Due to the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, remote work has become a new normal. The workforces of most companies were forced to make a transition from the office to their homes. However, some employees preferred to move to hotels. So how can you make the most out of this trend and attract more visitors? Let’s find out!
Create well-equipped workspaces
Any digital nomad needs an area that is equipped with all the necessary stuff usually available at the office, including a desk, easily accessible power outlets and a bottle of water. The main essentials of remote work are a quiet space and a stable high-speed Internet connection. Basically, these two make video calls possible, so workers can avoid common Zoom problems occurring in public spaces. Depending on the property, a hotel should also provide access to scanning, faxing and printing equipment.
Recently, some hotels have even modified rooms for day-only stays for office workers. In what way? They’ve removed bedroom furniture so their units feel more like office space. Besides, they added complimentary high-speed internet access and provided visitors with IT support upon request. Undoubtedly, such innovations make the working experience much more comfortable.
Provide flexible options
As you might understand, remote workers, as well as freelancers, value flexibility and freedom. Most of them want to work on their own terms with minimum rules and restrictions. Hence, hotels can take advantage of this by offering a wide variety of packages to choose from.
For example, Hyatt guests can select between three Work From Hyatt offerings that consist of different programs with multiple benefits. Remote workers can pick an option depending on the length of stay, which is categorized in the following ways: Office for the Day, Extended Stay, and The Great Relocate. In the first case, one stays at the hotel during the daytime only, the second variant means 5+ night stay, and the last one means that you are going to spend more than 29 days at Hyatt.
The Marriott Work Anywhere program provides guests with three options: Day Pass, Stay Pass and Play Pass. Day Pass is available for up to 12 hours, while Stay Pass can be used for a few stays with early check-in and late check-out. However, if you need a true a true “work-ation”, you can purchase a Play Pass that includes supervised kid activities and other amenities for workers’ families.
Provide perks for extended stays
Everybody likes to get perks while using some services. Therefore, you can offer different incentives to guests working remotely. Especially, if your visitors are planning to stay at your place for an extended period, they can be attracted by additional bonuses. Obviously, people who want to live and work in a new place for weeks or even months are looking for the perfect combination of home comfort and office functionality. Hence, you should consider how to meet both of these demands while creating your packages.
If you check Hyatt’s The Great Relocate package, you’ll see that their perks include flexible housekeeping services, access to the board meeting room, steep food discounts, and IT support for technical issues. Sounds good enough to stay for a month, doesn’t it?
Organize clean environment
Although work-from-hotel seems to be an appealing solution to escape the monotony of life, many people are stopped by concerns related to health and safety. These issues are still top-of-mind for remote workers. That’s why hotels must be very responsible when it comes to cleaning and ensuring healthy facilities. Only this way, they can earn a good reputation and gain trust of their guests.
The COVID-19 has demonstrated how dangerous a virus can be, so it’s important to take all possible measures preventing people from diseases. And social isolation is not enough in this case. Since infections spread very rapidly in the dirty environment, regular deep cleaning must be made everywhere in the hotel.
Communicate the value
Last but not least, attracting remote workers will not be that effective without clear communication of your value. To stand out from the crowd and differentiate from your competitors, you need to improve the communication strategy of your sales managers. They must clearly explain to digital nomads why your establishment can be a great choice for them. For this purpose, you should create dedicated landing pages that highlight the unique benefits offered at your hotel. To prove your value in the times of coronavirus, tell how you address health and safety questions. The easiest way to do this is by sharing some details about your cleaning protocols on your website.
Final thoughts
The trend of working from anywhere provides hotel owners with a powerful opportunity to attract more visitors. However, hotels should improve some aspects of their functioning to increase their revenues. Hopefully, this article can serve as a source of ideas on how to host remote workers.
