All we travellers ask is an escape from the ordinary. We want excellent amenities and quality, friendly service. Here are five quick ideas for hotels can serve us better in the Age of Now:
- Check your health online: Most travel bookings are made online and decisions of where to go and who to stay with are made after scrutinizing pages of online reviews. First impressions count. It used to start at the check-in desk but now it happens much earlier in the process. Even at the point of booking there are ways of providing a unique experience. Escape Flight allows users to book travel based on cost, weather and distance.
- Go viral: Any hotel should be prepared to have its inner workings exposed from the moment a guest checks in. Have stuff that people want to take photos of. Give them experiences that they will want to share on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. This is word-of-mouth marketing at its best.
- Have personalities: “Boring” is the death knell for any brand. If there is one thing that travellers are looking for, it’s personality. Why make all the hotels the same just because they share the same name?
- Reflect shared values: People are more likely to make purchase decisions based on how a brand reflects their social values – even if it means spending more money. What’s important is to know who your guests are and focus on delivering to them instead of trying to play host to a mass market (which always ends up in a lot of beige).
- Make sure the basics are covered: It’s not enough to have a clean room and a nice bed. The basics nowadays include smart design, cool art, locally produced food and toiletries, places to socialise and chill out, free Wi-Fi – and towels that are not the size of a bathmat.
