Hostelworld Video: 10 things you didn't know about a hostel

I agree with your comments but think this is the right direction for HW to go. HW are so big now that if they were to continue their growth rate, they would out grow the traditional backpacking market. Already, a good 25%+ of listings in HW are 'non-backpackers' such as B&B or budget hotels.

As long as they are getting their 10% of the transaction, it doesn't really matter what they are selling. This means that they will try and move to a more mainstream (and larger) market.

I understand they want to grow but I won't convert my hostel to have a restaurant, swimming pool or else just to have more costumers from them also imagine those guests who check into the hostel and expecting such thing... they wouldn't be happy in an otherwise good hostel.

The bigger you grow, the harder you catch the small "fishes". Although what I really don't like is what my marketing teacher described as enforced change of consumer traditions, especially in a monopoly position of the market. They will be eaten up by hotel sharks in a minute.

You can grow on other paths as well, like diverse branding. Cheap washing up liquid for the frugals, fancy ones for those who spend a bit more to ensure it will wash properly... Meanwhile it's made by the same company.

Another, more ethic way is campaign to get more backpackers. It takes longer but keeps the corporate image and gives the message of being the no.1 resource. Important for returning costumers and definitely better on the long run as it would result market specification. Hotels could never enter to our market.

I guess I should send them a book from Philip Kotler, it was a bible in our school ten years ago...

Yes, this will diminish the traditional backpacker feel of many hostels if successful but the great thing about markets is that if they go too far, another upstart will happily exploit the opportunity and their place.

Indeed, if the current tendency is keep going, we will end up being the 25% on HW and the "other segment" will be the 75%... but then we will sell 75% of our beds on HB or any other BEs! :D

I think most hostel owners are in the business to not just make a buck but also due to their love of backpacking. If you want to really promote the backpacking side of things, I think some kind of strong marketing federation owned by member hostels is the best way to do it, not relying on booking engines with their own/different objectives to.

There were several attempts and are some other, existing but incapable organizations, so some of us are very sceptical about such movements.
I'm working on one, everyone likes the idea but I don't want to rush ahead, rather just grow the seed.

The problems are usually the same: Financing, corporate setup, decision making and common goals. There is a huge need for such background though.

Just my thoughts ;)

Very interesting ones, cheers for that, mate! ;)

Hi,
Thanks for the posts – always good to read feedback.

Dear Colm,

Thanks for joining us! :) There are a lot of member hostels has been expecting you... hopefully your appearance will be long on this forum! ;)

The video is focusing on things that people don’t know about hostels. People know that hostels are cheaper than hotels. They also know that hostels offer shared accommodation. That’s why it’s not mentioned in the video. What they don’t know is that hostels have swimming pools and private rooms. This is why dormitories and bunk beds don’t feature that much in the video either.

Well, erm... Yes but also no. I think the major problem is the message... As you mentioned as well, you are reaching new people who have no clue about hostels. They have thought about hostels as flophouses, dodgy backpackers, etc. Watching this video could be misleading for them as soon as they start traveling... and they check into a hostel which looks none as above. There's a big chance for that, we both know... like as I mentioned before, about 10% of the hostels in Europe(!) could beat such standards, the rest are different.
Not bad, just won't suit the requirements for such people.

What we’re trying to do with this video is reach new customers. We’re also trying to change the public opinion of hostels. This in turn means more business for hostel…the last thing we’re trying to do though is outgrow the traditional backpacker market! If we did that we’d be out of business. We don’t believe it will diminish the essences of backpacking either – visit numerous hostels featured in this video, such as Palmers Lodge in London or Abigail’s in Dublin, and you’ll see backpackers exchanging their travel stories and mixing with each other. We promote this in any interviews we ever give to travel journalists about the benefits of hostels.

But the main reason for this video is to reach even more people than the backpackers that already stay in them.

I think the target group should be no older than 18-35. That doesn't mean there are no older people who like to stay in hostels (The oldest I met was an Irish guy, age 75!, still backpacking) but the majority won't. IMHO.

The majority of 35+ prefer to have the luxury of leisure, where they don't have to think of anything, just book their package online and enjoy the relaxation of holidays. We all know these people. They catch a taxi from the airport (sometimes train station - walking? No way!), they check in the hotel and they all want privacy which has no distraction from their zen state... The last thing they want is to think of any efforts, they do that at home, a bit too much sometimes. A hostel is just too lively for them, even if it has private rooms. Young crowds, lively common room, bar, etc. Just take a look of Easyhotels, it's even cheaper than some hostels, they have much better chances to reach this kind of people.

I made a two weeks backpacking tour in Ireland, just after the conference. Unfortunately most of Irish hostels wouldn't meet the criteria to fulfill expectations from this video. It's a pity though, Ireland is a wonderful country!

Overall, I think this is a wrong track. If you keep extending the age of target group, they you have to promote something else, what that target group wants. Indulgence, luxury, privacy. This is what this video represents for me, which I can not identify with my hostel and I think a lot of other hostels agree on that, so the costumers. This policy represents something else than the majority of hostels represent, so this message is wrong, IMHO.

Let me quote a comment on Jumbo Hostel:

#11 posted by ivan256 , February 6, 2009 9:06 AM

Holy crap! 350 SEK to stay? My how things have changed in the last decade...

You can take a train ride for 30 minutes outside of NYC, and get a hotel room with a king-sized bed and breakfast for that...

So what happens if this is what most backpackers will think, planning their journey?

"A shoemaker should stay at his last.", so you can still stick to what you sell.

Some hints:

- There is about 300 million Americans, only 10-15% who travel (at least they've got a passport to do so). Let's say only 10% of them are backpacking (That's only 1,5%! of the total population). They still make 25-30% of hostels' nationality, which makes them no. #1 in our chart. So what about Europeans? There are 800 million people to reach... and we don't have as many as Americans backpacking around the whole planet. I know it's 30 different languages but your office is famous about international staff... How about localized PR? ;)

- Backpackers are chain travelers. Unlike regular holiday travelers, they travel at least 25-30 destinations during the same trip. If you can convince them to travel more than the usual route, for example when they are in Western Europe, they could easily visit Eastern Europe and keep going on... Russia, the 'Istans, down to China, etc. It is easier to reach an existing costumer than finding a new one...

- You could focus on the adventure part. Getting lost, missing a train, bargaining on a market, trying to speak with locals... Exactly the opposite than this message, but my most memorable journeys are when something wrong happened. I keep telling such stories to my friends about how I caught a train to Bratislava, how I missed one to Oslo, how I took the wrong one from Prague, etc. We almost missed our last ferry from Aran Islands because we got lost at the Black Fort... now that's a story.

Nice video though, I have to admit it... and thank you again for getting involved to this conversation!

oh great, now that hostelworld is here, we'll all have to start watching what we say :p

What we (AND YOU!!!) should do is telling people what´s so awesome about hostels - the things you´ll never get in a hotel.

THIS!!!!

hostels are NOT hotels and i think the big problem the industry is facing/going to face with all these new 'flashpackers' is peoples perceptions of what differentiates them will blur. i dont want guests expecting towels on their beds, staff in a suit, a minibar or gym etc. now the key word in that is EXPECTING. ive no problem with hostels offering those services, provided theyre not simply trying to emulate hotels.

people still have this concept that a hotel is at the end of teh day better than a hostel; how many times have people here heard 'you can get a hotel room for that price!'? ok then, GET a hotel room! clearly you dont belong in a hostel. i understand that hostelworlds revenue is actually helped by higher prices in accommodation; so i dont really blame WRI for pushing 'other cheap places to stay'. what i do think WRI could help us all with is differentiating a bit more between the 2 kinds of accommodation and explaing the pros and cons of each. ok, we should all be doing that, but not too many people here get as many hits as HW, do we?

for example, what the video should be focussing on is not that hostels have private rooms, but that dorms are actually much cooler than people think. so you share a room... great way to make friends! sure some hostels have restaurants... but a self-catering kitchen is cheaper, more social etc, many hostels have communal dinners with local cuisine; sharing the local fare is one of the great things about travelling! push these kinds of things rather than the 'theyre not THAT bad, see? theyre almost like hotels!' message i got from that video.

Compare the number of Chinese who can afford to travel with the number of Germans who can afford it. Now - how many people do you have working in Germany? None.

germans actually spend more per capita on holidays each year than anyone.
ill try and find the article i read that in this morning...

They´re adults, they can handle the truth.

hehehe, good because I'm not one for biting my tongue. ;)