Customer expectations across hospitality, entertainment and service industries are being reshaped by technology, changing behaviours and rising expectations of relevance. Convenience and personalisation are no longer differentiators; increasingly, they are the baseline. As technology advances, guests expect brands to understand their needs, respond seamlessly and deliver experiences that feel relevant at every stage of their journey.
At the same time, organisations are under pressure to control costs, adapt to change and equip their people to bring the brand to life. The challenge is not simply to introduce new technology or expand into new markets. It is to do so in a way that strengthens customer trust, preserves authenticity and creates lasting value.
Gabriel Nam, Director at Mercuri Urval (MU), spoke with Casey Ho, Jenna Xue and Brian Ho, leaders across strategy, responsible business, marketing and digital functions, to explore the evolving formula for customer loyalty: what it takes to create experiences that customers value, remember and choose again.
One of the most visible shifts is that guests increasingly expect to be recognised, not simply satisfied. They want brands to remember their stated preferences, understand previous issues and acknowledge the purpose of their travel, without being asked to repeat information at every interaction.
This expectation is reshaping the role of personalisation. It is no longer limited to offering a preferred room type or a tailored promotion. Meaningful personalisation uses relevant patterns, such as family travel habits, dietary requirements and stay preferences, to make recommendations and service feel genuinely useful.
Both premium and budget segments are performing strongly, yet travellers across segments are looking for experiences that feel authentic, local and distinctive. Intimate hotels, locally rooted food concepts and cultural events can all create a stronger sense of connection than standardised experiences alone.
Sustainability has moved from being a differentiator to a fundamental requirement of credibility. Guests increasingly expect evidence in the form of verifiable data, credible certifications and consistent action, rather than broad claims. However, willingness to pay a substantial sustainability premium remains limited. The opportunity for hospitality operators is therefore to embed responsible practices into the guest experience and operating model in ways that are both effective and cost-efficient.
As Brian Ho observes,
The experience economy is becoming an evidence economy. Guests no longer ask what you promise — they ask what you can prove. And nowhere is the distance between promise and proof greater than in sustainability.”
Responsible growth cannot be treated as a compliance exercise added after key decisions have been made. It needs to be built into expansion plans, investment decisions and technology deployment from the outset. Growth should mean that revenue rises faster than an organisation’s environmental and social footprint, not that the impact is addressed retrospectively.
The responsible use of guest data is equally important. Personalisation depends on trust. Leaders should be comfortable showing guests how their data is collected, used and protected. If an organisation cannot explain its data practices clearly and transparently, its personalisation model is not ready.
Tools such as occupancy-led ventilation, humidity management and room pre-conditioning can reduce energy waste while maintaining, or even improving, guest comfort. The strongest applications of technology are those that support both operational efficiency and a better experience.
Expansion into new markets also requires more than a central strategy and a small launch team. Organisations need genuine local understanding, supported by investment in local insight, talent, partnerships, product adaptation and market enablement. A brand can maintain global ambition while recognising that relevance must be earned locally.
The balance between standardisation and personalisation is central to building a scalable hospitality brand. Certain foundations should remain consistent across every property: brand values, the core service promise, visual identity, safety, integrity, data practices, and environmental and labour standards.
However, consistency should not result in uniformity. At the property level, the experience should reflect the culture, heritage, sourcing and sense of place of each destination. Guests want to recognise the brand, while still feeling that they could only have had that particular experience in that location.
Personalisation is most effective when it is relevant and respectful. It should help guests make better choices and feel more understood, rather than appearing intrusive or overly automated.
Giving guests agency, through clear, optional choices, can make responsible actions feel purposeful and personal. By contrast, imposed measures, such as reduced housekeeping without adequate context or choice, can easily be perceived as cost-cutting rather than genuine environmental action.
Casey Ho highlights the commercial opportunity in getting this balance right:
“Responsible practices can improve guest experiences and drive commercial value simultaneously. Hospitality players who can work with credible local partners to seamlessly weave responsible practices into authentic and heartfelt guest experiences will be able to stand out and reap a sustainable edge.”
As AI and digital channels become standard parts of the customer journey, the key question is not whether organisations should use them, but how. The experience should always be designed around the brand promise first. AI should support and enhance that promise, not allow the capabilities of a technology vendor to determine what the customer experience becomes.
The appropriate role of AI will vary by segment. Luxury brands may use it discreetly, enabling employees to anticipate needs and provide warmer, more personal service. Economy and business hotels may place greater emphasis on self-service tools that deliver speed, convenience and control. In both cases, the technology should feel appropriate to the brand and useful to the guest.
A tested brand playbook and strong governance are essential. Websites, apps, social media, physical locations and third-party platforms must work together to present a coherent experience. This is particularly important at the moments that matter most: arrival, service recovery and farewell. These are the points where a guest’s perception of a brand is often formed or changed.
AI can help employees access the right information at the right time. However, it should not replace human judgement about what a great experience means. The strongest brands will use technology to make their people more informed, responsive and effective, not less essential.
As Jenna Xue puts it:
“Ultimately, the future of hospitality is not about choosing between technology and people. It is about using technology to understand people better. Markets will change, customer expectations will change, and AI will continue to evolve, but the fundamentals will not. Understand your customer, respect the local context, stay true to your brand, and use technology to make the experience more relevant and more human.”
The future of the experience economy in APAC will be defined by brands that can combine operational discipline with human understanding. Customers expect convenience, but they also seek recognition. They value global standards, but increasingly want local authenticity. They welcome technology, but still judge brands by the quality of human interaction and the credibility of their actions.
For hospitality leaders, the opportunity is clear: build trust through transparency, create relevance through local insight and personalisation, and use technology to strengthen, not replace, the human moments that guests remember most.