NEWSLETTERMARCH 2011

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LAUNCHING THE HOSTEL REVENUE MANAGEMENT TOOL

The hostel sector has always been regarded as inferior to the hotel sector in terms of professionalism. STAY WYSE will help hostels overcome this hurdle by providing you with a tool which will help you grow your business.

Ever heard of benchmarking and revenue management?Benchmarking is a widely used process in the hotel sector which can help you amongst others, manage your revenue. The idea is to compare your operations against your competitors; operators of a similar size, or with a similar target market. Benchmarking is considered to be a major part of business development as it gives hotels a clear and thorough understanding of which things need to be achieved in order to be the best. The purpose of benchmarking is to learn from others and not to reinvent the wheel.

STAY WYSE has partnered with a benchmarking industry expert, the Benchmarking Alliance Nordic AB,   and developed a benchmarking tool specifically for the hostel sector. The tool will, unlike hotel tools, allow competitor comparisons according to beds and rooms (the hotel sector currently only looks at rooms). 

“The backpacker industry needs this new STAY WYSE tool to become as

savvy  as the hotel sector . To be able to compare our statistics  to our

competitors is crucial in growing our business and should be part of any

hostel's strategy. “Lorraine O’Reilly – hostelworld.com

In summary the tool will allow you to see what your competition is doing and by

knowing this you will be able to adjust your rates to increase sales. To gauge the interest for such a tool, STAY WYSE is currently requesting hostel operators to complete the following short survey.

ARE YOU CARRYING THE STAY WYSE LOGO ON YOUR WEBSITE?

It was agreed at the STAY WYSE AGM that all members would be required to carry the STAY WYSE logo and link to the STAY WYSE website on their website. A range of STAY WYSE Banners are available online for download

for STAY WYSE members.

Highlight your membership of the only global forum for Youth Travel Accommodation providers and your dedication to providing safe, clean and affordable travel accommodation to your customers. Don’t forget to link to www.staywyse.org!

CONTENTSHostel Business ToolIncrease your revenue

Are you carrying the STAY WYSE logo?

Hostel Skills ExchangeFollow the latest update

WYSTC 2011Barcelona, September 20-23

The Hoscars

YHA: Australia Needs You

UK to scrap star reviews

HI launches new website

Welcoming New Members

A bed bug sniffing dog

Generator Wins

MEET THE BOARD

Chairperson Mr Ulises

OrtegaMundo Joven

Mexico

Board Members

Lorraine O’ReillyHostelworldIreland

Mikael HanssonHostelling InternationalUnited Kingdom

David ChapmanInternational Students HouseUnited Kingdom

Steve LowyUmi HotelsUnited Kingdom

John Dickson Hostelling International United Kingdom

NEWSLETTERMARCH 2011

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JOIN STAY WYSE AT WYSTC 2011 BARCELONA, SPAIN, 20-23 SEP!

Each year, youth, student and educational travel industry professionals gather from around the world at WYSTC to network with fellow decision makers, take advantage of new market opportunities and learn from industry experts.If you want to meet agents, buyers, suppliers and policy makers from around the world, then you can‘t afford to miss the next WYSTC!

"The first conference we went to, Wake Up! was not yet opened and we took a huge financial risk. The fact that we attended WYSTC that year gave us so many

contacts that within three weeks of opening the hostel, it was 80% full (of 500 beds). I have been the world’s biggest fan of WYSTC ever since."

Margaret Millett, Wake Up! Australia

HOSTEL SKILLS EXCHANGE - REAPING THE BENEFITS

It’s a tough call, saying who gained more here. Was it the founder of umihotels, Steve Lowy, with the cultural and charitable benefits that he received? Or was it Rachel and Simon of Rosy Guesthouse, who received a business tune-up in almost every area of their cosy hostel?

Let’s call it a draw, as the ISTC Skills Exchange wrapped up a very successful inaugural effort in Siem Reap, Cambodia earlier in February. Taking the expertise of a larger, more established hostel operator with its head office in London and pairing it with a small, active hostel in a Cambodian village was a great success for both parties.

The exchange was put together with the help of STAY WYSE and ISTC (the International Student Travel Confederation). With a number of interested candidates on both sides of the exchange, umihotels and Rosy’s were ultimately chosen. The project, which will take place again with new participants in the near future, has also caught the attention of the larger companies. David Smith COO of HostelBookers, underlines how important hostels can be in the developing world. “Hostels promote travelling and exchange opportunities among students, young people and anyone looking to volunteer and give something back, and as such we fully support this great initiative by STAY WYSE.”

In that same spirit of volunteering and giving back, Steve spent ten days in the company of the owners of Rosy’s and the village as a whole, where he managed to make several charitable contributions and really felt the community spirit of the very hospitable locals.

As for Rosy’s, they received a wealth of business best practices that include better financial reporting, forecasting, and a seriously revamped website with the help of umi partners 2am media that benefits both the hostel and young travellers who will be making their travel plans from afar.

“The experience has been wonderful and I really hope that the work and help done both at the guesthouse, and at the charities, will be fruitful for all parties. From the minute I landed I have been so impressed with the warmth and friendliness of everyone here” – Steve Lowy, umihotels

“The suggestions and push in the right direction in the office is invaluable and yet completely logical and something that we are already putting into practice and seeing results from since Steve has left” – Rachel Band, Rosy Guesthouse

Instead of a draw, let’s call it a win-win!

To participate in a future Hostel Skills Exchange, please contact Laura Daly at l.daly@wysetc.org.

NEWSLETTERMARCH 2011

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CONGRATULATIONS TO VILLA SONNENHOF

For the second year running, STAY WYSE member Villa Sonnenhof was awarded the prize of top hostel in Switzerland based on the reviews from Hostelworld.com based on your reviews in 2010.

The Hoscar (Hostelworld.com Customers Annual Ratings) Awards now in their 9th year, recognise top hostels around the globe. Hosted by one of the UK & Ireland’s most popular TV presenter’s Craig Doyle, the 2011 Hoscars took place in London on 4th February and was the biggest awards ceremony to date, attended by 500 guests.

Y H A B U I L D I N G S ‘ S T I L L STANDING’ IN CHRISTCHURCH

Returning belongings to guests will be the first priority for YHA New Zealand once staff are permitted to re-enter its Christchurch properties following last week’s devastating earthquake, manager – marketing and sales Daniel Shields has said.  

Staff have been unable to return to the City Central hostel on Manchester Street and the Rolleston House property on Worcester Boulevard due to a civil defence cordon around the city which has impeded the hostel chain from releasing a re-opening date.

Shields said the re-opening of the hostels would depend on the state of the buildings, surrounding structures and the CBD in general.

“We know that both buildings are still standing,” he said. He added: “Once the buildings are inspected and deemed fit to enter our first task will be to gather all guest luggage and effects from around the hostel and begin the process of trying to get this back to owners.”Source:http://bit.ly/gowACq

U K S E T T O S C R A P S TA R RATINGS IN FAVOUR OF USER REVIEWS

STAR Ratings Australia may have stopped grading backpacker accommodation, but the UK is set to go a step further and drop star ratings altogether.   The Government’s tourism strategy, due out shortly, is expected to recommend phasing out the official star rating system for hotels in favour of user reviews online.

Tourism minister John Penrose Said: “The current official ratings systems are too often unreliable and unfair not only for the industry but for the consumer too. So we will encourage any rating schemes or customer websites that improve the quality of information which visitors can use to choose the right holiday for them, so they make informed choices rather than discovering problems when it is too late.”Source: http://bit.ly/eTPgLr

HI LAUNCHES REFRESHED SITE

Hostelling International (HI) has launched a new and improved version of hihostels.com. The website has been refreshed to reflect HI’s new brand image and it also includes some additional features, as well as improved usability.

HI’s new brand image has a contemporary look, using black and orange c o l o u r s w i t h t h e marketing strap lines: ‘Discover the real hostel experience’ and ‘Say HI to the world’. This new brand image is in steady progress being used in all H I ’s m a r k e t i n g a n d communications, both online and for printed materials.

There are not any major changes to the booking engine and the functionality on the website, but the “look and feel” is brand new. The homepage has become more attractive, customer ratings and reviews are given more attention, and tab navigation has been introduced on the hostel pages.

Pssst ;-)

NEWSLETTERMARCH 2011

WELCOMING NEW MEMBERS!

• Bakhytty Hostel - Kazakstan - 1-50 Beds• Woonstichting de Key - Netherlands - 1000-4999 Beds• Farah Hotel - Jordan - 51-100 Beds• Milhouse Hostel - Argentina - 200-999 Beds• Azure Property Investments - Luxembourg - 200-999 Beds• Unreal Hostel Lisbon - Portugal - 51-100 Beds• 92Y Residence - USA - 200-999 Beds

Lola - the bed bug sniffing dog

Lola was born on a farm in Wales two years ago, bought soon after by entrepreneur Mark Astley, and sent to America to get an education. After a few months at the made-up sounding National Entomology Scent Detection Canine Association, she started work in London's hotels and homes. She has the distinction of being the only certified bedbug sniffer dog in Europe.

Source: http://bit.ly/ehsV1j

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LET STAY WYSE PROMOTE YOU ONLINE

STAY WYSE regularly promotes our members on all our social networks. Want to benefit from this too? Join us on Twitter, Facebook, Flickr and You Tube!

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Generator wins!

Generator Hostels, a member of STAY WYSE, has been awarded with the UKinbound Awards for Excellence for ‘Small Hostel/ Hotel Group of the Year’ at this year’s convention at Alton Towers.

The annual awards are voted for by members of UKinbound, followed by the final decision of the chairman and board of directors. Award categories include ‘Events of the year’ and ‘Customer Welcome Award’ amongst many others.

On receiving Generator Hostels award Alison Armitage, commented ‘This is a great achievement for the Generator brand, and I would personally like to thank everybody for their dedication and support during the past year. Generator Hostel is definitely

building the hostel brand of the future’.

SEND US YOUR PROMOTIONAL MATERIAL

STAY WYSE is offering all members a brochure racking service. This means that where possible we will promote your organisation at the industry events STAY WYSE and the WYSE Travel Confederation attends. All you need to do (if you havent already) is send STAY WYSE your promotional materials such as brochures and flyers to:

STAY WYSE - WYSE Travel ConfederationKeizersgracht 1741016 DW AmsterdamThe Netherlands