A couple of weeks ago, I told you all about the awful experience that passes itself of as the Holiday Inn Express. One of the smaller things that was super annoying was the fact that in the (cramped) bathroom, there was no soap dish.  There was a stand cluttering the minimal counter space holding the usual hotel toiletries, including soap bars, but there was no place to put the soap once you opened the plastic wrapping.  The soap slid to the floor quite easily and often. Hard to wash your hand when you can't put the soap down when you are finished!

Just a few weeks before my stay at the HIE, I stayed at a boutique inn in the same city. Among the many amenities was a soap dish in the bathroom. It was a nice touch. It showed the inn had considered the guest's needs (and that someone somewhere had actually used soap to wash their hands at some point, which apparently the managers at the HIE never had done).

It's simple: You have to consider people's needs and how they do things. Providing a great hotel experience OR effective communications/marketing (a good design, great copy)  DEPENDS on whether you are considering your end user (your guest, your target audience). How does a person use your product? What does the person need to complete a sale?

If you fail to think about how people actually use your product or service, then you will fail to serve their needs.

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