Beyond The Lobby – Edition 14

^{BIG IDEA FOR THE WEEK}
Stand Out, But Just Enough

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Every hotel wants to be memorable.

But few want to take the risk

So, most end up copying what’s worked before.
They go with a familiar layout, safe color palette and a polite-but-generic service.

It’s a recipe to get forgotten fast.

There’s a simple rule most brands (and most people) miss:

Be just different enough.

That’s Optimal Distinctiveness. A psychological principle that says humans want to belong — but we also want to stand out. Both. At the same time.

Now, guests are the humans – mostly ;)

They book hotels that feel comfortable, safe and familiar.

But they remember hotels that did something unexpected – not bizarre, just different enough.

The cookie-cutter fails. But the alienating weirdness fails too.

It’s the signal in between that works.

Like the hotel that offers the usual breakfast but offers to serve it picnic-style under a banyan tree if you like.

Like the spa that plays smooth jazz instead of flutes.

It’s why your guests might love the hand-painted Do Not Disturb signs but still expect standard plug points near the bed.

These are not big swings. They’re small, deliberate choices.

Familiar, with a twist. Comfort, with edge.

Try this 3-step blueprint:

1. Walk through your hotel like a first-time guest. Make note of what’s forgettable, what’s predictable, what could surprise someone – gently.

2. List the 3 most common hotels your guests compare you to. What are they all doing? Stick to the basics but deviate from the mundane.

3. Keep 80% of what works. Just don’t forget to play with the 20%. That’s the part people talk about.

If your hotel is 100% different, you might be too weird.
If your hotel is 100% the same, you are sure to be invisible.

You need the middle path.
The slightly unusual.
The tastefully surprising.

This applies to your hotel’s design, your brand, your team culture, and even your leadership style.

Stand where few stand.
Say what few say.
Offer what most won’t.

That’s the edge.

That’s the sweet spot where memorability lives.

See it through the lens of hospitality:

Intelligence often shows up as complexity.
For hotels, it could mean fancy tech, elaborate SOPs, and over-designed experiences.

But most of the time, guests don’t care how smart your hotel is. They just notice when something stupid happens.

Like being told their room isn’t ready at 4 PM.
Like having to call twice for a towel.
Like being asked to rate their stay before it’s even over.

Avoiding these is more powerful than chasing brilliance.

You don’t have to be clever. You just have to be clear.
Make promises you can keep. Then, simply keep them.

In the end, that’s smarter than trying to be smart.

^{OPERATIONAL INSIGHT}
Don’t Track Tasks. Track Bottlenecks.

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Hotels love checklists.

Rooms cleaned? Check!
Turndown done? Check!
Welcome drink served? Check!

It all looks good on paper.

But checklists only tell you if something was done. They don’t tell you where it got stuck.

Was the laundry delayed again?
Did housekeeping have to wait 40 minutes for linen?
Did in-room dining skip a ticket because the system didn’t escalate it?

That’s the stuff checklists miss.

If you want to really improve operations, stop tracking what’s finished and start noticing where things slow down.

Ask your team:
→ “What task took longer than it should have today?”
→ “Where did you feel stuck?”
→ “What’s something that keeps breaking your flow?”

Do it daily for a week. Then fix the repeat offenders.

You’ll spot patterns fast. Things that didn’t look like problems because they always got done… just painfully late or inconsistently.

Remove the friction that slows your team down.

^{CRISIS PLAYBOOK}
“I Asked for Coffee. It Never Came.”

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It sounds small. But to some guests, it’s the only thing that mattered this morning.

They sat down.
They asked for coffee.
Nothing showed up.

Now, it’s not just about the coffee. It’s about being ignored.

Here’s how to handle it without making it worse (#4 is where most hotels fail):

1. Don’t defend. Own.
   The worst move is, “I’ll check with the staff.” The best move is, “That shouldn’t have happened. I’ll get it for you right now.”

2. Act immediately.
   Drop other things and (this is important –) have the person who the guest mentioned this to bring the coffee. Don’t delegate. Don’t wait for the server who missed it. You’re not just delivering coffee – you’re repairing trust.

3. Add a gesture.
   Apologize with something extra: a pastry, a warm smile, a genuine “Sorry again—we want you to start the day right.” It costs you little. It signals a lot.

4. Fix the system.
   After the rush, ask the team: What slipped? Was the order never punched in? Was it missed in service flow? Don’t just fix the moment: fix the process.

Don’t remember every detail, but they surely remember the ones that made them feel ignored or undervalued.

^{WHAT I FOUND INTERESTING}
Cold Plunges Are Heating Up

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I came across a LinkedIn post from Jordan at Hotel Tech Report that had me pause.

It mentioned a 73% rise in cold plunge searches and a 157% spike in thermal spa bookings.

Not tech. Not rooms. Not loyalty programs.

Cold water.

It’s funny: hotels have spent decades perfecting warmth. Warm lighting, warm welcomes, warm towels.

And yet, what people are craving right now is the shock of cold. A reset. Something that jolts them out of the haze of daily life.

Thanks to Andrew Huberman.

It says something about how guests want to feel when they travel. Not just rested. But renewed.

You can almost picture it. A guest steps into freezing water at 7 a.m., gasps, laughs, breathes deeper. That one moment becomes the memory. Everything else just frames it.

The best hotel experiences might now always be planned – Sometimes, they can be just… cold!!!

Jokes aside, I’m unsure if this trend is here to stay, but something you can think about leveraging – only if you think your guests align with it.

^{SHOWER THOUGHT}
💡 Every single human in history has witnessed the same sun and moon as you have.

^{SPONSORED BY HAVEN}
How I Contribute To The Hospitality Industry.

↓↓↓

If you don’t know about me –

I come from a strong tech background – built resilient software for banking, automotive and QSR sectors.

But I finally found true love in hospitality. It’s so full of life and it’s where caring for others is the breadwinner.

However, as a traveller I have gone through a fair share of displeasures and what’s unfortunate is that even the worst experiences had sincere people putting in their best.

But with a lack of data and systems, the staff is usually just overwhelmed.

That’s why my team and I are building Haven. To help hoteliers and hospitality professionals get ahead of guest frustrations and avoid the most basic pitfalls that destroy guest experience.

Hotels that use Haven –

1. Catch service delays before guests complain.
2. Upsell without being pushy.
3. Fix guest issues before they check out.

If you are curious to learn how Haven can help – simply respond to this email and I’d be happy to tell you more over a call.