When a hospitality establishment or restaurant puts out a sales message Romantic - it installs an expectation in the guest.

What appeals to the romance seeker, is of course relative to their lifestyle, preferences, and background. Evidence of hoteliers response to this can be seen in the range of holiday packages that are flooding the market. There is the increased demand by guests for short breaks. Cheap air fairs with Virgin or Jetstar, for example, can take customers to more locations and for very reasonable prices. 

The question is how can a restaurant or hotel really tap into the new romantic market segment?

Marketing the appeal

Diverse market segments can be difficult to reach at one time. The diversification of market segments is forcing hoteliers in particular to question if they have the know-how in house to reach their market potential. Outsourcing means having the resource of a wider pool of skills. Hiring ‘image consultants,' outsourcing PR, marketing and communications is becoming increasingly popular. Image Construction is not the same as image consultation. Construction means building the brand or designing your product in its literal sense, whereas image consultants build the marketing and advertising style of the product.

It is understood that one hotel brand or independent hotelier should not just follow the lead of another when it comes to any form of marketing. Each hotel has it's own uniqueness even within the same sector so the timeless principal that one size does not fit all, stands true with Romance as much as it does with conference facilities. The hotelier can work with a consultant to design and implement a unique ad campaign that is in line with their image or brand.

Is romance only luxury?

One of the major myths surrounding the romance market is the need to associate romance with luxury rather than look at it's timeless themes. Whilst some locations hold an obvious appeal (Paris, the Canals of Venice and Prague), romance is also associated with tropical desert islands, hidden nooks and the rugged untamed wilderness of final frontiers. Customers are seduced by cobblestone streets, walking barefoot on sandy beaches and sleek and modern plush décor.

The seductive appeal of  a romantic weekend away is rarely bought by too much contrived falsities; like accents,  architecture and views, somethings can't be manufactured. If the hotel or restaurant is not so well blessed in location, there are always opportunities to offer packages such as complementary Champagne, flowers and chocolates upon arrival, weekend break activities or breakfast and evening meal included in a set tariff.

A set menu that presents romance is probably best described by the French. In a culture where eating with one's  eyes is paramount, food needs to look good to tempt the diner to taste. Then when savouring, texture is considered and a dish should have one or two distinguishing tastes. A meal that gives an interesting sensation to the mouth is a definite romantic alternative to elaborate expense.

SpotLight is the weekly column exclusively written for 4Hoteliers.com by Sarah Muxlow, it is highlighting the challenges and issues which the global hospitality is facing today.

Sarah is writing for hotel and restaurant owners, hotel chain managers, producers/growers/sellers of food & beverage, restaurant associations, governing bodies and hotel schools. She is looking at the problems they face...competition, trends of branding, staff shortages, unskilled staff, turning out students who are looking for good in-house management training schemes with hotel chains, what makes a good quality training course at a hotel school and more... 

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