From venue visualisers to digital avatars: How the metaverse is reshaping the future of hospitality and tourism
By Piyush Gupta, CEO, VOSMOS
Have you ever thought that one day you could check out every aspect of a hotel from your own home? The Metaverse makes this possible for today’s travellers. This technology trend has a direct impact on engagement models across various industries, including hospitality. The Meta-universe offers a plethora of opportunities for businesses and introduces a new era of immersive and unique experiences.
The global hospitality industry is proactively adapting to the emerging Metaverse, with early adopters spearheading innovative digital solutions. Businesses have increasingly adopted disruptive technologies, transitioning from initial contactless services and automated chatbots for customer service to a transformative shift. As the digital landscape continues to evolve, hospitality players worldwide are investing in the development of the virtual realm, which is poised to revolutionise the industry further.
Creating experiences
The concept of the Metaverse and its associated virtual experiences have significantly altered people’s perspectives on the future of technology and its potential impact on the hospitality and tourism industry. As such, businesses in this industry are keen on exploring ways to leverage this platform and create virtual hospitality and tourism experiences, products, and services for their clientele.
The rise of the Metaverse has resulted in substantial changes in the hospitality and tourism industry, with industry stakeholders raising several questions. For instance, how will the Metaverse impact the industry’s future dynamics? What will be the effects of Meta-universe on the decision-making behaviours and consumption patterns of hospitality and tourism customers? Can venue visualisers replicate real-life hotel recce? Will this new trend of virtual venue visualisers be a sustainable choice for businesses in the long run?
Besides these, hotels are also realising that the Metaverse will introduce a new challenge for virtual guests. As an industry that primarily thrives on service and the physical reception of guests, hospitality and tourism are now transforming into an experience-based industry. Therefore, hotels must be ready to tackle the challenge of making virtual experiences as memorable as physical ones.
Further, hoteliers can benefit from brand positioning on the platform, as it offers new possibilities for marketers. Hotel marketers can enhance email marketing strategies by upselling guests to upgraded rooms. The process can be automated, providing a streamlined user experience with discounts. Additionally, marketers can promote their loyalty programs by highlighting upgrades, package deals, and points within the tour. By leveraging the digital arena, businesses can increase customer engagement and drive conversions.
New alternatives in the digital domain
The hospitality industry stands to benefit significantly from the diverse roles that the virtual environment can play. By leveraging new technology, hotels can now create a virtual replica of the property. This development means that clients can now seek alternatives to event planners or hotels for their events. The digital domain, in this regard, assumes the form of a virtual chain that offers equally remarkable experiences in both physical and virtual locations.
The possibilities of the virtual space are vast and limitless. Through venue visualisers hotels can provide virtual reality tours of their facilities, offer potential guests the opportunity to visit their establishment through an avatar during the booking process, and provide virtual rooms for hosting events, among other possibilities. For travel planners, this will present the opportunity to showcase destinations in a new dimension, providing travellers with the option to explore locations based on their preferences. Moreover, the platform will enable hotels to create new avenues for consumers and travellers to compare products. The
Metaverse coupled with AI will redefine the hotel and travel industry by delivering enhanced guest experiences and driving operational efficiency.
The world of wonder
The emergence of this immersive space as a new digital technology has the potential to revolutionise various industries, including hospitality and travel. This innovative technology presents a world of wonder for these glamorous industries. To optimize digital business and spur innovation in product and service development, it is imperative to embrace the potential of these digital platforms. Building a diverse range of offerings by combining innovative elements is a more effective approach.
A few notable examples of Metaverse offerings in the hospitality industry include Emirates Airlines, which intends to introduce an Augmented Reality experience that allows passengers to enjoy its in-flight hospitality virtually. Qatar Airways QVerse, on the other hand, offers passengers a VR experience of its premium check-in area at Hamad International Airport (HIA). Hilton also uses Oculus VR technology to train its staff and
enhance their hospitality skills.
Despite the rise of the Metaverse, hospitality professionals need not be alarmed. Physical vacations will not be completely replaced by virtual travel experiences. Vacation-goers often seek to disconnect from technology and undergo ‘digital detoxing’, where they can step away from the barrage of digital communications they receive every day. While tourism and travel will remain booming industries, they now have a new avenue for connecting with consumers. Metaverse travel will not replace actual travel, but it can enhance travel
experience through virtual tourism.
