Top ten hotel trends and a set of tips on how to respond to them in 2018.

Artur Lupashko
CEO OF RIBAS HOTELS GROUP

The marketing tools that worked two years ago are no longer paying off. What surprised guests at the hotel a year ago is now taken for granted.

In 2018, there will be companies that work with CRM systems and automated control systems, as well as hotels that communicate with their guests in social networks, respond to reviews and always compromise with the guest.

On top will be managers who invest in training their employees and simplify all their processes.

Tip: use the crisis for good and monitor changes in market conditions to be on the wave.

Victoria Kofman
HEAD OF MARKETING AT RIBAS HOTELS GROUP

You must use each of the existing channels of communication with your guests. Pages in social networks with a huge number of users and visitors, but with a low level of engagement, will fall the rating, which will reduce the availability, defining a passive and irrelevant category. Interactivity is an important part of Internet marketing, and therefore I recommend increasing interaction, because very soon search engines will start charging money for it, and not for coverage, if it is not organic.

TIP: Provide your brand with quality content and its correct classification on the site, optimizing everything for search robots.

Yevgenia Dekhtyarenko
HEAD OF HR DEPARTMENT AT RIBAS HOTELS GROUP

In 2018, the number of remote employees will increase, and the reason for this is the development of online resources Bitrix, Oracle and others. Therefore, HR departments need to start adjusting their regulations to take into account the integration of "freelancers" into the team. In the current reality, there is a strong leakage of staff abroad, which makes it increasingly difficult to find a qualified specialist in the hospitality industry. The key will be specialists without experience, but with good hard skills.

TIP: Build the right relationships with employees and hire specialists with no experience, but with the desire to learn everything.

Valeria Rozhko
HEAD OF QUALITY CONTROL DEPARTMENT AT RIBAS HOTELS GROUP

When analyzing the activities of hotel staff, it is important to remember that in the order to keep up with standards, you can lose the emotion that the guest comes for, and become known as "an unfriendly hotel with robotic employees". Reputation is now easily tracked by online travel agencies (Expedia, Booking.com, Sabre, Hotels24 and others). Booking, for example, has a very convenient program Pulse, which sends instant messages about new reviews, and a third-party system ReviewPro.

TIP: keep track of the reputation of your hotel, there are many convenient programs for this. And don't chase blind compliance with standards, not to lose guests who come to the hotel for positive memories.

Ksenia Dronga
Manager of the 4 * WALL STREET business hotel

This year's trend is emotionality in the hotel service. The most important task is to provide our services reliably, efficiently, and promptly. First of all, you need to become a good friend to your guest. Never forget that the management of a city hotel is the management of a small state with its own traditions and laws.

TIP: keep your finger on the pulse, follow the events in the city and anticipate the wishes of guests.

Artem Dmitrichenko
Friday hostel Manager

Among the trends in 2018, positive emotions prevail. You can not assume that a hostel is not a hotel and that the target audience is backpackers who came to hang out. These are solid adults who chose this type of temporary housing only for economic reasons. In any case, the task of the hostel Manager in 2018 is to provide service at the level of a 5* hotel, starting with the front desk, ending with the exchange of contacts and further maintaining friendly relations.

TIP: A hostel is also a hotel. Therefore, try to provide service at the level of a 5-star hotel.

Alexander Shevchenko
PR SPECIALIST OF RIBAS HOTELS GROUP

Finally, corporations have come to deal with the image of not only Executive Directors, but also Department heads, because the best way to develop in the field of public relations is to show the entire company, not just its "top".

More and more people are talking about quantitative indicators of return on investment in advertising marketing (ROI), because now it is much easier to track page views, search and social queries, but this does not mean that you can define a brand in the same way.

And perhaps 2018 will be a starting point for flexible companies that respond quickly to changes.

TIP: In 2018, increase the speed of response to any changes in your company.

Evgeny Chernomazov
MARKETING DEPARTMENT DESIGNER

In 2018, the development of mobile layout will continue, as more than half of the visitors to our hotel sites come from mobile devices (phones and tablets). One of the important components of the site is the presence of juicy photos and bright illustrations that will somehow make the guest want to visit the hotel.

Images must be unique, because the use of so-called "stock" images is widely visible, and they are not trustworthy.

TIP: surprise your guests with original content and mobile layout. But don't forget about the site's usability.