Las Vegas—Words such as “scuzzy” aren’t welcome in the lodging industry, but  that’s the word Best Western International officials are using to rally the  organization’s members around a new focus on quality. 

Using the results from a global research project on quality conducted by  PricewaterhouseCoopers, attendees of the Phoenix-based company’s annual  convention heard a verbal barrage of comments that challenged them to upgrade  across the board. 

“It is not a pretty picture,” said Jerry Manion, Best Western’s chief operating  officer. “The message is clear: Best Western’s image is dropping.” 

Best Western, ranked No. 4 in Hotel & Motel Management’s 1998 Top 100 Hotel  Companies Survey with 301,820 rooms at 3,784 properties worldwide, is in the  midst of a quality initiative. Joe Striss, the company’s director of quality  assurance, told H&MM in October  that in the  next two years, about 8 percent of Best Western’s members will fail two  inspections and eventually have their memberships pulled because of quality  concerns. 

The PricewaterhouseCoopers report unveiled at the convention concluded that  consumers and travel agents rate Best Western average to below average on  meeting their expectations. Inconsistency among the chain’s properties is one of  the chief reasons consumers are decreasing their stays with Best Western,  according to the report. 

“Inconsistency is a problem [at Best Western],” said Cristina Ampil, director of  research for PricewaterhouseCoopers. 

The report said that while Best Western has managed to slightly improve its  position in the United States, brands with better image ratings—such as Hampton  Inn, Holiday Inn and Comfort Inn—achieve higher revenue per available room. That  means Best Western members may not have maximized revenue potential during the  most profitable period in U.S. lodging history, the report said. 

This comes as no surprise to many members, who voiced their opinion during the  often - spirited open forum at the convention. 

“It’s hard to vote on [a proposed 8.5 percent dues] increase based on past  performance we’ve seen of cleaning out the system,” said Bill Parker of the Best  Western At The Junction in White River Junction, Vt. “[To paraphrase the movie “Jerry McGuire”] show us some action and we’ll show you some money.”  The inconsistency issue took the spotlight after a national travel writer reported that she stayed at a “scuzzy” Best Western property. The potential  negative publicity from such a comment can’t be taken lightly, Best Western  officials said. 

Don Seaton, Best Western’s chairman of the board, said there are cries at every  open forum about getting substandard properties out of the system. The irony is  that the “scuzzy” motel mentioned is still in the system, he said. 

That could change, however. 

“You’ve told your board in the strongest possible terms on several occasions  that we need to clean house,” Seaton said. “Properties that can’t or won’t  renovate and meet standards need to be removed from the system.” 

The purging of substandard properties most likely won’t begin until the company  finds out whether members voted to increase the annual dues. If members do not  approve the increase, quality control could take a hit, according to officials. 

Mike Scholz, vice chairman of the company’s board of directors, said the  importance of taking care of substandard properties can’t be underestimated.  “An overwhelming majority [of Best Western properties] meet or exceed  current  standards,” he said. “Best Western is only as good as a customer’s last  experience.” 

John Van Duyn, a member of the board of directors, presented a program that  featured four properties that maintained or developed high-quality standards  through renovations and reconstruction—the cornerstones for a consistent brand. 

Bob Galligan of the Adams Inn in Quincy, Mass., told attendees the best way to  maintain the competitive edge is to remember that a Best Western property is not  just a simple real-estate investment—it’s a business. 

“Protecting your investment means cleaning up your own act and not putting up  with less than that from other members,” he said. 

Best Western’s Global Research Steering Committee drafted strategic  recommendations for consideration by the BWI board to address the quality issue,  including: 

• strict enforcement of the company’s quality-assurance system; 
• development of property scoring (quality assurance, design, services) based on  consumer testing; 
• reassessment of minimum standards to ensure alignment with consumer  expectations; 
• improvement or elimination of properties below minimum standards; and 
• focused development on properties at or above Best Western average.