Hard Rock Hotels' Secrets to Success

Andrea Stokes, Hospitality Intelligence practice lead at J.D. Power, recently interviewed Andrea Melotti, Vice President of Operations at Hard Rock International, about Hard Rock Hotels’ recent J.D. Power award win, pandemic era brand strategy, guest feedback and its impact on the decision making process, and more.

When most of the hospitality industry struggled to bounce back after the height of the pandemic, Hard Rock Hotels continued to attract guests and receive rave reviews. Melotti described how Hard Rock proactively created new and transparent sanitation measures to ensure guests would feel safe throughout the entirety of their stay. While building and implementing this new strategy, the team stayed true to Hard Rock Hotels’ mission: making guests feel valued the moment they walk through the door.

A few instances stood out to Melotti, which he believes contributed to this year's win in the Upper Upscale segment (the brand’s second win in a row):

• The creation of “Safe and Sound”: This program illustrated to guests exactly what they could expect from the hotel and hotel staff to keep guests safe, without making the experience feel clinical or unwelcoming.
• Implementing the Safe and Sound strategy at all levels: In addition to conveying safety information to the public, the team developed an action plan for each property and staff level of the corporation.
• Utilizing feedback: To analyze how each hotel property was performing, the Hard Rock Hotels team used third-party audits, secret shoppers, and internal guest surveys to gather live feedback specific to each hotel to create an even more enjoyable customer experience.

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