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Moms Kidding Around Means Serious Business
Extended stay hotels are tapping into the family travel market while differentiating themselves. Here's their secret.
Friday, July 13, 2012
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Numerous actors have, on stage, the silver or small screen, really brought their characters to life. Problem is, for guys like Ted Lange (the actor who portrayed Isaac in "The Love Boat"), his recognition quotient- stellar talents and accomplishments aside- is predicated on that early role. Hear Lange's name and simply think Isaac; that connection is hard to shake.
Many hotels suffer a similar image problem. That hotel you check into for three nights each week when consulting with clients isn't exactly where you'd send your wife with the kids when she's planning a visit to Grandma and Grandpa. But maybe it should be.
Marriott's Residence Inn thought so. The revelation that the extended stay offerings are also a great fit for other travelers’ needs is why the business travel brand leader has been making huge strides in the family market. This recently executed strategy behind targeting the leisure market (including a powerful community of moms across the US) has resulted in consistently high occupancy for their brand, all week long.
At the heart of it is a partnership with Macaroni Kid; an online resource for moms and families which reaches thousands of families around the country and focuses touching on issues, ideas and activities that matter; including leisure travel (www.macaronikid.com).
Diane Mayer, VP and Global Brand Manager, explains the brand's focus and how reaching this alternate market works so well, "Residence Inn has a very strong value prop for different types of customer. Primary is the extended stay guest– that’s who we’re first and foremost designing for. While it’s a minority of people generating a ton of room nights, the things they like happen to be valuable to other people as well. Our hotel may not be a destination but a stop along the way. It’s a great respite for that sort of travel. It’s comfortable, it’s relaxing, and it feels like home. After a long day in the car, particularly with kids, it’s a great thing to have.”
She continues, “Features and benefits that are most desired by families best fit to what we already offer." Focus group research backs that up, with feedback indicating, “What Residence Inn by Marriott offers is a feeling that ‘all these things help me have a really good family trip’.”
It’s those benefits like more spacious rooms, free breakfast, full sized refrigerators and more that appeal. Mayer notes, "We took a look at demand trends in the industry and saw how much leisure travel is growing. For the leisure traveler there’s a lot of newness for what our value proposition is. Family leisure travelers are value conscious. They have more mouths to feed. The same spaciousness a business traveler enjoys means more room to accommodate more people in a suite. Our rooms are not just a box with a bed. There’s more to it and it’s going to be more comfortable. We have more than just studio suites, we also have one and two bedroom suites which offer a real wall with a real door and two televisions. In the suite there’s a full kitchen. And there is some benefit to having a fridge bigger than dorm sized; a pizza box can fit, Mom & Dad can store their wine standing up, there’s room to keep juice boxes for that kid who needs to be fed whenever. Having a kitchen - it all makes life easier for moms on the road."
Joyce Schulman, Chief Macaroni Mom and Founder of Macaroni Kids, embraces a hotel that makes travel less stressful. She says, “Travel is difficult and wherever you can fix those pain points it’s great. For 80.4% of our readers cost is the determinant factor on selecting a hotel. Residence Inn is ahead of the game because they’re starting with a room that offers just physically more space and more usable space. It’s hard to put 4 people in a standard hotel room. In the several Residence Inns that I’ve stayed in there’s drawers which is important because when traveling with kids you’ve got so much gear. Also, kids of all ages have needs; if you’re traveling with a baby on formula there’s nothing like having a kitchenette. Kids wake up hungry and cranky and need to be fed. Having that convenience is a better alternative than taking them out to breakfast or a typical buffet for $14 (or more) and all they eat is a half bowl of cereal.”
Residence Inn understands that making traveling moms and families happy doesn’t simply begin or end at breakfast. Of course the swimming pool on property to be utilized as an end of day activity that lets kids burn off steam is a fantastic amenity, but there’s more. Carol Cain, founder and publisher of the family-friendly travel and food site, NYCityMama.com and Residence Inn’s 2012 Resident Mom of the Year, remarks, “Often times those catering to traveling families tend to provide many things but fail in considering that in addition to space, amenities and accessibility we also want to experience sophistication and quality service in our hotel stays.”
Mayer points out that Residence Inns’ staff is uniquely qualified to provide the level of service Cain and her fellow family travelers deserve. They recognize that when a family arrives and walks through the door its wise just assume they’ve had a hard day. She comments, “We have wonderful staff at our hotels; their service scores are amongst the highest of all the brands, and that has to go with how we’ve trained our associates. They are used to serving and extended stay customer who they get to know so it’s part of their normal part of pattern of behavior to want to get to know the guest. They want to do little things to help the kids have a good time.”
Cain and her family has put the Residence Inn staff to the test on more than one occasion and not found them lacking. She remarks, “During my travels throughout the country with my family of five, Residence Inn has never failed in providing us with not only the comfort we crave but also the level of service that we seek in complimenting our travel experiences. They provide great value with their free breakfast, spacious rooms and kitchen and laundry amenities but never water down the element of sophistication we deserve as travelers, big or small. To be considered on so many levels is what brings many families such as mine back and contributes to the promotion of family travel.”
Schulman concurs, “Marriott and Residence Inn are committed to their guest experience. When we surveyed our readers and asked, ‘What’s your favorite hotel chain when traveling with kids?’ the first brand mentioned was Marriott.
She concludes, “It heartens me to see a property like Residence Inn recognizing the value of family travel. It was a brand built on making life easier for business traveler ; and then someone smart woke up and realized those needs are good for family travel too.”
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