Give your guests a safe stay at your property
Safety is the new hospitality. From the moment your guests check in to your hotel to the moment they complete their stay, your property’s updated health and safety procedures – and your staff’s ability to support and communicate them – can build a foundation of trust and loyalty.
It’s possible to provide guests with the expected comforts of a hotel stay as you enforce COVID-19 precautions. In fact, your guests aren’t expecting “business as usual” right now and may even perceive enhanced health and safety procedures as premium services. According to research from Coyle Hospitality and Intersection CX, 27 percent of more than 300 professional travelers surveyed said they would be willing to pay more for a hotel room with an additional cleanliness certification.
It’s possible to provide guests with the expected comforts of a hotel stay as you enforce COVID-19 precautions. In fact, your guests aren’t expecting “business as usual” right now and may even perceive enhanced health and safety procedures as premium services. According to research from Coyle Hospitality and Intersection CX, 27 percent of more than 300 professional travelers surveyed said they would be willing to pay more for a hotel room with an additional cleanliness certification.
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Your hotel’s public spaces – specifically your restaurant, bar, lounge and banquet facilities – are the other primary areas of your property that can communicate your commitment to guest safety. Food and beverage service is evolving in response to COVID-19: Once-ubiquitous hotel breakfast buffets and self-service beverage stations have been suspended. Seating is staggered and indoor capacity is limited. Service and payment models are changing to minimize contact between guests and staff and to remove other opportunities for contamination. Menus are adjusting to accommodate a growing consumer need for delivery. How can you modify your room service offerings, in-restaurant dining procedures, and banquet and catering menus and service models to demonstrate that you take guest safety seriously? How can you continue to offer special dining experiences for guests – even if they look a bit different than they looked before COVID-19?
As you prepare to reopen your hotel to more guests and maintain your updated health and safety procedures going forward, focus on these key areas: |
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Identify your risks: Work with your team to develop and continuously update a comprehensive list of potential risks your hotel may face. The assessment should include health-related and financial risks, as well as information on how employees, guests and suppliers may impact or be affected by them. Stay up to date with guidance from local health authorities.
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Update your operating procedures: COVID-19 risks are requiring changes to such hotel operations as housekeeping practices and frequency; the capacity, service models and menus of restaurants and bars; the availability of banquet spaces; and the upgrading and maintenance of HVAC systems.
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Refine your crisis management plan: In anticipation of an illness outbreak on your premises, create a plan for how you will contain it. Develop a list of frequently asked questions that you can provide to stakeholders ranging from guests to employees to members of the media about how you are managing the situation. Update your contact list of staff and suppliers. Create a contact tracing database to ensure you can get in touch with current and recent guests if needed. Ensure your front desk has contact information for health authorities and medical facilities. Anticipate how you might have to adjust your plan in response to virus spikes in your area.
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Train your team: Your staff are your safety ambassadors and need to be able to reinforce new precautions in a way that makes guests feel welcomed and cared for. Have them walk through the range of scenarios they may encounter when implementing these new practices, provide them with the protective supplies they need to carry them out, and keep communication channels open with them to quickly address problems.
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Communicate your policies to guests: Before guests check in, notify them via email of the precautions you are taking to protect their health and safety – as well as what precautions you would like them to follow while on the property. Onsite, use clear signage and other indicators to remind guests of new procedures. This includes such actions as clearly marking floors and restaurant tables to help maintain social distancing requirements, placing hand sanitizer at restaurant entrances, and posting signage with information on what guests must do if they experience symptoms of COVID-19 during their stay.
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Reduce contacts between staff and guests: Use technology to reduce the need for face-to-face interactions. Upon guests’ arrival, Hospitality Net suggests using mobile check-ins and check-outs, mobile app-enabled food ordering and payment, and online chat functionality to help facilitate their communication with concierge and restaurant staff. Limit the number of staff onsite by enabling remote work for back-office functions.
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Close the feedback loop: Your staff and guests must work together to keep everyone safe. Provide them with an electronic, no-contact means of reporting potential health and safety problems so they can be addressed in real time before they escalate.
Review the World Health Organization’s guidance for the accommodation sector for further details on precautions to consider during reopening.
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