The idea of offering technologies and guest services that support hotel brands is coming to life. This is especially true if your brand is grounded in rock n’ roll.
The Hard Rock Hotel chain recently announced the launch of a new service called the “Sound of your Stay,” which aims to bring unique musical experiences to guests.
From offering a curated downloadable track list to allowing guests to borrow a Fender guitar and amp for their rooms, the brand is providing a new way for travelers to tie music into their stays. Guests also have the option to check out an iPad and Traktor Kontrol, complete with headphones and video DJ lessons to learn how to mix like a professional DJ in their rooms.
On the surface – especially for music lovers – this seems very innovative and it reinforces the strength of the brand. However, it could be further strengthened if the brand can even more personalize the experience, especially with the downloadable track lists. It is not clear just how curated these lists are … and in a world where everyone has Spotify or Pandora on their mobile devices, will guests actually listen to the track lists?
In terms of having an electric guitar in your room, how much will guests actually use them? For the amateur musician, this will be a nice activity. Although, most guests go to destinations to experience the cities and landscapes outside of the properties. In other words, people are more into investing in experiences, rather than things.
This is a laudable PR campaign that will certainly capture the attention of the media and guests. However, there should be a strategy that ties all of this back to more personalization and enhanced sales conversion. Will this be enough to lead to long-term brand loyalty?
It’s all too easy to focus on the marketing around hotel technologies. New publicity efforts are only effective if they promote technologies that both please the guest and enhance revenue – which is no small challenge.