Operators Plan How to Power Up Properties – and the Industry – for the Travel Restart. Where to Re-Tool, Reevaluate, and Re-Shape Processes and Systems
MOUNT PLEASANT, SC, April 28, 2020 – This will not last forever. The travel re-start will call for the same resources and experience required for a new-property opening, but now we are reopening the entire hospitality industry, and we’re doing it in a world that has been drastically re-shaped. Every hotel company, property, manager, employee, and vendor is in this together.
“Many sectors are ready to get back to business. Corporate events and social gatherings are on hold, but in the near future, hotels will benefit from the built-up need to travel and meet,” said Rick Day, vice president – sales and implementation for SalesAndCatering.com. “All of us in hospitality are in the same family. We are all affected, and by working together we will be successful.”
Day noted that cloud platforms provide a scalable, easy to learn and use system that supports off-site sales management. “Cloud systems enable sales forces to track account and client CRM for timely action. Cloud platforms can book and manage groups in a new way and consolidate sales at the area or regional level. A cloud-based sales team can also deliver support to help with onsite staff to service and maintain delivery of details.”
Day said that RFPs and proactive sales efforts are trending upward. “Sales teams are leveraging their databases to identify clients in healthy sectors and to reschedule booking opportunities for a faster restart.” Day underlined that SalesAndCatering.com is maintaining its commitment to customers to provide the highest quality product and service during a very stressful time in the industry. “We are investing in our products, doubling down on our efforts to prepare our users for what will be a very competitive landscape once the recovery process begins.”
Tips to Lower Expenses
“Each of our 12 properties is impacted by ‘social distancing’ mandates. Our hotels are open with small staffs, but our F&B operations are closed. We are looking at the dollar value of each employee to run as lean as possible. We are also evaluating our vendor relationships with an eye on reducing expenses. Our sales system vendor, SalesAndCatering.com, stepped up quickly to help us. They have done a very good job of assisting us during CV19.”
-Aaron Tycoles, CHA, revenue operations manager of Genesis Hospitality Management Services.
“We are concentrating on basic salesmanship and staying in contact with our top clients to strengthen the relationships. Keeping up our sales efforts will give us a head start when our clients travel again.”
-Aaron Tycoles,
Genesis’ sales managers are collaborating on reopening plans and rebooking groups and events. Tycoles noted Genesis has been able to keep its sales people working because it uses the STS Cloud sales system from SalesAndCatering.com. “We were only able to function successfully the past two months because we manage our properties and sales processes in the cloud. STS Cloud enables us to work remotely with mobile phones and tablets to schedule meetings and log contacts for our properties.”
Look at the best way to restart full operations
Part of Genesis’ strategy to keep managers on the job is to give them other duties that will benefit its properties when travel resumes. “We are looking at the best way to restart full operations,” said Tycoles. “We have taken advantage of the slow period to deep clean rooms, and address maintenance issues. We have not furloughed most managers because we want them on staff ready to restart operations quickly. We will be operating much leaner when we come out of this.”
Industry will win back client trust, and trust in human contact
“We expect to have a new picture of business travel in the future. Zoom meetings will gain traction. But working partnerships are forged by face-to-face meetings. Remote meeting technology can’t accomplish this. “-Kim Brooks-Martin, Corporate Director of Sales Strategy and Development at Hospitality Ventures Management Group.
“As an industry we will have to win back client trust, trust in human contact. We are also turning to our suppliers to verify their support. We have come to trust SalesAndCatering.com’s team and its support for our operation.” –Kim Brooks-Martin, HVMG
The need for greater efficiency and partnership will reshape our industry, but hospitality is the foundation of all travel. “I am very confident in the power of our industry and am working with our corporate meeting planners to keep our business relationships strong.” –Kim Brooks-Martin, HVMG
Ms. Brooks-Martin concluded, “We are still about hospitality for the people and families we do business with. Our relationships, and the industry, will be stronger because we are working more closely during this shared challenge.”
