24.10.21
Ready, willing and sustainable
“Zero years to act.”
—Professor Willy Legrand, Professor of Hospitality Management at the IU International University of Applied Sciences, Germany
The price of hotel sustainability: willing-to-stay and willing-to-pay?
posted by Professor Willy Legrand – August 2021
A recently published large-scale survey points out that the vast majority of travellers are keen on staying at hotel properties that engage in sustainability…
(1) Willingness-to-stay (WTS) is important to the extent in which hotels can capitalize on their sustainability endeavours through transparent communication. However, the same travellers seem to have difficulty in finding hotels committed to sustainability or simply are not aware that those hotels even exist.
(2) WTS is a topic discussed by the World Panel on Sustainability in Hospitality earlier this year.
(3) Beyond WTS, hoteliers are particularly interested in the willingness-to-pay (WTP). Findings from academic research are mixed, but recent studies point out that the willingness to pay a price premium to stay in hotels that have implemented sustainability practices is linked to the level of environmental concerns showed by individuals.
(4) Because ultimately, the price guests pay to stay at the property remains a major driver or barrier for travel decisions.
Q: How should the industry communicate the added value of sustainability (rather than added cost) that resonates with guests that espouse similar values?
Q: How should the industry communicate to other segments which do not share the same values?
Q: How do we transform the perception that sustainability measures are simply a cost-reduction strategy rather than valuable and essential practices in this day and age?
Small selection of hospitality industry expert views in response:
“The only way to truly make a change and not add a hefty price tag to the end user’s experience, is by shifting the mindset from cost-driven to self-sustainable lifecycle of all offerings.” —Marloes Knippenberg CEO of Kerten Hospitality
“I’d like to think that the question of whether or not travellers are willing to pay a premium to stay in sustainable hotels may ultimately become irrelevant, and that the question of whether or not travellers will be willing to stay in hotels that are NOT sustainable will become more pertinent.” —Kathryn Murphy, Owner, The Murphy Gallery & Hotel Dublin
“When you buy stuff, you buy something that lasts. But because you buy a lot fewer things, you can actually afford better quality products and you have more money to spend on services: cleaning, gardening, laundry help, healthy meals easy to cook, entertainment, experiences, fabulous new restaurants. All of which brings the average modern person more options and more free time.” —Lucienne Mosquera, Founder of Hospitality Business Development.
“Environmental sustainability in particular is expected by many guests (who still wants cage-eggs for breakfast?) and a signifier of a high quality standard. Communicate it as such wherever possible. And ask the platforms to include sustainability as a criterion to be judged by guests, and it will bring the entire sector forward: We all want quality, and we should embrace definitions of quality that include environmental sustainability.” —Stefan Gossling, Professor at the School of Business and Economics, Linnaeus University
Source: www.hospitalitynet.org
