A Dummies Guide to Improving Your Hotel

So you may have found yourself promoted to general manager, or perhaps invested much of your life savings into buying a share of a hotel; where do you go from here? What steps can you take to improve the hotel as a business? It’s really not rocket science if you do the simple things right, but people often focus on the more complicated parts, assuming that’s what makes the difference. The following are a few tips anyone in the hotel business should take in order to improve many aspects of their hotel.

Improve customer service

If there’s anything you could do to improve the overall experience of your hotel (note the word experience, not just stay) it would be to improve your customer service. This literally does not cost a penny and could turn a good experience into a great experience. By ensuring your staff are attentive to a guest’s wants and needs, going the extra mile to enhance their experience will do wonders for your business. This could come in the form of positive reviews, increased spending and repeat custom. Anything as simple as a smile and a conversation could go a very long way.

Be available on all platforms

The more places you are, the better the chance you have of filling those rooms. Partner up with all the major travel search engines and hosts in order to increase your visibility. You’ll usually only be charged on each booking, so it won’t cost you anymore to make yourself available on multiple platforms. Invest in a digital room booking system to ensure there are never any double bookings, and manage your staff in a way that allows you to have the reception manned 24/7. Nothing is more frustrating for a guest than finding out in the middle of the night that they can’t get a hold of any staff when they’ve locked themselves out of their room.

Keep your rooms immaculate

By constantly keeping a high standard when it comes to room cleanliness and the quality of your facilities, you are actually preserving it for longer, meaning you won’t need to shell out for repairs and updates as often as if you let it deteriorate. Clean rooms are also one of the key elements for an excellent experience, and can make or break these. Reading hotel reviews will make you understand quickly the importance of this and how much of a bearing it has on a customer choosing your establishment.

Offer rewards

In such a competitive industry, hotels should be doing their utmost to give guests a reason to come back. One of the simplest and most effective ways of doing so is by offering a loyalty scheme. Offer rewards for repeat guests as well as rewards for referrals. You would be surprised at the lengths some people will go to to convince their friends to stay at certain places if the rewards are there!

So here we have four simple and pretty much free, ways to improve your hotel. Start implementing these ASAP and reap the benefits just as quickly.