherwise, your customers may leave you behind.
