In their 2018 Travel & Hospitality industry outlook Deloitte reported fantastic growth, with $1.6 trillion spent on travel bookings. In 2017, the travel industry’s GDP grew by 4.6% contributing a remarkable 10.4% towards world GDP, the World Travel & Tourism Council reported last year. This rapid increase in tourism provides hospitality companies with great initiatives and opportunities in the coming decade.
Speaking of opportunity, the merger of hospitality and technology is essential to enhance the guest experience in an ever-growing but competitive market. This includes having a sound digital presence, a robust hotel I.T. infrastructure, and credible managed tech partners.
Cutting edge developments in CRM (Customer Relationship Management) apps have helped to analyze guest satisfaction & behaviors. Similarly, the widespread use of POS (Point of Sale) tools has also allowed hotels to considerably improve earnings.
Technology can do wonders to deliver delightful guest experiences with IoT integration including mobile apps, personalized offers, self-check-ins, biometric locks, business services, smart rooms etc. with much more to come. We take a look at five important factors that establish how hotel technology can help attract new guests and improve the experience of repeat guests.
Big Data & Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence tools & CRM software are two of the most valuable tools that hotel owners can employ to attract new guests. Using machine learning and data analysis to their advantage, hotel owners can deliver a superior personalized experience to new guests.
Thousands of terabytes of user data accumulated over years of service is sometimes left redundant on servers. Employing data analysis tools for information on reservations, offered services, amenities, cancellations, guest demographics, etc. can offer great insights into developing new offerings and deliver better service.
Knowing exactly when to deliver offers to potential customers and existing guests would be amazing wouldn’t it? That is exactly what big data can determine with a few relevant metrics. Big data can also unlock crucial insights including most popular hotel services, common channels of contact, most wanted amenities by guests etc.
Big data can pave the way for improved revenue management systems, interaction tools, marketing, staffing, and new amenities. Not only do these technologies impact the Guest Satisfaction Index score, but brings about new ways to earn revenue.
Similarly, using AI to the hotel’s advantage has become very popular especially in the North American hospitality sector. Colliers International conclude in their 2018 hospitality report that, integrating AI solutions can bring about a 10% growth in revenue while it can lead to a 15% reduction in expenses.
The Cosmopolitan hotel in Las Vegas recently introduced Rose, a robot concierge connected to the hotel’s property management system. The Rose concierge chat-bot has a cutting edge A.I. interface allowing her to greet guests and cater to their requests over a phone number. Guests can then message Rose’s A.I. for room service, booking amenities like spa & conference rooms, book tours, make reservations, order food, and much more.
Virtual Reality Demos
Breakthroughs in VR technology are already changing the way people watch movies game online, and shop online. The industry is predicted to grow to a massive $19 billion by 2020 from a meagre $2.2 billion in 2017. William Hung discusses in his blog how more than 70% of travellers who stay at hotels are highly interested in VR tech.
Hotels are not far behind in adapting to the benefits VR brings to their services. Several hotel brands have already begun offering live virtual-reality demos that VR goggle owners can enjoy to experience elegant hotels in real time. Here is a magnificent VR demo experience from Marriott International Group, who adopted VR back in 2015:
Not only is it a brilliant way to show your guests the elite experience you get at the hotel, but also a superb way to onboard prospect customers.
Property Management Systems (PMS)
Irrespective of their size, every hotel should have its own dedicated PMS to manage the vast operations across the hotel. A property management system is a brilliant tech that connects employees and services across the entire hotel from check-ins to room service. A synchronized database will ensure employees have instant access to guest information and activities reducing time lost in calls.
A well managed PMS also provides great opportunity to deliver a superior guest experience, keeping waiting times to a minimal and delivering instant service. Another great use of this technology is to integrate it with an intuitive & well designed mobile app to allow guests to manage services while they are staying at the hotel.
Signature Mobile Apps
Signature mobile apps are the way of the future for any business in the digital age. Providing your guests absolute control over their stay and superior comfort through a mobile app is a brilliant way to attract new customers in 2019.
A dedicated mobile app is now the single most important tool to keep your guests engaged with your hotel and its services, 24 hours. From laundry to spa appointments, and from tour bookings to check out a well designed mobile app can act as a virtual concierge for your guests.
In her blog Krista McLandress mentions a 13% decline in online bookings through official hotel brand apps, the reason poorly designed mobile software. The secret ingredient of great digital customer service is a highly optimized mobile app.
Hotel brand mobile apps should not be restricted to being only a reservation system, it should be able to go the extra mile for guests. For instance, the Ritz Carlton uses its intuitive app to deliver push notifications, special offers & discounts, in-app messages and much more.
Mobile apps can also help enhance the guest experience by acting as an always available concierge. Delivering location based suggestions for site tours, restaurants, shopping malls, hospitals, theme parks can all help with providing your guests with a more personalized experience.
The brilliant aspect of mobile apps is their ability to keep your guests involved & engaged with your brand even after their stay is over. Your guest should be able to share their experiences to social feeds, which in turn allows easier on-boarding through social networks. Once your guest is back home, sending them routine updates & discounts is a great way to engage them for future visits.
As it happens, mobile apps constantly gather data and usage habits of guests based on their interaction with the app. Hotel owners can readily analyse this data to make important decisions like staffing, introducing new facilities, and improve existing services.
How Advanced Hospitality Technologies Helps You Achieve Your Guest Technology Experience Goals?
At Advanced Hospitality, we seek to enhance your guest technology experience with breakthrough I.T. infrastructures. From planning to opening your doors, our immensely experienced project managers, general contractors of technology, and support engineers persevere to keep your guests engaged with your hotel.
We also provide you with sound security infrastructure, to protect your guests’ privacy and their data. In addition, we provide your staff with leading security guidelines through proper training courses.
Advanced Hospitality believes in staying ahead of the competition. Hence, we offer our exclusive ‘white glove services’ to all our clients. We standby proactively monitoring your existing I.T. infrastructures, diagnose vulnerabilities, constantly improve security, identify renovations, and introduce new technologies to hotel properties to ensure future proof hospitality solutions for guests.
Advanced Hospitality Technologies is a leader in Hospitality Technologies. We have an award winning benchmark for providing affordable, reliable and most advanced hospitality Technology Solutions.
