How to design a menu card for a Hotel: 10 Things not to Skip

As consumer preferences in the realm of pleasure and entertainment continue to evolve, the hospitality industry is experiencing a significant transformation driven by the desire for superior customer experiences and convenience. Redefining the very essence of luxury, the hospitality sector is enthusiastically embracing novel trends and innovations in an effort to enhance the ultimate consumer journey. 

The Indian hospitality industry is expected to be worth $23.50 billion in 2023 and is anticipated to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.73% to reach $29.61 billion by 2028, according to a report by Mordor Intelligence. 

Amongst the multitude of trends and innovations propelling the hospitality industry's growth, one prominent innovation taking center stage is smart elevators and escalators, elevating the ultimate guest experience. Evolving beyond being mere conveyances, these vertical transportation solutions have become vital in shaping guest experiences and improving operational efficiency. Innovations such as contactless elevator buttons and destination control systems not only provide comfort and convenience to guests but also create a welcoming and inclusive atmosphere within hospitality spaces.

Unveiling technology trends in hospitality transportation

Automated destination control systems: Facilitating the movement of guests within an establishment, vertical transportation plays an indispensable role. Making guest mobility more convenient and allowing access to numerous facilities existing in an establishment, the emergence of automated destination control systems has revolutionized access to hospitality spaces. By optimizing passenger flow and classifying passengers according to their destination floor, these systems minimize stops and cut down on waiting times, making for quicker and more effective travel.

Interactive panels: The time when elevators involved a single button for visitors to traverse their ways is long behind. Technological advancements have ushered in interactive panels with touch screens and displays, allowing guests to easily locate their desired destinations. From displaying information on elevator speed, location, and capacity, to presenting safety features such as emergency call buttons and fire alarms and and even entertainment options, like music or video players, interactive panels enhance the commuting experience of visitors.

Contactless buttons: With health and hygiene becoming a priority for modern-day consumers, especially due to the deadly pandemic, the need for safer vertical travel has arisen. Consequently, this has led to the emergence of AI-facilitated contactless elevator buttons that offer a hygienic means of transportation by enabling users to call out a lift without making physical touch, thereby reducing the possibility of transferring bacteria, germs, and illnesses. This technology ensures effortless travel, particularly for visitors with disabilities, making hospitality spaces more inclusive.

Modern structure and design: In response to the growing trend of conscious consumerism, individuals are largely gravitating towards sustainable options. Consequently, this has led to the emergence of green elevators, featuring environmentally conscious materials and regenerative drives, encouraging green vertical transportation. In addition to structure, the design of elevators and escalators has also undergone a substantial evolution. Going beyond the traditional escalators, glass lifts incorporating technology-enabled features such as fingerprint scanners, biometric security tools, and personalized lighting schemes enhance the travel journey of visitors. As a result, this provides hospitality facilities with the opportunity to ace their aesthetic game, in addition to ensuring a sophisticated and stylish appearance, contributing to a more delightful experience.

Advanced vertical transportation solutions: Enhancing guest experiences

Luxurious experiences have become a necessity for modern-day individuals. As a result, hospitality spaces are going above and beyond by adopting technologies and innovations to guarantee outstanding experiences for contemporary consumers. Amidst other innovations, the integration of smart elevators and escalators equipped with technology-enabled features has enabled hospitality businesses to create more welcoming, efficient, and extraordinary experiences for their visitors, establishing new industry standards.

Playing an imperative role in ensuring a remarkable experience, vertical transportation outfitted with destination control systems, contactless elevator buttons, and interactive panels has enabled businesses operating in the hospitality sector to target greater operational efficiency while facilitating improved consumer experience. Moreover, as technology continues to advance, the future looks bright with the arrival of cutting-edge innovations that will further enhance the functionality and safety of vertical transportation systems, providing the hospitality sector with exciting opportunities to reshape customer service and convenience.

In recent years, sustainability has emerged as a critical aspect of the hospitality industry in India. As one of the fastest-growing industries in the country, the hospitality sector has the potential to have a significant impact on the environment, society, and the economy. Therefore, the shift towards sustainable practices has become imperative for the industry's growth and future.

Sustainability is crucial for the preservation of India's natural resources. The tourism industry, which is a major contributor to the hospitality sector, often leads to the depletion of natural resources such as water and energy. With India already facing issues related to water scarcity and climate change, the hospitality industry needs to take proactive measures to ensure that it operates sustainably. Hotels and resorts can implement sustainable practices like rainwater harvesting, water conservation, and renewable energy use to reduce their impact on the environment. Sustainable practices can help preserve India's natural resources and reduce the sector's carbon footprint.

The demand for sustainable tourism has increased significantly in recent years. The rise in awareness among consumers about environmental and social issues has led to a growing demand for sustainable tourism practices. As a result, many travellers are opting for eco-friendly accommodations and activities that promote sustainable tourism. The hospitality industry in India can leverage this trend by implementing sustainable practices that appeal to environmentally conscious travellers. By doing so, hotels and resorts can differentiate themselves from their competitors and attract a growing number of tourists who prioritize sustainability.

Sustainability can lead to cost savings for the hospitality industry. Sustainable practices like energy-efficient lighting, water conservation, and waste reduction can help hotels and resorts reduce their operational costs. For instance, by switching to LED lights and implementing energy-efficient HVAC systems, hotels can significantly reduce their energy consumption and save on their electricity bills. Similarly, by reducing their water consumption and waste generation, hotels can save on their utility bills and waste management costs. Sustainable practices can, therefore, not only benefit the environment but also lead to financial savings for the hospitality industry.

Sustainable practices can improve the social impact of the hospitality industry. The hospitality industry is known for its labour-intensive operations and significant impact on the local community. By implementing sustainable practices, hotels and resorts can create employment opportunities for the local community and improve their quality of life. For instance, hotels can source their products and services from local suppliers, thereby supporting the local economy. They can also implement fair labour practices and provide their employees with a safe and healthy work environment. By improving their social impact, hotels and resorts can build a positive reputation and attract more customers who value socially responsible businesses.

Lastly, sustainability is becoming increasingly important for regulatory compliance. The Indian government has introduced several initiatives and policies to promote sustainable tourism and reduce the industry's impact on the environment. For instance, the Ministry of Tourism has launched the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan initiative, which aims to promote cleanliness, hygiene, and sanitation in tourist destinations. Similarly, the government has introduced several schemes and incentives to encourage hotels and resorts to adopt sustainable practices. By complying with these regulations and initiatives, hotels and resorts can not only avoid penalties and fines but also benefit from government incentives and support.

In conclusion, sustainability is the future of the hospitality industry in India. By adopting sustainable practices, hotels and resorts can reduce their impact on the environment, attract environmentally conscious travellers, save on operational costs, improve their social impact, and comply with government regulations. The hospitality industry in India has the potential to become a leader in sustainable tourism, and by doing so, it can contribute to the country's economic growth while preserving its natural resources for future generations.

Marketing concisely leads to generating awareness and building an image of the brand in the market. It is a broad concept involving multiple strategies and processes of execution to attract bookings and optimize revenue. With the ever-flourishing trends, it becomes inevitable for brands to keep up with the latest ones and continue to engage and preserve the interests of the guests. Moreover, the advancement in terms of technology acts as a fuel to all the marketing practices.

The challenge of being in the hotel industry is the overwhelming amount of competition and corresponding to the swiftly changing demands of the present day visitors. Especially with the growth in popularity of a variety of accommodation choices like apartments and homestays, it becomes even more challenging to stand out against the competition to gather more bookings.

Here are a few hacks that would assist hotels to ace their marketing game:

Be Present Everywhere: In order to win any game it is vital for all to first participate in it. People are present at all places but in this blooming tech-savvy world, it becomes essential for the marketing leaders to understand the demographics of their target segment and study their active presence across platforms. These would be the ideal spaces to narrate the brand stories and offerings to the desired set of audiences only. This practice further enables the marketing leader to broaden their knowledge through the guest engagements witnessed around the brand while keeping a check on their changing behaviors and accordingly framing tailored marketing strategies.

Up your Social Media Game: Social media has now turned out to be more than just a mere tool. It is no secret that guests’ decisions are usually influenced by the easy access to the content of these channels. Moreover, these platforms not only provide the gateway to the brands to highlight itself to their potential set of viewers but also aids the viewer to get a chance to interact with the brand directly. The insights garnered through these mediums assist the brands to convey the appropriate information to related audiences. This protects both- the efforts taken by the brand to reach out to its desired viewers and the viewer’s time by catering to the relevant facts.

Seek Collaboration Opportunities: In the hospitality industry, guests are often referred to as ‘King’ and this is because hoteliers believe in curating memorable experiences for them by extending the best offerings based on their requirements. Collaborating with other businesses whose association accelerates the fundamental intent of enhancing the guests’ experiences, is the most sought after exercise for any hotel property. Such initiatives boost the brand to reach out to wider, specific and segmented audiences yielding appreciable results.

Personalize Experiences: Personalized hotel marketing is a vast topic in the hospitality industry and hence is essential to timely remember the fact that every guest is unique. Adding a personal touch to the marketing plan in every possible form right from extending specially portioned food & beverage selections, AI-focused concierge systems, quick and online check-in processes to data driven personalization of ads cast a strong impression in the minds of the brand viewers. The present day guests seek for more and the marketing framework that involves adapting products or services meets the purpose of improving guest experiences while responding effectively to their needs within a short span of time.

Gather User- Generated Content: There is no other practice, which is certain to champion than the guests sharing their stories about the brand themselves. User-Generating Content is similar to the word-of-mouth, a proven age-old practice assuring publicity of the brand at no cost. In other terms, existing guests validate the quality and value of the hotel based on their experiences, which is not possible in brand-generated advertising campaigns. Additionally, studies over the years have confirmed that guests trust content created by other guests more than content created by brands and are more likely to affect them while making a reservation decision. Both marketers and guests agree that peer-influencers are more effective than any other marketing method. To build a trusting relationship with the guests and their communities, incorporating the authenticity of these user-generated contents into the marketing strategy is the way forward.

With an effort to keep up with the ever-evolving trends, it becomes a necessity for restaurateurs to adapt to them as well. This involves changing the menu to suit the current taste and preferences, the interior decor of the restaurant, including the kitchen, or even taking to certain cafe trends such as housing board games and offering the space for events such as open mics, trivia nights, or social dancing nights.

But the most important change that customers seek is of the menu. Everyone wants their taste buds satisfied, but not everyone has the same taste palate. So it becomes imperative for the menu to consist of a variety of cuisines and diet preferences. Especially in the case of 5 star hotels, whose reputations precede their name. So, below are some of the key trends being followed in the year 2023:

Menu Design: More often than not, restaurateurs do not realise that the best menu is the one kept simple. The more focus given on the dishes and their descriptions, the easier the readability and hence the faster it is to make a choice. This is also why only plain and simple fonts should be used, and the menu template should be kept minimal.

Understand Consumer Psychology: It will be interesting for you to know that contradictory to how we generally read, i.e. from left to right, menu readers tend to first concentrate their attention to the middle parts of the page, before moving on to the other sides. This is known as “The Golden Triangle.” So our takeaway from this should be to place the most important dishes in the middle, and the rest on the top and bottom.

Spotlight menu items with sketches: Although the aforementioned point stated that the menu should be kept simple, a few sketches will only add to the minimalist nature of the menu. This isn’t to say that you can add them to your liberty as you please, but using it in place of pictures, and only a few spread neatly throughout the menu, is a good idea. This could be done for a number of reasons, for example, if you do not have appetising pictures of your food and/or prefer to keep it subtle.

Don’t shy away from using colours: It has been psychologically proven that certain colours tend to trigger and elicit certain responses in human beings. For example, red is known to remind the readers of meat, while people associate blue with water, thus making them hungry and thirsty respectively. So instead of just being playful with the menu colours, play smart.

Follow Food Trends: Food trends are ever-changing and the menu should always be adept to them. Ensuring you’re at par with your competitors, while your market research is up to date will really make you stand out. Lebanese and Asian food have gained momentum of late and how. While including dishes from these cuisines, also remember to stock up on seasonal fruits to use in inventive and progressive dishes, to entice consumers. Moreover, 2023 has been proclaimed the international year of Millets, so millets should certainly be the hero ingredient in varied dishes.

Overall, a good menu should consist of a right balance between the classics, latest food trends, contemporary dishes, lost recipes, variety of cuisines and food for kids and elders. By paying attention to the trends in your menu, you can see what people are most frequently purchasing and focus on that style of food or flavour. A menu is a visual representation of your brand and should be carefully curated with the right mix of dishes, varieties, pricing, offers etc.

A warm welcome, cleanliness, seamless service, prompt response, good food, value for money, peaceful sleeping environment, etc. are just a few things that guests expect from their hotel stay. To make all this possible and deliver a delightful experience during their stay, the hotel staff tirelessly work for long hours with a smile on their faces. Hospitality jobs, be it in housekeeping, kitchen, front office or others are very demanding. At the same time, the packages on most levels are not very handsome. Service charges and tips are a considerable source of income for the hotel staff, ensuring their economic well-being and comfort.

Every clean room, bathroom, clean glass, good-tasting plate of food, serviced request, and timely service has a prompt and sincere hotel team behind it. Where every member of the team is playing their part perfectly like the parts of an efficient watch showing the correct time. Nothing below perfection would work, because if one falters, the efficient functioning of others would also be affected.

Only 10-20 percent of the efforts that go into making an impeccable hotel experience are noticed on the surface by the guests, rest is behind the scenes that goes unnoticed. But all the effort that is visible or invisible deserves appropriate recognition and reward.

Here are a few reasons why tips should not be forgotten after a satisfactory experience at a hotel:

·       Gratitude for good service – tips are a way to express gratitude for good service during the stay or a meal at a restaurant. They are a way to say thank you for a sincere effort put in to make the experience pleasant and enjoyable.

·        Source of income - service charges and tips make for supplementary income of the hotel and restaurant staff. Hotels and restaurants that follow good practices, collect all the tips and service charges in one place and distribute them fairly among all the staff as a cushion of extra income.

·       Motivator – it is tough to go through the stress of demanding hotel and restaurant jobs every day for years.  Tips and service charge that rewards a good job done becomes a huge psychological motivator for them. Somewhere it helps them in managing the stress and look for the appreciation for inspiration of powering through.

·       Goodwill for next time – appropriate tips can affect the service you receive next time; it helps in building a relationship with the staff and motivate them to deliver good service every time.

·       Promotes good service – tips and service charge collected by a hotel or restaurant and distributed fairly among employees responsible for cleanliness, housekeeping, kitchen, front office, service, etc. promotes overall good service at the establishment, making it not only an employee-friendly place but also nurtures a guest friendly environment. They motivate a sincere effort to deliver excellence.

·       Rewards for excelling at challenging jobs – sincere effort and excellence in a tough job demands to be adequately rewarded

·       Encourages teamwork – tips and service charges collected by hotels and restaurants then distributes it across departments to the front office, front-end, and back-end employees encouraging teamwork within them. This would impact positively on the overall experience. If you are a regular client, then you would be the ultimate beneficiary.

·       Employment incentive - tips and service charges are also huge motivators for people to join hotels and restaurant jobs. This incentive attracts good quality talent to the industry.

Well-deserved tips and service charges are not a privilege but the right of hard-working employees who excel even in challenging conditions.

The Author is Executive Director, Noor Mahal and Founder Colonel Saab, London (UK).