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.

Hospitality customer engagement technology could help innovate guest experience and revitalize loyalty programs.

Improving guest engagement and experience is taking center stage on the list of priorities for the hospitality industry as reports emerge showing that guest expectations have rapidly evolved over the past few years.

An increase in guest engagement can indicate an increase in hotel revenue. Reports show the average spent by an actively disengaged guest during a stay is $403, much less than the average total spent during a stay by a fully engaged guest ($588).

A guest’s perceived level of engagement can also be a strong indicator of their perception of a hotel or brand, as well as their behavior during a stay. About 80 percent of guests who feel that a hotel cares for their well-being are “fully engaged” brand ambassadors who actively support the brand. And both business and leisure travelers are reported to be willing to spend more to stay with a brand or hotel they have a preference for.

The $185 difference between what an engaged and a disengaged guest spend during a stay shows how much hospitality stands to lose simply by not actively engaging guests throughout a stay.

The $185 difference between what an engaged and a disengaged guest spend during a stay shows how much hospitality stands to lose simply by not actively engaging guests throughout a stay. Unfortunately, only 22 percent of guests report feeling engaged by the hotel they stay with most often. And about two-thirds of leisure travelers and half of business travelers say they aren’t loyal to any one hotel brand.

“A lot of people are saying brand loyalty is dead, that there are no true advocates,” said Sergio Iacobucci, Qubit senior associate strategist. “In my view, that’s not the case, it’s just a lot of companies have given up giving true customer experience. But the cost of providing that just goes into other areas of marketing such as reacquiring customers.”

With such potential revenue-related benefits tied to improving guest experience and engagement, hospitality management must constantly assess set standards and consider adopting new ones.

Many have begun to turn to guest or customer engagement technologies (CETs) in order to tackle the monumental task of managing the relationship with today’s guests. These can make it much easier for hotel management and staff to track interaction with guests throughout the entire travel journey, from booking to after checking out.

According to a recent report, 71 percent of hotel and restaurant executives said they were adopting customer engagement technology to enhance customer experience and satisfaction. And while all hoteliers and hospitality executives report using social media to improve guest engagement, a much smaller number make use of more intuitive customer engagement technology tools for improving the relationship with guests. According to a study by Hospitality Technology, these tools include:

• Mobile check-in (23.3 percent, with 38.3 percent planning to implement within 1 year)
• Tablet/iPad for check-in (15 percent, with 46.7 percent planning to implement within 1 year)
• Location-based technology (18.3 percent, with 40 percent planning to implement within 1 year)
• Room control devices (8.3 percent, with 25 percent planning to implement within 1 year)
• Mobile wallet (6.8 percent, with 39 percent planning to implement within 1 year)
• Smartphones as room keys (5 percent, with 31.7 percent planning to implement within 1 year)

The dramatic increase in implementation of such hospitality customer engagement technology is largely due to increased travel by Millennials, who now comprise the largest portion of the global workforce. Millennial travelers, and the broader segment of travelers who exhibit the Millennial mentality, are accustomed to brand interactions driven through technology, and they expect a level of innovation in the hotel experience as well.

It’s now obvious that improving guest engagement in hotels is aligned with the ability to increase hotel revenue. By incorporating new hospitality technology, like a hotel mobile app or in-room tablets that innovate the guest experience, the global hospitality industry will continue seeing incredible levels of growth into the future.

Hotel keyless room entry is arguably the most talked about hotel technology trend currently available.

It’s a game changer. Mobile access at hotels empowers guests with the ability to bypass the usual hotel check-in process. They skip traditional procedures and can head to their room more quickly to unlock their guestroom door through contactless mobile key technology.

It has the potential to improve the guest experience substantially. Today’s guests, particularly those who fall within the Millennial demographic, have shown great appreciation for being able to use their mobile device during travel and hotel stays, even prioritizing packing a smartphone over a toothbrush, deodorant or even a driver’s license. Research even shows that 1 in 8 people are addicted to smartphones and spend an average of almost four hours a day using them.

A major component of keyless room entry at hotels is radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology. RFID technology has become a key component in the Internet of Things (IoT) as a means of tagging, or identifying, physical objects on the IoT network. Early projections predicted that 9.2 billion tags would be sold in 2015, up 2 billion from the year before.

Using insight delivered by hospitality technology, employees “move past transactions, into an interactive space where they can personalize the experience.”

“Where RFID is going to play in the Internet of Things is by adding the unique value of what’s going on at a particular point on a specific object at an exact time,” said Doug Bellin, global senior manager, manufacturing and mining, Cisco. “There’s value in that sort of insight.”

For instance, RFID tags placed in items can already provide information about the object such as surrounding temperature and location tracking.

Disney, a leader in creating incredible guest experiences, already uses RFID technology in the form of wristbands (MagicBands) and cards to track unique guest activity throughout hotels, resorts and parks. Implementing RFID has meant the elimination of paper, such as itineraries and tickets. Guests don’t have to carry cash or hotel room keycards.

Using insight delivered by such guest engagement technology, employees “move past transactions, into an interactive space where they can personalize the experience,” according to Meg Crofton, former president of Walt Disney World Resort and one of the original minds behind the development of this digital guest experience system.

“The whole system gave Disney a way of understanding the business,” said Nick Franklin, formerly the executive vice president of Disney’s next-generation experience and another member of the team who started MagicBands. “Knowing we need more food here, how people are flowing through the park, how people are consuming the experiential product.”

Several of the leading providers of hotel room mobile access technology utilize RFID locks, including Kaba Lodging and ASSA ABLOY (formerly VingCard ElSafe). One of the first steps to enabling a property with hotel keyless room entry is the installation of RFID locks. Staff can assign a digital hotel room keycard to guests, sent straight to their mobile device, and guests can then use their mobile device to unlock a hotel room door by holding the device in the lock.

Many hotels are taking it a step further by offering the contactless hotel room entry feature through mobile hotel apps that also allow guests to view information about hotel services, place orders and book reservations as a means of leveraging mobile for revenue generation. Some hotel brands have also required that guests register for loyalty programs in order to receive guestroom mobile access.

Hotel technology helps Latin American hospitality rebound following turbulence.

Latin American hospitality and tourism have experienced a bit of turbulence in recent years, with both highs and lows marking the industry’s performance. Hospitality investors largely express optimism in regard to this region, though.

“We are in a moment where there is a slowdown of the economy in the region and in the world, but the region is not like in the past, where a slowdown appeared and the region went into crisis. There is a slowdown now, but it’s not a crisis,” said Arturo Rosa, president and founder of the South American Hotel & Tourism Investment Conference (SAHIC).

Other challenges faced by the Latin American hospitality industry include high inflation, currency devaluation, and a rate of supply that has outpaced demand. In 2015, South America had 400 hotels in its pipeline.

Different countries have fared differently in this environment.

For instance, the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the upcoming 2016 Olympic Games have impacted Brazilian hotels and lodging businesses tremendously and led to a surge in the influx of travelers.

Attendance to the World Cup exceeded expectations by 67 percent, resulting in over a million total visitors to Brazil in 2014. São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro welcomed the bulk of the 1.5 million tourists to the country, as these cities were the main locations for the event. The average daily rate (ADR) for hotels in Rio de Janeiro in 2014 increased by 5.7 percent and led to an increase of 1.4 percent in ADR, while São Paulo experienced a slightly smaller increase in ADR of 1.9 percent and increase in RevPAR of 2.6 percent.

“Like it or not, the sharing economy is here, but the secret sauce of any hotel experience is what we can bring to the guest.”

Total international tourist arrivals to Brazil are expected to more than double by 2024 to 14.2 million, and increases are expected in both corporate and leisure travel to the country.

Another current development impacting Latin America that had the global hospitality industry buzzing was the reduction of travel restrictions between the U.S. and Cuba. Cuba is already one of the leading Latin American islands for travel and tourism, and hospitality brands and investors have shown enthusiasm to enter its stage.

Starwood Hotels & Resorts becomes the first U.S. hotel brand approved to operate in Cuba in about 60 years and plans to brand three hotels in 2016. The cruise industry is also capitalizing, with a Carnival cruise line beginning trips to Cuba.

The tourism and hospitality industry in Mexico is currently flourishing, and the country has steadily dominated as one of the top 15 destinations visited by global travelers. Overall, there has been a 10-percent increase in occupancy rates over four years.

SAHIC’s Rosa says that the Andean region, including Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru, is one of the most attractive throughout Latin America to hospitality industry investors and hoteliers.

Colombia stands out in South America, experiencing economic growth of 4.6 percent. However, the recent devaluation of the Colombian currency, which also occurred in other areas of this region such as Brazil, Argentina, and Venezuela, has led to a decrease of 8.5 percent in ADR and the country has also seen a decline in occupancy of 2 percent.

Still, hotel brands see Latin America as a region ripe with opportunity.

Carlson Hospitality CEO David Berg called Latin America a « very important focus » for the brand. Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Wyndham Hotel Group, Hilton Worldwide and Accor Hotels also expect to grow their portfolio of hotels in Latin America.

As international brands establish more of a presence in Latin America, they will bring with them more sophisticated hotel technology, which has been a major focus of hospitality brands looking to be more competitive on the modern global landscape. The introduction of hotel mobile apps by many brands and the use of guestroom technology have been adopted as ways to engage and satisfy guests, whose expectations have rapidly changed when it comes to the definition of the hotel experience.

Currently, 155.9 million individuals in Latin America are plugged into their mobile devices and as the number of mobile users increases, hospitality technology must keep up to accommodate the use of mobile technology by travelers.

Hotels in Latin America are already beginning to embrace hotel technology as a way to compete on the global scene. Brazil’s Unique Garden Hotel & Spa is one example of a hotel that has expanded its guest technology to improve guest service and engagement. Capitalizing on the gains of tablet usage, the São Paulo resort took advantage of the strength of the tablet market in Latin America by installing touchscreen tablets in hotel guest rooms.

Another hotel in Latin America that has upgraded its guest technology is Rancho Santana in Nicaragua. The seaside luxury resort introduced both a mobile hotel app and in-room tablets to improve guest engagement.

Rancho Santana General Manager Chris Currey said, “Rancho Santana’s in-room tablets and mobile application are a fun and efficient way to communicate with our guests beyond the face to face time they receive from our Concierge team…The in-room tablets are also a great way to reach our more passive guests who may not be inclined to visit the Concierge for all their questions, as well as first-time guests who haven’t come to realize just how much there is to see and do at the ranch.”

“They allow us to elevate the guest experience by making a lasting impression whether they are perusing the tablet with the guest in person, giving guests access to more information in the room, and even continuing to engage them once they’ve gone home and settled back into their routine.”

Embracing hotel technology is just one of the many ways the Latin American hospitality industry can combat some of the many challenges facing the region.

Jorge Giannattasio, senior vice president and chief of Latin America operations for Starwood Hotels & Resorts, said improvements to the guest experience are the best way for the hospitality industry to compete, particularly with Airbnb. “We are seeing large hotel companies like ours…enhancing the overall guest experience. That is where we are very different [from Airbnb].”

David Berg, CEO of Carlson Hospitality Group, said the challenges to Latin American hospitality and competition from disruptors like Airbnb are actually beneficial to the industry overall by inspiring hoteliers to “up our game.”

Berg said, “Like it or not, the sharing economy is here, but the secret sauce of any hotel experience is what we can bring to the guest.”