Virtual Reality: Disrupting the Australian Hotel and Hospitality Industry

This report explores the impact, role, and future trends of virtual reality (VR) as a disruptive technology in the Australian hotel and hospitality industry. It examines how VR is transforming marketing, guest experiences, and operational efficiency, highlighting its potential to revolutionize the sector. The report analyzes case studies of Australian hotels and resorts utilizing VR, discussing its benefits and challenges. It concludes by predicting the future of VR in hospitality, emphasizing its potential to create immersive experiences, personalize services, and enhance customer satisfaction.

Assessment One: Individual Report
Critical Discussion on the impact, role and future trends of disruptive technology on the
Australian Hotel and Hospitality Industry
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Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Findings and Discussions................................................................................................................4
Impact of disruptive technology on the Australian Hospitality Industry....................................4
Role of virtual reality...................................................................................................................5
Future trends in virtual reality.....................................................................................................6
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................8
References........................................................................................................................................9
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Introduction
Disruptive refers to the technology that results in the displacement of an established technology
and transforms the way that entire business and industry operates. It is a field of innovation that
leads to the creation of a new market and value network by disturbing an existing market and
value network (Rios, 2017). The hospitality industry is a dynamic environment that works in an
everlasting state of movement and progress. In order to be successful in the competitive
landscape, the industry should be open to using a variety of disruptive tools and technologies in
order to ensure the satisfaction and personalised experience of the leisure and business travellers.
The hospitality industry is continuously investing in the disruptive technologies in order to
improve the quality of their offerings, streamlining operations for the employees, to create a
more personalised experience for the guests. At this moment, the Virtual reality is the growing
disruptive technology in the hospitality industry. The objective of the report is to study, learn and
analyse the impact of disruptive technology i.e. virtual reality on the hospitality industry in
Australia in the present as well as future times.
(Source: Alen, 2017)
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Findings and Discussions
Impact of disruptive technology on the Australian Hospitality Industry
In Australia, the increasing accessibility of Virtual reality technology has created new marketing
and branding opportunities for the hotels. It offers best and possible cutting-edge ways that help
the hospitality organizations in dealing with the needs and expectations of the modern customers.
Virtual reality has replaced the traditional brochures that help the hotels in offers more
immersive experiences like 360º videos or VR presentations that provide a more personalised tour
of the hotels. The technology has offered a number of advantages to the hospitality industry by
ease the operations with greater ease and flexibility (Agadoni, 2016). Hotels from big brands to
the small boutiques in Australia are slowly entering the era of Virtual Reality. As it is a young and
growing technology, the fuller extent of its utilization has yet to be observed. With the integration
of the technology with the costing databases, there is high potential to save thousands of hours
which spend by the hotel owners, managers and designers on processing and they can be able to
instantly see the visual and financial implications for changes in their plans. As the Australian
Hospitality Industry is going through the largest era of expansion and innovation, the VR
technology can be effectively used for the designing of the new hotels, refurbishment of the new
hotels from the seven stars to the service apartments. Also, the technology allows the customers to
put their direct impact on the designing and development process and enables them to implement
changes to the design but only in the case if the offered changes are matched with the price of the
project (Alen, 2017). For an instance, the customer can see the moving walls, changing fabrics,
and alteration of the bathroom fittings from their smartphones and make recommendations as per
their choices and preferences.
Hotels in Australia like Emirates one, Avenue Hotel Canberra use the Virtual reality technology
in marketing in order to truly showcase the offerings and to heighten the sense of exclusivity.
Also, the hospitality organizations in Australia believe that Virtual Reality is good at showcasing
the large hotels on the basis of the extensive grounds and internal spaces (Sharifi, 2017). Lizard
Island Resort in Australia uses the VR for the promotion of their multiple ranges of properties and
the technology gives an opportunity to pitch multiple locations in a short time frame.
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Role of virtual reality
In the words of Carter (2018), virtual technology is a computer technology that helps in the
utilisation of the images, sounds and physical sensations with an objective to make the users feel
like they are physically present in a virtual world. In the Australian Hospitality Industry, VR has
become particularly important as it helps in offering relevant and maximum information to the
customers before they actually book a hotel room. In spite of the reading the descriptions which
might be trustworthy or not, VR offers a chance to the customers to experience the things before
their actual occurrence. Virtual reality has the power to transport people from one location to
another, whisking them off far away. It not only gives an opportunity to the guest to see the hotel
but also to experience it. The technology helps in making stronger emotional connections with
the customers (Carter, 2018). It also results in boosting the experience of the customers. With the
traditional videos, the hotel can create a false impression of a room by making an adjustment
with the angle of the camera. On contrary, the Virtual reality technology broadcasts every single
angle of the room. For an instance, the technology helps the customers in experiencing a virtual
creation of a hotel room and also looks at the nearby locations in order to make a choice
regarding their booking. At the same time, it allows the hospitality organizations in Australia to
avail the benefit of the ‘try before you buy’ marketing.
As per the views of Young (2017), one of the important roles played by the Virtual reality
technology in the hospitality industry is to create virtual hotel tours that can be made available on
the hotel websites that allows the customers to look at their hotel rooms before their arrival. An
effective use of VR technology is the creation of the virtual reality booking processes which has
been continuously using by the top hospitality organizations in Australia like Harbour Rocks
hotel, COMO the treasury that offers an opportunity to the customers to book the flights,
experience of the local sights and explore the virtual rooms. Marriott in Australia is also
experimenting with Virtual Reality technology by test driving in the selective locations under the
name of ‘Vroom Service’ where the customers can order headsets to watch the “VR postcards”
that are pre-loaded with the VR experiences developed to inspire the travel. Also, the technology
is used in the marketing operations that offer an opportunity to the consumers to experience the
Marriott great room lobby and amazing locales in an innovative way (Young, 2017). Virtual
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reality, in addition to providing entertainment also makes the experience of the hotel less
challenging. For an instance with the use of the VR, it would be easy for the guest who checked
into a large hotel or resort and found a problem in reaching to the concierge desk to find the
amenities, a VR concierge tour will help in finding the entire features of the resort in a short span
of time.
Future trends in virtual reality
From the article by Gaggioli (2016), it is clear that the role of travelling is changing with the
passing of time; people consider travel as a right and crucial part of their lives. The hospitality
industry in Australia is experiencing unparalleled and effective changes for few years after the
introduction of the disruptive technologies like Virtual reality and will look different in the
coming years. Already several hospitality organizations in Australia are availing the benefit of
emerging technology like Virtual reality; it will be employed entirely in the near future
(Gaggioli, 2016). Virtual reality in the present times is one of the most beige emerging
technologies in the business world in the way it offers a number of opportunities for business
innovation. It has particular appeal for those in the hospitality industry as it helps in the digital
transportation of the customers to the hotel or destination. It is predicted that Virtual reality tends
to become a $150-billion industry by 2020 in Australia and emerge with the potential to bring
revolution in the hospitality and travel sectors. The technology will broaden the satisfaction and
experience of the guest hundreds of times by not only defining the characteristics of the rooms
and hotels but the guest will have access to the high tech features like the ability to control the
lights and fans of the rooms with their mobile phones. The majority of the smart rooms at the
hotels, resorts will be controlled by the guests.
According to the thoughts of Ting, (2016), it is also predicted that hospitality organizations like
hotels, resorts, transportation will put more focus on the local flavours, regional arts and brands
and offers a personalized experience to the customers. Virtual reality will bring a massive change
in the business of the hoteliers, marketers, transporters and advertisers in the hospitality industry
of Australia and allows the guests to take a quick trip to their desired locations and make the
decision accordingly. The application of the technology will help in engaging a story for the
customers so as to ensure maximum satisfaction and experience of the guest at the destination
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(Ting, 2016). As marketing will be very easy and innovative with VR, the hospitality
organizations can easily share the virtual experiences with the guests which can be shared via
desktop or mobile app or through social networks. In case if a user has no VR device in hand, a
smartphone will be used to move a 360-degree image around the screen or desktop (Huang,
2017). An effective and smart use of the VR marketing will improve the websites and prepares
interactive brochures. VR technology will also play important role in the sales arena that makes
the hotels as an information service. Digital check-in is already provided in the hotels and resorts
but the VR information desk linked with a concierge service will provide a guide to the
customers regarding different locations. It is also true that the technology is taking longer than
that of the expectations of the customers but sooner it will be used and implemented at each and
every hospitality organizations in Australia with an objective to broaden the satisfaction as well
as the experience of the customers. There are a number of opportunities for VR in the hospitality
industry in Australia but the possibilities are limited to the imagination and innovation of the
agency in using the technology in an efficient manner. The prediction on the return on the
investment with the implementation of the VR technology is difficult; it can only be imagined in
accordance with the responses and satisfaction level of the customers with the technology
(Tromp, 2017). Although the solutions of the virtual reality are quite expensive hence it will be
interesting to learn that how VR plays role in the overall hospitality market in Australia. Might
be Virtual reality technology would not as revolutionised as smartphones but there is a great role
of the technology in the hospitality industry as being complementary to the other tools like
marketing and booking.
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Conclusion
The empirical report on the impact, role and future trends of the disruptive technology on the
hospitality industry in Australia has entailed about numerous aspects regarding the technology in
the modern world. The report is based on the implications of the virtual reality in the hospitality
organizations that have offered significant knowledge and information on the subject matter. The
role, impact and future trends of virtual reality in the hotel and hospitality industry in Australia
will be clear in the minds of the reader with this report. In the present digital era, the role of
digital technology has been tremendously growing with the increasing competition in the
business sector. In the hospitality industry, disruptive technology has been consistently replacing
the existing technologies and creating a new industry since its inception. Virtual reality will help
the reaching out to the new audiences by exterminating the old-fashioned way of dealing and
interacting with the customers and adopt the new way of marketing that integrate more and more
number of audiences in a single thread. There is no doubt in the fact that the role of virtual reality
in the hospitality industry is not in its infancy but it will go to make strong impact and influence
on the hospitality industry in Australia in the near future.
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References
1. Agadoni, L., (2016). Is virtual reality the future of the hospitality sector?. JLL. Available
at https://www.jllrealviews.com/industries/virtual-reality-future-hospitality-industry/.
2. Alen, B., (2017). Virtual Reality in Tourism Becoming More Real. Tourism Review
News.
3. Carter, J., (2018). Why VR is going to transform how we look at hotel design &
development. Hotel Management. Available at
https://www.hotelmanagement.com.au/2018/02/23/vr-going-transform-look-hotel-design-
development/.
4. Gaggioli, A., (2016). 3 Ways Hotels Can Use Virtual Reality in the Future. Cloudbeds.
Available at https://www.cloudbeds.com/articles/3-ways-hotels-can-use-virtual-reality-
in-the-future/.
5. Huang, N., (2017). How hotels are exploring the huge potential of 360-degree VR video.
Travel Tripper. Available at http://www.traveltripper.com/blog/how-hotels-are-exploring-
the-huge-potential-of-360-degree-vr-video/
6. Rios, C. M., (2017). Disruptive innovation in hospitality: Are we there yet? Hospitality
Net. Available at https://www.hospitalitynet.org/opinion/4082962.html.
7. Sharifi, K., (2017). Look Before You Book: Impact of Virtual Reality on Travel Industry.
Persia port. Available at https://blog.persiaport.com/en/look-before-you-book-impact-of-
virtual-reality-on-travel-industry/.
8. Ting, D., (2016). Best Western Goes All In on Its Virtual Reality Marketing Move. Skift.
Available at https://skift.com/2016/05/23/best-western-goes-all-in-on-its-virtual-reality-
marketing-move/.
9. Tromp, P., (2017). How Virtual Reality Will Revolutionize the Hospitality Industry.
Hospitality Net. Available at https://www.hospitalitynet.org/opinion/4080737.html.
10. Young, A. E., (2017). The Impact – And Importance – Of Virtual Reality in the Hotel
Industry. Hotel-Online. Available at
https://www.hotel-online.com/press_releases/release/the-impact-and-importance-of-
virtual-reality-in-the-hotel-industry.
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