10 Hotel Differentiation Strategies To Help You Stand Out In The Hotel Industry
Have you ever imagined walking down the halls of your hotel only to realize that the rooms are empty? This is the worst nightmare of hoteliers and of course a big sign of a failing business strategy. In order to avoid such situation at any time, even during the slow travel season, you must implement differential/sales strategies that will improve your hotel business and continually bring more customers.
Differentiation strategies are those unique features which your business rivals do not have and that gives you a prevailing competitive advantage. They help you to create exceptional products and services that are widely valued by customers
Differentiation strategies are very essential in a very competitive industry like hospitality, if you are going to be able to maintain a good number of sales.
Here are 10 Differentiation Strategies to help you as a hotelier;
- Design
This is a very crucial factor and should be carefully considered when the feasibility study for a new hotel is being conducted. Your hotel design can create a long-lasting competitive advantage for you. Most hotels are located in well-established and highly competitive markets but if your design is unique and creative, different from the competition, then is a good differentiation.
- Location
Just like your hotel design, location is also a key differentiation factor and should be carefully considered when the feasibility study for a new hotel is being conducted. For instance, hotel located in a unique area with few competitors, also near a major natural attraction accessible through good transport infrastructure is highly advantageous from the start. Also, a hotel located in a very respected neighborhood will portray an image of a very respected hotel.
- The Hotel Room
Have you ever considered this: why should a guest stay at my hotel when he find can similar rooms and rates in the market? The hotel room is a very important commodity, in fact, it is a very major asset that every hotel has; and it is no longer just enough to have beautiful rooms to sell, your customers can find that anywhere, customers can quickly identify similar room products and compare rates, hence, the necessity of adding more things that can keep them in the room when they come. For instance, with unlimited internet access, the commoditization (process of converting products or services into standardized, marketable objects) will of course accelerate.
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“What about I lower my price?” you may ask; well, what if your competitors also lower theirs too? Once price becomes a primary decision driver for you, it becomes very challenging to increase revenues and compete, especially once the room products are perceived as related. To compete successfully in the hospitality market, your best strategy should be focus on value. Successful hotels compete not on price but value.
- Unlimited Internet Access
Ever imagined if your data was truly unlimited?
Oh yes, that’s exactly what most people want – unlimited access to the world. Now imagine providing that and everyone knows that coming to your hotel, they will never be disconnected from the world. The key to your competitive advantage especially when products cannot easily be differentiated, lies in adding value to your services in order to improve their quality.
- Online Travel Agencies (OTAs)
Standard hotels register with OTAs to reach potential guests. In fact, Online travel agencies play very vital role in the commoditization of the hotel industry. Many travelers and tourists who use OTAs do not hesitate to check out the hotels registered with those agencies as well as book for accommodation, in fact, they care more about the agency they book on in most cases. Nowadays the majority of hotel reservations are made via OTAs especially for tourists and clients coming in from different towns or cities. In order to register with OTAs, information such as room products and availability, value and prices must be provided.
- Hotel Brand
Your hotel brand somehow guarantees a competitive advantage for you. Now here’s the thing, the brand determines what kind of customer it could attract, it also guarantees a certain level of service to the customer. If your hotel brand image is strong, and you deliver consistently on the brand promise, there’s a great possibility that the customer will choose the property affiliated with the brand, and this will to some extent prevent them from going to your competitors’ properties.
- Excellent Customer Service
Hotel Customer Service is the care you provide to your guests before, during, and after their stay in the hotel. In fact, Meredith Kasheta – owner of MMC Agency said “clear mission begins before guests enter the hotel, it starts online.” Hotel customer training is a very important part of customer service strategy. Your employees play very critical role in maintaining the standard of your hotels, and hotels that highly prioritize training and empowering their employees on customer management are very likely to excel greatly in customer service. Excellent customer service in hotels is important because almost all hotels rely seriously on their loyal customers and word-of-mouth marketing.
- Guest Rewards Strategy
Many customers today value the opportunity to earn rewards (however little), with the companies they do business with. Hotels, in particular, have great success with rewards programs. In Guest rewards strategy, you should develop a system that rewards your guests for staying frequently, purchasing upgrades, and for referring family members and friends. This strategy no doubt, often brings your hotel guests back and of course generate more revenue enough to keep you in business for the longest time.
- Promotion Strategy
Running promotions whether seasonally or occasionally is a great strategy to attract new customers as well as retain old ones. You can be very flexible and targeted with your promotions, this will often grab the attention of tourists and travelers.
- Never Run Out of Products and Services
Many businesses have closed down because they could not restock their products at some point, and this is a big turnoff to some customers especially when they have the experience about 2 to 3 times from the same dealer, they conclude “the dealer never has it, he doesn’t know business.” Never run out of the products and services you offer, from physical products such as food and drinks, to services such as excellent customer service. Be consistent in excellence; this will help you to attract big clients, keep big clients, and leverage big clients. Brian Tracy said “The market only pays excellent reward for excellent performance.”
Successful hotels compete not on price but on value.
