ᐅ Prepare your holiday rental for business tourism

Traveling the world for pleasure may not be on the cards just yet, however work-related travel will be on the rise soon . In this article we show you how to prepare your holiday rental for business tourism.

Already in Germany, business travel is allowed for certain sectors. While it might be some time until this is applicable to your specific region, you can still read on and consider these steps for the future.

This can be viewed as an opportunity for owners of holiday accommodation to start receiving bookings again. To do this, we will have to adapt our holiday business to the needs of the business tourist, in addition to preparing the necessary hygiene measures after COVID-19.

High-occupancy hotels (the typical business traveler hosts) will not be able to reopen for some time. However some small and medium-sized accommodations are allowed to host a limited number of guests – and this can be a future opportunity for Smoobu users!

Tips for preparing your stay for business tourism

Let’s start with an example.

I am planning on a work trip. I decide to stay in a holiday accommodation that allows me to have my own space and be flexible. What details would I look to make the reservation?

Accessibility, comfort, services and personalized attention.

1. Highlight the proximity to airports, train stations and the main business areas of the city:

The location and accessibility of the accommodation are very important for a business visitor.
Therefore, it will be useful to integrate route maps to attractions such as airports within your Guest App in Smoobu.

Remember here how to integrate your maps into the Guest App.

In addition, you can create relevant content such as local restaurants who are doing delivery services during the Corona time.

2. Highlights the separation of available spaces and services

This tourist will be able to travel alone but it may also be possible to travel in a small group. It is important to highlight the individual spaces that provide the necessary space.
Ensuring a quiet workspace will be highly valued. If there’s a desk in each room, highlight it in your listing. It will also help if the room has a TV, access to the internet, and the guest can easily charge their devices.

Highlight the en-suite bathrooms for private use, if you have this. A small investment in providing a bath kit to your guests will be highly appreciated by the business traveler. Remember that these customers are accustomed to a hotel service, taking care of these details will improve your travel experience.

Don’t forget the most important thing … the WiFi – It is always a general requirement of most travelers, but in this case of work trips, it is even more important. Make sure your WiFi key is visible, the speed is right, and highlight it as a critical service in your ad. You can also make sure your password is accessible to the guest is also through the Guest App.

You can also add additional services through the Guest App – such as shuttle service and traveler pick-up. Remember here how to offer additional services from your Smoobu Guest App.

3. Optimize your communication with the guest

Knowing that the business tourist is used to a more personalized concierge service in hotels, it is important that as a host, you are available to answer any inquiries. Through the Guest App, they can always be connected and write you a quick message, either because you have integrated your WhatsApp into the Guest App, or because they write you a direct message through Smoobu.

You will be able to share with them these previous details the arrival by configuring automatic messages from Smoobu. Create your templates and communicate to your guests all the advantages they will get when they arrive at your accommodation.

4. Smart locks to facilitate contactless check in

The use of Smart locks or smart locks, is smarter than ever in these times avoiding contact at the time of the check-in / out of the accommodation. It will also allow flexible check-in / out schedules for business tourists.
Here is a list of integrations that collaborate with Smoobu to provide smart lock solutions.

5. Allow last-minute bookings

You can change your settings on the portals to allow instant bookings, as it can be quite common for business bookings to be made last minute.

6. COVID-19 Hygiene Rules

As soon as work trips are allowed, some hygiene measures that you must have prepared in your accommodation will be mandatory.
Some tips for preparing your holiday rental include:

Providing soap and antibacterial products
Offer a frequent cleaning service
Place information posters in the accommodation about good practices. Here are some examples
Share these measures with your guests prior to arrival at the property with an automatic message being sent from Smoobu.

Reorient your holiday rental

When you’re hosting a holiday tourist, you’re creating a trusting relationship with a family, a couple or a traveler. When hosting a business visitor or group of workers, you are establishing a connection with a company that may rely on your accommodation to host its workers frequently.

There are multiple possibilities that Smoobu gives you to attract the business tourist. Among them, you can create discount codes for companies that book with you directly. You will be able to select the application season of these coupons (for example in low season) to promote this tourism on dates of the year where you have fewer bookings. See how to do it here in Smoobu.

An opportunity to reorient our business opens up before us. We will be happy to provide you with advice.

Now you can start putting our tips into practice here at Smoobu.