Digital Technology Leverage To Enhance the Guest Experience
It's clear that today's hotel operations must transition to a digital back-office management format to ensure the best guest experience before, during, and after their stay, while also remaining competitive in the market.
How Do Hotels Manage Guests’ Requests?
It's undeniable that modern travelers are more digitally savvy than many hotel employees. They can quickly send requests for additional services using their smartphones and mobile devices. They do not want to wait while a hotel dispatcher sends this request for executor — they want it to be done right away! Let's face it, nobody likes to wait.
According to Karam Ghazi (from J Tourism Hospit 2017), "Electronic Word-of-Mouth (e-WOM) is disseminated to numerous individuals via the Internet, and online customer reviews are perceived as more credible, empathetic, and relevant than marketing information provided by companies." The study conducted by PhoCus Wright shows that around 77% of travelers usually reference reviews before choosing a hotel, 53% of travelers won't commit booking until they read reviews, about half of people always reference reviews before choosing a restaurant, and around 44% of travelers usually reference reviews before choosing an attraction.
Recent studies indicate that 53% of guests encounter issues with staff, and 38% of them encounter problems with internal operations, affecting their overall experience during their hotel stay. So, how can we deal with this and decrease the number of unsatisfied guests?
To be able to provide an optimal guest experience, technology should become a major component for all hotel departments! We have to get rid of paper and pen for task management and stop using verbal forms of servicing the guest requests through radios and other offline systems. Hotel employees should be armed with the best tools to be ready to serve guests in the best way and keep them coming back for more.
Equipping each employee with a task management mobile application revolutionizes the process!
Back-office digital automation in the hotel industry allows guest requests to be seamlessly converted into tasks without the need for intermediaries (such as a dispatcher or front desk attendant). In other words, guests create and assign tasks by themselves, which go directly to the executor, who, in turn, starts to perform the task immediately.
When line staff starts to receive tasks digitally, it unleashes the opportunity to see everything in real-time on one dashboard: what is happening on the property, where, how long, and who is working. Also, you stay connected with the whole team constantly.
Moreover, it lets your team, including off-deck employees, see and stay updated about such things as daily events, information about VIPs who are arriving and requiring special attention, and much more.
Automation and workflow synchronization lead to increased productivity and up to a 30% reduction in operating costs. The best part is that the effectiveness of hotel management becomes measurable. At the same time, it’s evident that you know what and how to improve when you have tools to monitor and measure effectiveness!
"In a business where customer satisfaction is paramount, the use of advanced technology is crucial. Today's market offers a lot of tools to work on the clients' side, such as PMS, CRS, POS, YMS, AI, IoT, chatbots, robots, online surveys, and etc. However, we cannot underestimate the role of employees working on the floors, ensuring guest satisfaction, managing staff, and keeping the business running. We must unite not only guests but also the team and the entire community around your brand through digital engagement." said Svetlana Udalov, HKeeper CEO and Founder.
In conclusion, we must confirm that without the transition of back-office operational management to digital format, the hotel industry won’t be able to move forward and satisfy customers’ needs. It's time to make changes and smart strategic decisions that will help you to become more successful!
