The trend toward consumer relationship marketing is in all industries. The first step in building a relationship with the customer is understanding what he wants. In the hospitality industry the company’s relationship with the customer is one of the key ways to retain their business. A new way one hotel is trying to differentiate themselves from other companies and increase their relationship with the consumer is recognizing body language. The Affinia hotel, a posh boutique chain in NY, DC, and Chicago, is training all of their employees on recognizing body language. John Moser, chief brand and marketing officer for Affinia, said employees were taught to mirror a guest's volume and rhythm of speech to put him at ease.
Chris Holdren, Senior Vice President of Starwood Preferred Guest says the company’s goal is to “provide everything a guest needs to select and book their best hotel experience.” The company decided the best way to do this is through their own website. Now customers can post directly on the site both positive and negative about their stay at a Starwood Hotel. There are many site that allow consumers to write reviews about the hotels they stayed at, but they are not the official website for the hotel. This is one way Starwood separates themselves from the competition. They are “one of the first major hotel companies to invite guests to contribute ratings and reviews directly on its hotel websites.”
I found the topic of body langage to be very innovative. For a relatively small hotel chain, considering Affinia is only located in three major cities, this is a very clever way to differentiate themselves form the competition. Hospitality is all about a pleasurable experience between the employees and guests. Body language is a second language that most people do not acknowledge but are very receptive to. Affinia has capitalized on this fact in an attempted to stay competitive.
ReplyDelete-Laura Iaffaldano
I had the same thought as Laura when I read this post; this is a great way for an emerging company to differentiate itself from its competition. Although there are so many generic hotel chains prominent across the country, there are still customers who recognize good customer service when they see it. This is especially important for newer companies that still need to increase their clientele.
ReplyDelete-Bryan Brodek
I also agree with Bryan and Laura in the fact that hotels are trying to be creative by introducing new ways for building costumer relationship which bring more gains for the firm in terms of better brand recognition and brand loyalty. A new strategy is being implemented here in order to reduce the risks of failure due to intense competition in global markets. Body language would definitely improve communication which is one mean of better service provision.
ReplyDelete-Lila Al-Refai