Red Roof is testing out a “Verified Wi-Fi” initiative to ensure that its properties have the highest speed Wi-Fi so that travelers can use multiple devices and stream content.
Red Roof, which includes the Red Roof Inn and Red Roof Plus+ brands, will have a third party called Morse Technologies test the speed of Wi-Fi at its properties. Red Roof hotels offer free Wi-Fi.
Those properties with the fastest Wi-Fi will have a “Verified Wi-Fi” logo displayed on RedRoof.com, on each hotel’s Experience Page on its website, and on its billboards. The program is in a test phase for now and so far, no hotel has gotten the Verified Wi-Fi designation. Red Roof says it will verify properties in the next few weeks.
Not all 447 Red Roof properties will be required to go through testing at this time, but those that don't won't get the verified seal of approval.
Travelers used to complain about not getting free Wi-Fi at hotels. Now that more hotels are offering free Wi-Fi, their biggest complaint is that the Wi-Fi isn’t fast enough to accommodate their multiple devices and streaming of Netflix, Amazon and other producers of video content.
“Many of our customers view that as such an important amenity,” Red Roof President Andrew Alexander tells USA TODAY. “And realizing that no two Wi-Fi systems are created equally, we want to be able to tell our customers to know where exactly they can get the best and fastest Wi-Fi to meet their needs.”
Red Roof has invested a lot of money into upgrading their Wi-Fi capabilities. But Red Roof only manages 130 of its 447 properties. The remaining 317 are franchised out, though the company says many owners have already been upgrading their Internet services.
Even as hotels have started to offer free Wi-Fi, many have created a tiered system in which guests can pay more for faster speeds. Hyatt Hotels and Resorts offers free Wi-Fi to all guests but premium Wi-Fi costs extra. Hilton Worldwide and Marriott International give rewards members free Wi-Fi but charge for higher speeds.
In late 2014, the American Hotel and Lodging Association found that fewer hotels are charging for in-room Internet services. Just 11% of respondents said they charge for Internet, down from 23% in 2012. The 2014 Lodging Survey had 9,600 participants.
“We’re at the state of Wi-Fi development across lodging in which (guests) assume free Wi-Fi means slow Wi-Fi because very few brands and owners have really invested in it and the only time you can get fast Wi-Fi is if you pay for it,” Alexander says. “We’re going to be honest with you and tell you where our best Wi-Fi is.”
In the past Red Roof has made other moves to encourage improvements at properties. The company began putting TripAdvisor reviews on its site. Alexander says TripAdvisor scores improved because hotels did not want to be at the bottom of the list.
He hopes the Verified Wi-Fi will have the same effect without seeming like a punishment to owners.
“We know that not every hotel can do it instantly. It’s a very expensive and time-consuming process,” he says. “It’s not a penalty. It’s a bit of a carrot, and if you’re willing to do your best, we’re going to promote you just like when you renovate, we’ll promote you as having new rooms.”
The move comes as Red Roof, an economy chain, is seeing significant growth both domestically and outside the U.S. It opened a property in Brazil last year and is working on new properties in Canada and Thailand. Its upscale Plus brand debuted in early 2014. It now has 40 Plus properties and will probably grow to 50 by the end of the year.
“We’ve had two years of very substantial growth,” Alexander says. “We signed around 70 deals last year and we’re on track to become over 500 inns by the end of 2016.”
