Hospitality Technology Trends: How Does your Hotel Stack Up?

Technology is certainly changing the way people travel and is shifting hotel guest’s expectations. Incorporating new and innovative technologies into your guest’s experience can enhance their satisfaction, attract new guests, free up your staff’s time and positively impact your hotel’s bottom line. Is your hotel’s technology up to par? Check out the current trends that are shaping the hospitality industry.

Mobility

Trends in mobility have led to an increased expectation of immediacy, especially when it comes to service. Before a guest’s stay, mobile booking, a mobile-friendly website, and pre-stay communications via text message or email make their experience easy from the get-go. When guests arrive, mobile check-in makes waiting in a long line a thing of the past. In many hotels, guests can connect their hotel phone with their cell phone to communicate with hotel staff, send requests via text message, and more while on the move. Mobility allows the guest to have a seamless experience wherever they are.

Apps

Self-service is definitely “in” and a dedicated mobile app for guests is something many hotels are trying out. Basically, a “concierge at your fingertips,” allowing customers to make requests, control in-suite amenities, learn about the nearby neighborhood, view room service menus, and more via an app is a small investment that completely revolutionizes the way hotel staff and guests communicate.

Keyless entry

Many hotels have adopted a keyless entry system where a guest’s mobile phone can be scanned to allow access to their room, shared spaces, and more during their stay. Guests no longer have to remember their key when they leave their room or rummage through their bag to find it when they get to their door. Since most people carry their phones with them constantly, keyless entry is a hassle-free solution. It can even be a more secure option as a guest is probably more likely to lose a plastic key than their phone.

Predictive analytics

Hotels have the ability to increase customer satisfaction and revenue by using data. For example, by tracking and analyzing guest’s purchase patterns, you may conclude that if a guest purchases X, they are more likely to purchase Y. Or, you may be able to conclude that a certain product, service, or upgrade is purchased more during a specific time of year, such as spring break or Christmas vacation. Guest communications can then be tailored to these findings.

Upgraded business centers

Hotels are moving towards business centers or “tech centers” that are savvy and up-to-date. Business travelers these days care less about big conference tables and comfortable chairs and more about easy and accessible technology such as videoconferencing capabilities, large TVs, access to printers, etc.

Cloud-based systems

Businesses all over the world are updating to mostly cloud-based technology. With a cloud property management system, hotel staff can manage almost everything from a single dashboard. Hotel and customer data and information is stored safely and securely. Furthermore, the initial investment tends to be much smaller than a completely on-premise solution and can scale up or down as demand fluctuates.

Chatbots & robots

Using artificial intelligence, hotels are able to respond to customers faster than ever. Realizing that most guests prefer to text vs. call when they need something, hotels are adopting chatbots where guests simply send a question via a text message and a bot responds. Chatbots can provide restaurant and bar recommendations, take guest requests, answer questions about an upgrade, and more. Some hotels are even testing robot concierge services where a robot delivers room service orders and other requests to the guest’s door.

If you haven’t made some of these upgrades to your hotel’s technology, now is the time. Learn about Warwick’s hospitality services and call us today to get started.