5 Methods for Attracting More Visitors to Your Hotel
The pandemic massively affected many industries but few were as hard hit as the travel and hospitality sectors of the economy. According to a report released in 2020, tourism expenditure in the country dropped by as much as 74.1 percent. This had massive repercussions to hotels and their employees, leading to reduced hotel owners’ salary and, even worse, mass employee lay-offs.
However, things are now looking up for the hospitality business everywhere with the widespread use of vaccines. As the economy and countries begin to reopen, hotels everywhere now have to consider how they can attract new visitors into their establishments.
Below are five ways your hotel can use to attract new customers and thrive in the economy.
- Improve the Gardens
People have been cooped up indoors for so long they will appreciate spending time outdoors. If your hotel’s outdoor amenities only consist of a single swimming pool and paved parking lot, you will lose customers to more manicured hotels.
Luckily for you, plenty of businesses offer landscaping to commercial businesses such as hotels. With their help, you can build gazebos surrounded by lush flower arrangements, meandering paths that go through decorative shrubs or even new sunning decks.
If you are really creative, you can make your hotel’s gardens the center piece of the property by setting up lovely al fresco dining places or encouraging outdoor activities.
- Offer Virtual Tours
People don’t want to just wander or rent rooms at strange hotels nowadays and crave for ways to look into potential vacation spots. However, they can be stymied by lockdowns and similar restrictions. Although photos in your business website can be very helpful, you can captivate more people by organizing virtual tours.
All you need to conduct virtual tours is a high-definition camera and a computer. Take long, sweeping videos of the grounds and the best rooms available on the property. Then you can upload these videos to your website and allow people to view your hotel at will. You might be surprised how many people will want to reserve rooms if they can see, even through video, how great your hotel really is.
- Highlight Sanitation
Because of the pandemic, people have become conscious of the hygiene and sanitation protocols of the businesses they patronize. Create a dedicated page on your website listing the various methods you are sanitizing the hotel. How often do you deep clean your rooms? Do you offer hand sanitizer in every room? Does your staff wear masks all the time?
Your hotel should not only highlight whatever steps you take to keep customers safe from contagion, but you should also look for ways to improve them.
Keeping your customers safe from contagion prevents your business form shutting down for weeks. Your employees’ health is also tied with the health of your hotel. You may find it difficult to run your grounds when your staff ishesitant to return to work or have to undergo quarantine.
- Initiate a Loyalty Program
Repeat customers are the best kind of visitors, especially if they bring new business when they return. The best way to ensure that people will keep coming back to your hotel isn’t through flashy gimmicks, but by initiating a customer loyalty program. Give visitors increasing perks the more times they reserve a room at your hotel. Maybe they get a complimentary breakfast on their second visit. Perhaps they get free wi-fi later on.
People enjoy perks and you can be surprised how tantalizing they can be. To further boost business, also offer a referral reward to customers who can attract new business. If a former visitor can convince their company to hold an event at your hotel, you can give them massive discounts in exchange.
- Partner with Locals
Although the concept of a staycation is growing in popularity, most people use hotels as a springboard to local tourist attractions rather than as a destination unto themselves. This is why its crucial that you form great relationships and partnerships with local business.
If your hotel is located near a very attractive beach, it’s prudent to offer your hotel visitors a discount on boating rental equipment because you have an arrangement with a local business. Your hotel can boast such perks to attract visitors while local businesses enjoy a steady stream of customers.
Hotels suffered enormously during the past year, and their employees even more so. These tips can help you revitalize your hospitality business and provide comfortable lodging to travelers and ensure your employees have a livelihood.
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