Executive Summary
The topic is about investigating new health and safety innovative business practices in the hotel sector to restore customer confidence in the COVID-19 pandemic. The problem is that the epidemic has provided the hotel industry with an unprecedented dilemma. The research’s motivation is the sharp decline in demand for hotel services. The study focuses on how hotel businesses may rebuild consumer confidence in a severe crisis like COVID-19. The findings will aid hotel management by providing solutions to regain consumer trust. The research question is: How has low customer confidence during COVID-19 changed the hotel industry in Australia, and what can be done to address the issue? The study aims to investigate new health and safety practices in Melbourne.
The suggested research is exploratory; the research method is quantitative since it allows for in-depth phenomenon evaluation. The sample size is limited to a maximum of five and a minimum of three hotel managers in Melbourne. Purposive sampling will be utilized; this is a non-probability sampling strategy in which the components of the sample are chosen based on the researcher’s judgment. The questionnaire will be sent through email; narrative data analysis will be used to examine and compare findings.
My topic is about exploring the new health and safety innovative business practices to restore consumer confidence in the COVID-19 pandemic in the hotel industry. The world’s economy was virtually shut down suddenly due to the Covid-19 outbreak; the epidemic has presented an unprecedented challenge to the hotel business. My research will investigate the hotel industry to solve the identified problem, namely the loss of consumer confidence in the hotel industry. I aim to discover the best health and safety practices. This research proposal will include the literature review, conceptual framework, and methodology.
Background of the Study
The present scenario is that the hotel business has been subjected to substantial social and economic concerns due to the COVID-19 pandemic’ impact. Mehta et al. (2021) emphasize that the pandemic has posed challenges to the hotel industry. The primary reason for the issue is that domestic and international travel was suspended (Yeh, 2020). The problem faced is that trusting service providers for health and hygiene was problematic (Polyzos et al., 2020). The research’s motivation is the dramatic decline in the demand for hotel services. The study is relevant to explaining how hotel businesses can restore consumer confidence in a critical situation such as COVID-19.
Review of the Literature
The critical viewpoint of researchers is that the COVID-19’s impact on the hotel industry was immediately visible. The pandemic’s damage highlights the hotel industry’s vulnerability (Jiang & Ritchie, 2017; Bonfanti et al., 2021). For instance, the reduction in average polarity ratings of satisfaction reveals that Australia, although being a prominent tourist destination across the world, was unable to meet customer expectations, even at its top-tier hotels (Mehta et al., 2021). It also communicates a lack of readiness and resilience in the hospitality business. Mehta et al. (2021) argue that senior management in the continent’s hotels is relatively slow in learning and adapting to shifting client expectations during COVID-19. The common theme that I observe is that the current suppression of the pandemic provides a way for managers to detect the declining levels of customer satisfaction and devise measures to assist hotels in providing better hospitality (Mehta et al., 2021). According to Bonfati et al. (2021), technology and digital advances improve the whole hotel experience by allowing consumers to receive quick and effective service. For instance, practices connected to innovative health and safety initiatives may improve customer confidence and trust.
Gap Identification
Because hotels have had little experience with this type of situation, namely COVID-19, previous information on effective practices to restore consumer confidence is limited. Thus, hotels have been forced to implement innovations without a clear understanding of their effectiveness (Sharma et al., 2021). According to Yeh (2020), COVID-19 has the most significant influence on the tourism industry and demands a well-planned mitigation approach. Nonetheless, there are significant gaps in the research regarding how to reduce the impact (Yeh, 2020). Thus, the focus of my research is to investigate the best health and safety innovative business initiatives.
Conceptual Framework
Research Questions
How has low consumer confidence during COVID-19 changed the hotel industry in Australia, and what can be done to address the issue?
Aims of Research
I will find out the new health and safety innovative practices to restore consumer confidence. The research will help solve the problem of a lack of preparedness and resilience in the hotel industry during COVID-19. Additionally, the study will benefit managers in the hotel industry by offering solutions to restore consumer confidence.
Research Objectives
- To identify the consequences of the COVID-19 on the low consumer confidence in the hotel industry.
- To investigate the Australian hotel industry
- To discover the new health and safety innovative business practice to restore consumer confidence
- To explore the effectiveness of the successful creation and delivery of innovative practices in Melbourne
Research Methodology
Research Design
I aim to conduct exploratory research because this type of research is used to examine a research topic that is not well understood. The goal of exploratory research is not to produce definitive and conclusive answers to research questions but rather to investigate the study issue in varying depths (“Exploratory research,” n.d.). The research’s pros include reduced study costs, adaptability and flexibility, and effectiveness in setting the framework for future investigations. The downside is that exploratory findings cannot be extended to a larger population. The research approach is quantitative because it allows in-depth phenomenon interpretation.
Sampling
The sample size is a maximum of five (minimum of three) hotel managers operating in Melbourne. The interviews will be conducted with five experienced and competent hotel industry experts to capture voices and compare their experiences with health and safety practices. Johanson (2018) claims that Melbourne has approximately 378 hotels, most of which are centered in the city center. Purposive sampling is a sampling approach used by qualitative researchers to recruit individuals who can offer in-depth and detailed information on the topic under research (“Purposeful research,” n.d.). The sample size in purposive sampling can be modified during the evaluation and will depend on the desire of potential participants to answer the questionnaire. Additionally, the qualitative researcher set the qualifying criteria that each participant should fulfill to be selected for the research study.
The sample will be obtained using the following criteria: first, the specialist in the hotel industry should work as a manager and has a rich experience; second, the hotel is situated in Melbourne and operates during COVID-19. Purposive sampling may be successful when only a few persons are available to serve as primary data sources due to the research approach nature and goals. Purposive sampling is a non-probability sampling approach in which components selected for the sample are determined by the researcher’s judgment (“Purposeful research,” n.d.). This sampling strategy has the advantage of being helpful in studying anthropological circumstances where the finding of meaning might benefit from an intuitive approach (“Purposeful research,” n.d.). Nonetheless, the drawback is that the researcher is vulnerable to inaccuracies in judgment.
Research Instrument
The type of data I need for the research is qualitative to contribute to a deeper understanding of health and safety innovative business practices. I will use the questionnaire to collect the data because it will help capture the experiences and ideas of hotel managers. The questions will be open because they will allow participants to think and share their thoughts and experiences. The questionnaire of nine questions was planned; it would not take more than twenty minutes. Pilot testing is not necessary for qualitative research. There will be a cover letter introducing the research objectives and the importance of the study.
Data Collection
The questionnaire will be administered via email to allow hotel managers to answer whenever they have free time. The hotel managers will need to fill it in because they have more experience in the hotel industry than the personnel with lower positions. The respondents will be approached via hotels’ emails. I will first send at least twenty questionnaires to see the response rate; I need a maximum of five managers to send their answers back to me. The respondents will be briefed on the purpose of the research to increase their motivation to participate and receive their informed consent, which refers to their understanding of the research.
Data Analysis
Essentially, qualitative data is non-numerical information such as interview transcripts, observations, audio, and video recordings, photographs, and text files. The narrative analysis will be used; this approach entails reformulating narratives offered by respondents while considering the context of each instance and the unique experiences of each respondent (“Qualitative data analysis,” n.d.). In other words, narrative analysis is the researcher’s modification of primary qualitative data. Respondents’ answers will be analyzed and compared to understand how health and safety practices restore consumer confidence. Excel sheet (Excel Statistical program) will be used to code, and data will be sorted and tabulated to present results statistically.
Ethical Consideration
The crucial consideration is that confidentiality should be maintained. According to Allen (2017), anonymity is typically used in quantitative investigations, whereas confidentiality is necessary for qualitative studies. The separation or modification of any personal, identifiable information given by participants from the data is defined as confidentiality (Allen, 2017). People’s ideas and experiences are more attractive to the researcher than exposing information about individuals. As a result, names, emails, phone numbers, and addresses will be kept private. I will obtain written informed consent for participation in the research. Trochim (n.d.) acknowledges that people should not be pressured into engaging in research, according to the concept of voluntary participation. The necessity of informed consent is closely tied to the notion of voluntary participation (Trochim, n.d.). It implies that potential study participants must be thoroughly briefed about the procedures and concerns involved in research before agreeing to participate. I will ensure that respondents’ data is safe by limiting access to only me and my supervisor, keeping the private information confidential.
Limitation of the Research
- Scope: The research will provide significant implications for the hotel industry in Australia. The research finding can be further used to improve health and safety practices.
- Limitation: The research will be conducted in Melbourne only. The email questionnaires are limited by the respondents’ desire to share information and their experiences.
- Lack of holistic approach in assessing the quality of qualitative findings.
- Sampling constraints: From three to five respondents that meet the criteria: managers in the hotel industry working in Melbourne.
- Time and budget constraints: The limited time to obtain the respondents’ answers and analyze results; no budget constraint.
Appendix A: Questionnaire
- Do you agree health and safety practices will restore the consumers’ confidence during Covid-19? Why?
- What health and safety practices are placed in your hotel?
- What were the most recent health and safety practices innovated?
- What other health and safety practices are considered?
- What are customers’ most asked health and safety practices before booking?
- Did health and safety practices boost booking or revenue?
- How much did the occupancy and average daily revenue increase with health and safety practices?
- What are the significant concerns about health and safety practices?
- Will you keep current health and safety practices when the Covid-19 pandemic is terminated?
References
Allen, M. (2017). The sage encyclopedia of communication research methods (Vols. 1-4). Sage Publications. Web.
Bonfanti, A., Vigolo, V., & Yfantidou, G. (2021). The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on customer experience design: The hotel managers’ perspective. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 94. Web.
Exploratory research. (n.d.). Business Research Methodologies. Web.
Jiang, Y., & Ritchie, B. W. (2017). Disaster collaboration in tourism: Motives, impediments and success factors.Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Management, 31, 70–82. Web.
Johanson, Simon (2018). Surge in Melbourne hotel rooms set to impact occupancy. Web.
Mehta, M. P., Kumar, G., & Ramkumar, M. (2021). Customer expectations in the hotel industry during the COVID-19 pandemic: a global perspective using sentiment analysis.Tourism Recreation Research, 1–18. Web.
Polyzos, S., Samitas, A., & Spyridou, A. E. (2020). Tourism demand and the COVID-19 pandemic: An LSTM approach.Tourism Recreation Research, 46(2), 1–13. Web.
Purposive sampling. (n.d.). Business Research Methodologies. Web.
Qualitative data analysis. (n.d.). Business Research Methodologies. Web.
Trochim, W. M. K. (n.d.). Ethics in research. Web.
Yeh, S.-S. (2020). Tourism recovery strategy against COVID-19 pandemic.Tourism Recreation Research, 1–7. Web.