The hotel industry is extremely competitive. What used to work to keep customers loyal to a hotel is no longer effective. Customers expect more. As Jonathan Tisch, former CEO of Loews Hotels (2007) stated, “chocolates on the pillow aren’t enough”! So what will make a difference for customers? Customisation based on customer preferences is one way to build customer trust and loyalty. Alternatively, standardization is very significant if the products and services are adapted to the local market’s needs and meet their expectation.This essay examines the advantages and disadvantages of standardization as well as customization in the hospitality industry and the Holiday Inn Hotels, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts in specific. It further
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A person lodging at a Four seasons Hotels for example, knows exactly how comfortable they will be during their stay. It gives them confidence in the particular hotel because they know it through its branding and its standardized services. The major disadvantage of such standardization is that it robs the individual hotels or it other branches of any serious uniqueness in terms of the Four season Hotels gifts and packages. This may not matter for fast food restaurants, but it may be more important in sectors of the hospitality industry like hotels (Ritzer, 2002). Another advantage is that it helps reduce cost by lowering the installation costs, maintenance and large inventories. Also when the company produce the same products and reuse the established marketing, distribution and operating systems. Four Seasons became the first to offer shampoo in the shower, 24-hour room service, cleaning and pressing, a two-line phone in every guest room, bathrobe, well-lighted desk, and 24-hour customer services which was to set a relatively fixed standard of physical and service quality across the entire industry with each city's Four Seasons reflecting the local colour and culture. It also helps to improve performance, communication, the management and design with little customization needed. The disadvantages would be that if a company builds up a …show more content…
It brings about distinctive patronage. E. Doole (1997) states that “Producer enterprises should identify the satisfaction recognized by a consumer that determines him to buy that product. This must be the reason that a product’s element of an enterprise should differ from its competition”. Holiday Inn Hotels modifies their food menu in different countries in order to adapt to local specifics of the consumers (Ritzer, 2004) and in turn this leads to the achievement of global brand. The disadvantage would be as Michael Cox, chief economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas pointed out that "If you don't customize, you're going to lose business in today's marketplace." (Wall Street Journal, April 29, 1999, pp. A1). Customization can help reduce the duplication of items that travellers do not need and remove unnecessary items in the room packages. Another disadvantage would be that customers sometimes have trouble deciding on what they want and then acting on their decisions or communicating. That creates problems for any company aiming to serve those customers. Lastly, customization improves competitiveness within the industry and it brings about and uniqueness that differs one company to the other. This is why the Four seasons hotel is introducing Four Seasons sleep experience and the first fully customizable hotel bed offering travellers the opportunity to choose their own bed and personalize their sleep during their
A person lodging at a Four seasons Hotels for example, knows exactly how comfortable they will be during their stay. It gives them confidence in the particular hotel because they know it through its branding and its standardized services. The major disadvantage of such standardization is that it robs the individual hotels or it other branches of any serious uniqueness in terms of the Four season Hotels gifts and packages. This may not matter for fast food restaurants, but it may be more important in sectors of the hospitality industry like hotels (Ritzer, 2002). Another advantage is that it helps reduce cost by lowering the installation costs, maintenance and large inventories. Also when the company produce the same products and reuse the established marketing, distribution and operating systems. Four Seasons became the first to offer shampoo in the shower, 24-hour room service, cleaning and pressing, a two-line phone in every guest room, bathrobe, well-lighted desk, and 24-hour customer services which was to set a relatively fixed standard of physical and service quality across the entire industry with each city's Four Seasons reflecting the local colour and culture. It also helps to improve performance, communication, the management and design with little customization needed. The disadvantages would be that if a company builds up a …show more content…
It brings about distinctive patronage. E. Doole (1997) states that “Producer enterprises should identify the satisfaction recognized by a consumer that determines him to buy that product. This must be the reason that a product’s element of an enterprise should differ from its competition”. Holiday Inn Hotels modifies their food menu in different countries in order to adapt to local specifics of the consumers (Ritzer, 2004) and in turn this leads to the achievement of global brand. The disadvantage would be as Michael Cox, chief economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas pointed out that "If you don't customize, you're going to lose business in today's marketplace." (Wall Street Journal, April 29, 1999, pp. A1). Customization can help reduce the duplication of items that travellers do not need and remove unnecessary items in the room packages. Another disadvantage would be that customers sometimes have trouble deciding on what they want and then acting on their decisions or communicating. That creates problems for any company aiming to serve those customers. Lastly, customization improves competitiveness within the industry and it brings about and uniqueness that differs one company to the other. This is why the Four seasons hotel is introducing Four Seasons sleep experience and the first fully customizable hotel bed offering travellers the opportunity to choose their own bed and personalize their sleep during their