The hotel industry is an independent hospitality industry. The content and features of the hotel service as a product of the hotel business are determined by the economically feasible activities of commercial enterprises that are in demand among customers who need the necessary accommodation and food conditions.
In order to strive for maximum profit, each player in the hotel business market must remain competitive. A huge role in this matter belongs to the growing solvency of consumers, which non-stop encourages business owners to expand the proposed range of hotel services. A feature of marketing and promotion of enterprises in this field today is the introduction of a new, broader concept of hotel business.
What is the hotel industry
This term was used in Russia to mean the activities of hotels. Today, the category of "hotel industry" includes motels, tourist camps, guest houses, campsites and other organizations that are partially or fully associated with the concept of "service". Features of hotel services as a commercial product in the hotel business are in their adjacency to the catering service. It is worth noting that medical and recreational facilities and leisure facilities are not included in the hotel industry, since accommodation and meals are not the main activity of consumers. Sanatoriums, boarding houses, children's recreation camps have their own characteristics of providing hotel services. Interestingly, their cost is often close to the original price (cost).
General concept of "service"
The peculiarity of hotel services in this area lies in the obligatory performance by the company's employees of actions to place a client for temporary residence or stay. Hotel services can be divided into two categories:
- A set of compulsory services. These are the main products that are included in the room rate. Standard services are provided to the consumer after the conclusion of the contract.
- Additional service. Clients of a hotel company pay for such services separately (for example, dry cleaning, sauna, parking, billiards, etc.).
The characteristic and features of hotel services are based on the principle of decentralization of their provision. Solid individual associations form separate links for the implementation of basic products. This explains the fact that some operations in the course of servicing tourists are concentrated in the hands of specialized tour operators, agencies and bureaus. Such enterprises are engaged in preliminary sales, reserving places, organizing sightseeing tours, etc. Thus, the quality of hotel services is significantly affected by the work of intermediary units. The specific type of hotel services has its own nuances. On the features of the main products in this area below.
Accommodation
The essence of the provision of accommodation services is to provide the consumer (guest of a hotel) not only specialized premises, that is, rooms, but also an additional service. By default, the hotel product includes work performed by the staff of the enterprise. So, the receptionist accepts and arranges guests, maids clean rooms, etc.
Features of hotel services in a hotel company are determined by the purpose of the institution and the needs of customers. In each hotel, the consumer can offer completely different categories of rooms. Their difference from each other will be in a different area, arrangement, furniture, equipping with appliances, etc. At the same time, any hotel room, regardless of category, should have:
- bed;
- chair;
- armchair;
- table;
- wardrobe;
- lighting;
- trash can.
In addition, each room must contain information about the hotel, and in a prominent place there is an evacuation plan in case of fire or emergency.
Catering services
Hotel industry implies the implementation of other types of economic activity, of which food is an integral element. Most hotel enterprises have a restaurant, where customers have the opportunity to eat or drink a cup of coffee. The catering facility at the hotel can be an independent enterprise or enter the hotel complex and function as one of its units. The classification of restaurants depends on the level of service and the type of catering services provided to visitors. There are institutions of the first, upper classes and luxury.
Luxury restaurants are distinguished by an exquisite interior design, an increased level of comfort for hanging out, the presence of a wide range of gourmet and signature dishes to order, drinks and cocktails, live music and other services. First-class establishments correspond to harmony, convenience and well-being when placing guests, an impressive menu consisting of dishes, products, drinks and cocktails of complex preparation.
A feature of the sales of hotel services is their safety: each restaurant, in accordance with the declared class, must undergo a certification procedure and receive accreditation by state bodies in the field of standardization and metrology. Different types of catering establishments are subject to different requirements, but at the same time all of them are committed to ensuring safety for the life and health of visitors, the environment, and property of customers.
Additional service
In addition to accommodation and catering services in hotels, owners are striving to establish an additional service system. This is an important component of good rest and stay at the hotel. The characteristics and features of hotel services that are not mandatory are presented in this section of the article.
The most unified service option is considered to be guest service upon departure and arrival. The hotel staff greets and greets arriving customers, helps to deliver luggage to the room or park the car. Upon departure from the hotel, guest things are carried out of the room to the door of the car. Thus, the staff can serve tens or hundreds of customers per day. Features of hotel services are their versatility - such a service is provided in institutions of different classes, despite the fact that it can vary greatly, depending on the standards and the established order.
In a number of modern hotels, staff who provide general services can serve guests in other areas. Hotel workers are on duty around the clock to receive and register late-arrived customers at any time, organize a light dinner, call or call a taxi at a specific time. The staff takes care of the cleanliness of common areas and guarantees the safety of your stay in the hotel. At the request and request of guests, employees can deliver correspondence, send messages to guests.
Since for the period of a guest’s stay, hotel workers are often the main organizer of various entertainment events, including visiting theaters, excursions, car rental and other services. In most hotel enterprises, an information stand is located at the reception desk, which helps newcomers to get comfortable.
Domestic service
The list of additional services is determined by the category of hotel. As for consumer services, not every hotel has the opportunity to provide such a service. Work on the organization of public services should be carefully thought out. Units providing such services are usually located in an accessible place, and information on their work schedule should be present in the lobby. The following services are related to domestic services:
- urgent wash;
- repair and ironing of personal items;
- dry cleaning;
- iron for rent (this service is provided in hotels of a lower category);
- shoe repair and cleaning;
- Luggage storage of things and valuables;
- safe rental;
- food delivery to the room;
- rental of additional utensils, equipment, household appliances (tableware, TV, sports equipment, etc.
To the most popular hotel services, with the features of which
It is advisable to familiarize yourself in advance, directly when choosing a hotel, is the organization of sightseeing tours, translation services, as well as the purchase and reservation of tickets for entertainment events. For help, staff is contacted if necessary, ordering vehicles and places in restaurants, delivering flower bouquets.
Conclusion of an agreement
In accordance with Russian law, a separate form of agreement, the effect of which would apply only to the sphere of hotel services, does not exist. To date, the regulatory legal acts provide for a single model of the document - a contract for the provision of services for a fee.
The parties to this agreement are two parties - the contractor and the customer. The main feature and feature of the contract for the provision of hotel services is the obligation of the contractor to ensure the fulfillment of certain tasks. The customer, who is the client, agrees to pay the cost of these services indicated in the contract.
Most often, a formal agreement is required to provide a service of the following type:
- medical advice and emergency medical care;
- visit to the veterinarian;
- communication services;
- services of an auditor, accountant and other specialists;
- tourist and information services.
Each hotel reserves the right to amend the list of services provided. There are several characteristic features, thanks to which you can distinguish a contract for the provision of hotel services from another type of legal agreement, noted by the provisions of civil law:
- the contract is not distinguished as a separate type of agreement, and therefore does not fit the norms of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation;
- the subject of such an agreement may be only services provided by a hotel company;
- provision of service for a fixed fee.
What is the difference between a hostel and a hotel
By definition, a hostel is a place where you can spend the night for a relatively small fee. Such places are popular among tourists on a budget, and therefore hostels are focused mainly on youth.
In the modern sense, a hostel is the golden mean between a student hostel and a hotel. Hostels usually have 10-12 rooms, which are populated by as many people. Amenities are located on the floor, the kitchen is also shared. In addition to beds, guests are guaranteed:
- quick clearance;
- clean linens, towel;
- shower;
- hot breakfast;
- personal cell for storing personal belongings.
Payment in such places is daily. The main disadvantage of hostels, due to which even economical tourists make a choice in favor of the hotel, is the fact that strangers of any age, gender, nationality are staying in a room. The room door does not close to provide guests with freedom of movement. In fact, the existence and development of hostels provides an opportunity for low-income travelers to travel around the world.
Features of the development of hostels in the hotel services market are due to the lack of a clear definition of this company in the legislation. Such establishments in Russia are not included in any of the categories of placements. Therefore, therefore, there are no clear requirements for the quality of the services provided. The lack of a regulatory framework creates certain difficulties in the development of hostels.
The intangible nature of hotel products
This property determines the features of the promotion of hotel services. The specifics of their provision, in contrast to sales of goods, is explained by the inability to simultaneously receive all components of the product at once. It is practically impossible for consumers of hotel services to evaluate their quality until the moment of acquisition, and often even after it. Residents of institutions that are not able to identify the features of the quality of hotel services face a number of problems, reflected in the mismatch of the price equivalent to the products declared in the catalog.
In parallel with the intangibility of hotel services, the management process is complicated. Hotel companies often encounter difficulties in presenting their products to the client and the practical impossibility of justifying the price established for them. A hotel of any category can only familiarize the consumer with a description of a particular service, focusing, as a rule, only on the advantages of its purchase. At the same time, the client will be able to objectively evaluate the quality of the goods only after their purchase.
On the conditions for the promotion of the hotel business
Thus, successfully developing hotel business means increasing customer confidence. Features of the hotel services market determine the need for such measures as:
- desire to increase the tangibility of the proposed product;
- emphasis on the importance of obtaining a service and the benefits of its purchase;
- unobtrusive use of marketing developments and calculations, in particular, in the advertising campaign of the enterprise;
- carrying out actions involving tariff changes and loyal discounts;
- Invitation to the hotel of influential and famous people (artists, politicians, etc.).
Features of the promotion of hotel services include the need to take into account a number of specific factors in the process of developing a standardized system of enterprise activity. For the development of the hotel business of fundamental importance:
- the establishment of samples and standards for determining the quality of services is a relatively difficult task, the implementation of which guarantees comprehensiveness in the promotion of hotel products;
- high quality of services, which is more dependent on the human factor in the production process;
- proper organization and structure of the enterprise divisions, competent personnel management and control over the compliance of the services provided with quality standards;
- taking into account the needs and wishes of the consumer when creating quality standards, the formation of economically feasible economic standards for hotel operations;
- financial rationality of the work of all departments;
- periodic monitoring of service quality and fluctuations in the scale of consumer demand;
- individual registration of psychophysical characteristics, ethnic and religious affiliation, social status of the client;
- advertising policies and events to ensure the quality of hotel products are an inseparable process.
These typical features of the provision of hospitality services are due to the transformation of a complex management process. In comparison with the sectors of the production of tangible goods, the development of the hotel business is carried out by creating an effective and efficient service mechanism, setting prices, introducing relevant marketing concepts and strategic planning.
The value of hotel services
The main function of the hotel company is to provide accommodation for travelers who are far from home. Such a product is a feature of hotel services. In the predominant number of hotels, the delivery of rooms is the most significant, and often the only source of income. In some hotels, the number of rooms allows you to get more benefits than other services combined.
Owners receive income from renting rooms in a hotel using three basic elements:
- reception desk at the hotel;
- providing a unified service;
- hotel management.
These components are fundamental for the implementation of the accommodation functions, therefore, they are available in hotels of any category and, as a rule, belong to separate divisions of the enterprise.At the same time, different principles of staffing may apply in different hotel complexes, depending on the size and type of establishment. In hotel enterprises of a small type there can be only a few full-time employees, each of whom is endowed with an appropriate range of responsibilities.
In hotels in the urban area for visitors who, as a rule, need a short or transit stay, an approach is required that differs significantly from the approach at a resort. Here customers are accommodated for a longer period, an average of 7-14 days.