In a world where luxury travelers have seen it all, experience design is the new currency of value. It turns “just another hotel” into a destination worth talking about—and coming back to. Experience design is a marketing strategy—it’s a competitive differentiator just like customer service. Your customer service approach is just a small piece of the overall experience design. 

I recently visited my son in his college town and stayed at a hotel just off the main street. It was a small hotel that was big on experience design. The staff greeted me by name and informed me about the daily happy hour hosted in the lobby. The happy hour was both simple and special. The lobby was welcoming and comfortable, with a record player, fireplace, conversation nooks, pleasing colors and fabrics, a clean scent, a silver tray of chocolate-covered marshmallows, and a copper tub of select beer and wine on ice. 

After the first night, the room attendant noticed I like to drink water—a lot of water. The next day, two extra swing-top glass bottles of water were left on my nightstand. Someone was paying attention.       

While experience design is often caught somewhere between hotel operations and marketing, it really should be viewed as marketing. That’s why the most effective hotel brands are more likely to engage a marketing agency farther upstream.