By Virginia Van Zandt
It’s every marketing executive’s worst nightmare: a celebrity visits their establishment only to end up blasting them on social media.
That’s what happened when Dave Portnoy, social media personality and owner of Barstool Sports, checked into a $5,000-per-night suite at Marriott’s The Edition Hotel in Tampa, Florida. Portnoy posted a nearly three minute video of the suite on X, where he denounced the luxurious establishment as “the worst hotel in the United States of America [for the money].”
“For $5k for Tampa, I’m going to have an infinity pool, overlook the water, gonna have a masseuse… this is an average suite,” said Portnoy in the video, which has 5.1 million views so far.
“They just made the bed, didn’t clean the sheets. This is the most disgusting rip-off. I am being a consumer advocate. They should shut this hotel down and start over again,” said Portnoy. “If you stay here after hearing this, you are a moron and an idiot, and they deserve to steal your money. Shame on this hotel. Disgusting.”
LATE NIGHT WITH SETH MEYERS — Episode 554 — Pictured: (l-r) Dave Portnoy, host of Barstool Sports, ... [+]
While Portnoy enjoys millions of dollars and millions of fans, he is no stranger to controversy. Students from several New England colleges protested Barstool Sports in 2012 after Portnoy joked about rape and skinny jeans. Portnoy was detained twice in NFL-related incidents, including in 2015 for protesting Deflategate at NFL’s headquarters in Manhattan and again in 2019 for creating fake passes for a Super Bowl LIII press event in Atlanta. Portnoy was also investigated by the National Labor Relations Board in 2019 after he posted a tweet threatening to fire Barstool Sports employees over unionizing.
Portnoy’s fans praise his creation of Barstool Sports, a local newspaper-turned-franchise that focuses on sports journalism and pop-culture content, and his commitment to small businesses. Portnoy raised $29 million for small businesses that struggled to survive during the Covid-19 pandemic through a Barstool Sport’s relief fund.
Portnoy’s least favorite hotel, The Edition, was recently opened by Mariott in 2022 with great fanfare.
“The new-build luxury hotel debuted in October 2022 in Water Street Tampa, the world’s first WELL-certified community that embraces wellbeing and sustainability,” according to Forbes Travel Guide. The Forbes Travel Guide has not yet rated the Edition Hotel.
Portnoy’s complaint has the potential to cause marketing and brand damage to Marriott, which owns The Edition Hotel, because of his large social media following, including 3 million followers on X, 3.6 million followers on TikTok, and nearly 5 million followers on Instagram. Portnoy’s fanbase is largely made up of men in their 20s and 30s who follow sports.
Users are already divided over Portnoy’s comments on social media:
“This IKEA showroom is not worth $1K a night,” said @seanagnew on X.
Another X user had a different take: “Who would ever pay $5k a night for a hotel and if so, why?” said @BornToRoamX2.
Some fans are even asking Portnoy to expand his famous series called “One Bite Pizza Rankings,” in which he reviews pizza parlors based off his first bite and posts the results to his 1.2 million subscribers on YouTube, to the luxury hotel industry: “One night. Everybody knows the rules,” said @bigkevshotit on X, echoing Portnoy’s catchphrase.
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - NOVEMBER 8: Barstool founder and CEO Dave Portnoy is seen before the Florida ... [+]
Portnoy has over 1,000 pizza reviews, some of which have saved or devastated small businesses. If Portnoy traded “one bite” reviews for “one night” reviews, the high-end hotel industry may be in big trouble.
Marriott’s brand is already vulnerable. High-end travel agents are reporting that their clients have been criticizing Mariott hotels for a year.
“What Dave Portnoy is complaining about is what happens, at the high end of the market, when trendy corporate progressivism gets ahead of customer service. When my clients check-in to a hotel room that is more than $1,000 per night, they do what they call the water bottle test. They count the number of water bottles and whether they are the ugly boxed water containers or high-end plastic or glass. They expect to see at 5 bottles of water,” said David Eisen, CEO of LuxRally Travel, a boutique travel agency focusing on unique needs of discerning travelers. LuxRally Travel customers typically spend more than $2,000 per night on hotel stays and make 10 trips per year, according to Eisen.
“Another test my high-end clients use is whether the sheets are washed daily. Many corporations think they are saving the planet by washing the sheets once per stay whether you are staying there 2 nights or 5 or longer. Clients who are paying more than $1,000 per night expect their sheets to be washed every day and their towels replaced,” said Eisen.
The Marriott hotel chain touts concerns about their environmental impact on their website: “While integrating sustainability across our value chain and mitigating climate-related risk, we are working to reduce our environmental impact, build and operate sustainable hotels and source responsibly.”
Eisen says Portnoy’s sentiments are indicative of a larger trend within the high-end travel business.
“More and more of my high-end clients are moving away from Marriott properties, like the Edition in Tampa that annoyed Dave Portnoy. They have noticed that prices have gone up and quality has gone down and are very sensitive to these changes. Instead of listening to the trendy consultants, major hotel brands should listen to their high end customers,” said Eisen. “Even if those customers say they want to save the planet, they still want value for money. Lots of business travelers will follow the lead of the high end of the market. These corporations seduced by consultants are leading them away from the best customers and damaging their brands in the market.”
For a high-end hotels to successfully charge high prices, the details must be worth the cost.
Bedroom with sea view over the tropical Pacific Ocean at luxury hotel accommodation, Muri, ... [+]
“Some high-end hotel brands understand the luxury market. Rosewood, Belmond, Aman they actually provide plenty of high quality water bottles, give you free sheets and towels everyday, restock your minibar, and do much, much more. As a result they are already taking customers away from Marriott properties, including a lot of my customers.”
While Portnoy’s rant is a nightmare scenario for marketing executives, there are tools and tricks for dealing with crisis communications like this.
“The tone of your response gives the public a glimpse of who you are and how you handle criticism,” said Nate Miller, CEO of Miller Ink, a PR firm based in Los Angeles.
“Being upbeat, positive and maybe bringing even a little bit of humor in this circumstance can help take some air out of his [Portnoy’s] argument. One carefully calibrated response is all I would advise,” said Miller. “A big brand like Marriott is not going to be felled by Portnoy. And if they strike the right tone they might even gain some customers in the process.”
Miller thinks that the video’s 5 million views warrants a response from Marriott. (The brand has not released a statement so far.)
“Assuming that someone has a big enough platform, if you have a smart and thoughtful and dynamic response that understands your target audience and customer base, it’s usually better to say something and not completely ignore it,” said Miller.
Marriott’s press contact did not respond to Zenger’s request for comment in time for publication.
