How Hotels Can Use Technology to Provide Better Guest Experience
From the smallest, most pleasant eateries to the grandest, most luxurious hotels, cutting-edge technology has become standard stuff throughout the hospitality industry. Even before they set foot in the building, guests’ impressions of your brand will have been affected by digital change. Knowing the importance of technology to your customers’ stay is essential in today’s competitive hospitality industry. Gone are the days when hotels could afford to regard technology as a luxury for their guests.
Here are a few ways hotels can use the technology to provide a better guest experience:
Go Mobile:
When used correctly, some hospitality industry trends may set a hotel apart as a cutting-edge, future-proof business. For instance, switching from a traditional operation to a cloud-based property management system (PMS) will help you provide your visitors with better service. Thanks to the cloud-based nature of the service, you may do the vast majority of your administration tasks from the convenience of your mobile device.
With a Cloud PMS, you can access all of your hotel management data from any device, anywhere. This allows your team to better serve guests by providing them with the most complete and consistent experience possible. When deciding to reserve a room at your hotel, the first point of contact your customers will have will be with your hotel’s booking engine.
More and more people are using their mobile devices to make purchases and pay for goods and services, thus it stands to reason that a mobile-friendly booking engine would lead to an increase in direct bookings and a higher profit margin. While your booking engine is great for first-time visitors, frequent business travelers and event planners may want a different system. When taking bookings for big groups or corporations, having a centralized reservation and management system that can cross-reference information like room availability, pricing, and client profiles across all of your sites may be invaluable.
Automation:
Some people have a negative impression of automation because of the common perception that it is a soulless process that leads to job losses for humans. That is completely not the case. Innovations in hotel technology have given welcome respite to both staff and visitors. Good management is crucial to the smooth operation of any business, and every leader worth their salt understands that by freeing up workers from the more mundane and time-consuming elements of their job, they can focus their efforts where they will have the most impact.
As a result of technological advancements in lodging, visitors may now customize their room’s atmosphere to their liking. They may adjust the brightness of the lights or the temperature of the room from anywhere, using an app on their phone or the tablet provided in the room. On the other hand, a mobile housekeeping solution may be used by your employees to rapidly update the status of the rooms they have serviced, therefore informing the front desk that the rooms are ready for the arrival of new guests. Automation’s benefits to hotel guests and staff have been shown via decreased complaints and increased loyalty.
Assist Your Guests:
Today’s vacationers expect to participate actively in planning their trips. Technologies in hotels are seen as a preventative measure to address problems before they ever occur. You may be certain that your guests will not only be pleased but will have come to anticipate a comprehensive range of amenities designed to make their stay as pleasant as possible. This isn’t a whim call, but a practical one.
Technology at the hotel has been updated to meet the growing expectation of guests for instant gratification and little effort in obtaining their needs. No of the purpose of their visit, guests despise standing in line, so it shouldn’t be surprising that they want a way to check in before they even arrive at the hotel, or at least have the option to do it electronically.
Self-service kiosks are ideal for situations like these. Our customers may check-in, register, and get their keys without ever interacting with a member of your staff thanks to these convenient services. They have perfect control over when they arrive and when they depart since they can simply repeat the procedure.
Your hotel’s self-service app also allows guests to arrange transportation to and from the airport, as well as other amenities, including making dinner reservations. If they utilize their reservation, the waiter may charge their bill to their hotel room via a restaurant POS system (POS). In addition, if your visitors are worried that they may be overpaying, they may see their charges in their e-folio using the hotel’s self-service app.
Customize:
Adding a special touch to a guest’s stay is always appreciated, and it’s simpler than ever before with tools like a hotel self-service app to anticipate their every need. Customers who have already made a reservation with you may use the app to pay for a room upgrade or other services after downloading it for free. Guests will have something to look forward to when they arrive, and your employees will get valuable insight. The addition of a personalized offer to each visitor is a terrific method to show them that they are special. If it seems personalized, they are more inclined to make the buy or upgrade.
Feedback:
Your visitors will evaluate the quality of your services for free, whether you want them to or not. Other companies pay consultants or hire “hidden” customers to accomplish this. A hotel’s reputation is built on the service it provides, and online reviews are an indispensable part of that. Traditional in-house surveys still have value because guests who take the time to fill them out are more likely to provide the thoughtful, helpful feedback your company needs without the hostility that sometimes accompanies internet comments.
Also, thanks to developments in hospitality IT, you may conduct your survey without their physical presence. The information you get through your direct booking engine, such as the guest’s email address, may be used to send them the survey, prompt a thoughtful response, and serve as a gentle reminder of their recent stay. Responding to guest reviews with a personalized email shows that you care about what they have to say, which may lead to a higher satisfaction rating and more bookings.