In the hospitality industry, success hinges on the actual experience your guests have through every brand interaction—not just the amenities you offer or the prices you charge. While prices can be matched and packages copied, the genuine warmth, effortless service, buzzworthy cuisine, and unforgettable moments you create are what turn first-time visitors into loyal guests.
Here’s why investing in guest experience (CX) is a business must-have, not a nice-to-have:
Positive experiences are crucial: 74% of customers say positive experiences influence their purchasing decisions in both restaurants and hotels.
Willingness to pay more: Brands delivering great experiences can command up to a 16% price premium and see increased loyalty.
Negative experiences are costly: After one negative experience, 51% of customers will not return to a restaurant
Revenue impact: A study by Cornell University found that for every point increase in guest satisfaction score (measured on a scale from 0-100), there was an estimated increase in revenue of $10 million per year.
Often, as brands grow or evolve their offerings, brands wait to prioritize meaningful CX measurement until it’s too late—when churn is rising and revenue is already on the decline. Top performing brands make it a priority—earning loyalty, minimizing churn, and standing apart in a crowded market.
Take it from one of the best in the business — Disney knows that a shared purpose is the heartbeat of exceptional guest experiences, serving as a guiding compass for every employee and cast member.
But how do you create a guest experience program that’s actually useful, scales with ease, and is not burdensome to implement? How can you capture valuable insights, pinpoint pain points, and implement strategies that truly connect with today’s savvy guests?
This checklist outlines five critical components of a successful hospitality voice-of-customer program, with steps you can take to move from feedback collection to measurable impact.
If you want to truly understand what your guests think, simply ask—at the right moment. Capture guest feedback during key milestones of their visit to gain fresh, actionable insights that drive real impact:
Already have these surveys in place and ready to level up?
Expand your timing strategy for deeper insights:
Your guests want their voices to be heard. Whether it’s through leaving a review, speaking with a manager, or completing a survey, there’s no shortage of ways for them to share their thoughts, but are you capturing every opportunity?
Make sure you’re gathering feedback across both digital and physical touchpoints:
Already have these channels in place and ready to level up?
To truly understand your guests, you need to gather feedback from every channel they use. Consider adding these sources:
As your business grows and new locations open, collecting data can quickly become tricky —especially when it’s about getting the right feedback into the hands of the people who can actually make things happen. Often, customer feedback gets stuck within the department or location collecting it, instead of becoming accessible across teams and locations.
Make guest feedback matter, here’s how to ensure it leads to action beyond a single department:
Creating a guest-centric culture in hospitality goes beyond recognition and appreciation—it requires systems that break down silos and make sharing and acting on guest insights seamless.
Key elements for effective guest experience systems:
By adopting these systems, hospitality brands can create a guest-centric culture where exceptional service isn’t just a goal, it’s the standard. With the right tools in place, every team member, from the front desk to the kitchen, becomes a champion of guest satisfaction, delivering personalized, unforgettable experiences at every touchpoint.
Turning guest feedback into real-world improvements is essential for creating memorable experiences, building loyalty, and driving long-term growth. With the right approach, you can turn insights into action and deliver the kind of service that guests rave about.
Don’t juggle fragmented tools or rely on manual processes to manage guest feedback. A unified platform streamlines how you collect, analyze, and act on insights across all guest interactions.
Look for a CX platform with:
Leading hospitality brands know that real-time guest insight is their competitive edge. With the right platform, you can exceed expectations, uncover hidden issues, and drive guest loyalty that lasts.
Guest experience is more than customer service; it’s your strategy for standing out, creating loyalty, and future-proofing your brand.
By embracing a guest-first mindset and following this checklist, your team can move beyond basic feedback collection to become an industry leader in personalized service, seamless operations, and lasting guest loyalty.
Ready to elevate your guest experience? Dive into The Hospitality Industry’s Guide to Turning Feedback Into 5-Star Results to discover how leading hospitality brands are turning feedback into action, building loyalty, and creating unforgettable moments.
See what Alchemer can do for your hospitality business.
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