It’s interesting that when it comes to goods and services, todays hotel guest will choose experiences over stuff (92% of guests will expect customisable room amenities by 2020, according to Forbes, 2015). What exactly does this mean for the hotelier? Well, let’s take AC for example. It’s not enough to just offer air conditioning in a room, now a guest will expect to adjust the temperature to their liking. At Amsterdam’s citizenM Hotel guests can choose room ambience preferences before they even leave home!
76% of travellers take into consideration the hotel’s high-tech amenities when booking which is why more and more hotels are offering services such as In-room movies on demand, customisable in-room refrigerator, bluetooth speakers, smartphones as hotel keys, complimentary newspapers (paper or online form), and some of the Aloft Hotels have gone as far as employing a robotic butler call Botlr to offer virtual room service. The sky really is the limit as hotels battle it out in the fight to win customer satisfaction…
But with all this technology already implemented, what else can we expect in the future?
Well for starters the Hilton is planning to build a “Connected Room” in 2018, which will allow guests to control features of their room through an app which will include lighting, entertainment and temperature. The Cruise industry is taking the lead in this field and are developing several ideas that eventually may be used in hotels, hostels and even B&Bs.
Taking 21st century technology to a new level is the Carnival Corporation who have built a “medallion” with their guest’s name, ship and sail date. And it’s job? It helps travellers unlock doors and pay for goods and can alert crew to know who their guests are as they approach. It stores guest preferences such as dietary restrictions and dining reservations. Thanks to its geo-location system the passenger can be easily found by the crew to fulfil requests such as drinks or snacks (these services can be requested through a smartphone, tablets or interactive screens).
Similarly, Royal Caribbean Cruises is focusing on improving experiences through facial recognition technology with its App. This App allows passengers to check in using facial recognition instead of through long lineups at check in counters. Once on board, they will be able to sign up for excursions, order drinks, make dinner reservations, open room doors and thanks to RFID tags on luggage, guests will also be able to track their bags.
It’s unlikely that most hoteliers have managed to get round to installing facial recognition technology or can offer their guests room ambient eco systems. But with Sirvoy’s very intuitive Property Management System (PMS) they can make managing their property easier and enhance their guests experience at the same time. We happily offer Property Managers a 14 day free trial to check it out.
In the meantime it is certainly interesting to watch as the future for the hotelier becomes more technically and emotively connected to the needs of the guest. We are sure you’ll agree that whatever happens this can only be a good thing!
