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The Hotel Culture I Experienced That Cared For People, Enabled Innovation & Earned Media Attention
with Adam Wallace
Josiah Mackenzie
November 03, 2023
Together with
Good morning. Everyone wants to be innovative, create something remarkable, and provide memorable hospitality - but what does that take....really? Our guest today is someone I’ve watched do this over the past 15 years and has lessons we can all use in our businesses today.
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The Hotel Culture I Experienced That Cared For People, Enabled Innovation & Earned Media Attention
with Adam Wallace
Adam Wallace
Early in his career, Adam Wallace worked at his family's hotel in New York, The Roger Smith Hotel, getting national media coverage for the innovative community building they were doing - and today runs Spherical, a hotel marketing agency with a client roster that's a who's who of the most exciting brands in hospitality today.
Today, Adam shares more about this hotel that was far ahead of the curve on innovation in hospitality - but more importantly, what was behind all that innovation and the lessons about providing hospitality that are timeless and applicable to your work today.
People-Centric Approach
One of the standout aspects of the hotel's culture was its people-centric approach. Adam observed how his aunt treated the housekeeping staff with dignity and respect, which translated into exceptional guest experiences.
My aunt showed me how you treat your employees leads to how they treat your guests. The dignity and respect that she had for the housekeepers was very impactful to me.
Focusing on the humanity of each team member created a culture of hospitality that extended to the entire team, creating a positive work environment and fostering a sense of belonging.
Storytelling and Meaningful Connections
The hotel's culture also revolved around storytelling and creating meaningful connections. Adam’s uncle, a creative visionary, encouraged the team to go beyond traditional marketing approaches. They focused on sharing stories of artists, chefs, and other individuals associated with the hotel, attracting like-minded guests who appreciated the depth and authenticity of these stories.
Reflecting back, I saw the content my uncle was pushing us to create ultimately had a tie back to business results. He wanted to do this through the lens of the human experience, and do story-driven marketing.
By delving into the stories behind the experiences, the hotel created a unique and engaging atmosphere - and formed strong relationships in the process.
They formed an amazing relationship with Jane Goodall, the primatologist and environmentalist. It was her home in New York for 30 years. She never stayed anywhere else. It was about the warm hospitality, this warm feeling. She would invite her friends in and do Friends of Jane gatherings in her suite. The hotel was a platform that catered to that kind of home amongst the skyscrapers and sort of capitalism-driven energy of Lexington Avenue and Midtown Manhattan.
Building Community Through Collaboration
The Roger Smith Hotel invested heavily in collaborations that built community.
We did lunch meetups with artists. Artists would stay at the hotel with our artist residencies. Similarly, on the food and beverage side, we would connect meaningfully with guest chefs and create experiences. There was a culture of being interested in a hotel as a platform for people and storytelling - both hosting people and telling stories that attracted people in.
This approach led to early collaborations with influencers.
Gary Vaynerchuk was just getting started as a wine blogger. He started his wine blog four months after YouTube was launched and and took off. He was this sort of aggressive Jersey archetype - so different than the typical wine community. He took off and was on Ellen and Conan and got mainstream press coverage for his wine blog.
We said, Hey, Gary, why don't you host your wine library TV live from our space? And we'll get that wine interested community here. Storytelling tied to a specific audience and then hosting people that were going to have that network effect was incredible.
Media coverage for the Roger Smith Hotel
The Durability of Culture
Unlike ephemeral ad campaigns, the hotel's culture provided a durable advantage. It became the foundation for their innovation, media attention, and business results. The investment in culture, including dedicating space, staff time, and attention to communication, paid off in the long run. The hotel became a hub in its community, attracting talented people and loyal guests who valued the unique experiences it offered.
It’s being specific about who your hotel is for and creating community around that. Yes, it’s the space and it's the right people and it's all that, but more than that it’s actually caring about being resident within a community of people that want to stay here. It makes a difference.
Speaking with Adam highlights the transformative power of culture in hospitality. The Roger Smith Hotel’s success was not solely driven by innovative marketing strategies or cutting-edge technology but by the deep-rooted culture of warmth, humanity, and storytelling.
By embracing a human-centric approach and investing in culture, hospitality providers can differentiate themselves, attract loyal guests, and achieve long-term success in the ever-evolving landscape.
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