From the moment I ever walked into a hotel to the moment I left, the entire hotel staff left no stone unturned to make me a happy & loyal customer. And they go on and on for years doing the same job with one single purpose – see a smile on our faces when we walk out of that hotel door.
They say the times have come to sell only roti kapda makaan dawaai aur shiksha. These are basic life needs. But I ask who will sell memories then? I don’t remember the food I had on my honeymoon. Neither do I remember the clothes I wore on my last office trip. But I remember, every hotel lobby I walked through, and every hotel room I ever stayed in. That is the magic of the memories we make during our vacations.
We all know that the hospitality & travel sector has been the hardest hit because of the COVID19 crisis. More than travel, I personally feel, hotels are worst affected because of the underlying fixed costs involved in running a hotel. I have been a hotelier myself and I recognise how running even a medium-sized property of 30-40 rooms can become overwhelming in these times.
I am no guru in this domain, but I have gathered some thoughts on how my hotelier friends can take the challenge in their stride and come out stronger from this crisis, considering that the oil needs to keep coming to run the machinery.
I confess, when one of the biggest OTAs started food home delivery from hotels I did laugh it off. But digging deeper into the solution it turns out to be a well-thought revenue generating model.
Each hotel can find perfect suitable partners for its delivery service from its travel agent network. Tie up with your travel agents across the city and facilitate delivering good quality food in their local vicinity. You will be surprised to find out how this untapped network can come to your rescue.
In the service industry, our staff, our team, and our colleagues are our biggest strengths. They understand the pain you are going through in these difficult times. Talk to them, reassure them of a brighter future and restructure their salaries. They will understand.
Salary restructuring can happen in many ways. One of the ways which we have done at Trip Tap Toe is to link salaries with medical requirements, education of children & accommodation support along with conveyance reimbursements for every time they are required to travel to office. We haven’t laid off a single employee and yet increased our runway considerably. Ping me for more insights 🙂
In these difficult times it is imperative for all of us to move 2 steps forward to support our employees and they will definitely move a step forward too.
Now is the time to optimise all available resources to us to the peak of their capacity.
Do whatever it takes but do not compromise with guest experience. Experience is the only thing they come to your hotel for.
After every crisis the hotel and travel industry has seen a V-shaped recovery. However, this time recovery will be slower. Hoteliers, should not let short term benefits blur their vision and come between leadership, strong decisions & persistence.
Give us a shout. We are large in numbers and will always be watching your back.
Kyunki har ek friend zaroori hota hai!
Manuraj Singh Johar – Founder CEO
Trip Tap Toe