Panelists from SiteMinder, KAI, VHP Sindata & HERC Indonesia will discuss the following topics on how hoteliers should React, Respond & Recover from COVID-19
- The impact of COVID-19 today to local market
- Short-term tactics in dealing with the initial shock
- How to optimize your business during tough times
- Strategies for success in the future
- How to feel confident about the long-term recovery
Q1: COVID-19 has been the travel disruption that no one was expecting. What are you seeing in the local market?
HERC: Reza Rizky
- For the first time, the local market share was hit hard compared to previous SARS and MERS pandemics, and demand was so low that lowering prices would also not be attractive to guests.
- The longer this pandemic lasts (lockdown, quarantine, etc.) people will focus more on their main needs compared to travelling, which makes recovery of the tourism industry difficult.
- The positive side is that although the local market share is severely affected, the local market share will also recover faster than other market shares.
HERC: Dian Ayu
- Domestic market demand will for sure decrease during this pandemic even though there might still be travellers who spend their WFH days in hotels
- Demand will depend on how long this crisis will last, as Reza said that the longer this situation lasts, the more people will spend their budget on the primary needs
Q2: Where can hoteliers in Indonesia turn to right now to navigate through the impacts of COVID-19?
KAI: Rizky Januar
- Trusted associations such as PHRI and Bali Tourism Board
- Prioritizing marketing strategies for domestic rather than international markets
- Prioritizing marketing strategies for business markets rather than leisure markets
HERC: Reza Rizky
- Your company (find out what policies are adopted by the company and their impact on you)
- Government (Loan relaxation policy, etc., Work Program Card)
HERC: Dian Ayu
- The company itself, communicate and discuss with the owner what is their plan
- Official organization as Tourism Industries Advisors like PHRI as the official partner from Tourism Ministry
Q3: What are some measures hoteliers can take to protect their business in the short term and prepare for the lifting of travel restrictions?
HERC: Reza Rizky
- Check your hotel cash flow, is there enough runway for the next few months?
- Maximize all available resources to generate short-term potential income (food takeaways, outside catering, outside cleaning service)
- Communicate and engage with your guests via email newsletters, live IG feeds etc.; what safety and hygiene measures have been taken; entertainment or cooking demo)
- Prepare potential new demands of travellers in this matter regarding health & hygiene considerations (thermos scanners, SOPs, documentation, protective gear for employees, etc.)
KAI: Rizky Januar
- Manage your cancellation policy wisely to maintain adequate cash flow, such as:
- Changing booking dates rather than giving a refund
- Convert booking to cash credits without an expiration date
- It is not recommended to reduce rates because it would not be good for long-term profits
Q4: Where should hoteliers be spending their time right now? With little to no money to spare, what should they be focusing on?
KAI: Rizky Januar
- Conduct training and renewal or capacity building of staff
- Involve loyal guests or repeater guests by providing interesting programs for their future stays
- Use this pandemic time to develop ideas for what could not have been done during normal times
VHP: Marcelyn Sunarjo
- Use the time available to be more productive, such as developing self skills and knowledge such as participating in online training
- Analysis of incoming data to determine trends for entering the market
- Prepare and develop marketing strategies during the recovery period
- See new opportunities such as alternative products and distribution in other ways
- Review existing technology and analysis of past vs. current technologies
HERC: Reza Rizky
- Start a healthy life and exercise
- Self-improvement skill (even if it’s outside hospitality industry)
- Find your passion and turn your hobbies into something
HERC: Dian Ayu
- Maximize revenue from all sources; Attractive Room Package, Food delivery, Beverage specials To Go
- Reset or refresh our brand; fix the website, refresh the Monopoli culture, review our company brand identity, therefore when business is back to normal we will come up with something fresh
- Refresh & train all staffs for SOPs we have
Q5: What long term strategies can hoteliers be putting in place now that will lend to a faster recovery when the market rebounds?
HERC: Reza Rizky
- Restart and rethink your strategy (market segment, guest databases, communication etc)
- Plan and start driving ancillary revenue (outside rooms & functions)
- Automate and integrate your system (cost efficiency)
KAI: Rizky Januar
- Rethink, Prepare, React
- Rethink – Different strategies for different markets – rate plans, cancellation policies, promotions, etc.
- Prepare – Prepare action plans for different strategies
- React – Situation is unpredictable, constantly react to changes based on the situation
- Revise plans by having a good balance of labour and technology to be more sustainable
VHP: Marcelyn Sunarjo
- Preparing hotel infrastructure and other supporting equipment – especially for online and cloud technology, which during Pandemic COVID-19, cloud technology was proven to keep business running, connectivity and cost-efficient.
HERC: Dian Ayu
- Forecasting the rest of the months in 2020
- Prepare for room packages; like special rates for Sept onwards
- Digital marketing and online distribution strategy
Q6: Do you envision the travel landscape to look significantly different in the future and how will this play out for hoteliers?
HERC: Reza Rizky
- Travellers will be more aware of health and hygiene
- Face mask and social distancing is the new normal
- Less people to people services (contactless service)
KAI: Rizky Januar
- SARS took 5 months to begin recovery, hoteliers should expect longer for COVID-19
- Online reservations will continue to increase but slowly, it will take over a year to recover fully
VHP: Marcelyn Sunarjo
- Significant improvement to online business
- Humans will return to a state where quality is more important than brand
- Due to economic effects, customers will be more sensitive to costs
- Tourists will be more selective about their travel plans
HERC: Dian Ayu
- At the beginning people will have high awareness in health & hygiene, therefore the hotel has to be ready and maintain the hygiene standard they had during COVID-19
During times like these, hotels should be looking at digital transformation to stay competitive and come back stronger. Automated personalised upselling is one such digital transformation hotels can adopt to drive additional upsell revenue and guest experience.
Book a free call with our hotel consultant to learn more on how we can supercharge your hotel’s upsell strategy.
