Positive momentum continues for the travel industry as global hotel occupancies rapidly return to 2019 levels, with many key destinations having already surpassed pre-pandemic performance this year, according to Amadeus’ Demand360 data.
Average daily rates remained higher than 2019 for the
entirety of H1 2023, and guests paying higher costs now expect more from their
stay. This is placing added pressure on hoteliers to meet, and where possible exceed, heightened guest expectations.
In this environment, personalization is a major driver for
change and now tops traveler wish lists, according to recent
Amadeus research. As guests are being presented with an increasingly wide
range of accommodations, hoteliers are being tasked to come up with new,
creative ways to provide quality service and tailored offers and experiences.
The rising need for personalization is a powerful
indication that staying competitive in the hospitality industry will require
new strategies to elevate the guest experience and grow revenue potential. Here
are five tried and true ways to deliver:
Build experiential stays
Guests want hotel stays
to reflect their preferences and interests more accurately, so hoteliers should
begin by performing an audit of their core audiences. They can examine variables like segment, guest type and
geographical location, then layer in other considerations such as time of year
to identify the type of personalized experiences that would resonate best with each
audience.
Eighty
percent of consumers are more likely to purchase when brands offer
personalized experiences, so it’s important to ensure customized messaging is
prevalent throughout the online journey, whether it’s for a family, business
traveler, honeymooner or groups of friends.
With traveler profiles
in place, hoteliers can start to build in personalization with compelling
upselling, unique on- and off-site experiences and value-added offers. To be
even more strategic, hotels can allow guests to build out their own unique
experiences by creatively merchandising hotel offerings and thereby monetizing
all aspects of the hotel’s unique attributes. By
showcasing these attributes in an attractive and captivating way on their
website with carry-over into the booking engine, a hotel can ensure a seamless
and tailored booking flow for guests.
Building
experiential stays helps drive overall profitability by enhancing guest stays
and highlighting a hotel’s unique features and amenities. Incorporating them
into the website and booking channel encourages guests to make additional
purchases and boosts direct booking revenue, while further differentiating a
hotel from its competition.
Launch customized packages and promotions
Another tactic to create
more personalized experiences is to back them up with dynamic offers and
promotions to win more business. Hoteliers can set a foundation with market and
property specific promotions based on business-critical benchmarks such as seasonal
peaks or lulls, while addressing the ability to factor in individual
preferences for custom built stays. Those that have identified their top
producing guest personas to develop relevant packages for will find themselves
in a stronger position to round out their strategies and entice higher
revenue-generating return stays.
With
dynamic versus static offers on the rise, hoteliers can additionally have more
flexibility in the way they present their best offerings without the need to
pre-calculate every facet of the price in a constantly fluctuating market. This
presents a higher range of options for customers to truly package and
personalize their stays, ensuring their chosen experiences can meet their
heightened expectations.
Have a diverse channel mix to stand out in a competitive online market
As traditional
distribution channels evolve, hotels are presented with myriad options to reach
potential guests. However, with so many booking channel options and
competitors, getting noticed with the right offer at the right time can be
challenging. Winning more business today requires striking a balance between
marketing and revenue tactics that enables hotels to sell more, sell broader
and personalize the guest experience.
To stay ahead, hoteliers
must embrace an integrated approach that leverages both direct and indirect
distribution channels. Having exposure with top online travel agencies and global
distribution systems ensures greater visibility, while metasearch allows guests
to find and compare prices before ultimately making their booking decision.
Exposing special rates with member programs on third-party platforms furthers
online presence and competitive positioning, while driving more traffic back to
the hotel’s direct website with compelling offers and direct calls-to-action.
As search engines are
the go-to resources for guests shopping for accommodation, it’s critical to
ensure the hotel website and content are optimized for different search engines
to improve rankings and visibility. This includes using relevant keywords,
creating high quality content and ensuring the website is SEO optimized.
Hoteliers can consider
tailored messaging and call-outs on the hotel’s direct channel and booking
engine for greater visibility to targeted audiences and create a sense of
urgency with banner ads or countdown timers for even more attention-grabbing
offers.
A
well-calibrated distribution mix not only bolsters a hotel’s presence in a
crowded online market but can enhance revenue and brand consistency.
Personalize recommendations on area attractions
A hotel room is just one
component of the trip, with consumers seeking customizable offers complete with
immersive experiences at their destinations. With travelers spending up to 10% of their
travel budget on tours and activities, this presents a prime opportunity for
hotels to add value to the guest experience.
By
leveraging data analytics and guest profiling, hoteliers can curate bespoke
itineraries that resonate with travelers and intelligently merchandize these
experiences on their website and booking engines. By presenting local
recommendations and carefully aligning suggestions with in-house services,
amenities and partner offerings in a compelling way, hoteliers can entice
guests to explore opportunities that enrich the experience, while also boosting
ancillary sales.
As
discerning travelers seek more unique offers, hotels can attract guests who
prioritize personalized, authentic experiences and are willing to pay more for
them.
Communicate with the guest pre- and post-stay
Direct
bookings are particularly helpful to a hotel’s personalization strategy.
Capturing data and customer information upfront enables guest communications
and opportunities to further enhance their stay. Personalized pre-arrival
emails can be sent to highlight a hotel’s award-winning customer service or
spotlight the best of what the property has to offer.
Hoteliers can send
entertainment or food and beverage-focused offers and then build out engagement
factors for future personalized promotions. Post-stay, they can influence
long-term relationships by sending thank you communications with “consider
enrolling in our loyalty program” messaging.
By understanding what
drives the customer and then presenting attractive, personalized offers, hoteliers
have a greater opportunity to secure repeat customers, cultivate loyalty and
generate more revenue-enhancing opportunities along the guest journey.
Delivering
hotel guest personalization in an authentic and dynamic way requires the need
for data and an integrated tech stack to best serve travelers across their
journeys. It’s up to hoteliers to harness the information they have and action
it at every available opportunity – or risk getting left behind by the
competition.