Managing guest communication & personalisation in a multi-property hotel

Kronen Hotels, a small hotel group based in Sandnes, Norway, aims to be the local leader in hospitality while also pioneering the use of hotel technology. They have five properties in total, two of them are members of The Historic Hotels & Restaurants of Norway, both with rich histories and offering a unique guest experience. 

Kronen Gaard Hotell’s main house dates back to 1898 and provides an elegant and traditional experience while surrounded by the beauty of the Sandnes countryside. GamlaVærket, originally built in 1783 as Rogaland’s first brick factory, offers guests an authentic glimpse into Norway's industrial history and a unique hotel experience in the heart of Sandnes city. 

As one of the main hotel groups in the region, Kronen Hotels strives to deliver a distinctive experience that reflects Norwegian history and hospitality, while at the same time embracing today’s innovations in hotel technology.

Being a small team, they were looking for a solution that allowed them to have more efficient operations, enhance their marketing efforts and create added value for their guests. That's why they partnered with Bookboost.

The challenge: Optimising and personalising guest communication across all properties

As a small team, one of their main challenges was to optimise their workload and have a stronger emphasis on guest interactions and loyalty. In addition, one of their long-term goals was to create a centralised reception that could serve all their hotels at different locations, using technology solutions to streamline operations.

Another of their objectives was to reduce the lack of personalisation in their guest journeys and to be able to deliver consistent and valuable information to guests. Kronen Hotels caters to diverse guest types, such as holiday guests in summer, business travellers, conference guests, and more. 

Therefore, they wanted to personalise the communications they sent to each guest segment. Prior to Bookboost, this was not possible for Kronen Hotels, as their previous marketing solution did not have available features for segmentation or personalisation specifically for the hotel industry. 

“It was a challenge,” said Therese Alberto, Project Manager at Kronen Hotels, “For example, one hotel wants to send a newsletter about an upcoming event, but we don’t know how to target and segment the guests in our database. We have 15000 marketing contacts in our database, but at the end of the day, how many of these are actually relevant?”

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Putting guests at the center

At Kronen Hotels, the guest is always at the centre. Just like the slogan for Kronen Gaard Hotell says, they want to become 'A place you long to come back to'. Therefore, they are truly passionate about enhancing the guest experience to keep bringing guests back. 

To achieve their goals, Kronen Hotels was looking for a system that could smoothly connect with their existing property management system, Mews.

“We thought Bookboost was a good way to build a cohesive guest journey and to cultivate a sincere connection with our guests from the moment they book. As a bonus, Bookboost also makes us more effective and frees up resources for face-to-face guest interaction,” added Therese.

The solution: A centralised reception and personalised marketing initiatives

Through their partnership with Bookboost, Kronen Hotels empowered their team to free up valuable time with various steps, enabling them to focus more on personalising the guest experience.

Centralise messages with a unified inbox

By centralising all guest messages from every property, they can check guest inquiries, requests or complaints from one single platform, without the need to juggle between websites, social media platforms, OTAs, and emails.

Now, the team can get an overview of what has been sent and manage guest interactions effectively across multiple properties at the same time, increasing efficiency and team collaboration. 

No messages are missed or sent late anymore. This streamlined approach not only boosts efficiency but also fosters better collaboration among staff. Since everyone has access to the unified inbox, the team can seamlessly hand off inquiries and provide support, ensuring a consistent and positive guest experience.

"Katalin, the General Manager at Hotel Sverre, our reception-free property, really likes Bookboost," said Therese. "Since it is a reception-free hotel, communication is key and Bookboost allows them to easily send the room codes to guests via SMS. This simplifies the process for guests and ensures they have a convenient way to reach her if any issues arise."

Recover guest details with CRM and OTA profiler

The team noticed that they have a good number of returning guests that are still booked through OTAs, and they wanted to convert them to direct bookings and build guest loyalty.

Bookboost helps them connect with these OTA bookers through the OTA profiler included in the CRM. As Therese highlights, many local guests can be hesitant when being asked to share more personal information. Bookboost bridges this gap by allowing them to send targeted marketing campaigns that showcase the benefits of booking directly with the hotel. 

This encourages guests to provide their details and the hotel can contact them later to build guest loyalty and foster a relationship with them.

Send personalised marketing campaigns to increase revenue

Having a clean guest database stored in Bookboost CRM, Kronen Hotels can now segment their audiences based on different factors such as booking history, the country they are from, preferred property type, and past guest behaviours. 

For a multi-property hotel, this is a huge effort, but Bookboost’s features make it easy for the Kronen Hotels team. Overall, this allows them to send highly personalised marketing campaigns that resonate with each segment, instead of the general ones from before.

Moreover, they can re-engage with their guests after a certain time and invite them to visit another property within the Kronen portfolio, offering enticing discounts or special packages that cater to their preferences. In this way, Kronen can build guest loyalty and keep bringing guests back.

The results: A smooth multi-property experience with better-performing marketing efforts

Less time, more things done

The implementation of Bookboost’s unified inbox not only enables better guest communication but also has a huge impact on the team. As a small team managing five properties, they can now deal with guest messages more efficiently, and collaborate better, creating more loyalty and value for guests.

“The system is so intuitive and easy to use. I always feel that whenever I need help, someone will get back to me. Besides the product itself, we knew we could get a lot of value out of it with a dedicated team at Bookboost”, added Therese.

Marketing that drives real results

Previously, their marketing campaigns were general, and the team didn’t have a clear idea of who they were reaching out to. Consequently, it was complicated to measure the impact of these marketing efforts.

Now, with a multi-channel CRM, they’re able to send more targeted campaigns via guests' preferred channels, instead of bombarding them with all information. Guests receive the information they need, personalised and with content that resonates more with them. As for the team, they don’t need to spend hours trying to create these campaigns.

“I’m happy that we are using Bookboost, and I think it is really going to change how we communicate with our guests”, said Therese.

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Main takeaways from Kronen Hotels

- Build a unique brand identity

Kronen Hotels strives to create an unforgettable experience that reflects Norwegian culture. More than just offering a place to sleep, they want to offer unique experiences to their guests through their dedicated and enthusiastic team and the distinctiveness of their properties. Think about what makes your brand special and create strategies for it.

- Be open to hotel technology

Reception-free hotels don’t mean a less positive guest experience. With the help of technology, Kronen Hotels ensures guests have a smooth stay while maintaining effective operations.

- Look for ways to improve team efficiency

Your team is your most valuable asset. Look for ways to improve team efficiency and free them up from repetitive tasks, so they can focus on high-value activities, for instance, personalising the guest experience, and building deep connections with the guests, among others.