The cost of providing guests with better customer experience in hotels is far outweighed by the returns possible from such action.

Improving guest experience is vital for the success of a hotel, but there are still questions surrounding the potential returns on investing in hospitality customer experience, especially as guests’ preferences have evolved after the past decade to include hotel technology and innovation.

Hotels that have a better guest experience than competitors realize higher revenue and customer retention, according to studies.

Guests who have positive previous experiences spend 140 percent more than those who have negative ones.

Also, customers who give high ratings for previous experiences have a 74 percent chance of still being a subscribed customer a year later, which is nearly 30 percent more than a customer with a poor previous experience.

And despite fears about the costs associated with guest experience technology, improvements are shown to reduce overall hotel costs. Telecommunications company Sprint reported a reduction in customer care costs of 33% due to initiatives that improved customer experience.

A 5-year study of various companies showed that those providing exceptional customer experience performed 128% better than those not focusing on improving customer experience and enjoyed smaller loss on returns.

What next? Contact our team to develop a guest experience strategy that will help you increase guest satisfaction, generate revenue and improve operations.

For more information on how hotel technology can give you a competitive edge when it comes to improving the guest experience, schedule a free consultation with industry experts.

Are hospitality technology trends innovating hotel rooms quickly enough to maintain guest satisfaction at peak levels?

Mobile hotel technology is a hot topic when it comes to hospitality technology trends and the future of the industry. Report after report has established that hotel guests love mobile devices for engagement and guest service, such as through a virtual hotel concierge.

Travelers now carry more mobile devices than ever (three to four on average for business travelers). And 60 percent of general global travelers say they wouldn’t vacation at all without a mobile device, while nearly 4 in 10 say they’re more dependent on mobile devices when on vacation than at home.

Mobile devices are more important to your hotel guests than anything else in their suitcase, according to new surveys. Items that ranked below or equal to mobile devices in importance:

• Car
• Deodorant
• Laptop/PC
• TV
• Microwave
• Coffee
• Social Networking

What about the Millennials in your hotel? Mobile phones not only ranked above these items for the majority of them but also toothbrushes and the Internet. Mobile technology is so vital to your hotel guests that nearly half in any age demographic would reportedly give up alcohol to recover a smartphone that was taken away.

With information like this, why is it that some hotels offer toothbrushes and toothpaste but still haven’t invested in fully incorporating mobile technology into the hotel guest experience?

It’s been about a decade since the first iPhone was released. The time for hotels to embrace mobile technology is now.

New mobile hotel technology, such as hotel in-room tablets and hotel apps, are more readily available than ever. And the potential ROI of mobile technology in hotels far outweighs the initial investment required.

Hotel guests are already showing a strong positive response to new mobile hotel technology, including both hotel apps and hotel in-room tablets.

The Crawford Hotel in Denver, Colorado, placed hotel tablets in all of its 112 guest rooms and also made a hotel app available for download to guests’ personal devices. Guests are able to use this hotel technology to send requests with the hotel staff, look up information, stream music, and read digital newspapers and magazines in the hotel rooms.

A year after opening, the hotel reported a positive impact on both guest engagement and communication with hotel staff. More than 3,000 total guest requests were sent via personal mobile devices, mainly smartphones, to the front desk and 41 percent of the hotel’s bookings were mobile.

The hotel aims to stay on the leading edge of hospitality technology trends by adopting mobile key sometime soon to expedite the guest check-in process and improve guest satisfaction even further.

It’s a fact. Guests love mobile hotel technology. So instead of offering your guests toothbrushes, consider offering them what they’ve shown they really want: mobile engagement.

New research is showing why placing tablets in hotel rooms can generate increases in revenue for the hospitality industry.

Hotel tablets don’t just add a “wow” factor to a hotel lobby, restaurant or guest room. For some time now, our company has heard incredible successes among our clients, from average guest usage rates upwards of 90 percent to improved scores toward AAA Five Diamond status.

Significant ROI associated with hotel tablets has also been reported, especially regarding increased in-room dining and room service revenue.

The Inn at Penn, a Hilton hotel in Philadelphia, saw increased revenue only months after installing hotel tablets with INTELITY Guest in guest rooms. Greg Stafford, the hotel’s general manager during the installation, said hotel tablets contributed to a 12-percent increase in average room service checks and a 10-percent increase in room service usage.

And now it seems science is reinforcing what our customers report.

Psychologists have suggested that people place a higher value on things they own compared to things they don’t. Even before purchase, people develop feelings of ownership toward an item if they touch it and tend to buy these items more frequently.

A series of new studies have taken it a step further by looking into the “interface psychology” of shopping on devices, or how mobile technology impacts consumer behavior.

Apparently, even indirect physical touch creates a sense of ownership that encourages purchase, which applies to consumers using touchscreen tablets to place orders. The effect of placing the items in their hands through a tablet makes them feel more possessive toward it and more inclined to complete a sale.

“I think our impulse levels might be a little harder to control when we’re tablet shopping than when we’re computer shopping. We’re just touching it. It’s right there. We already feel like we own it,” said Stevan Adam Brasel, one of the Boston College researchers who conducted these studies.

A report related to their research also showed that visual details tend to matter more than text during tablet shopping. It states, “Changes in interfaces can be as important as changes in content.”

Overall, this research has important takeaways for hoteliers looking to create a digital experience for guests using innovative technology like hotel tablets. Allowing guests to use hotel tablets when they place orders creates a more personal buying experience and leads to more conversions and higher revenue.

Hospitality is searching to find out, what do Millennials value in hotels?

The relationship between Millennials and hotels has become a large part of the conversation when it comes to the future of the hospitality industry. This is largely due to the growing spending power of Millennials in regard to the hospitality and travel industry.

“The number of Millennial travelers is significant and growing fast. It appears by 2017 Millennials will outspend baby boomers on hotels,” said Jason Dorsey, chief strategy officer of The Center for Generational Kinetics.

Many Millennials haven’t yet developed long-lasting loyalty to any particular hotel brand, making guest engagement critical between the hospitality industry and Millennial demographic. In fact, hospitality has one of the lowest reported levels of engagement with Millennials. Only 20 percent of Millennials report feeling fully engaged by the industry.

So what do Millennials want?

Hotels targeting Millennials have realized how different modern expectations are of hospitality. Impacting this has been the emergence of tech-savvy brands such as Uber and Airbnb. Such modern brands are capable of delivering a strong, multi-platform digital experience that engages target groups where they are most active – on mobile devices and on social networks such as Snapchat and Instagram.

Digital experience is proving to have a primary impact on Millennial engagement and satisfaction, according to recent reports, and numerous industries are capitalizing on this, from retail to banking.

Mobile is currently at the center of it all. Millennials are using mobile technology to interact with brands for more convenient communication and service, a trend that doesn’t end when it comes to hospitality. Embracing mobile technology is key for hotels to win Millennial loyalty.

“It will require a redefinition of service – one that offers Millennials tremendous choice, speed and personalization based on their individual preferences. Providing such tailored service not only means accommodating consumers’ use of smartphones but for operators to leverage their own mobile devices to better serve them,” said Ray Carlin, Vice President of Solution and Strategy Management at Oracle Hospitality.

The evolution of hospitality to accommodate Millennials in hotels is evident in a number of recent developments, from the move to introduce keyless room entry to the installation of in-room tablets at hotels for self-service functionality.

New hotel brands, such as Marriott’s Moxy, Best Western’s GLō, Starwood’s Element, Hilton’s Canopy, and Hyatt’s Centric, are being created to appeal to young Millennial travelers, or at least those with the modern Millennial mindset when it comes to travel. It’s an attempt to create the kind of guest experience that will lure Millennials and build loyalty with this segment of travelers.

The common thread among these Millennial hotel brands seems to be a focus on coming across as trendy, hip, and adventurous, with in-room amenities, pared down to those that are a necessity or enhance convenience. For example, most of the best hotels for Millennials are being outfitted with limited closet and desk space, clean design, and hotel technology features such as extra electrical outlets, strong WiFi connectivity, mobile device charging ports, self-service tablets.

Price often comes up in the conversation about Millennials and hotels, with the demographic being identified as prioritizing low cost over much else.

As Millennials continue to mature and enjoy increased financial power, the hospitality industry will certainly see more changes to attract and satisfy this group in the future.

 

New hospitality industry needs have reinvigorated interest in hotel cloud technology.

Hotel cloud technology has been a topic of interest for some time, but it’s becoming a leading hospitality technology trend thanks to the acknowledgment of its numerous benefits and a push to accommodate the growing needs of tech-hungry guests.

What is the cloud? Cloud computing is defined by IBM as “the delivery of on-demand computing resources over the Internet on a pay-for-use basis.” The cloud is web-based, which frees hotels from having to rely on direct connections to onsite server hardware.

This flexibility is the basis for the popularity of the cloud computing model. Cisco projects that within the next two years, 86 percent of workloads will be processed by cloud data centers rather than traditional ones. More than half of those will be Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) workloads.

Benefits of cloud technology in hotels include:

• Scalability: Cloud technology offers powerful technology that can match the needs of any hospitality business, whether it’s a global brand or independent hotel.
• Reduced costs: Thanks to a pay-by-use model, you’re able to keep costs at a minimum and avoid heavy investment in internal IT support.
• Enhanced self-service: Cloud computing allows you to manage most of your own needs with minimal IT support.
• Broadened accessibility: You can get into the cloud from anywhere using remote login, making it much more convenient than traditional servers.
• Faster onboarding: The process of getting started is expedited when you use hotel cloud technology rather than onsite servers.
• Improved maintenance: Updates and releases are able to be installed much more quickly on an ongoing basis. There’s also the ability to develop a more robust disaster recovery plan to back up systems.

Borrow from Google to create the best hospitality app possible.

Google has slowly but steadily been making headway when it comes to the travel industry, with a collection of mobile apps designed to make travel easier. Google Travel is a product capable of serving as a digital travel agent or trip planner and more. It exemplifies the concept of mobile-first as well, due to the heavy use of mobile by travelers.

Here are some takeaways from Google for developing a better hospitality app.

Search Filters

Ease of use is key to gaining and keeping users for a hospitality app, or really any app at that. Being able to navigate an app without confusion is a major draw, and this should be kept in mind during the hotel app development process.

Google is a master of online search, being the go-to Internet search engine of choice for so long now, and their travel features reflect this. Various search filters can be applied by travelers looking to plan a trip or perform mobile hotel bookings, such as location, price and hotel type. These make it extremely easy for users of Google’s apps to find exactly what they want quickly and efficiently.

Exclusive Deals

What better reason could there be for guests to use a hotel app than saving money? It adds incentive to taking the time to download and retain an app if there are exclusives offered through it that can’t be found on a company’s website or through a third party.

To note, Google even sends notifications to travelers about when great prices are available for their desired flights and hotels. The additional convenience shows true thoughtfulness for improving the user experience, and hospitality should be all about exceptional guest experience, no matter the channel or method through which it’s delivered. Convenience and financial discounts will no doubt increase the appeal and result in a better hotel app.

Complete Travel Experience Management

Google Travel features don’t focus solely on mobile hotel booking. Travelers can also access flight information, maps and directions, suggestions for building a vacation itinerary, and more.

A hospitality app can be more useful if it presents multi-dimensional features that focus on the full travel experience, even before or after a guest’s stay. Incorporating useful information, such as flight information, maps, social media access, and hotel concierge recommendations for exploring the local area, will delight hotel app users and give them a reason to open a hotel app time and time again.

Constant Innovation

If there’s one inspiring takeaway from Google Travel (or Google in general) it’s the value of constant innovation. In order to develop the best hotel app, it’s necessary to experiment and take risks, not just follow the crowd. Thinking outside the box and jumping on leading trends can be difficult to justify, but being a hotel technology leader can pay off in the long run with modern guests who appreciate the conveniences afforded by digital amenities.