As predicted by world’s leading virogists , after the initial covid-19 outbreak, a second pandemic wave has followed in autumn 2020. Today we’re right in the middle of this wave, we can’t predict when it will end and experts say it might be followed by a third one.
Governments and health organizations have taken new measures in an effort to flatten the contagion curve. These measures have inevitably put the world economy in difficulty for a second time and, as during the first pandemic wave, one of the most affected by the covid-19 industries was again the hospitality industry.
Travel restrictions, national anti-contagion measures and the fear of being infected have practically eliminated all flows of leisure or business travelers. As a consequence, hotel bookings, as during the first pandemic wave, have collapsed again and hotel companies all over the world have gone into crisis.
However, in every crisis there are hidden opportunities and during this second pandemic wave, the biggest opportunity that emerged for hoteliers was that of covid hotels.
What is a covid hotel?
Covid hotels are accommodation facilities where covid-19 infected people, who do not need hospitalization or are asymptomatic, can quarantine until they until they get over the infection. These people cannot be hospitalized, as they would occupy precious hospital beds needed by severe covid-19 patients, and cannot either return to their homes, as they would risk infecting their cohabiters and loved ones.
This is why local health organizations and governments have requisitioned hotels in order to transform them in quarantine facilities that can help hospitals optimize their bed capacity and covid-19 infected citizens transition into normal life without the risk of infecting their peers.
A new business opportunity for hoteliers
Covid hotels represent a new big business opportunity for hoteliers affected by the recent pandemic crisis.
Hoteliers who decide to transform their hotels into covid-hotels can keep generating revenue until the pandemic crisisi has ended and tourism starts recovering again. However, managing a covid-hotel is not as simple and straightforward as managing a leisure or business oriented hotel.
Covid hotel clients are people who cannot leave their rooms, cannot come into physical contact with other people or with hotel employees and therefore they need food&beverage delivered to them daily as well as good phone and internet connectivity in order to communicate with their loved ones and work remotely.
It’s easy to imagine that, today, there are no hotels built keepin a covid-19 crisis in mind. That’s why most hotels are not organised to meet covid-19 safety measures and quarantined people needs.
For example, today most hotels will find really hard providing their clients with a 24.7 fast internet connection as well as with an efficient real-time food&beverage ordering&delivery system. Imagine how much a hotel’s internet connection can slow down when all its guests perform videoconferencing or movie streaming at the same time throughout all the day.
Imagine also how difficult can be for reception employees to receive and dispatch room service orders for breakfast, lunch and dinner for all their rooms at the same time.
Therefore the question arises spontaneously: how can hoteliers overcome the above mentioned difficulties and transform their hotel into a covid hotel in order to adapt their business to the new market scenario and manage to get over the current crisis?
The answer to this question is quite complex. However it can be summed up in 4 words: thanks to Manet technology!
Let’s discover more about this technology in the following paragraphs.
How can Manet technology help covid hotels meet staff and guest needs?
What is Manet?
Manet is an advanced mobile assistant and concierge packed in a smartphone and designed to replace traditional hotel room telephones. Among its features there are unlimited internet connectivity, unlimited worldwide calling, public health and safety tools, 24.7 voice and text communication with hotel reception and advanced service ordering and booking tools allowing on, one hand, hotel guests to have their hotel’s services at their fingertips and, on the other, hoteliers to satisfy guest needs and manage hotel facilities at best.
So let’s see how these features can provide fine solutions to covid hotel needs.
Digital communication and entertainment
Each Manet device works as a very fast wifi internet hot spot. Therefore, covid hotels equipped with Manet can provide each one of their guests with an individual fast and efficient internet connection allowing them to surf the web, perform videoconferencing, work remotely and stream movies or music without experiencing internet connectivity lags and drops.
Food order and delivery
People who quarantine for covid-19 in covid hotels need food delivered directly to their rooms more times per day. With Manet devices, menu and order management become easy and straightforward both for guest and hotel staff as the Manet platform includes a smart food order management system that enhances the guest food ordering experience and facilitates order dispatch on the hotel staff side.
Guest-reception communication
Manet devices include smart voice, video and text communication channels aimed at enhancing guest–reception communications. Guests can choose either to call, videocall or text the reception and receptionists can also send one-to-one or one-to-many push messages to their guests. All these options make communication easy and safe for guests and hotel staff as they can choose the communication channel that best fits their needs and their mood without any physical contact that could increase covid-19 infection spreading.
Easy and constant communication with health professionals and authorities.
Last but not least, Manet devices provide their users with real-time public health notifications, issued by local health authorities, as well as with public safety numbers that can be reached with a simple screen tap. Thanks to Manet devices it is also very easy to find and communicate with hospitals and pharmacies located near every Manet-equipped covid hotel.
Moreover, Manet devices have a built-in function allowing their users to request an in-house doctor visit, book an appointment at the doctor’s studio or even schedule a doctor-video-consultation at their convenience. This way they can have continuous medical assistance and feel safe during quarantine.
To sum up, the second covid-19 wave is a reality we must all deal with. A reality that has created lots of problems to solve as well as new business opportunities for hoteliers, hospitality professionals and covid-19 patients who need to quarantine away from hospitals and from their homes.
Once again, the most important problem solving factor, in this new tough scenario mankind is facing, is the same one that has helped humanity overcome the biggest obstacles encountered in the last decades. This miraculous factor is simply technology!
Article by Athanassios Karaiannis, Digital Marketing Specialist
