Celtic Manor Resort Allows Guests to Instant Message Hotel Staff
As a resort operating across 2,000 acres of parkland — including a golf course and walking trails — Celtic Manor Resort’s greatest challenge was figuring out how to enhance its guest experience. The resort initially created a Guest Services Team, which was meant to give guests a one-stop shop for all their needs while they were at the resort.?This was a massive success — so much so that the resort saw a rapid increase in calls. To help deal with the call volume, the resort started looking at ways to communicate with guests that reduced pressure on the phones. The resort is always looking for new and innovative ways to create a better guest experience and it knew from the get-go that it didn't want to rely on email communication. What it really wanted was a real-time solution that allowed guests to send a message to staff and receive a reply back immediately.
The resort began by primarily looking for app-based and real-time products. During its search, it found Benbria's Loop Messenger platform. The resort liked that there was no need for guests to download an app and that guests could access resort staff via text message using their own devices. For the resort, the solution felt simple and intuitive.?
Celtic Manor began using Loop in June 2016. After provisioning a model configuration for the resort, Benbria offered access to Loop via the cloud using a username and password. The installation process was easy, from an operational perspective. It required participation between Benbria, the resort’s PMS vendor, and the hotel team to coordinate. Once all the systems were linked, Benbria then tested the workflow.
Celtic Manor also opted to introduce the Loop OnDemand part of the solution. OnDemand has a menu-based interface that gives guests the opportunity to request items, such as towels and shampoo, using their mobile phones. The Benbria team helped customize the solution for Celtic Manor’s unique guest needs, provided leader-led training and coaching on best practices, and were always on hand to assist resort staff when they needed it.
The most important outcome, for the resort, was that it now has multiple ways for guests to contact its Guest Services Team. The resort believes that a good guest experience must offer guests as many ways as possible to communicate with the resort, ask for assistance, and offer feedback. The telephones are still available for guests who want to use it, but for the resort’s more tech-savvy guests, of which there are many, it means that they can now use their mobile devices to communicate with staff.
While Loop has not replaced all of the calls the resort receives, it gave the resort more insight into its guests’ needs and preferences. The Celtic Manor now receives as many as 46 Loop messages per day.
Additionally, since traditional methods for making requests, like calling the front desk or operator, are not always recorded, it can be hard for the resort to accurately pinpoint trends impacting guest satisfaction. Using natural language processing, Loop analyzes messages and response times, and provides the resort with insights that help it understand trends and make operational changes to optimize the guest experience.
The resort began by primarily looking for app-based and real-time products. During its search, it found Benbria's Loop Messenger platform. The resort liked that there was no need for guests to download an app and that guests could access resort staff via text message using their own devices. For the resort, the solution felt simple and intuitive.?
Celtic Manor began using Loop in June 2016. After provisioning a model configuration for the resort, Benbria offered access to Loop via the cloud using a username and password. The installation process was easy, from an operational perspective. It required participation between Benbria, the resort’s PMS vendor, and the hotel team to coordinate. Once all the systems were linked, Benbria then tested the workflow.
Celtic Manor also opted to introduce the Loop OnDemand part of the solution. OnDemand has a menu-based interface that gives guests the opportunity to request items, such as towels and shampoo, using their mobile phones. The Benbria team helped customize the solution for Celtic Manor’s unique guest needs, provided leader-led training and coaching on best practices, and were always on hand to assist resort staff when they needed it.
The most important outcome, for the resort, was that it now has multiple ways for guests to contact its Guest Services Team. The resort believes that a good guest experience must offer guests as many ways as possible to communicate with the resort, ask for assistance, and offer feedback. The telephones are still available for guests who want to use it, but for the resort’s more tech-savvy guests, of which there are many, it means that they can now use their mobile devices to communicate with staff.
While Loop has not replaced all of the calls the resort receives, it gave the resort more insight into its guests’ needs and preferences. The Celtic Manor now receives as many as 46 Loop messages per day.
Additionally, since traditional methods for making requests, like calling the front desk or operator, are not always recorded, it can be hard for the resort to accurately pinpoint trends impacting guest satisfaction. Using natural language processing, Loop analyzes messages and response times, and provides the resort with insights that help it understand trends and make operational changes to optimize the guest experience.