Think about the last time you had an excellent experience staying at a hotel. What made the experience so memorable? Perhaps it was the friendly front desk staff who went out of their way to accommodate you, or maybe it was more about the amenities offered during your stay. Regardless, the truth remains that a guest’s experience can make all the difference in whether they’ll return or stay elsewhere — as well as whether they’ll recommend the hotel to friends and family.
With a better understanding of why the guest experience matters so much in the hospitality business and the proactive measures you can take to elevate the experience at your own establishment, you could set your hotel up for long-term success and growth.
What Is Guest Experience?
In simplest terms, guest experience can be defined as “the individual perception and interpretation of the environment (Pijls et al 2011).” Of course, if you’ve ever stayed at a hotel before, you know that things are a bit more nuanced. Your experience may refer to your overall impression of the hotel based on your own stay — with various factors potentially impacting the experience, such as:
- The booking process
- Check-in and check-out
- Cleanliness and quality of the room
- Availability of amenities
- Interactions with staff
Why Is Guest Experience Important?
Guest experience is crucial in every imaginable industry, but arguably, it is especially essential in hospitality for a number of reasons.
Build Guest Loyalty
For one, consider the highly competitive nature of the hospitality industry — namely in the area of hotel and resort management. When guests have a positive experience at a hotel, this can foster repeat visits and long-term brand loyalty. Even a single negative experience, on the other hand, can have the complete opposite effect.
Gain a Competitive Edge
Offering an exceptional guest experience time and time again is how hotels can set themselves apart in a saturated industry. By being known for excellent experiences, it is possible to gain a critical competitive edge that can become an integral part of the brand image.
11 Ways to Enhance the Hotel Guest Experience
Now that we’ve established why the guest experience is critical, dive into some practical strategies hospitality managers can implement to enhance the hotel guest experience.
Personalized Guest Services
Today’s consumers tend to feel most appreciated when they are offered some level of personalized service. When staying at a hotel, this could be something as simple as allowing guests to choose their own room. Likewise, leaving a hand-written note from housekeeping can make all the difference in making guests feel welcome and valued. Some additional options for personalized guest services may include offering different pillow choices, customized menu items, and acknowledgment of special occasions (like anniversaries or birthdays).
Offer a Seamless Booking Experience
If you can’t remember the last time you reviewed your hotel’s booking process, then it may be time to revisit the booking experience and look for practical ways to improve — particularly if guests have expressed frustration with booking in the past.
Specifically, review both your online and offline booking options while exploring ways to make the process more intuitive and streamlined. Consider, for instance, using mobile apps and expanding your payment options to make the experience better for guests.
Invest in Quality Customer Service
Hotel guests often interact not just with front desk staff but also with other staff members (including housekeeping) throughout their stay. Thus, it’s essential that every member of your team is trained to provide friendly, responsive, and knowledgeable customer service to guests at all times — and that they know who to seek out if they need additional help answering a guest’s question or addressing a concern.
Enhance Room Comfort and Amenities
A comfortable and inviting room with excellent amenities can leave a lasting impression when it comes to the guest experience, so make sure your hotel is putting its best foot forward by offering comfortable beds, quality toiletries, and other thoughtful amenities that can elevate a guest’s stay. If it’s been a while since your rooms were last updated, modernizing the room designs can also have a major impact on the guest experience.
Provide Memorable Dining Options
If your hotel offers on-site dining options, don’t overlook these as an opportunity to wow your guests. Through unique and high-quality dining experiences, you can keep guests coming back for more. Some potential ways to differentiate your on-site dining include:
- Offering a locally inspired menu.
- Purchasing fresh and high-quality ingredients.
- Providing hotel guests with exclusive dining events.
Create Engaging On-Site Experiences
The more time you can get your guests to spend at the hotel, the more opportunities you’ll have to curate a positive experience that stays with them long after they check out. One practical way to do this is to offer engaging on-site activities and entertainment at your hotel, such as spas and guided tours, which can add significant value to a guest’s stay while encouraging them to spend more time on your property.
Leverage Technology for Convenience
These days, all kinds of apps and other technologies are available that your hotel can implement to make stays more enjoyable and convenient for your guests. For instance, consider implementing a mobile check-in service that saves guests the hassle of stopping at the front desk when they arrive. Some hotels also offer tech in the form of apps with built-in room keys and smart room controls that can streamline and enhance the guest experience in a memorable way.
Maintain a Consistent Brand Experience
Another factor to keep in mind when creating a plan to improve your guest experience is consistency in your overall brand experience. This is one of the more complex feats to accomplish because it requires staff to really sit down and define their brand’s values and goals in regard to the guest experience.
Once you define your branding goals, though, you can work to ensure that every guest has a consistent brand experience throughout all interactions. This, in turn, can build trust and recognition in your brand over time.
Focus on Sustainability
Today’s consumers are more concerned with eco-friendliness and sustainability efforts than ever before — and even their hospitality choices can reflect this. Now is an optimal time, then, for hotels to explore options to adopt more sustainable practices at their facilities. You might consider implementing new policies to reduce waste while offering sustainable amenities to guests, for example. Likewise, going out of your way to support other sustainable and local businesses can go a long way in improving your guests’ perception of your brand — especially for environmentally conscious travelers.
Reward Guest Loyalty
If your hotel doesn’t already offer some kind of guest loyalty program, now may be a good time to consider implementing one. Ideally, loyalty programs should be free to the guest and offer notable perks or other special offers that encourage repeat bookings. These programs can be an excellent way to show your brand’s appreciation for repeat customers while giving them a reason to come back continually.
Not sure where to begin when setting up a hotel loyalty program? Start by defining what loyalty will look like from your guests. Will you be rewarding repeat bookings or higher spending? What about referrals? From there, you can create a system with specific rewards for guests who reach different levels of loyalty. Perks could include anything from early check-in times to free room upgrades (when available) and complimentary meals.
Partner With Local Businesses
Additionally, your hotel may be able to improve brand loyalty and the customer experience by collaborating with local businesses. This can be a great way to offer unique experiences that guests cannot get elsewhere while demonstrating your commitment to them. Some examples of ways you could partner with local businesses to enhance the guest experience include:
- Offering discounted tours of your city.
- Providing customized restaurant recommendations and special deals for hotel guests.
- Offering guests access to special cultural events or other happenings in your city.
Partnering with local businesses, you can also have a better opportunity to expand your word-of-mouth advertising.
Learn More in a Hospitality Management Program at JWU
There’s no overstating the importance of the guest experience in today’s competitive hospitality industry. By working to implement some or all of the above measures in your own hospitality management role, you could elevate your guest experience and reap the benefits of a sharper competitive edge.
Ready to learn more about creating memorable and positive experiences for guests? Explore the potential of earning your Bachelor of Science in Hospitality Management from Johnson & Wales University. In this online, career-focused program, you can explore the fundamental skills and knowledge needed to take your hospitality career to the next level while completing your degree at your own pace. Plus, our hospitality management program offers numerous specializations from which to choose, so you can find your niche. These include hotel and resort management, food and beverage management, and sustainable tourism.
For more information about completing your degree online, complete the Request Info form, call 855-JWU-1881, or email [email protected]. Ready to take the next step? Fill out your online application for admission today.