Connected living is quickly becoming a reality. Nearly every aspect of our lives involves devices of some sort. The number of new connected devices is expected to surge by 30 percent from last year to 6.4 billion as part of the rising Internet of Things trend, per Gartner.

The expansion of the hotel technology trend certainly correlates to this, as the hospitality industry looks to accommodate guests’ digital expectations through various forms of innovation such as hotel room tablets, mobile key, and hotel apps. Increase of hospitality technology has also grown the need to consider security and privacy standards when it comes to sensitive hotel and guest data.

“IoT is all about making the things in your life smarter,” said Cameron Coursey, AT&T Vice President, Product Development. “Security is paramount to something that touches and influences our lives as deeply as IoT.”

With the cost of a single data breach reported to be over $6 million ($204 per data record), implementing sound hotel data security policies is crucial.

A single data breach can cost over $6 million.

Hundreds of hotels have been impacted by a data breach caused by malware attacks or cybercriminal activity, primarily against point-of-sale and payment processing systems. At the end of 2015, three major hotel industry companies announced breaches within only 34 days. Despite how extreme this sounds, hotel companies only represented 6 percent of total companies reporting hacking or malware breaches on POS systems last year.

The business of protecting customer data and enabling sufficient hotel data security measures can be complex, especially with regulations coming from different sources. The Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) is the most widely recognized by the hospitality industry and PCI compliance is a first step toward securing guest data.

The government also plays a role in the issue. Nearly all of the individual 50 states have varying laws regarding data breach and appropriate incident responses, which makes it even more difficult for a hotel to manage communication regarding security issues with travelers of different origin.

The GSM Association, a group representing the interests of global mobile operators and organizer of the largest annual event in the mobile industry, the GSMA Mobile World Congress, released new security guidelines addressing IoT earlier this year.

The guidelines mark a unified effort by the entire IoT industry to educate, reinforce and simplify security as connectivity moves forward to encompass more items around us. They will certainly have an impact on the hotel Internet of Things as device manufacturers and hotel technology vendors collaborate to adhere.

“As billions of devices become connected in the Internet of Things, offering innovative and interconnected new services, the possibility of potential vulnerabilities increases,” said Alex Sinclair, Chief Technology Officer, GSMA. “These can be overcome if the end-to-end security of an IoT service is carefully considered by the service provider when designing their service and appropriate mitigating technology is deployed.”

Adoption of hotel technology is the talk of the industry. About 54 percent of hoteliers plan to increase hotel technology budgets this year, and 19 percent plan to invest at least 9 percent or more of revenue on hotel IT needs. However, many in the industry express concern or frustration with the demands of expanded technological needs. A recent survey of hoteliers revealed the following hospitality technology challenges:

• Keeping pace with guest expectations: 43%
• Shortage of internal IT talent: 31%
• Not finding technology sufficient to meet needs: 19%

Our company is the leading hotel app developer and provider of sophisticated software to the hospitality industry. With leadership that has experience in both hotel and IT management, we’re able to understand the unique needs of this industry to deliver results that matter. It’s no wonder Intelity is trusted by more hotel brands and individual properties around the world than any other company in this space.

“Intelity is the leader in bridging the gap between technology and hospitality.”

Our company is the leading hotel app developer and provider of sophisticated software to the hospitality industry. With leadership that has experience in both hotel and IT management, we’re able to understand the unique needs of this industry to deliver results that matter. It’s no wonder INTELITY is trusted by more hotel brands and individual properties around the world than any other company in this space.

So just why are we the leading name in hotel guest engagement technology? Here are comments from a hotelier survey of our clients on why they chose to partner with INTELITY for their hotel guest technology needs.

Couples Resorts Director of Operations Abe Issa: “We selected Intelity based on the company’s incredible proven record for developing solutions that deliver results. We were impressed by their reputation and portfolio of clients, and after our discussions with them, we realized they had the ability to meet all of the desired functionality we needed as well.”

Stephen Johnston, Boston Harbor Hotel Managing Director and General Manager: “We tested different guest service technology, but we opted for Intelity’s solutions because of the capabilities beyond the basic features. Our hotel needed a partner that offers integrations with our other systems. We’re also excited at the prospect of removing the majority of paper from our rooms.”

Dream Hollywood General Manager Ayo Akinsete: “It’s an incredible way to elevate engagement and improve brand perception. We’ve selected Intelity for this partnership because they’re the leaders in bridging the gap between technology and hospitality.”

Playa Largo Resort & Spa General Manager Shakir Hussain: “Intelity was the only company we considered as a partner for this project. Based on their level of expertise, we knew they would be able to meet all our needs for providing a high-quality in-room guest experience.”

Edie Rodriguez, Crystal Cruises President and CEO: “A key component to my vision for Crystal to continue as a leader in redefining luxury is to embrace technology and allow it to help streamline our guests’ experience. Not only does the Intelity platform make a significant step in this direction, but it also helps us reduce our paper consumption and inform our guests in a more efficient way.”

 

Hotel brand apps and other forms of technology are serving to connect guests with the industry.

The entire industry is buzzing about hotel technology and how to make the most of it. Figuring out how to use hospitality technology trends to help achieve goals, such as increase hotel revenue and guest satisfaction, can be challenging. Hotel brands are leading the charge when it comes to this, though, as a number of them have established innovative digital standards across their entire portfolio, from keyless hotel room entry to mobile check-in.

Among those around the world making headway with effectively leveraging technology, here are three hotel brands doing an exceptional job of making the most of new hospitality technology trends. “Conrad Concierge helps by putting the entire hotel experience in the hands of their guests via the technology they are using most often.” -Claire Newell, global travel expert, best-selling author

Conrad Hotels & Resorts

Conrad Hotels & Resorts, owned and operated by Hilton Worldwide, released a brand-wide enterprise mobile app a few years ago named Conrad Concierge. In fact, the brand was the first with an app that boasted integrated services at all 31 properties in its portfolio.

More than just basic, traditional luxury, Conrad puts a premium on exactly what a guest wants, which for the majority of guests includes meeting their digital needs. It’s the notion of “smart luxury,” and this brand is successfully defining the concept.

A central part of that is Conrad Concierge, which intuitively connects guests with a convenient means of communicating with staff for a variety of purposes – from general information room service orders to restaurant bookings. The hotel app even includes information about the local area of the Conrad hotel the guest is staying in.

Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts

Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts made headlines in summer 2015 when it became the latest luxury brand to launch a mobile app, which is the widest available of any in the hospitality industry with 96 included properties. The brand, long known for an exceptional mastery of high-touch service, was able to successfully embrace a high-touch and high-tech experience that still felt personalized.

A Forbes review of the app stated, “I’m here to report back that Four Seasons’ app-wise move has worked out well. It’s helpful and lovely to look at, and, most important, it’s unassuming. It’s there for you as a guest when you want it and it fades out of the experience when you don’t. The to-be-expected features of the app work just fine (Check-in, Check-out), and some of these expected features are super-handy, like the ‘local recommendations’ feature.”

In fact, the greatest success is “where the app moves over the line to functions that human employees can’t do for guests or can’t do as well,” like providing multilingual maps and directions to navigate the area around the hotels.

The Peninsula Hotels

Connected travelers demand the latest and greatest when it comes to hotel technology, and The Peninsula Hotels is among the most impressive brands when it comes to meeting these expectations.

For example, both The Peninsula Paris (styled as a modern European palace) and The Peninsula Hong Kong (known as the Grand Dame of the Far East) have been able to use multilingual touchscreen panels in guest rooms to tap into the hotel Internet of Things.

These in-room panels can control the lights, television, thermostat, curtains, and have access to Internet radio. The rooms come with three in-room tablets total that can also be used to order room service, turn on the Do Not Disturb sign, place housekeeping requests, and more, all through a sophisticated hospitality technology software system.

Hotel apps stand to benefit from more strategic mobile advertising.

Good news for mobile hotel apps. Total app downloads from both Google’s Play Store and the iOS App Store increased 8.2 percent in Q1 of 2015 over the previous year, with more than 17 billion downloads total. Mobile users are also spending more time using apps in general, much more than they spend browsing mobile websites at 90 percent of the total mobile time.

That said, the mobile app business is still as competitive as ever with so many apps vying for space on user devices. App ads are definitely worth it for any brand that wants to stand out, especially for those in categories with a higher rate of abandonment. Travel apps lead all categories in customer churn, which means hotel app marketing has to evolve to become more strategic in order to actively engage users.

Luckily, mobile ads for hotel app marketing are graduating into new territory, with social media channels driving a lot of benefits.

Total app downloads from both Google’s Play Store and the iOS App Store topped 17 billion.

Snapchat

Snapchat is newly emerging as a viable mobile ad platform. It’s currently a better platform for brands looking to start gaining visibility with younger audiences, especially since it was just crowned as the most popular social media channel with U.S. teens.

Conversion through the app is incredibly simple, though, and this platform is definitely one to watch. With features like live coverage of major events, like award ceremonies, news events and music festivals, and partnerships with publishers like the Wall Street Journal, it could be a big draw in the future for a broader demographic.

Facebook & Instagram

Facebook and Instagram are powerhouse platforms when it comes to mobile app ads. You can’t deny the viability of Facebook as an advertising platform when 72 percent of online U.S. adults use it. But these two platforms have great value specific to app advertising. At the end of 2015, it was reported that app ads on these two channels drove growth in downloads of 196 percent.

Instagram alone was responsible of more than a fifth of total clicks on app install ads. That’s pretty phenomenal, especially when you also consider the bonus tidbit that customer acquisition cost is lower on Instagram than other channels.

Twitter

A few years ago Twitter announced some really nifty app marketing campaign features. Structured like other CPAC campaigns, app ads (called App Cards) appear organically within users’ tweet feeds and provide conversion analytics. The good part is that App Cards have a natural, less obtrusive feel. The bad part is that it can be easy for users who are quickly scrolling through a cluttered feed to pass right by these ads.

Still, Twitter reports that more than 80 percent of its users are on mobile, which means it’s a great channel to consider for mobile app advertisements. And the Twitter Ads back-end platform for businesses has great tools and analytics to measure the success of hotel app marketing through this channel.

Google & Apple

Beyond the social media players, Google and Apple will both likely soon offer paid in-store search options for iOS and Android, a big help to the cause of hotel app marketing for differentiating a brand or individual hotel app from the very crowded stores.

And the Google AdWords Search Trial Run Ads are also on the horizon after successful testing. Mobile users can try out an app before actually downloading. Hopefully, it’ll increase user retention if people can actually see what they’re getting in advance.

Green Hospitality and moving toward increased sustainability practices have become a large industry focus.

This is in part because it’s an issue that matters to more consumers (more than half of travelers say the social and environmental impact of a hotel is a consideration when booking). The benefits of going green as a hospitality business don’t stop at brand perception, though. And thanks to new hotel technology, it’s more than possible to achieve these.

For example, the implementation of in-room touchscreen tablets is increasingly being used as a method of making guest rooms better examples of green hospitality.

Energy efficiency is one of the biggest draws for investment in in-room devices. Energy and utility costs account for 6 percent of operating costs, though costs are on the rise.

Room automation features installed on in-room tablets, whether iPads or Android tablet devices, allow energy to be used and managed more modestly. Lights and air conditioning can be shut off based on guest activity, and overall property energy use can be better monitored. Not to mention the added convenience enjoyed by guests at the hotel technology upgrade.

The hospitality industry spent over $400 million on printing property directories and marketing collateral for guests in 2015.

Hotel room tablets are also capable of replacing all printed materials traditionally housed in rooms by providing a digital storehouse of information that can be immediately updated or edited. Considering that the hospitality industry spent over $400 million on printing property directories and marketing collateral for guests in 2015, this is a tremendous opportunity.

Changes to menus, pricing, event schedules, and policies can all be made immediately by staff and accessed by guests through a digital compendium. This saves the need to reprint the same items over and over for simple changes.

A few years ago, InterContinental Hotels completely replaced print Bibles with digital versions loaded on Kindle e-readers. In the long term, the move could prove to be highly efficient. Guests can access a variety of reading material from the devices for expanded entertainment options rather than buying and replacing new books.

A fully functional touchscreen tablet would be the next step, as it has more features that could positively influence the guest experience. Room automation, service requests, direct communication, digital music and alarm clock functionality are all among those.

General resource management is a major consideration for hotels looking to reduce expenditures. By having orders and requests placed by guests through the in-room tablets and automatically filtered into a back-end system for staff review, hotel management can improve staff productivity. Management can also perform yield management tactics by tracking orders as an indicator of supply-demand.

A number of hotels worldwide have already taken advantage of hotel room tablets to move toward green hospitality, including Renaissance Allentown Hotel in Pennsylvania, Eccleston Square Hotel in London, Rancho Santana in Nicaragua, Four Seasons Los Angeles at Beverly Hills, and Hotel Hotel Canberra in Australia.

And hotel in-room tablets have become a consideration for AAA Hotel Diamond ratings due to the numerous benefits.

For more information on what it would take for your hotel to launch in-room tablet technology to embrace green hospitality and improve the guest experience, subscribe to our bi-weekly newsletter or schedule a demo.

 

What are some things to avoid in order to be successful with new hospitality technology?

The benefits of upgrading a hotel with the latest technological advancements are multiple. Improved guest satisfaction, the creation of new revenue channels, and more efficient hotel operations are only a few of the positive results possible from utilizing the latest hotel technology.

However, introducing new technology in hotels also brings opportunities for errors if a hotelier isn’t well prepared and provided with adequate support. Here are a few of the top pitfalls to avoid when implementing hotel technology.

“Merely pursuing technological change is not enough – we must implement a culture of change if we are to be successful in that transformation.”

Neglecting to Consider Privacy and Security Measures

The top priority facing hoteliers when implementing technology is enabling sufficient privacy and security measures. Credit card fraud and identity theft are the biggest concerns for hotel security, as the number of data breaches has continued to rise over the last few years. In 2014, there were 32 data records stolen each second, with the bulk of cases occurring in North America (76 percent). Many of the largest hospitality brands have already proven susceptible to data breaches, and it’s brought light to the urgency of this situation.

The second-highest security threat to the hotel industry is cybercrime. Attacks on hotel networks to gain unauthorized, undetected access to data are becoming more common.

Setting up strong defenses for networks and creating comprehensive protocol when it comes to protecting guest data is absolutely necessary. Monitoring all network activity and scheduling routine meetings to discuss should also be a priority as this will help for timely detection of anything that seems strange, which will allow for any issues to be addressed in a proactive fashion.

Not Doing Enough Preliminary Research

Before new hotel technology or systems are installed, it’s very important to do a substantial review of what will need to be invested beyond just finances. “Doing your homework” can have significant results with how effective the implementation will be.

For instance, a hotelier should have a realistic idea of how long the full process will take and what impact it will have on the hotel as a whole. Other considerations include staff training and post-installation marketing. Conversations with various vendors of the different systems involved are also necessary to coordinate collaboration between multiple vendors to facilitate any integration.

“We must seek synergy of technology and organizational process. But merely pursuing technological change is not enough – we must implement a culture of change if we are to be successful in that transformation,” said Walter M. Bortz, vice president of Administrative & Information Services at The George Washington University.

Lack of IT Support

Poor internal IT support can be detrimental to efforts to get a property equipped with cutting-edge hotel technology systems, which can lead to loss of time and money. A simple way to combat this is by partnering with a reliable and trusted third-party vendor to provide reliable support and supplement onsite resources. Seeking a more affordable solution with third-party vendors can keep the technology budget reasonable while giving hotel management confidence.

Forgetting to Consider the Genuine Value

Staying current on the latest technological advantages and trends available to the hospitality industry is a smart move in order to be competitive and relevant. Being aware of how any technology in hotels enhances guest’s stay and improves operations is important when considering value.

Utilizing hotel technology systems or devices that do not positively impact day-to-day interactions with guests at multiple phases of their travel journey or improve the ability of staff to fulfill their roles translates into low to minimal ROI. Evaluating the intrinsic value of different technology in hotels can help save money and increase guest engagement in more effective ways.

Inadequate Marketing of New Hospitality Technology to Guests

One of the biggest mistakes hoteliers can make is not actively marketing technology upgrades and the benefits it will have on the guest experience. Sharing information with guests about how a hotel has sought to meet their digital needs can improve brand perception and justify increases in ADR. Overall 70 percent of total travelers, both leisure and business, say hotel technology and digital offerings have strong to moderate impact on booking decisions.