How Technology Is Empowering Hotel Guests & Staff
How is technology helping to reinvent the hotel guest experience?
Hotels are empowering guests with mobile applications to book stays, view loyalty progress, get hotel information, deploy contactless technology for check-in/check-out with mobile room keys, and improve check-in to provide a seamless and safer experience for guests. The use of personalization and loyalty programs would allow hotels to collect and analyze guest data to improve offers and enhance guest experience. From room preferences to tailored recommendations and special offers integrating localization of the stay for services and things to do outside of the property such as partner offers, local entertainment, special events and suggested restaurants.
Please speak to the benefits of tech tools in supporting hotel operations and workforce training and retention.
Innovative Property Management Systems that allows the staff to provide assistance while speaking or serving the guests, helps streamline hotel services, such as ordering, reservations, billing and improving overall efficiency. Advanced employee training technology that aids in onboarding and continuous training through e-learning platforms ensures staff members are well-equipped with the necessary skills and on-brand guest interactions. Improving communications to facilitate real-time information sharing among staff, leading to improved coordination and quicker responses.
Our data suggests that top lodging technology initiatives in the coming year include driving guest loyalty, improving analytics, and enhancing data security. Can you speak to best practices in leveraging data?
Think every day in terms of your guests; Know me, Recognize me, Reward me for my value.
60% of customers would share information about themselves to be part of a program and value exchange with the brand. - This data is behavioral data - “Know Me” data.
30-60% of sales revenue or stays is driven by loyalty members. - Recognize my value to the brand “Recognize me”
40-45% of loyalty members say belonging to a loyalty program influences their stay. - “Reward me” for my loyalty. This is reciprocity and elevates me to advocate for the brand to others.
58% of hotel customers do not belong to a loyalty program - no affinity to a brand. - This is an opportunity and a huge land grab for smart marketers.
More Leisure travelers are aligning with a brand in a loyalty program. - This speaks volumes for the direction that we as marketers and technology professionals must move.
Creating personalized loyalty programs, helps provide true guest value that is shared by the brand and recognises the guest with authentic targeted promotions and tailored experiences enhancing guest satisfaction and long term value.
Using data collected from the guest to improve how you treat, reward and share your hotel brand value, helps understand guest behavior, not just spending patterns. Use booking patterns and preferences to enable hotels to optimize pricing, marketing strategies, operational efficiency and motivating offers for incremental stays.
Best Practices in Leveraging Data:
Centralize your customer data to make it actionable.
Move towards real-time data to respond promptly to changing trends, industry landscape and guest preferences.
Ask questions and reward guests for feedback and reviews to identify areas for improvement and innovation to crush the competition.
Our survey data also suggests that hoteliers are more open than ever to redefining tech ROI. How can hotel operators more accurately calculate the benefits of tech investments?
By defining the objectives that will clearly outline the metrics that you wish to measure, making sure your focus is on the guest. With a by-product for technology investment, whether it's improving operational efficiency, enhancing guest experience, or boosting revenue. Be open to the fact that the technology investment may not provide a direct measurable immediate value. This value may come from other key performance indicators such as increased occupancy rates, higher customer satisfaction scores, or reduced operational costs. Consider the long-term impact of technology on both guest satisfaction and operational efficiency to assess its true value.
Recognize that you may need to look at different metrics to explain the benefits of technology. This may not always be immediately quantifiable. Incorporate metrics related to guest experience and satisfaction, as these factors contribute significantly to the overall success of a hotel.
In summary, the integration of technology in the hotel industry is reshaping the guest experience, streamlining operations, and providing valuable insights through data analysis. Hoteliers should adopt best practices in leveraging data and embrace a flexible approach to calculating tech ROI to stay ahead in the evolving landscape.
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