Planning for future operations in a post-COVID-19 world - Part 2
Simultaneously, I strongly suggest that the finance and accounting team keep the hotel staff appraised of the actual financial status of the hotel. It is always best to keep one’s staff to be abreast of the tight financial times that the hotel is undergoing in order to meet the vital financial commitments such as operating overhead costs, staff salaries and wages. Usually, this helps the HR and Management advise the staff of their obligations and responsibilities in assisting with optimization of the sales, revenues, yields and more importantly the cost of operations. In trying times such as this, management requires the active support of their staff to keep the operations and revenues ticking over at a lower cost to keep the organization above water.
Together with revenues, costs and incremental sales, is the sales & marketing strategy, which is vital to attract new business and keep you brand awareness alive. Fortunately, electronic social media and web based marketing platforms, have stepped in to fill the vacuum of the usual tour operators, DMCs and regular travel agents, with their printed brochures, advertisements and other physical advertising material. This medium together with other electronic based apps and platforms such as Google Ads, PPC,FB, WhatsApp, Instagram and Linked In, Chat bots, online booking engines, channel managers and payment gateways have helped in the road to recovery for most hotels who have invested wisely in this technology.
Due to the very nature of the targeting capability of web marketing and electronic social media, hotels have managed to remain focused on their repeat clientele and also managed to send out their sales & marketing offers and deals to their selected target data bases. If your hotel hasn’t gone forward and invested in such technology, it is best that one invests now, even at this late stage to attract past and future clients. Most Sri Lankan hotels are sadly lacking in this expertise and experience and are strongly advised need to add web marketing and social media platforms as vital tools in their marketing tool box.
Interestingly to make social media and web marketing work for you it is essential that your hotel have depend, on the old fashioned data to help target the markets and social groups that you wish to market to. This is immensely important for both the local market as well the international tourist source markets. Investment in a reliable, branded, user friendly PMS and CRS is now the norm for your hotel operation. These IT hardware and software technology, would make life easy for your operation and sales and marketing teams to collate the data needed to make a prudent decision where your sales and marketing strategy is concerned. It would be a great time for you to educate yourself on the operations and efficacy of web marketing as it is definitely the future in terms of advertising your hotel, accommodation and food & beverage outlets.
After taking stock of the options available you could be in a better position to decide if your hotel is going to cater to the Sri Lankan clientele or achieve level 1 status to host only tourists. This decision - now on the mind of most hoteliers, is in view of the SLTDA Covid 19 health & safety protocols. Marketing to the Sri Lankan clientele, has now begun to take a decisive turn as the market is tightening up pricewise with so many long stay, early booking and credit card discounts and promotions dominating the market. Price has been the main victim in the desperate fight to get a bigger portion of the local business. This has led to a price war with the luxury 5 star properties going into a head long battle with their competitors. This has resulted in the lowering of the prices by the lower category hotels, just to compete in the market.
Unfortunately, the negative aspect of this whole exercise is the lowering of standards to match the price cuts. I am aware of many hotels that have been caught up in the price war suffering even heavier losses due to the narrowing of the margins. It has led to a situation of low prices, high occupancy and a further dwindling in the profit margin, much to the surprise and concern of the hotel owners who are being steadily strangled by a debt crisis.
In conclusion, the hospitality industry in Sri Lanka has reached a tipping point of what I call a “Sink or Swim” syndrome. The situation calls for cool calculating heads and great manipulative management skills, to keep our hotels up and running. I wish you all success and best wishes. Keep your chin up and cool demeanor, for the good days are still over the horizon, but will be soon be observed in near future.
Jan Van Twest, with over 40 years experience in the hotel industry is currently the Director / General Manager of the Fortress Resort & Spa in Koggala, Sri Lanka. He is also a Director of Hotel Services Ceylon PLC, Summer Seasons PLC, Fortress Resorts and the Queensbury PLC
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