According to the report entitled “Technical Diagnosis of the Hotel Industry 2007”, 56% of Spanish hotels with more than 10 employees and 26% of microcompanies belonging to the sector sell their services on the Internet, figures 7 and 16% higher than the national corporate average.
Online sales
With regard to online sales, figures are lower, although they are still higher than the national corporate average: 20% (4% higher than average) of hotels with more than 10 employees and 17% (10% higher than average) of microcompanies belonging to the sector use this channel.
These figures clearly show the growing importance of e-commerce in the hotel industry, as well as its rapid growth: according to last year’s report, only 22% of hotels with more than 10 employees used this channel, 34% more than in 2006. A geographical breakdown shows that 54% of all online sales in 2006 were made in Spain, 35% in the European Union, and 11% in the rest of the world.
Attracting new clients
The chief arguments for investing in e-commerce used by the 350 hotels participating in the study were “Attracting new clients” (77%), “Targeting clients from other areas” (68%), “Market positioning” (66%) and “Increasing competitiveness” (62%), among others.
Adopting the Internet
The Internet has been widely adopted by the hotel industry, much more so than in other corporate sectors: nearly 100% of all Spanish hotels with more than 10 employees (6% higher than average) and 70% of those with less than 10 employees (25% higher than average). With regard to the type of access, 97% of hotels with more than 10 employees and 88% of microcompanies have broadband connections.
When asked what they used the Internet for, apart from searching for information (96%), 77% of those taking part in the study cited bank dealings, 65% buying or selling products, and a surprising 56% observing the market, checking out competition and verifying what users are looking for, with the aim of improving their own services and meeting the demands of their clients.
Given the importance that the hotel industry places on the Internet and e-commerce, the web page is now central to their business. In fact, 90% of hotels with more than 10 employees and 70% of microcompanies now have their own web pages. Even family-run hotels with less than three employees regard having their own web page as essential, proof of which is the exceptional growth of country tourism. In short, web pages are now a basic advertising channel in the Spanish hotel industry, as well as being an information and promotional tool for attracting, maintaining and ensuring customer fidelity.
