by David Trice
Consider this from Allen Smith, CEO and President of Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts: “Our feedback from our guests is that they’re far less concerned about accumulating points to be redeemed for rewards as they are being in a position where they’re recognized, and we understand their preferences and can serve them in that highly personalized way they’ve come to expect.” What Smith is talking about is the evolution of guest expectations about loyalty programs for the hospitality industry. The days of guests being loyal because of the accrual of points for a free night’s stay are over. Today, guests want their loyalty rewarded with personalization: Know who they are, what they like, and why they are there. Anything short of this is just a discount and will do little to build brand loyalty.
No doubt every hotel and resort would love to offer a completely unique and individual experience to every guest, one where the guest is greeted personally at every touchpoint, is recognized immediately upon entering the property, and offered access to services that are in alignment with his or her preferences. Reservations to a favorite restaurant? Done. Tickets to the best show? Of course. Desired room location within the property? Yep. All taken care of before the guest even arrives. This may sound like every hotel and resort operator’s dream, but the truth is, it’s more attainable than one might think.
So the question becomes: How can a hospitality company truly get to know each and every guest so it is in the best position to offer a level of personalization which will engender strong brand loyalty? The answer is to learn about each guest at every touchpoint, no matter how they are interacting with the brand, whether it is over the phone, via the company website, in person, or over email.
Guest Lifecycle
Each guest’s journey, or “Guest Lifecycle,” is made up of each and every touchpoint a guest has with a brand or property. A customer-centered CRM can map a guest’s lifecycle through tools like cookies and beacons, and even by interaction with company personnel. For example, when a guest walks into a hotel, a beacon can latch onto the customer’s smartphone, alerting the front desk that she has arrived to check in. By recognizing and understanding behavior at each lifecycle stage, a company can begin to put together a detailed profile of each guest. This lifecycle provides brands the data needed to create the right metrics for determining how well they are doing in meeting the guests’ needs.
Customer Sentiment
The next step is to measure the guest’s affinity for each visit along the journey. What is the relevance of each interaction in the eyes of a guest? Did he or she like the outcome of the event? Did the interaction have an emotional impact that pushed them towards or away from the brand? It’s important to rank important reactions from guests at various touchpoints throughout the journey. The methodology for capturing these ratings should be a part of the brand and may encompass techniques such as “likes,” star rating, mini surveys, through the company employee, and even may be algorithmically derived. The ability to capture and evaluate sentiment on every event lets a brand or property see how its relationship with a guest is trending over time.
Guest Value Index
The lifecycle framework provides the infrastructure to create a single metric called the Guest Value Index (GVi). This index measures the impact of guest experience on performance across every dimension of the brand, and it unites the company or property around one common objective: maximizing guest experience. The GVi provides the ability to understand and recognize how guest experience investments are truly impacting financial performance. The key elements of the GVi that provide visibility into guest relationships include:
Frequency – How regularly does the guest interact with the brand across multiple touchpoints? This score will be calculated based on the number of events by the guest versus how often and with what degree of regularity does the guest engage with the brand.
Feelings – How much does the guest like the brand? The Affinity Score will be sourced from capturing the voice of the guest on every event and tracked as a trend over time.
Value – What is the level of the guest in the eyes of the company? VIP? Business traveler? Occasional visitor? The purchase score will reveal the frequency and depth of the financial relationship with the guest.
The intersection of these scores will empirically define the relationship with each guest at any given point in time. The beauty of a guest value index is that it focuses hospitality companies on enhancing guest experience, rather than the sales cycle, allowing businesses or properties to see whether the level of engagement has an influence on stays — and whether guest affinity drives engagement frequency. Most importantly, the index ultimately lets hospitality companies understand how customer experience is driving financial performance. From market penetration to revenue generation, every hospitality property exists to maximize operating profits, and delivering on guest loyalty is the key to solving this puzzle.
