How important are women guests?
Some consider women to be the most important guests. Arguably, they could be right. Go on, ask yourself who is actually reserving the rooms at your hotel? When travelling on business or with the family, who decides on the hotel? Is it not mostly the women…or am I wrong?
At this very moment, in some part of the world, there is a secretary, who is either making a hotel reservation for her boss or booking rooms for corporate visitors arriving from overseas. It is usually the women who decide where we stay. This is apart from the army of female executives who globe trot the world on business visits nowadays and make their own decisions.
So, why aren’t hotels paying sufficient attention towards the hardest person to satisfy? Sure, most hotels set aside one day in the year, to felicitate secretaries to a meal - in recognition of their support in booking rooms, etc. But, is that doing enough? What about the wives and girl friends, who, even if it is the man who makes the booking, are the ones who log on to TripAdvisor and ultimately decide where they want to stay?
Take hotel marketing. Why don’t hotels orient their website a little more towards the fairer sex? Why not provide a bit more information which women might find interesting. Like for instance, make up mirrors, in- room hairdressing or spa services... to name but a few of a list of things to do in your hotel that cater to women. Incidentally, who is responsible for the growing demand of Spas?
In nine out of ten couples, it will usually be the man who will come to the front desk to complain – or at least that was how it was before the onslaught of social media. Even then, if you probe a bit, you will discover that the origin of the complaint is usually coming from feminine quarters. Either the room does not have a full-length mirror, or if it did, the lighting was woefully inadequate. Maybe the desk in the room that was to double up for make-up is too high? Perhaps the pillows were soft and sagging or the beds are uncomfortable? This is where the sins of cutting corners when investing in the room build surface. So, be prepared to grapple with such problems and more.
As for attention to details; women are the ones who will immediately notice the watermark on the lampshade, the missing page in the in-room dining menu and the torn cushion cover. So, housekeeping will need to be on their toes all the time…and that’s a good thing, as it will raise your overall quality and upkeep.
In the mid- 1980’s, as more female executives began to travel the world, hotels tried to capture this exciting new market in various ways. Special floors and guestrooms dedicated to women guests, designated areas in the restaurant for women diners and special amenities to lure this emerging niche segment.
As to whether this differentiation made a big difference – one really cannot say with certainty. Many conclude that women did not want to be treated any differently than male travellers. What they really cared for was that the hotel they choose to stay was safe, clean, and comfortable and treated every guest, male or female, properly. Isn’t that the prerogative of every guest?
Shafeek Wahab – Editor, ‘Hospitality Sri Lanka’, Consultant, Trainer, Ex- Hotelier
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