One of the common cliches in business is that you must “listen to your customers”. Listening is a good start, but to truly excel as a hotelier you must become your customers.
How do you become a customer? Simple – go through the entire travel planning, booking, and experience cycle in the same way a customers would do it.
Have fun with this. Pretend to be a “mystery shopper” which is a role that many big hotel chains employ. These people travel from hotel to hotel rating each property on how it adheres to brand standards. In your case, rate your hotel and your competitors on who does the best job servicing guests.
Here are some things you can do:
1. Search for a hotel in your neighborhood using Google. How often does your hotel appear on the first few screens? Are you above or below your competitors? If you are advertising on the search engine, is your ad current and is the advertised offer available?
2. Look at each hotel’s web site. Scrutinize your web site and those of your competitors. How does each property look on the site vs in real life? Which hotels do a better job of highlighting local events and attractions? Which hotels make it easy to book a room? Can you find a reservation phone number?
3. Book a room both online and by phone for each hotel in your competitive set. How long does it take? Are you prompted to buy a larger room and add-ons? Are the phone agents courteous and professional? Can they answer detailed questions about the property and neighborhood?
4. Stay overnight in each hotel at least once per year. Show up for your reservation very early or very late. How does the front desk react? If you room is not ready, do they suggest a nearby activity or comfortable place to wait? I once showed up exhausted at a hotel in London after an overnight flight, and although my room wasn’t ready the hotel had showers and a lounge open specifically for international travelers.
5. Sit in the lobby of each hotel for 2 hours. What do you notice about the atmosphere and energy of the place? I stayed in a small hotel recently where the bellhop was chatting with the front desk clerk every time I came into the lobby. This was extremely off putting.
6. Use each hotel’s services and rate their performance. Note how comfortable and quiet each room is. Are there any inconveniences at competitor hotels that you can use to your advantage? I was at a luxury hotel recently where the bathroom faucets were so close to the wall I couldn’t turn them. A small issue but annoying enough that I will remember it next time I’m in that city.
7. Note any offers each hotel makes during your stay. A hotel I used in NY recently did not have its own fitness center – but the front desk clerk offered free access to a great neighborhood gym. I took advantage of this and checked out with a great feeling about my stay.
8. Look for post-stay follow ups. Does the hotel send you a feedback form a couple of days after you leave? Big travel web sites all do this now, but hotels should also solicit direct guest feedback themselves. Submit some comments. Does the hotel respond? I’ve answered dozens of post-stay surveys but only a few times have hotels sent a specific response to my note.
After you do this I guarantee you will gain a new appreciation for how your customers feel about you. It will be much harder to come up with excuses for ignoring customer feedback. Become your customers and increase both guest loyalty and hotel profits!
Wow, such common sense advice. If only they would do it. I am shocked at the complacency at many of the hotels I visit. A few weeks ago I went to a hotel desperate for corporate business. The reviews on TripAdvisor were full of complaints about the lighting. I visited and thought it was WAY too dark in the room for my taste. I noticed that there was power lines in the ceiling and I asked if they had considered installing a bright, hip overhead light in the rooms to address the poor lighting complaints.
“Huh? Oh I don’t know… that would be expensive!”
I said that it would probably cost less than one marketing campaign. And it would certainly look great to say that you listened to your customers and added lighting to the room.
Brilliant advice, Scott. Be a customer! The only thing I would add is to strive to be a customer in the demographic you target. Corporate? Take your laptop and try to do some work. Leisure? Take a shower and get ready at the hotel and go out. Cheapo leisure? Bring 5 kids and bags of food. Just kidding on that last one… unless you are in FL
It might seem biased coming from me as Scott’s colleague, but this is an awesome post. And it IS self-promotion for me to say this, but we are our own customers as we take responsibility for their online marketing and revenue generation through the channels we power – their website and call center. And we only get paid if we do well.
Hi Gautam, that’s a great list. I have just posted it on my Linkedin group – http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=1987272
keep it coming!
Excellent post Scott ! There no doubt that the best advices are the ones full of “common sense” like Laura said. These are all quick win solutions and ideas, which s what the hotel industry really needs. The fact is we need to help them to crawl before they can be able to Walk (never mind running).
The world of tourism is changing, as it is become an industry more and more in need of professionals and marketeers; that is a big shift from a generally operational intensive type of managment, to a fundamentally marketing dependent activity… and not marketing itself as been turned upside down after this web 2.0 pill !
So, great times to be alive and alert.
I would love to be able publish your post in my own blog. Let me know if that’s ok with you.
Cheers,
I love this. It’s all too easy to become distanced from the product or service that we are pushing, and this provides a reality check. As a hotel marketer/technologist, i’ve seen the value of doing this in my clients’ properties, it’s extremely educational!