If you are hesitant to purchase an environmentally advantageous product for all of your guestrooms, why not test it in just one guestroom? Better yet, place all of the green products you wish to test in that room and ask your guests what they think. That is what the Best Western Philadelphia Airport South at Widener University intends to do in January.
Since the 60-room property opened a year ago, management, with student and staff support from Widener University, have been putting together what they call their Eco-Pro Room (short for Ecological Prototype). It includes items such as a shower gel dispenser, water-saving showerhead and toilet, night-light wall plates, carpet with recycled content, compact fluorescent light bulbs, low-VOC paint, bed spreads made of fabric derived from recycled material, natural latex mattress and natural hemp mattress, and wallpaper that includes recycled content. Items have been donated by vendors including Green Suites International, Design & Supply, Benjamin Moore, Valley Forge Fabrics, Graham Brown, Gilchrist & Soames, and Vivetique.
The hotel, which is managed by Inns of Distinction, has been selling the room over the past year but it is only next month that management will begin to include a survey in the room to gauge guest feedback. According to Bob Warfel, general manager of the hotel, guests will be asked to rate the power of the showerhead, the comfort of the bed spreads, the quality of the amenities, and the comfort of the latex mattress and hemp mattress. Guests will also be asked these questions: “Do you perceive the Eco-Pro Room to be different from a typical hotel room?” “To what degree is it important for you to stay at a hotel that places greater emphasis on saving energy and other natural resources?” “What percentage increase in room rate would you be willing to pay to stay in a hotel room that is eco-friendly, such as the one you are currently in?”
Students to Continue to Participate
The Best Western Philadelphia Airport South at Widener University is certainly not the first property to take this product testing approach and is certainly not the first to ask guests their thoughts about their stay. It is, however, one of the only properties I know of that has put together a green room, a related survey, and included students in the process. (Students in the School of Hospitality Management at Widener University will participate in the analysis of the survey results from the Eco-Pro Room. Jeff Lolli, an instructor at the School of Hospitality Management, will coordinate that effort.)
Once the hotel receives its LEED certification from the U.S. Green Building Council—it is shooting for LEED Silver—it will begin to officially promote its Eco-Pro Room in its marketing collateral. The room is just one of many green stories at the Best Western that is part of a larger mixed-use development called University Crossings. Another example: The owners of the hotel plan to add a solar thermal hot water heating system in the coming year.
If you are skeptical about the effectiveness or value of a product, or how it will be perceived by your guests, why not do what the Best Western Philadelphia Airport South at Widener University is doing? It could save you money in the long run and help you avoid inconveniencing your guests. What are your thoughts?
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