Time-Saving Tools: 5 Must-Have Technologies for Your Hotel
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New technology is coming out every year in hospitality. Many hoteliers are benefiting greatly from it by using tech to streamline processes and free up valuable time and resources.
The importance of technology is self-evident. According to research, 80% of hoteliers said technology is helping them reach their professional goals. However, with thousands of solutions available, it can be confusing to choose which ones to use.
The big question remains the same: Which technology should I pick, and how can I decide what works best for my hotel?
Here are 5 game-changing technologies that will transform the way your hotel operates. Before rushing to adopt any new tech, take your time to assess which ones are the best fit for your needs.
For the front desk: A Unified Inbox
Does your front desk team feel overwhelmed by the number of guest messages they can’t respond to? Or have guests ever complained to you about sending requests and not receiving a response? You need a unified inbox.
As the name suggests, a unified inbox can bundle all your inbound communications from different channels into a single platform. For your team, they no longer need to juggle over 10 tabs each night, log in and out of various platforms, and waste lots of time responding to the same guests on multiple channels.
They will be able to access a general overview of all guest communications, keep track of each communication, respond promptly to guest inquiries, quickly access each guest profile, and more.
Moreover, the AI technology built within the unified inbox can automate repetitive guest inquiries, making answering frequently asked questions an automated process.
This can save the team a great amount of time and simplify handoffs between staff members. They will also have more time and energy in personalising guest communication.
And guests will no longer complain about not receiving an answer on time, regardless of who on your team is available to assist.
Get inspired: Discover how Bookboost helps front desk teams to operate more efficiently
For the marketing team: A Hotel CRM
Are you spending hours creating every marketing campaign, but the results you want just aren’t there? We all understand the frustration.
There can be many reasons behind low engagement. Maybe your guests are not interested in the content, the offer is not enticing enough, or they simply don’t use the channel you’re contacting them through.
To get better results and drive accountable revenue, you can implement a multi-channel CRM.
Being multi-channel means that instead of a single communication avenue, it allows you to have the flexibility to engage with guests through multiple channels, such as phone, email, SMS, social media, website and more. You get to engage with them via their preferred channels, and naturally, the engagement will increase.
All this personalisation might seem like a lot more work than your usual routine, and you already have a full plate. The best part about having a hospitality CRM is that you can leverage its automation capabilities to save time.
How? For example, you can set automation triggers that will schedule and send all the campaigns at the right time and across channels, from booking confirmations to upselling offers and online check-in.
Can you imagine how much time you are saving just by not having to craft each campaign from scratch and send them manually?
Discover the Dos and Don’ts when implementing a hotel CRM for the first time.
For marketing and general managers: A CDP
Without a customer data platform (CDP), marketing and general managers can spend hours manually segmenting large contact lists and generating reports. It's not just boring but also prevents them from focusing on other high-value tasks.
What’s more, your data is likely siloed across different systems such as the booking engine, social media, loyalty program, etc. And these systems don’t communicate with each other effectively. This forces you to spend lots of time simply gathering and piecing together information to understand guest preferences and behaviours.
On top of that, creating marketing campaigns turns into a guessing game. You won’t be able to target specific segments with customised offers that truly resonate with your guests, and then all the effort and time spent creating these campaigns go to waste.
Sounds horrible, right? A CDP can help you accomplish more in less time.
By unifying guest data and automating tasks, you can have a unified view of your guests and save plenty of time to focus on what matters more: interacting with your guests and building loyalty.
In Bookboost, our CRM is powered by a CDP, which means it allows you not only to clean your data but also to use it for many purposes.
You can segment your guests into hundreds of different targeted groups, for example, high-spenders, low-spenders, first-timers, returners, business travellers, family travellers, and more. This enables you to deliver personalised offers and promotions that resonate with each segment, driving real results.
Explore how a CDP can significantly boost your business performance.
For operations: A Guest App
If you are looking for solutions to streamline your hotel operations and boost staff efficiency, then a guest app is a must-have for your property.
With a guest app, you can automate multiple processes such as check-in and check-out procedures, extra service requests, and feedback collections. This not only saves time for your staff but also for your guests.
Now they can manage everything from their phones - from booking housekeeping service, and browsing digital menus to scheduling spa appointments… all at their fingertips.
No more waiting on hold or making a call for simple requests such as extra towels or restaurant recommendations. This can significantly reduce waiting time and guest effort, ultimately improving the overall guest experience.
For your operation team, this means they no longer need to repeat the same manual check-in or provide the same information every day. They won’t act as intermediaries for guest requests with different departments, or send out feedback surveys by hand.
Learn more about customer effort and how to lower it for guest satisfaction.
For guest reputation department: Review Management System
As a hotel marketer you probably know that reviews play a key role in your marketing strategy; however, answering each and one of them can also be something very tiring and time-consuming.
Fortunately, there are several apps and systems that use artificial intelligence to write answers to your reviews based on previous examples or parameters you can set.
With this, your team will be able to answer a great amount of reviews in a short period of time. Ideally, you can automate responses to all positive reviews and personalise responses to negative ones. As a result, you can save lots of time and focus on writing a comprehensive response to those guests whose needs weren’t fulfilled during their stay.
Best practices when implementing new tools in your property
1. Identify Your Needs & Goals
Before investing in any technology, take a step back and think about what is happening in your hotel and what you want to achieve with these new technologies.
For example, is sending guest communication campaigns taking a lot of your time? Do your guests have trouble reaching your staff? Or do you want to find a tool to connect with your guests before and after their stay?
On the other hand, thinking about your goals for that technology will help guide your decisions. For example, if you want to connect with your guests through WhatsApp instead of email only, you need a CRM that offers multi-channel communication.
2. Research Solutions
Once you know which type of technology is best suited for achieving your goals, start researching different solutions on the market. Read reviews and success stories from other hotels and make sure the platform offers everything you need.
Moreover, consider these factors too: pricing structure, ease of use, integration capabilities & data analytics capabilities.
3. Start Small & Test Out Different Strategies
Start small and have a plan of implementation that will get you from small changes to big ones.
In many cases, vendors will set KPIs with you so you are able to track the progress and measure performance after implementation.
According to Hotel Technology News, 78% of hoteliers will increase their investment in hotel technology in the next three years.
This shows how technology is playing a key role in all areas of a hotel, and why you shouldn’t miss out on investing in tools that will help you get better results.
Start by reading up on our customer stories to learn how implementing Bookboost’s products transformed their hotels in all areas.
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