Plan & Play - How hostel start-ups should derive a marketing strategy

Authored by Pankaj Parwanda, Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer, goSTOPS.

The recovery for the hospitality industry is back on track with fewer restrictions resulting in pent-up demand towards the travel sector, which was hit by the pandemic and its waves. The survive, revive and thrive mantra has helped the sector achieve faster-than-expected growth.

Today, budget-friendly social accommodation options are getting more popular among GenZ and millennials, with hostels becoming their preferred choice. Though the concepts of backpacking and solo travel were considered a part of westernized lifestyle until some years ago, today’s youth show a great affinity for them. The opportunity to get acquainted with fellow travellers who share similar interests is something that attracts youth to hostels. With an ever-changing scenario, young hostel chains need to constantly update to stay relevant in the market. As a start-up, it is an absolute must to strategize effective marketing ideas to connect with the target group.

Showcasing the ‘Social’aspect:

As a start-up hostel chain that aims to be a part of the youth’s lifestyle, it is imperative to establish a social connection and create a strong positioning among your audience. Hostels have become more aspirational because they’ve centred themselves on the community.

This unique proposition has set them apart from hotel brands and helped them foster brand affinity amongst their target group and demographic. Such a differentiated strategy to keep the brand’s social positioning unique has played an instrumental role in establishing brand sustenance in the consumer’s mind.

Endorsing the aspirations and values of the Target Group (TG):

Audiences tend to associate with brands that share or propagate the set of values they believe in. Therefore, travel start-ups are now focusing on developing marketing strategies that resonate with the aspirations of their users.

This is seen in their social stance adopted during a sensitive issue, their messaging through advertisements or marketing campaigns, employment policies, and associations with other brands with similar ideologies.

Utilizing the voice of the customers:

Many travel start-ups still tend to see negative reviews or constructive feedback as a threat to their service or reputation. In fact, they should look at this two-way communication as an opportunity to build their business, upscale, and develop future marketing strategies that bring in more footfalls. Therefore, hostels are paying attention towards solving the concerns of their guests to build brand loyalty.

With the pressing need to listen to what guests want and provide them with a pleasant stay, the impetus is being laid towards developing omni channel customer care listening tools and incorporating 24*7 centralized customer support. In this regard, Online Reputation Management (ORM) has become the need of the hour; keeping a tab on every mention of the brand in the digital space and weaving out solutions and plans accordingly that enhance the customer experience.

Elevating the experience through technology/tech-empowered layer:

In today’s interconnected world, travellers are becoming increasingly demanding in how they want to communicate. Instead of picking up the phone, or booking online, they now want convenient and fingertip access to queries before, during, and after their stay. Start-up hostel brands have gradually started integrating smart technology into their rooms and services, thereby differentiating and delivering more interactive and rejuvenating experiences.

Empowering the customer by increasing social interaction and elevating their experience through seamless technology is an important aspect that youth hostel brands are now implementing to stay relevant and ahead of the curve.

Familiarizing the new concept:

As a young start-up in the travel sector, it is important to have clarity of the product-market fit and a proper understanding of the go-to-market strategy. Taking time to understand the problem, recognising the latent market for these hostels, and making constant updates to adapt to the evolving psychographics of an Indian backpacker, have become more salient than ever for travel start-ups like backpacker hostels that are still a new concept for the Indian audience.

With the need to educate the youth about this new category, hostel brands today are looking at relevant brand associations with existing players and partnerships with youth-based communities that are playing an instrumental role in expanding their target group.

In order to stay ahead of the curve in the ever-evolving competitive market landscape, hostel brands are increasingly investing in developing clear-cut marketing strategies, devising clear marketing plans, and updating them based on real-time customer feedback, technological progress, and creation of new demands. Especially for a hostel start-up, a consistent upgradation of strategy contemplating the user feedback and real-time seamless connection with the customers is proving decisive to hit the mark.