How experiences are changing accommodation industry
Tourism accommodation industry, just like any other is prone to changes and in order to continue operating successfully it is vital to understand those changes and factors that drive them. Whether you own or manage a hotel, hostel or rental apartments, you will notice that guests’ preferences change over time.
Recent figures show that guests nowadays choose to spend less money on buying things and more on obtaining new experiences.
Sooner you start understanding what is driving your guests to come to your destination, to stay there and spend money, sooner you will adjust your offer to their needs. This is not applicable only to hoteliers and holiday rentals, but also to overall service industry as well as local tourist offices.
To previous generations, material goods were an indicator of one’s welfare. People were spending the surplus of their earnings to the goods they associated with the desired status, such as expensive cars and jewelry. However, development of social media and changes in the perception of the value have affected the ways people show their status today.
Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, are giving us the opportunity to present ourselves to the larger audience than ever before. The millennials are the generation more impressed with moving the boundaries, exploring the new cultures and experiencing adventures than with possessing material goods. They are showing their status through the social media. They are documenting and sharing their journeys, breathtaking horizons, local cuisine, accommodation they stayed along the way. It all affects how they present themselves to others, but also creates the image of the destinations they visit.
Airbnb is one of the first companies that has embraced these changes in the habits of the holiday goers and expanded their offer from solely accommodation, to experiences as well. Guided by “Live like local” principles, they’ve impacted millions of travelers encouraging them to immerse themselves into the destination, to live like locals in their apartments, to buy on their farmers’ markets, to try their local dishes.
Airbnb didn’t stop there. They went a step further and created an exciting and unique offer with the collection of bookable “Experiences” and in such way attracted all those people who expect more than just a traditional accommodation offer. The fact that many other OTAs are moving towards expanding their selection of services and offering the private accommodation is an assurance that Airbnb has hit the nail on the head.
Considering these trends, we are bringing you some advice about what to do in order to ensure your property is meeting customers’ needs and operates profitably in the current environment.
1. Define your identity and brand it
Take some time and think about what sort of unique experience do you offer to your guests. What is your unique selling point?
- Is your property secluded, away from the city noise and surrounded by untouched natural beauty? Is your property located in the area of particular historical value? Is your property suitable for parties and events?
- Once you are aware of the unique experience that you can offer to your guests, you can define your brand and focus on the target audience. Think about this: Where does your target audience gets the information from? Is the written word, traditional media, emails, social media? What type of language do they use? Do they prefer to receive information through the image rather than the text?
- Once you have defined all of that, you can start selling a tailor made offer, to a carefully picked audience, in an effective manner, and it won’t take long until you realize that such a simple research will benefit your business greatly.
One of the Rentlio’s customers that is doing a great job in this area is the Swanky Mint Hostel in Zagreb.
They are active on social media, they understand that their target audience are the tech-savvy millennials who consume information in this way. Their website, as well as the property itself, are designed in simple, yet vibrant and captivating way. The minimum amount of text and gallery of photos emphasize the community, atmosphere, and selection of various in-house organized activities. They are enabling their guests to fully utilize their short stay allowing them to experience destination in different ways and this is what attracts their target audience.
2. Understand what is that your guests need
Personal approach, innovation and a little bit of a research will enable you to set the agenda for the marketing success.
- Gather your data so that you won’t be tapping in the dark. Social media adapts the content they show you based on your previous search. Shopping centers offer discounts through the “loyalty programs” based on what you commonly purchase. Music platforms such as Spotify, suggest the playlists for you using algorithms and your personal data to ensure that you will like a particular selection of music.
- It is easy enough to personalize an offer for every guest, just keep it simple and have in mind what we have mentioned above: your unique selling point, identity, and brand.
Our user who went above and beyond to apply this advice is the Apartment Oasi, Zadar
One of the managers of the Oasi is a graphic designer. After conducting a simple guest analysis she realized that most of her guests are couples or families with children who stay for one week or longer in her property. Therefore she decided to utilize her skills and creativity and surprise her guests with welcome presents. She designed original postcards with motives of the apartment, area and the destination so that guests can send them back home to their friends and families and tell them about their holidays. She also created branded labels for the towels and decorated apartment with her original graphics. That small sign of thoughtfulness went a long way and left a great impression on her guests who wrote positively about it in their reviews.
3. Attach the experience to your property
Stay in contact with the chosen audience and work towards making your property a synonym and the first choice for the customers that you wish to attract, whether that is a specific social group or a particular type of holiday goers.
- The best way to find out whether you are doing a good job is by asking your audience for the feedback, by organizing community events or by engaging them through social media and email campaigns.
- Aim to level the experience of staying in your property beyond the general board offer. Wake their senses, create impressions and memories.
- The simple way to achieve this is by being well prepared and dedicated to each guest. Examine what is going on in your area and what could your guest find interesting, prepare brochures, maps, information. A more complex way, if the possibility allows you, is to create the original offer which will attract a targeted group of people.
One of the Rentlio’s users who is a great example of this practice is the Private Mansions in Amsterdam.
Private Mansions have created their identity based on historical, authentic places where their properties are located. Their facilities are decorated in a way that draws the spirit of the past and allows its guests the opportunity to travel back in time. One of the properties can be found in the area known for its’ theaters and artists, therefore each room is decorated in Art Deco style, and the offer is extended to concerts and events which are depicting the chosen era. Private Mansions speak to the audience of a particular taste, willing to escape the reality every now and then. Their guests appreciate the art and the unconventional entertainment, and they do not hesitate to spend money on it.
You won’t see these properties present as much on social media, because that is not where their audience is. They run the marketing campaign on the sense of secrecy, exclusivity, and nostalgia. Still, those people who know what they want, will find them easily. Taking into the account that their properties are often booked out, it seems that they have found their niche and their unique selling point as well as the successful way of capitalizing on it.
