By now, you know how I look at the world through the lens of customer experience. Two weeks ago, a friend and blogreader who works at Choice Hotels reached out to me.

He thought I may be able to help with some upcoming initiatives.

Obviously a great opportunity for me, and my trip to NJ last week gave me a chance to get into the "mind of the customer."

I stayed at the Quality Inn-Ledgewood and brought a bit of a critical eye to it, which was fun.

The question for me: how do I look at it from the perspective of a customer (identify problems) and a potential consultant (offer solutions, or at least the questions around them).

The good news, I was generally pleased. Personally, I look for only three things in my hotel stay.

1. is the room clean?
2. is high-speed internet available and free? (I hate nickel and diming)
3. Is there a fitness room?

Yes, on all counts, and good value for the money (data point of one).

A few things that I would change.

1. the sign outside was not lit up. I actually drove past the hotel because I didn't see it during the twilight hours. Make it EASY to find you.
2. It'd be great to have coffee cup lids in the room. There is a coffee maker and cups. I wanted to take the cup with me in the car, but no lid, so no dice. Make it more business-traveler (if you want)
3. The smoking in the hotel. My room was fine, but, man, were there a LOT of rooms where people were smoking (both legal and illegal stuff-Yes, I know what it smells like). Would love to do a better job of having those rooms bifurcated. Right now, that's  a factor in my decision to return...or not. (This is an experience killer)

Obviously I'm a data point of one, but I think there's an opportunity for them to develop a culture of listening towards a specific demographic (say business travelers) and then share that info out with their franchise owners.

I'll start: what are your basic needs (i.e. minimum requirements) for a hotel stay?