Throughout my experience in the hospitality industry, one thing has remained consistent – if you make a major business decision or implement a new strategy that benefits your business, your community and the customers you serve-you will stand out among competition and thrive.

Part of weighing decisions for a lodging concept is measuring the benefits and the sustainability of what you're trying to accomplish, and when it comes to your offerings, it can be hard to budge.

Flexible stay options were a no-brainer for us when looking at the potential sales benefits as well as our customer base, which includes a wider audience seeking the flexibility of long or short-term stays. WaterWalk's extended stay and unfurnished unit offerings have become a brand differentiator among our competitors and has placed our properties into a niche that prospective travelers are looking for when booking their stays – whether for work, leisure, or a combination of both.

The trend towards flexible lodging options is being driven by the changing preferences and needs of travelers, and today's travelers are seeking unique and personalized experiences that go beyond traditional hotel offerings. People are no longer satisfied with a one-size-fits-all approach or the limited square space and amenities of cookie-cutter hotel rooms.

Lodging brands that prioritize customization and adaptation to their local markets demonstrate their understanding of the diverse needs of travelers. To compete with alternative accommodations, traditional lodging brands will need to adopt a more flexible and adaptable approach. By offering tailored experiences, lodging brands can provide exceptional service and become an essential part of the hospitality landscape in their local markets.

Increased Visibility to Appeal to New Types of Guests

Providing flexibility by offering both short and long-term stay options will attract new types of travelers to your property. The business traveler and the vacationer may be your current categories of guests, but by adding flexible stay options, your property will become a potential option to suit a variety of unique needs and emerging consumer behaviors. Flexible options will attract blended leisure or 'bleisure' guests that both work and play during their travels as well as remote workers who are looking for a change in scenery. Additionally, with no strict terms or caps on extended stay dates, hotels will have the ability to cater to local residents, nomad travelers and guests with careers that involve traveling for work (think travel nurses, pilots and flight attendants) and looking for their next temporary home.

A dynamic product offering not only increases the diversity in your customer base, but it also allows for increased visibility in markets outside of your property. These offerings can also lead to positive word-of mouth marketing, which is one of the most effective and cost-efficient ways to attract new customers. When travelers have a notable experience, they are more likely to recommend it to their friends, family and colleagues. Travelers from cities you may be targeting for growth may share their experience with residents there and boost your brand's credibility from afar even with no existing presence in the area. This will make it even easier to appeal to a new market, as there is already an awareness of your concept and its services.

Providing flexible stay options that allow guests to customize their experience involves undergoing adaptations to your property, its amenities, features and even its design. With extended stay offerings comes interior upgrades for guests, like adding an in-room ice maker, stovetop, dishes, silverware and even a washer and dryer, for example.

Additionally, for today's long-term guests and bleisure travelers, the livability of the local area and where they are staying is also a key factor. There is no longer a standard workplace environment – it continues to change, with many employees working from coffee shops, coworking spaces or their own kitchen islands. This evolving workplace environment presents an opportunity for hotel brands to cater to the needs of traveling professionals by offering both in-unit and shared community amenities that accommodate their work environment needs and make extended stays more comfortable and livable.

Upping your amenities to support a work-from-anywhere lifestyle is one way to appeal to this category of guests – including perks such as personal, high-speed WiFi access, attractive interior decor for virtual meetings and quiet workspaces. When it comes to the destination aspect of bleisure and work-from-anywhere travel, the addition of amenities that support the leisure side of travel such as a swimming pool, children's playground, pickleball courts, an open lawn with public grills and a fitness center with modern exercise equipment will provide guests with an all-in-one environment.

The amenities that support livability for your guests, no matter their reason for traveling or length of stay, will provide guests with an enhanced experience that complements their flexible lifestyle and grows your brand's reputation. Catering to multiple types of guests through amenities, features and the design of your property not only increases the value of your offerings but also provides guests with more convenience and comfortability when deciding to book a longer stay. This can be your differentiator when guests compare your property to the competition, and ultimately lead to booking your next guest.

Local Community Support + Loyalty

Each destination has its own unique culture, lifestyle and travel trends. By providing flexible stay options for guests at your property, you create an environment that supports the local community and offers additional housing options for residents. Locals who may need a new place to live but don't want the pressure of being tied to a lease agreement or a mortgage will now have another option. You can then make your new offerings known to the community through marketing efforts and local business partnerships, furthering the reach of your business to drive additional sales in your market.

Increasing the flow of travelers in your market will help support other local businesses and attractions if your property is centrally located and you work in tandem with the businesses in your community. Hiring a director of sales and general manager who are local to the area and willing to make connections will help drive the community to support your property more. Identify ways to partner with businesses in your area and stay informed on what services they provide so that you can adapt your concept to meet the needs of the community. Hosting pop-up food markets or participating at a local chamber event to introduce your lodging services to the area are a couple great ways to immerse your brand into the community.

When the residents in your local area have an increased knowledge of your flexible stay offerings, combined with your hotel delivering excellent customer service and supporting other local businesses, the community support of your property will naturally grow. Increased local support of your brand will lead to more customer loyalty and a better reputation for your business, providing more potential for new customer referrals and sales growth. Localized customization will also elevate the guest experience and create a strong sense of connection and loyalty among travelers.

Differentiation in a Highly Saturated Industry

When building and growing a hotel brand, it's important to take note of what your competitors are doing and how you can provide a service that stands out. With an increase in guest expectations for travel post-pandemic and the continued popularity of vacation rentals, it can take bold moves to make a name for your hotel and differentiate your brand from the competition. Flexibility will not only make your concept a better fit for prospective guests, but it also provides the opportunity for your brand to fit into multiple niches in the industry vs. being limited to the short-term stay space.

One way that flexible lodging concepts can stand out is by offering customizable rooms that allow guests to personalize their space by using their own furniture and unique decor. By providing this type of customization as an option, lodging brands can create an even more memorable experience for their guests, making them feel at home.

Another way to improve flexibility is to make changes to room access technology. Door systems that use radio frequency identification (RFID) and Bluetooth room access reduces the cost of the traditional keycard and allows for future app integration which makes for a smooth mobile check in for guests. While there are numerous additional ways your brand can differentiate itself – customer service, community engagement, amenity offerings, value and more – guests can make an easy decision to look elsewhere if they don't find personalized options to suit their needs.

With the rising number of traveler types and the ever-present demand for lodging options within local markets, the need for flexibility from lodging brands is here to stay. Flexibility is not just about attracting new customers, it is also about retaining existing customers by providing a customized experience that meets each guest's specific needs.

As more extended-stay concepts continue to open around the country, it is important that lodging brands tailor each property, whether a conversion or ground-up build, to their local markets and offer a premier, flexible option for the community and visitors. By offering flexible options, lodging brands can continue to attract and retain customers by creating memorable experiences that set them apart from the competition.

Reprinted from the Hotel Business Review with permission from http://www.hotelexecutive.com/.