ABSTRACT
In times of economic downturn, venues often find themselves facing strong competition for fewer events. In these situations it is those properties that ‘put themselves in their clients’ shoes that win the business’. This is not simply a question of providing discounted rates. Clients want, more than anything, to see their suppliers delivering services to the promised standards. Some practical examples of the outworking of such a client-
focused approach are given later in this chapter as seen through the eyes of several venues. Many venues are also investing heavily in their physical ‘product’ (bedrooms, meeting rooms, technology, for example) to give them a competitive edge and to underline their customer orientation. One practical example of this is Le Meridien’s Cumberland Hotel in central London, launching its first 60 ‘Art & Tech’ rooms as part of a £72 million refit and described in an article entitled ‘Bed and Broadband’ in Business Travel World magazine (June 2002). The ‘Art & Tech’ rooms aim to capitalise on two emerging trends for the hotel world in the 21st century: boutique-style design and the use of high technology to enhance the guest experience. The new rooms have 42-inch plasma televisions providing interactive services including fast internet connections and movies on demand; safes large enough to take laptops as well as provide battery recharging connections, and electronically-controlled beds to elevate guests’ legs and torsos. In the article John Ryan, Le Meridien’s senior vice president of worldwide sales, explained their philosophy as follows:
Over the past 15 years hotels have tended to invest in technology that was primarily geared to hotel operations rather than guests, such as electric door locks, computerised operations and yield management systems. In the 21st century we need to turn this around and focus on what the customer wants from new technology, especially as the hotel guests of today already have modern
technology in their homes and offices. We need to look, therefore, at such things as better entertainment services and improved communication tools.
