The SHMCT conducted a Guest Lecture on the topic “Reviving Tourism & Hospitality in Rajasthan” by Mr. Uday Kumar Singh, Uday Kothi, Udaipur. According to his view the hotel industry is largely dependent on the tourism sector, as it is driven by domestic and foreign tourists arriving for business or leisure trips. Over the decades, the industry has transformed in line with the changing behaviour of customers; inclusion of newer technologies such as online booking systems and digital payments; and demand for heritage & boutique hotels. The hotels are more thoughtful about the hotel design and space management. The prime focus is on cleanliness, sanitising and reduction of non-essential elements such as decorative elements. Hoteliers made these changes with focus on social distancing and contact-free systems.
Besides cleanliness and precautions, hotel players were more innovative in developing sales & marketing strategies to boost revenue. To attract new customers, new business model strategies were adopted, such as day room rentals, co-working areas and space for commercial shooting and even, renting spaces for educational purposes.
Increase in the use of technology has changed customer expectations and behaviour, as they expect personalised, simple and engaging experiences. Following this trend, hoteliers have understood the importance of technology and started deploying it to manage their services such as mobile check-in, digital payments, ordering food via app, voice control and biometrics. The hotel industry tried to cover up losses by providing home delivery of food through in-house delivery or in partnership with third-party vendors such as Zomato and Swiggy. Besides this, hoteliers also offered virtual assistance in pre-planning weddings, decor, food menus and gifts in response to rising demand and social distancing norms.