“People don’t mind paying $15 for an avocado toast, but it’s an entire mission to convince a hotel guest to pay the same price for a coworking.”

This is not my quote, I heard it from one Belgian hotelier who tried really hard to build a revenue stream with a coworking space.

He succeeded, but not by charging for a coworking space.

Let me explain to you how.To attract business clients, hotels traditionally build meeting spaces.

More business clients you want to attract, the more spaces of different sizes and types you offer.

I’ve seen hundreds of such places, and they all look the same (kind of).

Most of these meeting spaces are not designed for productive work, even if they are ironically presented this way.

Spotty wifi, uncomfortable chairs, not inspiring rooms, often without any natural light.

Convert one of these meeting súaces (the one with natural light!) into a coworking space and I will show you how to make it a significant revenue stream (not by selling day passes or memberships).

That doesn't mean you shouldn't have meeting spaces, they bring a lot of revenue (Rooms + F&B).

Coworking models that I've seen working:

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1/ Coworking as a tool to sell more rooms

• You build coworking as a marketing tool that will help you to sell more rooms (you can package it or offer a free upgrade)
  
• That will attract individual bookings of a new type of guest (these type of guest might be invisible for you now and your hotel invisible to them)
  
• You will get a new type of "corporate client" (not IBM-type folks)
  
• Companies like Surf Office will make your hotel a preferred venue for their group bookings
  
• Example: Coachman Lake Tahoe‍

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‍2/ Free coworking, then upsell

• You don't charge for coworking
  
• That attracts a lot of new guests as well coworkers from the neighborhood (great marketing as these are going to recommend your hotel to all their friends)
  
• You can minimize staff costs ("order at the bar") and maximize the revenue from F&B - specialty coffee, prepared sandwiches, and cakes
  
• You upsell related services: meeting spaces, phone booths, podcasting rooms, etc.
  
• Example: Volkshotel Amsterdam

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‍3/ "Mini WeWork" inside of your hotel

• You offer affordable monthly coworking passes in a shared coworking
  
• But then you focus on selling small private office spaces to local companies and startups
  
• Example: Onsite coworkings of The Social Hub

1/ can work anywhere. 2/ and 3/ mainly in the cities, for obvious reasons.