When a city is selected as a tournament host, hotels prepare for the influx months in advance. Mega-events like the World Cup kick off a process in which room rates are adjusted, hotel managers carefully consider their inventory, and the Sold Out sign is on call. Once the property is fully booked, it can feel like the finish line.
However, in the world of luxury and high-demand hospitality, a full house is only the beginning. To make the most of maximum occupancy, guest service can’t end after the front desk check-in. Many hotels end up leaving significant revenue on the table due to long lines and understaffed amenities.
To truly capitalize on the surge of once-in-a-lifetime moments, you need a mega-event hotel staffing model that enables you to deliver the world-class service your guests demand. Here’s how you can meet those expectations and maximize revenue.
Why Peak Occupancy and Peak Revenue Aren’t the Same Thing
Hotel occupancy is the most basic metric in the industry for a reason. Sure, when your occupancy level reaches full capacity, it’s safe to assume revenue will be up, but this stat alone doesn’t offer any insight into who is staying at your hotel.
Mega-event tourists are not your average leisure travelers. These high-spending individuals may have traveled internationally to visit your city, and they’re ready to pay for premium experiences. It’s the guest profile all hotels actively seek: those with significant means and a higher propensity for ancillary spending.
Guests like these are more likely to spend on room service, fine dining, spa treatments, and concierge services. But there’s a catch. Ancillary revenue is entirely dependent on the quality of the service. If a guest has to wait 45 minutes for housekeeping, they stop spending at your property. Or to put it another way, if you don’t have peak occupancy staffing, you’re forcing these guests to spend less.
The Signs of Understaffing During a Mega-Event Surge
So, how do you know your property isn’t adequately staffed to handle a surge during a mega-event? Here are some common signs:
- The front desk crunch: A lean front-desk team creates bottlenecks during surge events. The long wait for guests to check in or receive service leaves a negative first impression that’s nearly impossible to reverse.
- Housekeeping bottlenecks: Backlogs in room turnover lead to late check-ins. If a guest has already waited in a long line to check in, only to find out their room isn’t ready, you have two strikes against you before they’ve even made it to their room.
- Loss of F&B revenue: Running your restaurants and bars with a “lean” crew during a high-demand period is a direct path to losing F&B (food and beverage) revenue. If a guest can’t get a table or a drink within a reasonable timeframe, they’ll leave your facility to go to a nearby bar or restaurant.
- Untapped amenity revenue: Understaffed pool, fitness, and spa areas limit your ability to upsell services. If you can’t provide the staff to support the amenity, you can’t monetize it.
On-Demand Staffing is The Solution for Host City Hotels
If you’ve found your hotel suffering from any of the above problems, you’re not alone. Hotel surge staffing isn’t easy. But the managers of the most successful properties have found the solution for host-city hospitality workforce staffing: the on-demand model.
On-demand labor allows you to scale your housekeeping, front-desk, and F&B support to match the exact occupancy levels required for each event. You just need an experienced hospitality labor partner. This partner is different from a general staffing firm because they take the time to vet each candidate for relevant experience.
So, when you need extra help for the World Cup or another major surge event, you can tap into a qualified workforce that can be easily oriented and fully integrated into your hotel’s operations. You can switch from reactive to proactive hiring and never worry about leaving money on the table again.
Maximize Your Revenue During Surge Events
Whether it’s the World Cup or any other major event, don’t let bottlenecks keep your hotel from reaching its revenue potential. A sold-out hotel should be extremely profitable. HireQuest Direct can provide the on-demand labor you need to generate maximum revenue from happy guests.
To learn more, contact HireQuest Direct today.
