Three Customer Experience Recommendations for Your Tourism Accommodation

It is hard running a tourism business and dealing with the day-to-day running and operation.  Every month brings changes and challenges.  This is also the case with customer expectations.  So, in this blog, I thought it would be helpful to talk about three customer expectations and how you can easily accommodate them in your business.

1. Sustainability

Research shows that customers will pay more for a business that is genuinely doing its best to be green. A recent report from accountants PWC said that consumers will pay a premium of 5% or more.

However, it has to be genuine, and people see through “Greenwashing”.  Big brands that have fallen foul of this include Volkswagen, which has had its emissions scandal.  Even Ikea fell foul when they built a store in London that would last a lifetime.  Their previous store was also meant to last a lifetime, but they knocked it down to create this new lifetime store.

This is when small businesses can come to the fore, letting your customers know what you are doing to contribute to the environment and how they can help you.  So,

  • Have a green policy. You can sign up for paid schemes but don’t need to; many examples are online. It is essential to have one, but most importantly, carry it out and communicate what you are doing.
  • Communicate your efforts in your marketing communications, particularly on your website, e-newsletters, and social media communications. When customers are looking for a business to choose from, they choose you because they can see you are genuinely doing your part and can do so when they visit.
  • Walk the walk. When customers visit, they can see clearly what your recycling policy is and what bins to use (each council has a different policy, which can be confusing). Let them know what you have achieved, and thank them for their effort.

    Eildons in Spring – Andrew Drane

2. Live like a local

Customers have always sought a genuine local experience, but Covid changed customers’ perceptions.  They no longer wanted to do the same thing as everyone else or have the same experience worldwide, eating the same food and buying souvenirs.  They want to try local food and drink and meet the people who make them.  Eat in local restaurants and find out why the locals love them.  Buy from local artists and crafters.  Go for a not well-known walk but where you can see the best of nature and wildlife.  Swim where the locals swim.

So:

  • Think about your local area and the best local food and drink. The butchers, where the locals go, or the bakery, which is out of the way but amazing.  Cycle routes on quiet roads.  Walks not so often walked by visitors.  The best shops for genuine local products.  Please write it down.  Contact these locals and ask if you can have links to their websites or social media pages.
  • Then make sure that your marketing communications reflect this. As great as your accommodation is, people visit for the whole experience, not just the accommodation.  So tell the story of what they can experience and why they should visit.

3. Workcations

Since Covid, people have had more flexibility in the way they work.  They can work from home, the office, or a hybrid.  This has resulted in the rise of workcations.  These are when someone may extend their holiday by an additional week and work the final week.  They can visit but work during the day, enjoy a new view in their downtime, and get to know a new area.  It is a perfect way of encouraging people to visit out of the primary season.  As someone who has enjoyed a few workcations, my key pointers are:

Do you have spaces where people can work from? I have worked at a kitchen table while my partner works from the dining room table. The important thing is that there is space to work and have phone and online meetings. Don’t worry if you don’t. Many places have offices where you can work remotely, so make sure you have all the information about those on your website.

Good Wi-Fi is essential, as the person working remotely needs to hold online sessions and be available on their laptops and mobile devices. Again, if you don’t, this is when remote offices can come into their own.

Communicate to your customer base and potential customers. Show them that you can make it easy for them to have a workcation and how they can work effectively and enjoy their downtime.

Sustainability, experiencing life like a local, and the ability to work while in a new area are just three current trends that you can use to encourage customers to visit.

Eildons in Winter – Andrew Drane

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