A study by Douwe Egberts Professional has revealed that a staggering 83% of guests would only be likely to return if they had enjoyed a great breakfast: breakfast is quite simply one of the most influential factors for guests when choosing a hotel, especially for repeat visitors, and is second only to the quality of their bedrooms.
With the growing appetite for great coffee in the UK, this study makes it clear that hoteliers need to address the quality and variety of hot beverages offered – or risk losing customers to the competition.
The most important element: freshly brewed coffee
Freshly brewed coffee came out on top of the 1,000 people surveyed as the most important element of a good breakfast – with 28% placing more priority on a good cup of coffee over sausages (25%), bacon (23%), pastries (4%), yoghurt (2%) and muesli (8%).
In fact, a poor coffee would be enough to deter a third of those questioned from ever returning to a hotel.
The findings demonstrate the importance of hoteliers providing a good quality breakfast for guests, and particularly highlight the value of implementing a high standard coffee system.
Room for improvement
Worryingly, nearly 22% of respondents claimed the coffee on their most recent hotel visit was either ‘below average’ or ‘very poor’ and some 15% believed it completely failed to meet their expectations. This report therefore shows there is plenty of room for improvement, demonstrated by only 12% of guests questioned being completely satisfied, voting their morning brew as excellent.
Paul Freeman, Marketing Director, Douwe Egberts Professional, said: “The results of this research should raise major concerns for all hoteliers who are overlooking their hot beverage offering and not paying close attention to the quality of the beverages served. As hotels try to anticipate how much coffee they’ll need at peak times like breakfast, many are still guilty of bulk brewing their coffee well in advance, preparing vast quantities that more often than not result in poor quality, bad-tasting coffee which guests will no longer tolerate.”
About Douwe Egberts
Douwe Egberts Professional has over 260 years of experience roasting coffee. Its unique Liquid Roast concepts are not only designed to offer high quality in the quantities needed, but to make great coffee more operationally simple. Liquid Roast systems can dispense large quantities of roast & ground coffee at the touch of a button, and require less operator skill requirements and interaction, which takes the stress out of high volume coffee and helps businesses reduce running costs.
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