Is what you said what you still want to say?

Is what you said what you still want to say?

It’s quiet. Not a lot of guests in the house (if you’re open). And we’re all dealing with a new current reality and the promise of one down the road that's going to look a lot different.

So use the time to get ready for it. One smart thing to do, we think, would be to take a hard look at your Brand Promise and whether or not it's a relevant position going forward. Maybe it needs a bit of a refresh, what with all that's happened.

This is probably especially true for anybody who does a lot of groups business. That’s not going to dry up completely, but it could be a long time before it is what it was. And in the meantime you’re going to have to do something to take up the slack.

A refreshed Brand Promise you can build into your marketing messages will be a valuable tool in attracting the extra transient business you’re going to need. 

"We used to specialize in meetings but nobody’s having meetings right now, so we have lots of room for you” isn’t going to do the job.

But beyond groups, travel habits are going to change and you would do well to put some effort into figuring out if and/or how that affects your hotel or resort and how you may need to refresh your Brand to stay in the game. 

We're not advocating change for the sake of change. Maybe your Brand Promise is still on point and maybe not. Could be, you just need to change what you’re saying about yourself. What we're saying is you’d be smart to take a look. Sooner rather than later.

Hospitality is going to loosen up – eventually. But, like many other industries, it’s probably going to look different when it does. So, is what distinguished you six months ago going to be the same thing that’s going to distinguish you six months from now?

You need to figure that out.

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Make hay in the dark.

Make hay in the dark.

Because the sun will shine again.

The travel industry has been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic.
But it’s not going to last forever, and you can use this “down time” to make sure you’re ready for a Comeback. One thing you can do right now is read this great piece on Hotel News Now. Some good stuff there.

(We especially like the part about the importance of creativity going forward.)

Here are few of our own thoughts:

Give people a reason to book in advance. Flexible cancellations and no charge for re-booking are common practices these days, so why not offer a discounted rate for rooms booked, say in the fall – and charge one night’s cost as a non-refundable deposit? That could generate some revenue now when you need it. And you could even offer an additional incentive by donating a percentage of that one-night’s deposit to a good cause. Sort of a "buy now/save later" thing. Your guests can save on a future stay and feel good about doing it. There is actually a group that provides the means to sell a "bond" and save you all the trouble. "Buy Now, Stay Later." Check it out here.

Don’t disappear. The economics of the situation aren't too different from a recession. And it’s a fact that businesses who maintain an advertising or marketing communications effort in the down times come out of it much better and much faster than those who disappear. This is not an opinion; it’s a fact. And, as an independent, you need to realize that your chain competition is certainly not going to go dark. They’re going to capitalize on their rewards club databases and stay very visible to their most important audiences. 

Smaller advertisers rely on a steady, ongoing drumbeat to build awareness and compete in a crowded environment with bigger spenders. If you stop advertising, it will slow or stop the awareness you have worked to build, and the cost to regain it will be higher. Playing catch-up always is. 

Look for media opportunities. Like everything else, media channels are changing because of the virus. Keep in mind that the number of businesses, wisely or not, going dark, means media channels are more desperate for advertisers. That means they’ll be open to negotiation, and you can get more for your money in a much less crowded environment.

So look for new products and ask for discounts and delayed payment options so you can continue being visible but pay later when business has started to come back. Don’t buy straight off the shelf at rack rate. Partner with your media outlets.

Take a hard look at your IT and website. One thing you may have noticed is that the way almost everybody does business has changed and a lot of it is going to stay changed. Distance learning, virtual yoga, overloaded online banking systems and the like. So maybe now, while things are slow, you could tune up your IT capabilities, get your database cleaned up and get the kinks out of your website.

There’s more you can do. We’ll share more ideas, and you’ll probably have some of your own. But the key to this is your mindset. Don’t hide and just wait for the crisis to pass. Plan ahead. And set yourself up for quicker success when the world opens back up for business.

It’s going to get better one day. The question is whether you’re going to be ready to take advantage of it or not.

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