Hotel Social Ratings: The Classification That Really Matters

I recently read an article entitled “What lies behind hotel stars?”, which advocates national and international standardisation of hotel classification criteria: Choosing a hotel for our stay, whether for a holiday or for work commitments, is important. We place our expectations in establishments that we hope will meet our needs and offer us the greatest comfort and service quality in line with their price. Yet hotel categories can often be misleading. We have all experienced travelling abroad and finding that the hotel we chose was not what we expected. Why does a three-star hotel in Spain not offer the same services as one abroad? And the same is true within our own country’s borders. It is true that, nationally, hotel classification falls under the responsibility of Spain’s Autonomous Communities, each of which awards a different number of stars according to its own criteria. Not to mention the international level, where a three-star hotel in Spain bears absolutely no resemblance to one in Paris or London. Some countries do not even use stars! What a mess for the poor guest. Of course, criteria such as facilities, size, infrastructure and so on are taken into account when assigning a category. But what I believe matters is: what about the guest? Is a guest travelling to Barcelona different from one travelling to Segovia? Or to London? Guests know nothing about jurisdictions, nor do they care about them, let alone regulations. What guests want is a product suited to their needs and good value for money. The emergence of what we now call the Internet, coupled with guests’ need to know the true condition of a hotel, has sparked the boom in guest reviews. What can convey a hotel’s condition better? A plaque bearing a number of stars at the entrance, calculated according to who-knows-what criteria? Or first-hand information shared by guests who have stayed at that establishment?

Perhaps a hotel could proudly display, not only at its entrance but also on its website, its Social Category, calculated on the basis of guest ratings, the real one: that demanding, impartial jury which understands guests’ needs, because it is a jury made up of guests. The Social Category is uncompromising in what it means and is the result of the establishment’s own online and offline reputation. It is the outcome of good service or the condition of its facilities, and it is dynamic and flexible over time. It may also vary according to the demographic and social profiles of the users who contribute to it through their ratings. Could this be a first step on our path towards becoming leaders in distribution? This is where hotel positioning in relation to social media and user-generated content would truly come into its own. Online reputation is what determines positioning, and the tools for managing it are continuous improvement and guest satisfaction. The conversation will ensure that our rating is as close to reality as possible, and social media optimisation will become part of everyday life; indeed, our survival depends on it. I don’t know; this is a personal reflection on how Hotel Categories should evolve, beyond stars and cuckoos. Without borders, without jurisdictions or political or business interests—simply the result of a genuine guest-centric approach.

Explore All Articles & Resources

Hotel Social Ratings: The Classification That Really Matters

This article ends here. The archive does not.

What would you like to explore next?

Build Hotel Guest Loyalty Across Every Booking Channel

Take this analysis one step further

Latest from Lead Hospitality

Trust Is Also Built into the Hotel Rate

Hotel AI Needs an Authority Matrix

Hospitality Does Not Need Its Aura Read

Legal Obligations for AI in Hotels

What Happens When the Hotel General Manager Is Away