Information Requirements of Hotel Guests for Location Based Services: Identifying Characteristic Segments

Examining some key parameters for the development of such location based systems and applications for the hotel guest reveals two key clusters (customer segments) that have a propensity to pay and a high ranking of certain, specific destination information, vital to the successful implementation of a “virtual concierge”.

Abstract

Whereas, location based services (LBS) have been the focus of many EU projects which have mainly explored the general, nomadic tourism experience, this paper focuses on a specific commercial application and is part of a wider research project to develop a prototype location based device that will supplement (or replace) the hotel concierge, namely a "virtual concierge". This paper examines, therefore, some key parameters for the development of such location based systems and applications for the hotel guest. An investigation was conducted with hotel guests primarily to reveal their key information and navigation requirements. The results of this survey of Swiss hotel guests reveal that the most requested information is about restaurants, local activities and transportation (how to get around). Further data mining of the 323 respondents reveal two key clusters (customer segments) that have a propensity to pay and a high ranking of certain, specific destination information, vital to the successful implementation of a "virtual concierge".