Preparing Your Hotel for Industry Shifts

Today’s post was written by Kacey Butcher, Monscierge Process and Administration. Connect with him on LinkedIn.

Communication is a tool we use each day to overcome challenges, share joy, and shape our emotions.  Without communication, we are similar to a ship without a sail. Therefore, how we communicate directly impacts our actions and reactions when engaging with others.

As consumers, we appreciate great service. Receiving such could ultimately determine how we communicate about that entity.  If we have a bad dining experience, we may share negative communication about the pain points of the experience.  Conversely, when the experience is positive, we rave praise and become loyal patrons.

Lately, you find companies such as Uber and Airbnb having the ability to disrupt the travel industry due to the direction of communication.  Consumers are increasingly sampling and then recommending new travel-oriented platforms with the latest methods of communication, thereby expanding their portfolio of services offered. For example: Booking a reservation through Airbnb allows for the traveler and the host to interact directly with one another, jump-starting the process of building trust and loyalty – and the likelihood of return bookings.  Both parties are given the choices for communicating using SMS, email, voice-call or even video conferencing.  The host can easily confirm that the traveler has directions and information about the local area. Uber creates a similar scenario, again giving the traveler options for using their preferred communication method.  These companies will continue to be disrupt several industries due to the aggressive options they create for their users.

Here at Monscierge, we have prepared for this shift in the industry.  We are in our 5th year of growing a platform with one single source for sharing local recommendations, property details, and travel information, yet can also give hotels the ability to communicate with their guests using either one specific method, or multiple sources at the same time. Hotels can drill down to one single change that will continue to build trust amongst travelers, and that is communication.

Direct bookings and owning the communication between hotel and guests will continue to be a focus for hoteliers in 2015. How is your hotel preparing for industry shifts this year?