The hospitality industry has made significant progress in recovering from the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the road ahead presents new hurdles: staffing shortages, increasing customer expectations, rising costs, and the ongoing demands of digital transformation.
The most forward-thinking businesses are tackling these challenges by streamlining operations and investing in innovative tools. QR Codes for hospitality are one such solution—an accessible technology that enhances the guest experience while keeping costs low.
In this post, we’ll explore how QR Codes and short links are helping the hospitality sector prepare for the future by improving operational efficiency, delivering smarter customer insights, and elevating customer service to new heights.
Note: The brands and examples discussed below were found during our online research for this article.
What does the hospitality industry encompass?
The hospitality industry brings people together, creating meaningful connections and unforgettable experiences. From bustling hotels and cozy neighborhood cafés to thrilling theme parks and bucket list travel experiences, it’s a sector that thrives on serving others.
Yet, despite their differences, hospitality businesses share a common focus: delivering an exceptional guest experience. Whether you’re managing a hotel or serving dishes from a food truck, success hinges on exceeding guest expectations, maintaining rigorous health and safety standards, and balancing tight profit margins.
To keep up with ever-changing customer demands, regulatory requirements, and financial pressures, agility is key. That’s why more businesses are turning to technology that streamlines restaurant reservations, enhances hotel operations, and helps them stay ahead of the competition.
Major challenges hospitality businesses face
There are plenty of signs that the hospitality industry is starting to recover—workforces are expanding, air travel is thriving, and room occupancy rates are climbing. But despite these promising signs, the hospitality industry still faces its share of challenges.
While financial recovery from the pandemic is progressing, the industry looks markedly different. A year-end analysis from PWC highlighted lingering financial uncertainty, with rising operational costs and increased competition making it harder to hire staff and deliver standout customer experiences.
Let’s look at five key industry trends that present both challenges and opportunities for hospitality businesses ready to embrace new technology.
Staffing concerns
Labor shortages and low retention rates continue to trouble the hospitality sector. A recent survey revealed that 82% of hoteliers are facing staff shortages, and 87% are struggling to fill open positions. To attract talent, businesses are offering higher salaries, improved benefits, and flexible schedules—but these measures come with rising labor costs.
Technology offers a lifeline for maintaining excellent customer service despite limited staff. Self-service QR Codes allow guests to check into hotels, order food, or leave feedback with just a smartphone scan. By automating routine tasks, your team can focus on more complex, customer-focused responsibilities, while guests enjoy faster, more convenient service.
Rising operational costs
Managing rising costs has become one of the biggest challenges for the hospitality industry. The cost of supplies, utilities, and maintenance has steadily climbed in recent years, driven by inflation, labor shortages, and ongoing supply chain issues. Adding to the pressure is the growing demand for sustainable hospitality that prioritizes lower energy consumption and reduced emissions.
The good news? Technology provides a smart way to tackle both cost concerns and sustainability initiatives in one go. For example, restaurants can ditch paper menus for QR Code menus, slashing printing costs while cutting down on waste—a win-win for the budget and the planet.
Similarly, QR Code payment links and digital receipts do away with paper checks, making life easier for customers while lowering expenses. Hotel and event venues can also hop on the QR Code train, using them to simplify reservations and bookings, save on materials, and keep operations running like clockwork.
Enhancing customer experience
As the cost of living rises, customers are looking for more value in their hospitality experiences, with technology playing a central role in shaping their expectations.
A 2024 survey of travelers revealed that guests now expect contactless check-in, contactless payments, and mobile guest services as the new standard. For hotel stays, guests prioritize features like on-demand entertainment, smart voice controls, and the ability to manage their stay entirely from their own devices.
Of course, the human touch still matters—staff behavior remains the top driver of guest satisfaction. But today’s customers also value speed and convenience, and businesses that fail to meet those expectations risk losing revenue. In fact, 53% of guests who have a negative experience at a venue report spending less or abandoning the brand altogether.
This demand for convenience underscores the importance of digital solutions. Tools like QR Codes empower guests to instantly access services, view product details, or complete transactions, all while freeing up staff to focus on more personalized interactions.
With the right tools, QR Codes also unlock valuable insights. Bitly Analytics allows you to track when and where codes are scanned, identify the most popular touchpoints, and even compare engagement across different locations or venues. That data feeds back into your work, allowing you to address customer pain points, refine offerings, and deliver an even better guest experience.
Health and safety regulations
Health and safety have always been pillars of the hospitality industry. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, these standards became even stricter, transforming how restaurants and hotels operated. Contactless reservations, payments, and deliveries replaced many traditional customer service practices.
Now, these technologies have moved beyond their initial purpose. Guests have grown to prefer the convenience and speed of contactless services as a standard feature of their hospitality experience.
The surge in contactless services during the pandemic propelled QR Codes into the spotlight. They’re ideal because they can be displayed on any screen or surface, from billboards to table tents. With a quick smartphone scan, customers can access information, complete transactions, or fill out forms using their mobile devices.
Keeping up with changing technology
In a 2023 survey, 69% of hospitality businesses identified digital transformation as essential to their success. However, digital transformation is only successful when it’s tightly focused on solving specific challenges, such as addressing hotel reservation problems and solutions or improving guest engagement.
At the same time, hospitality technology solutions must be both secure and cost-effective. As privacy legislation tightens up and customers grow increasingly mindful of data security, businesses face greater responsibility to prevent data breaches and safeguard personal data.
Sometimes, the simplest tech makes the biggest impact. QR Codes, for instance, are inexpensive to create and can link to almost anything—web pages, registration forms, venue details, payment portals, review platforms, and even smart hotel technology and apps.
The latest generation of Dynamic QR Codes are highly secure and allow you to update content as needed and track usage over time.
Increasing competition in the industry
Hospitality businesses are up against growing competition—not only from rival venues but also from peer-to-peer options like Airbnb. So standing out and retaining customers has never been more critical. Fortunately, technology offers a way to create memorable experiences without overextending resources.
Take loyalty programs, for instance. A well-placed QR Code can make offering exclusive perks to returning guests easier, turning one-time visitors into regulars. You can even use these codes to add a bit of fun—let guests make special requests with a quick scan or take a virtual tour of your venue before they arrive.
These small but impactful touches make your guests feel like VIPs and give your business a chance to shine in a crowded market.
Best practices for using QR Codes and short links in hospitality settings
To maximize the impact of QR Codes and short links in your hospitality business, focus on creating clear, purposeful designs and strategically placing them for customer convenience. Here’s how to get started:
Design codes and links for their intended purposes
When you use a QR Code generator like Bitly, you can customize your codes and links to make them more engaging and user-friendly.
For example, you can adjust your QR Code colors to ensure they stand out and are easy to scan. Adding a logo or customizing the frame helps establish trust by signaling that the code comes from a legitimate source. Including a call to action, like “Scan for Menu” or “Check in Here,” gives customers clear guidance on where each QR Code leads.
Short links can also be customized for maximum impact. Sharing links via email or text notifications? Use a branded domain to make them recognizable and trustworthy. Like QR Codes, short links benefit from clarity—URLs like “your.brand/CheckInHere” not only look professional but also set clear expectations for customers.
Place codes and links in strategic positions
QR Codes are only effective if they’re easy to see and serve a clear purpose. A hotel check-in QR Code works well at the front desk, while a restaurant menu QR Code might be laminated and attached to a table or displayed on a nearby wall.
Keep in mind that visibility isn’t the same as usability. The size of a QR Code also determines its maximum scanning distance. Ensure it’s large enough for customers to scan with accuracy from a reasonable distance.
If you’re using short links instead of QR Codes, they require even closer placement for readability. They’re best used on digital screens, in reservation confirmation emails, or in text messages where they’re easy to access.
Test all QR Codes and short links
Few things are more frustrating than a broken link. Before rolling out contactless services, thoroughly test every QR Code and short link to ensure they work flawlessly.
For QR Codes:
- Scan them from various distances and in different lighting conditions.
- Test across multiple devices, including Android and iOS, to confirm compatibility.
For short links:
- Enter the link in several browsers to confirm that it loads correctly and quickly.
- Test the linked page on phones and tablets to ensure it’s mobile-friendly.
It’s also smart to re-test codes periodically. Platforms like Bitly make it easier by allowing you to update QR Codes and short links in real time. This means you can refresh content or fix issues without needing to reprint marketing materials or change displays, saving time and resources.
Track analytics across clicks and scans
Using QR Codes or short links for contactless services doesn’t just improve convenience—it also gives you access to valuable insights into guest behavior.
With Bitly’s QR Codes and short links, you can track:
- When and how often QR Codes are scanned: This helps you pinpoint the most effective placements and identify areas for improvement. It might even flag issues—if guests repeatedly scan a Wi-Fi code, it could indicate scanning or link problems.
- Performance across locations: By analyzing data from different venues, you can see how engagement varies and tailor strategies accordingly.
- Device preferences: If most of your guests use iPhones, for example, you can optimize your website and apps for Apple users to enhance the experience.
Bitly Analytics provides fine-grained but anonymized data, ensuring guest privacy while empowering you to make data-driven decisions. We prioritize trust and safety at Bitly, so you can be confident your links and data meet the highest standards of cybersecurity and compliance.
Overcome some of the biggest challenges in hospitality with Bitly
Businesses in the hospitality sector are under pressure to cut costs, modernize operations, and deliver outstanding customer experiences. Tools like QR Codes and short links offer a practical way to improve processes and elevate guest interactions without overspending.
QR Codes give guests quick, contactless access to services, information, and exclusive perks while also simplifying back-end tasks. At the same time, these tools provide actionable insights into guest behavior, allowing you to fine-tune your offerings and improve satisfaction.
As a leading platform for creating QR Codes and short links, Bitly offers secure, customizable solutions tailored to your brand. With detailed analytics and real-time updates, Bitly helps you continuously optimize guest experiences and streamline operations.
Sign up for Bitly today to start transforming how you connect with your customers!
