By Chris Lanckbeen, Global Sales Director, Travel & Hospitality at Worldline
Amid reports of a recent surge in summer holiday bookings, hoteliers are rightfully optimistic that there is a golden period ahead for the industry – one that spells the return to a glorious past. Indeed, Ryanair chief Michael O’Leary anticipates his airline will operate at 115% of the capacity it had in 2019, suggesting a period of significant recovery for all of those involved in the hospitality and travel sectors. As a result, hoteliers and merchants must adapt and update their payment systems accordingly.
According to figures published by IATA, there is a huge appetite for travel. A survey of almost 5,000 respondents from 11 countries worldwide shows that 86% of people expect to travel within six months of the Covid-19 pandemic crisis ending, amid tensions over restrictions, while 67% think borders should be open – an increase of 12 percentage points since June 2021. While an ‘end’ to the pandemic is not black and white, due to the number of cases and variants fluctuating, the overall sentiment from the survey suggests people are confident about the prospect of travelling and happy with the measures put in place to keep them safe.
A new hospitality landscape necessitates both willingness and ability from hoteliers to adapt to the post-pandemic’s ‘new normal’. Decision making now encompasses more numerous and complex elements, such as cancellation policies, online ratings and health and hygiene factors. As a result, professionals should think about how to best provide their customers with flexible bookings that cater for cancellations. Including robust loyalty programmes, as part of their offering, is another means of securing revenue in the long term as customers are more likely to return if incentivised by price reductions.
As hospitality merchants prepare for the summer holiday season, they must ensure they harness the power of the latest payments infrastructure and technology available to them to innovate and digitalise. Customers are spending an increasing amount of time online and expect to be able to use contactless technologies and digital solutions seamlessly, such as apps or voice commands, to make their booking.
At Worldline we expect payment trends within the hospitality industry to be multipronged and continue what’s been seen in recent times. These are likely to include:
- Frictionless payments – by installing multiple touchpoints, customers are able to pay in the way that best suits their needs while speeding up the check-in and check-out process.
- Emphasis on customer loyalty – loyalty programmes build engaging relationships with guests over a prolonged period.
- Alternative payments – new payment methods, such as WeChat and Alipay’s online platforms, are booming and hoteliers should consider implementing them into their payment systems.
- Integration – hotels should adopt a fully integrated Payment Management System (PMS) throughout their entire operation which includes everything from the check-in to the restaurant and bar.
- Value added services – these allow customers to order and pay for goods and services without the need for another device and enable them to split the bill with their fellow companions.
- AI – allows for greater customer data collection, which ensures hotels and other hospitality venues can better customise their services for the individual.
- e-Commerce integration – customers expect 360º of seamless integration during their online experience from the moment they log on to when they are completing the purchase of their trip.
- Omnichannel solutions – these enable customers to choose the payment channel that is most practical for them and aligns payment journeys that start or progress in-store or online.
These overarching trends should be included by hoteliers and hospitality operators in their strategy moving forward as they look to solidify growth by enhancing their payments systems and improving customer engagement and loyalty. Getting ahead of the game by adopting robust systems will ensure hospitality merchants’ ability to welcome back guests, used to convenient and seamless journeys, in earnest.
Click here to download the positioning paper: www.worldline.com/en/home/knowledgehub/publications/download-hospitality-payment-trends-for-2022-and-beyond.html