For 12 years now, J.D. Power and Associates has conducted its North America Hotel Guest Satisfaction Index Study. This year’s study was based on responses gathered between June 2007 and June 2008 from more than 53,000 guests who stayed in a hotel between May 2007 and June 2008. Kudos to those hotel brands that finished first in their respective categories: The Ritz-Carlton, luxury; Embassy Suites Hotels, upscale; Hyatt Place, mid-scale full service; Drury Inn & Suites, mid-scale limited service; Microtel Inns & Suites, economy/budget; and Homewood Suites, extended stay.
This year’s study produced some somewhat negative “green” news for the lodging industry, as well as some good news. First, the good news. According to the study, nearly nine of 10 guests (89 percent) said they prefer a smoke-free hotel environment. That is up from 79 percent in 2006. J.D. Power and Associates’ findings jibe with those of the recent American Hotel & Lodging Educational Foundation and Smith Travel Research 2008 Lodging Survey. That survey showed the percentage of nonsmoking guestrooms in the U.S. lodging industry has increased from 74 percent in 2004 to 86 percent today. For the most part, the lodging industry is keeping pace with the demand for a nonsmoking environment.
Surprisingly, the J.D. Power and Associates survey found that overall guest satisfaction was down from last year to this year—due in part to guests experiencing more maintenance issues (especially in the economy/budget segment). What was most surprising to me, and this is the negative green news I was referring to earlier, is that guest awareness of property-initiated green programs declined in 2008. A total of 57 percent of guests stated that they were aware that their hotel offered green programs, compared with 63 percent in 2007.
How could this be at a time when interest in green lodging is accelerating? Here are my thoughts on why this decline may be occurring.
Why the Awareness Decline?
• This is just a guess but there may be a little reverse psychology at work here. Guests are now more in tune with green issues so they are more critical as well. In the previous year they were less familiar with “green” and gave hotels the benefit of the doubt. Go ahead, tell me I am crazy.
• Hotels that have spent the time greening their operations are not doing a good job getting the word out about their efforts. They are failing in the following areas: front-desk awareness, in-room literature, and website content.
• Hotels are failing to implement the “in your face” types of initiatives such as in-guestroom and in-public-areas recycling. Initiatives such as towel and linen reuse programs have become the norm and are now blending into the background of the guest experience. Hotels are not going the extra mile to make their efforts visible to guests (offering organic wine, Fair Trade coffee, natural amenities, the option to offset one’s stay, etc.). I am not suggesting that hotels need to be “over the top.”
• Due to the rougher economic times the past year, it is possible that many hoteliers are actually delaying investments in green programs—not a wise decision, in my opinion, but this could be happening.
While J.D. Power and Associates’ findings regarding green program awareness are not alarming, they are reason to be concerned. Studies have shown that when guests are given the option to participate in green programs at a property, about 75 percent will do so. If they are not aware that they even have the option to participate, everyone loses. The hotel owner loses the opportunity to save energy and water (dollars), to improve its stature in the community and among its guests, and the environment benefits less.
What do you think?
GLN Welcomes HD Supply Hospitality Solutions as Founding Sponsor
Green Lodging News welcomes HD Supply Hospitality Solutions as a Founding Sponsor. HD Supply is committed to doing business in a manner that is responsible to its associates, customers and the environment. With HD Supply’s new ideallygreen icon, the company has made it easy for its customers to identify environmentally preferable products throughout its catalogs and at www.hdsupplysolutions.com.
Products marked with the ideallygreen icon can increase energy efficiency, help reduce water consumption, create a healthier indoor environment, facilitate waste reduction, and prevent hazardous materials from entering the environment.
HD Supply is one of the lodging industry’s leading single sources for housekeeping and maintenance supplies. Visit www.hdsupplysolutions.com, call (858) 831-2000, or go to customercare@hdsupply.com.
Plan Now for Fall, 2009 Advertising
It is hard to believe that autumn is just a little more than one month away. If you are a supplier selling green products, be sure to call me to discuss your advertising plans for the fall and winter. Thank you to all of those companies that consistently support Green Lodging News.
As always, I can be reached at editor@greenlodgingnews.com.
