When it comes to business outlook, forty-six percent of global respondents feel the economy will improve, while 33% believe it will continue as is.
Job outlook varied across countries. India, Brazil and Thailand were the top three countries for hotel job creation from January-June 2012. The United Kingdom and France reflected the lowest growth in job. Internationally, 64% of hoteliers plan to keep their staff levels at their current level and 15% say they plan to add new jobs.
Assessing booking trends, the survey found that “inertia seems to play a big role in rate trends.” 53% of respondents that decreased their rates to attract more guests from June-August plan to further decrease rates ahead of the Fall travel season. 60% of respondents that increased rates from June-August plan to also increase rates in September and October.
Survey results suggest that property owners realize the importance of marketing their business on social media networks. Over two-thirds of respondents use at least one form of social media to attract guests. Larger properties (50+ rooms) were twice as likely to use social media relative to smaller locations.
Results also found that most properties (83%) welcome feedback from their guests, and 78% encourage travelers to share their opinion via websites like TripAdvisor.