NASHVILLE- One important message delivered to attendees at the 2000 Travelodge/Thriftlodge Annual Conference held here, by BridgeWorks Lynne Lancaster and David Stillman during a dissertation called Customer Service: When Generations Collide, was that Job 1 for any hospitality industry professional is to understand and appreciate generational differences.
As described and defined (not solely by age) by the presentational partners:
– Traditionalists are those in their mid-50s – mid-70s, seen as patriotic, loyal, fiscally conservative, and having faith in institutions;
– Baby-Boomers are in their late 30s – early 50s, viewed as idealistic, competitive, questioning authority, and comprising the “me” generation;
– Generation X spans people in their early 20s – mid-30s, identified as eclectic, resourceful, self-reliant, distrustful of institutions, and adaptive to technology and change; and
– Millennials range from toddlers – late teens, considered to be globally concerned and environmentally conscious, diverse and integrated, cyber-literate, media-savvy, and resourceful.
Breaking down each of these highly stratified markets, Lancaster and Stillman maintained “some 75 million Traditionalists should not be thought of as necessarily inactive; 80 million Boomers are evolving and raging against aging; Gen-Xers should be judged as individuals and not as a general group; and Millennials comprise The Next Wave.”
In order to more effectively cater to the unique needs and expectations of each of these groups, the BridgeWorks executives laid out a trio of Golden Rules for marketing to these different generations. In their view, its a necessity that (hoteliers): “get to know the generations; dont think in stereotypes; and make emotional connections.” (10/26/00) –Michael Billig