REPORT FROM THE U.S.—Roger Bloss was in Las Vegas recently staying at a downtown hotel on business. Each day, the hotel delivered to his pillow three pieces of chocolate.
By the fourth night, there were a dozen pieces of chocolate piling up on his nightstand.
“If the (hotel) had any idea how little my perception of their hotel was affected by the chocolate, I’m guessing there wouldn’t be chocolate on my pillow the next day,” Bloss, president and CEO of Vantage Hospitality, said.
Deciding what should be given to guests for free can be a tough call. Deciding what should be comped when hotels are still trying to pull out of a steep downturn makes that decision even more complex.
“You have to really be in tune” with guests, said Peter Strebel, area managing director for the Omni Berkshire Place in New York.
Guest demands
- room upgrades;
- free Wi-Fi and associated “tech” offerings;
- a gym; and
- free breakfast (for midscale properties).
Meantime, a 2010 report from J.D. Power and Associates found the top five amenities sought by guests are:
- wireless Internet access;
- complimentary breakfast;
- bedding and pillow choices;
- pillow-top mattresses; and
- free parking.
Many hotels, though, go above and beyond these offerings. Omni Hotels & Resorts, for example, provides a backpack stuffed with games to the families with children who stay at the property. Meanwhile, Apple Core Hotels has 24-hour cappuccino available in the lobby.
Exceeding guest expectations is one thing, but hotels need to be careful. Once guests are accustomed to getting something for free, it can be really tough for hotels to take it back, said C.A. Anderson, president and COO of The Dow Hotel Company.
Doing so could lead to negative guest satisfaction scores, he continued.
Vijay Dandapani, president of Apple Core, has a simple solution to that quandary.
“Focus on items that don’t add (greatly) to your expense,” he said. “We’re not giving away Tiffany (& Company) rings here.”
Conversely, he added: “Make sure your freebies have value, that they’re not just cheap.” At Apple Core, that includes free domestic calling and the use of cordless phones.
Bloss added: “Don’t cut back during the rough times or over-extend during the good times.”
ROI for the taking
Hoteliers declined to identify specifuically how these guest freebies affect the expense line item in budgets. Sources, however, did say it can be tricky getting owners and franchisees on board with free offerings during this period of economic uncertainty, despite the promise of return on investment.
AmericInn, for example, mandates that franchisees provide a dedicated “breakfast attendant” to oversee breakfast operations in its hotels.
In the midscale space, breakfast is a driver of guest satisfaction, said Nasir Raja, AmericInn’s senior VP of operations.
“There is a ROI on breakfast,” the company tells its franchisees, Raja said, adding, “Guests are looking for high-quality breakfast and if you don’t have it, you will lose market share.”
Omni’s Strebel is well aware of what freebies mean in the mind of guests. He receives three to five handwritten letters each week from customers who were impressed by Omni’s offerings.
“We believe … the more you do to entice and turn the guests into raving fans, the better off you do,” he said.