When you stay at a hotel, you’re paying for more than just a bed for the night – the real attraction of hotels is the convenience of having your every need attended to, whether it’s someone changing your sheets every morning, or recommending the best restaurant to try in a foreign city.

Like any industry, hotels must constantly adapt and change their policies to reflect their customers’ needs and eccentricities. Constant revision is a trademark of an industry that profits off of pleasing people, and so staying up to date on trends is crucial to staying relevant in the hospitality world.

Millennials and Social Media 

The most obvious and expected change, of course, is the customers themselves. The fastest growing customer segment for the hotel industry today is the millennial generation, which is “expected to represent 50% of all travelers by 2025.” This generation comes with a completely different set of expectations when it comes to their hotel experience – millennials rely more heavily on technology to facilitate their transactions (check-in, payment, etc.), and they expect a more personal, unique experience from their hotel.

Social media plays a huge role in millennials’ everyday lives, and they use it to review, recommend, and describe the places they stay and the things they do. Rather than fighting the inevitable deluge of information that accompanies user generated content, hotels can and have been incorporating it into their marketing strategy – effectively letting their customers market for them.

Downsizing in Favor of Apps

A bigger challenge that comes with increased reliance on technology to facilitate everyday interactions is the possibility of downsizing staff to meet the decreasing need for real people to do the same job that an app can. It’s no longer an option to integrate technology into your business; it’s a key facet of providing the best experience for your customer.

This doesn’t mean that hotels should be full of computers instead of people, but the industry must recognize that many of the services that were traditionally performed by a concierge – checking in guests, for example – can now be done with a touch of a button. Hotels now have the difficult task of figuring out when they need a person to be physically present and when to just leave it to a device.

Keeping up with Trends

Hotels are constantly looking at new crazes in order to stay relevant. One new trend that will be shaping the industry is the new focus on health and wellbeing that is permeating society. Travelers are less inclined to use their vacation as an “excuse” to overeat and skip the gym – it’s becoming more and more common for guests to want healthy options on the hotel menu, and to make full use of the gym throughout their stay. Hotels are taking notice, and while you won’t miss seeing the ubiquitous burger in the hotel restaurant, you’ll likely be able to get a side of kale along with it.

Sharing Economy

Finally, one of the most difficult challenges for the hospitality industry is the rise of the sharing economy – the advent of websites like Airbnb allow people to rent rooms from locals for a fraction of what it would cost to stay in a hotel. Traditional hotels must now compete with the lure of reasonably-priced, no frills accommodations, something very attractive to a customer on a budget. The future of Airbnb and its impact on the hospitality industry is unclear and will likely shift and evolve over time, but remember that with a hotel you are paying for the experience, not just the bed. Airbnb might be making hotels more competitive, but not obsolete.

Whether you’re a guest or you manage a hotel yourself, staying abreast of developments in the industry is key to running a good business, or just having a good vacation. Happy traveling!

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