“Brands must build Trust Capital”: IHG

Brands must built trust in both brand and organisation to attract customers, adding a fourth ‘C’ in Trust Capital, the latest InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) report has said.

Where most companies focus on Financial Capital, Intellectual Capital and Human Capital already, the hotel chain has challenged businesses to add the fourth Trust Capital value that will build consumer confidence.

The report states hospitality businesses is centred on new demographics identifying that people who are getting ‘older and younger all at the same time but not in all the same places’.

As a result some millennials (born 1982-2000) want a close experiential relationship and do not always require much people contact, while the boomers want a smooth brand relationship and prefer to speak to ‘real’ people.

Changes in family time are also impacting businesses, as millennials are happy to pass off children to clubs while boomers want everyone to be together.

Back in its 2013 report IHG said hotels needed to reconsider how to categorise guests based on needs and occasions instead of a hierarchal structure.

“As we look around us, there are so many shifts taking place. In a digital, 24/7 world, where personalisation is increasing and consumers have a new definition of value, the trust that people have in both brands and the organisation behind them is more important than ever,” said Richard Solomons, CEO of IHG. “Our research has shown that building ‘Trust Capital’ plays a critical role in delivering sustainable, high quality revenue growth. To build trust, organisations must ensure they adopt a trust agenda, focus on personalisation whilst being aware of the boundaries and develop a deep understanding of how guest needs are changing by demographic and by geography.”

IHG’s latest trends report is launching during the World Economic Forum in Davos with insight from interviews with 40,000 travellers worldwide.

sourced:traveldailymedia.com