5 Ways you can prepare for the major hospitality trends of 2022

Covid’s effects are still prominent across the globe and current guest habits reflect that. Even though times are uncertain, it doesn’t mean you can’t prepare for these changes in travel, trends, and guest behavior.

 

Here, we’ll outline 5 ways you can prepare for 2022’s major hospitality trends so you can get ahead of the competition and stay there – delighting your guests along the way.

 

Sustainability

Most industries, including the travel industry, have been focusing on being more environmentally friendly in recent years with the rising concerns of climate change and natural disasters. 

Even small changes can add up to a significant reduction of your hotel’s impact on the environment – and it can save you some money in the process. Some things you can do to run a more sustainable business include:

• Switching to eco-friendly light bulbs
• Investing in low-flush toilets and low-flow shower heads
• Starting a towel reuse program 
• Investing in smart thermostats 
• Using occupancy sensors for lighting 

Many travelers expect hotels to have environmental policies as standard, and 73% of travelers have said they’d be more inclined to choose a property that implements sustainable features. 

 

Labor

The Bureau of Labor Statistics has said that in October 2021, jobs in the leisure and hospitality industries made up 31% of the 531,000 jobs created in the US, and yet, accommodation businesses are still struggling to find and retain staff.

Businesses have tried increasing pay to attract more staff, but many people are looking for more than just higher pay and have migrated to other industries that offer better benefits and working hours.

The best way to combat the current labor shortages is to automate as much manual labor as possible. This doesn’t mean investing in robots instead of hiring people – that would completely remove the personal touch that makes the service industry so fantastic. But there are a few things you can automate to save hours of manual labor every week – and save money in the long run.

Newer, cloud-based hotel management solutions can help you streamline your operations and take over several manual tasks. These integrated, hospitality management platforms can save you time on:

• Payment reconciliations
• Managing rates on OTA extranets
• Chargeback disputes
• Dynamic pricing (with the use of pricing intelligence tools)

Properties of all types and sizes could benefit from using a modern, integrated, and cloud-based hospitality management platform to help streamline and automate their business processes. 

 

Revenge Travel

Another trend that has resulted from the pandemic is “revenge travel” – or the idea that people have a strong urge to travel as a result of months-long travel bans and restrictions. Since the pandemic, households across the world have saved an extra $5.4 trillion combined and now they’re ready to spend it on a trip away from home. 

This trend is welcome news for the hotel industry after the long lull in demand. Additionally, three major habits are coming from revenge travel: the demand for flexible booking, longer stays, and an increase in domestic travel. 

In order to prepare for this trend, hoteliers and hosts need to take stock of their pricing strategies and consider what hotel pricing types are most profitable for their business. This may seem daunting without a professional revenue manager, and you may look to basic rates and simple room pricing to implement. However, there are major profitability benefits to a dynamic pricing strategy that can not be overlooked. 

 

Unpredictable Demand

Pre-pandemic, it was easier to predict how many bookings they’d get based on seasonality and events.  

Today, there is so much uncertainty in the industry. Travel restrictions are changing all the time and differ from country to country. And when people are able to travel, they simply aren’t as confident about booking trips. 

Many travelers are now engaging in ‘trip stacking.’ ‘Trip stacking’ is when travelers book numerous flexible trips at once, knowing that they’ll cancel or postpone some of them. This new trend is causing unprecedented uncertainty across the industry.

To be in the best possible position, you can use a revenue management tool that will alert you to when your selected set of local competitors change their price, so you can always stay ahead of the competition and be ideally priced for your market. 

Your website is essential for attracting direct bookings. It should be mobile-friendly, include an easy-to-use booking engine, and be optimized for search engine results if you want to drive more bookings. 

If you’re ready to update your website and would like to use an expert, make sure you choose a reputable website builder that has experience in matching the needs of the hospitality industry.

 

Further digitalization

Today’s guests are increasingly expecting modern and contactless options when they travel. This includes features like keyless entry, self check-in, flexible contactless payments, mobile concierge, and instant messaging with customer service. Since the start of the pandemic, digital customer interactions have risen from 36% to 58%.

If you’re not meeting guests’ expectations digitally, your business could be losing out on revenue. Quality digital apps, services, and tools that enhance the guest experience are now more accessible and affordable than ever. If you have an integrated hospitality platform with an open API, these apps can be connected to your PMS to make mobile check-ins and other digital experiences easy for your guests and affordable for you. 

Start Small to Drive Big Changes in 2022 

While the past few years have been turbulent for the hospitality and lodging industry, there are many exciting trends on the horizon that are changing the way business is done. Hoteliers and hosts have the opportunity to implement new technologies to automate the way they do business to save on their bottom line and deliver remarkable customer experiences that keep their guests coming back. With travel on the rise, establishing strong connections with guests is key. Being aware of and preparing for upcoming trends is critical in having a successful 2022.