With reopened international borders and a promisingly resurgent hospitality and tourism industry in the APAC market, you must be wondering what are the trends that are coming up or here to stay after the constant changes and volatility over the past 2 years. Come along as we present to you the latest trends that are set to shape the APAC hospitality and tourism sector in 2022 and beyond.

Customisation & Personalisation

Rather than mass targeting that prevailed in the past, you need to think about how to stay relevant with personalised targeting, marketing and services that would work better in 2022 to make your guests feel special and be treated and recognised as individuals.

Leveraging customer data and technologies to embark on customised offerings and personalisation is the key. Personalised emails directly sent to your guests within your PMS and other direct communications can ensure your message always goes out with your guests in mind. Moreover, you can also take advantage of the robust CRM tools to gain insights into guest profiling and buying habits in order to tailor-make your messaging, promotion and offers, providing unforgettable, personalised guest experiences that keep your guests coming back.

Privacy & Cybersecurity

Let’s face it – Cybercrimes and data breaches have never been this prominent. Especially for hotel businesses which have always been a primary target for hackers, they need to find their way out to tackle cybersecurity and privacy concerns.

Implications for hoteliers? When it comes to the best practices to guard your hotel against cybercrimes, it usually comes down to your staff, your system and your procedures.

Set up a robust property management system which is fully compliant with the international data privacy and cybersecurity standards, backed by multi-layered data protection to ensure the security of guests’ data whilst still enabling personalised guest services. Standardise and streamline your procedures and conduct threat assessments on a regular basis.

Property managers should arrange specific training sessions to educate hotel staff to conduct high-standard, secure practices, avoid any suspicious links, adverts that might lead to malware and ransomware, especially when dealing with bookings and payments, undertake routine testing and update hotel’s systems, browsers, credentials, anti-malware software regularly to combat any cybercrimes.

Sustainability

As the hospitality and tourism sector depends heavily on a healthy, robust global ecosystem and is vulnerable to environmental damage, we must step up and act as sustainability advocates and leaders to maintain the wellbeing of our industry.

Implications for Hoteliers? Your guests want sustainable businesses. According to a study conducted by Kearney (2020), nearly 50% of consumers said that COVID-19 had resulted in an increased concern about the environment and 11% changed their purchase habits purely based on a business’s environmental claims.

Consider ‘Sustainability’ as one of your key pillars in 2022 across your communications as well as actions. Share your go-green story and put it into action so your guests can experience it by themselves. In this way, you can create a stay with a purpose that can resonate better with your current or potential customers.

Actionable tips to consider for a more sustainable hotel business:

• Minimise your carbon footprint. Reduce unnecessary consumption of water, electricity and gas, and adopt sustainable practices such as Rainfall harvesting, Water-efficient bathrooms, Energy-efficient appliances, Food waste collection for biofuel and so on to reduce your carbon footprint.
• Eco-friendly Guest Services & Rooms. For example, Keyless Entry can reduce the usage of plastic keycards and put a stop to lost keys and lock outs. This can also ensure a safer and smoother guest experience. Decorating guest rooms with eco-friendly materials and settings can also immerse guests in a sustainable way of staying.
• Get your story right. Share your go-green strategy where your guests are active, such as social media (especially relevant groups), website CSR section, email / newsletters, collaboration with green business associations. Identify your key channels and share your stories to resonate, educate and convert.

All-in-one system is the way to go

Having all the essentials your hotel business needs – Property Management Software (PMS), Booking Engine, Payment Gateways and so on – has now become one of the most popular trends currently transforming the hospitality industry.

Now faced with labour shortages, increased costs and the ever-changing market situation, having a smart, all-in-one solution is the easiest way for accommodation operators to have complete control over all the moving parts in one place.

Imagine that all core functions you require can talk to each other – Reservations, Housekeeping, Inventory, Third-party Integrations, Channel Managers, Payment Gateways, Accounting systems and so much more – saving you time, money and energy so you can focus on what matters the most…guest experiences.

No wonder your hotelier peers are leveraging all-in-one property software to streamline operations, increase work efficiencies and create seamless guest experiences. With the abundance of emerging technologies in the hotel industry, there is no time better than now to upgrade your tech to the next level.

Staycations

After nearly 2 years of constant changes and border shutdowns, the consequent travel restrictions, flight cancellations & price hikes, testing & isolations have all forced people to stay where they were, hence, the trend of ‘staycation’ flourished and is set to stay as a continued travel trend in 2022, as research shows that over 75% vacationers are planning to spend holidays at resorts and hotels in Australia, rather than an international destination.

Implications for hoteliers? As vacationers now prefer spots closer to home than international destinations, it’s the perfect time for hotel owners and operators to forge stronger connections with their local communities. Get in touch with local suppliers to co-create customised experiences for people to explore the ‘new look’ of their local – For example, you can collaborate with local wineries to tailor-make summertime wine tasting trips, and sample the local delicacies such as cheese, oysters, gin, whiting, wine and honey, to provide a memorable summer staycation with loads of fun, without going elsewhere.

Solo Travel Tours

Ranked as the 1st Hotel Trend in 2019, ‘Solo Travel’ has been on the rise without any signs of slowing down in 2022. Research shows that it is ‘me time’ that has been driving so many Australians pack their bags and hit the road in the era of mindfulness.

Implications for hoteliers? To create memorable stay experiences for solo travellers, hotels can customise guest room interior design for them to choose from, which would bring a homely, calming look and feel. What’s more, hotel staff serving in a friendly, not-too-formal way can also cultivate a sense of community whilst solo travellers staying by themselves. To always go the extra mile, hotels can also provide leaflets which include local travel guidance, safety measures, tour inspirations and so much more, to help solo travellers have a safe, fun and frictionless journey in your local.

Wellness Tourism

Increased concern over personal well-being and self-care has undoubtedly been one of the biggest lingering effects of the pandemic, and it is expecting a huge rebound in 2022 according to a recent news report from Forbes.

Implications for hoteliers? As the wellness sector transforms into a trillion-dollar industry, we in the hospitality and tourism industry are in a perfect spot to seize our piece of the pie by offering an ultimate relaxation experience to our guests at hotels and resorts.

Provide bespoke wellness retreats for your guests, from personal fitness, spa and beauty treatments, relaxation and stress relief to meditation and yoga, and so much more. In Australia, a country full of natural blessings, treat your guests with an unparalleled tour experience, such as hot springs, followed by a memorable, refreshing stay at your own – a perfect journey for wellness-minded travellers.

Work from Hotel

Cannot get into your shared office? Slow internet connections and noisy children in the background? ‘Working From Hotel’ maybe the new #WFH for you.

As a new remote working option, ‘working from hotel’ has become a perfect combination of productivity, privacy and indulgence which appears to be the way out for people who are growing sick of working from home with no work and life balance, especially for those working parents.

Implications for hoteliers? To capitalise on this trend, you can set up your package and get the rate right for those people who are seeking a new norm whilst dealing with stressful work and life. Provide a private working space with a day (or many days) of uninterrupted work that keeps them coming back to take a retreat from the bustling world.

Direct Bookings on the Rise

Gone are the days of faceless, corporate, soulless hotels. Guests nowadays want to feel more connected than ever to your brand. As a result, direct bookings are on the rise, becoming stronger than ever. Research data shows that by 2022, direct bookings are on track to equal bookings through OTAs and grow to a 50% share.

Implications for hoteliers? As the hotel industry becomes more focused on driving direct business and thriving on direct relationships, it’s essential to make sure you’re fully prepared that your business, branding and procedures are all in place to seize this trend to boost growth and profitability for your property.

Leverage a suitable property management tool to create personalised pre-checkin welcome messages, reminders and tailored information to ensure a smoother, better guest experience before, during and after their stay at your hotel. It’s the key to building up the relationship and helping grow direct bookings, therefore profits.

Keep engaging with your regular and future guests via social media, email marketing, advertising and so on – Choose the right one your clients are active on. Prioritise brand awareness campaigns over lead generation while things are still slow, so that you can take this chance to grow your brand and get ready for the next wave of tourists.

Technology takes center stage

People’s interest in investing in tech has gradually ramped up in recent years, as one of the lingering effects of the pandemic. To facilitate working from anywhere, at any time, from any device, cloud-based Property Management Software (PMS) has become essential for hotel owners and operators, which is set to grow even faster in 2022 and beyond.

Implications for hoteliers? Instead of chasing after all the short-term trends it’s always a good idea to go back to the basics, including tech, staff and processes, in order to make sure you’re staying ahead of the curve for a longer time.

Review the property management systems at your place – Make sure it’s up to date with all the essentials you need to succeed in your hotel business. What’s even more important, keeping all operations under one roof will drastically save you time, money and energy needed to ensure bookings, payments, revenue, housekeeping are all working in sync.

Ready to embrace new technology?

InnQuest Software was founded in 1994 with a belief that guests deserve an excellent hospitality experience and hoteliers deserve a management system that would allow them to maximise the guest experience and run their property efficiently. InnQuest develops scalable solutions ranging from a Hotel PMS, Cloud PMS, Channel Manager, Hotel CRM and helps properties enable guests to Book Direct. We believe that everyone deserves a great guest experience, whether they’re staying at a small B&B, a thousand-room resort, or anywhere in between.

Guided by this mission, we have developed InnQuest roomMaster Anywhere, the next generation of Hotel Management solutions, a simple, easy-to-use Cloud PMS. Complete with an intuitive hotel booking system and channel management, roomMaster Anywhere makes connecting with your guests simple and automated, allowing you to focus on service, not managing technology.

Call us today on + 61 3 9728-3755, email us at sales.apac@innquest.com, or book a FREE DEMO with one of our accommodation experts. We will be thrilled to walk you through our pure cloud, all-in-one PMS for your property.