Over the last couple of years, global has seen a very healthy resurgence. Most people assign this trend to the sustained post-pandemic economic boom. But, the truth is a bit simpler. People always had adventurous and curious spirits. The modern economy, technology, commute options, and communication channels simply allow them to explore the globe like never before.
All these factors should keep the hospitality industry on a very healthy foundation for many years to come. So, if you were planning to start a hotel business, it’s safe to say, the moment is just right.
Of course, favourable circumstances never made successful business ventures and if you want to put your hotel gig on the map, you will need to lay the groundwork. Let us take a look at a couple of tips to help you along the way.
Identify your market
Yeah, even if your business is situated in some busy area that doesn’t mean you are going to make any money out of it. To successfully launch your hotel, you need to have a crystal-clear idea about who your clients are, what their habits, how long they are usually staying, how developed are the hospitality industry and tourist sector in your native area, what activities are available for the guests, etc. When you sort these things out and identify the market gap you can exploit, you will be able to make decisions about:
- Hotel size
- Type of accommodation (spa, resort, all-inclusive, hostel, etc.)
- Amenities
- Star rating
- Associated services
Make a plan and set goals
All successful stories start with a good plan. Running a business is really no different, so crafting a rock-solid business plan is one of your top priorities. Generally speaking, these documents outline the topics like:
- Executive summary (an elevator pitch of your hotel)
- Brand breakdown
- Product and service description
- Market research
- Financial projections
- Marketing and sales plans
Pay special attention, however, to setting your hotel’s long-term and short-term strategic goals as well as solid revenue management systems and metrics to assess how successful you are. Focusing on these milestones will do a great job of keeping your business on track during its infancy.
Sort out the personal finances
Hospitality is not really a traditional industry, and running a hotel, especially a smaller-scale venue can blur the financial lines between personal and professional. Avoid this at all costs and make a clear distinction between your financial flows. Using third-party, professional SMSF services should make this job easier and ensure your retirement funds are managed in a responsible and profitable manner. If you are going to engage in other ventures and investments (catering, logistics), they need to be funded by independent financial sources without straining your hotel’s operational budget.
Take care of the staff
This sector is not called the ‘hospitality industry’ for no reason. Now, how much hospitality you will be able to put out will depend on your staff. That is why, we strongly urge you to avoid the mistake of trying to get all things yourself, spread yourself too thin, and become sloppy.
Your venture’s crew should present a mix of outsourced positions (activities that are not vital for your daily goings like bookkeeping, marketing, and even cleaning) and highly motivated hospitality professionals. Sharing the ownership over the venture and allowing for ongoing professional development will help you find them. This mix should keep staffing lean, efficient, and scalable.
Add value
Earlier in the article we mentioned that tourism is blooming this day. But, you are not the only person to take notice of this development and the modern hospitality industry has become incredibly stacked and competitive. That is why you absolutely need to find a way to add some unique value to your accommodation.
These value propositions came in all sorts of forms ranging from a unique menu to kids club, pet sitting services, or even uniquely themed rooms (who wouldn’t want to spend a night in a Millennium Falcon bed, right?). But you need to have some of these things and milk them on social media for as much as possible.
Cover all the legal groundwork
Missing out on some of the important papers may cause various setbacks ranging from minor fines to your establishment being shot down. To avoid these problems in the future, make sure you are launching your hotel with all the papers in order. Fortunately, all the important things can be found on the official Australian Business License Information Services listing, but here’s the short roundup:
- Registration of Prescribed Accommodation
- Registration of Food Premises
- Planning permit
- Building permit
- Outdoor dining and street trading permit
And then, there is the famous Music License. That’s right, if you want to play music on the hotel premises, you need to get a permit from the Australian Performing Rights Association.
Well, we hope these couple of guidelines will help you set your future hotel on a healthy foundation and bring it to a smoother and more successful launch. While you are doing all the things we covered above do your best to keep both your feet on the ground while keeping ample amounts of optimism. Tourism and hospitality are truly beautiful industries to take your roots in. But, as nice and enjoyable as they are, they are not entirely carefree and devoid of any problems. We hope the suggestions above will help you to overcome some of the growing pains you will experience along the way.