Upping the Customer Service Ante with Real Time, In Ear Translation

Communicating with others is a vital part of the human experience, however, it can be difficult to find someone that speaks your language when travelling internationally. When you do, what joy! The guest experience improves dramatically. For hotels in major cities that are frequently visited by international tourists, staff members with multilingual skills are sought after. But it can be difficult to find staff who speak the specific languages needed by the hotel. Now, with the advent of technology, this is a hurdle that is becoming easier to overcome. Waverly Labs, pioneers of smart earpiece translators, recently debuted its Ambassador Interpreter earpiece which offers translations in 20 languages and 42 dialects. To learn more about this technology and how it can benefit the hotel industry, HT spoke with Andrew Ochoa, CEO and co-founder of Waverly Labs.

Tell us about your translation technology.

Ambassador Interpreter is a shareable, over-the-ear device that provides prosumers with highly accurate and natural translations. Designed to help users in most situations, including one-one-one conversations and larger group discussions, Ambassador Interpreter’s translations can be delivered through over-the-ear audio, text on its smart app and broadcasted live in a conference environment. This allows users to enjoy Ambassador Interpreter in any situation including individual conversations with hotel guests, small meetings with employees and larger business presentations or lectures. It is compatible with 20 languages and 42 dialects.

We designed Ambassador Interpreter to be simple to use. It can be setup in just a few moments and up to four Ambassador Interpreter units can be paired with one smartphone, through its iOS or Android app. From there, users can select and change the language they wish to detect and interpret as well as select the mode they wish to receive translations (Listen mode, Lecture mode, or Converse mode), depending on the situation and how many people are participating in the conversation.

How might hotels and restaurants use this technology?

We designed Ambassador Interpreter to be a helpful tool in most business settings and see a wide range of use cases for hotels. With its three translation mode options, Ambassador Interpreter can easily be used in a variety of situations. This includes hotel staff providing an international traveler with a seamless check in experience or a concierge offering restaurant suggestions to a guest through clear translations. Additionally, hotel management can easily conduct a training session with staff members who each speak different native languages with Ambassador Interpreter. Finally, for guests hosting conferences or lectures at a hotel, they can use Ambassador Interpreter’s Lecture mode to make sure that everyone in the audience can fully understand their presentation. 

Ambassador Interpreter can be used in a variety of ways at a restaurant. A couple of examples include servers using the translation tool to engage with and take orders from international patrons. Staff can also use Ambassador Interpreter to communicate with each other and conduct morning meetings.

By eliminating language as an obstacle, restaurants can provide a much higher level of service and run more efficiently.

How is this technology improving the guest experience?

Ambassador Interpreter is a great tool to improve guest experiences because it provides simple and hygienic ways for venue staff to engage with their customers in various situations.

With the ability to translate 20 languages and 42 dialects, the over-the-ear device eliminates language barriers or the need for staff to wait for a particular employee to be available to communicate with a guest. Four Ambassador Interpreters can also be paired with one phone so multiple people who speak different languages can converse without any issues. Additionally, translations can be delivered through the device, via text on the accompanying app or broadcasted live in a conference setting to allow for flexibility and the ability for users to enjoy clear translations in any setting.

Whether staff need to have one-on-one conversations with guests or are helping guests prepare for a conference, Ambassador Interpreter helps guests enjoy their time at a venue in any situation.

How is this technology helping improve back-end operations?

We see Ambassador Interpreter helping back-end operations in a similar way it helps with guest experiences. Ambassador Interpreter makes communication more seamless between employees which creates a more efficient work environment. It also invites the opportunity to create a more diverse work environment because there is an easy way to communicate between employees when using Ambassador Interpreter.