According to a report released by McKinsey in July 2019, roughly four billion people travel every day. However, successive lockdowns and closed borders due to the Covid 19 pandemic resulted in a huge drop in this number. With the first phase of multiple high efficacy vaccines being delivered, travel restrictions are expected to relax in the upcoming months. Resorts, hotels, and other lodging facilities have already embraced technological innovations to enhance safety for travellers during their stay. Periodic sanitation, minimizing human contact, and mandatory social distancing measures have managed to gain check-ins from a few travellers. As the hospitality industry is getting back on its feet, the use of technology in the hotel industry is expected to surge. This is a good time for small and medium-sized hotels and homestays to roll up their sleeves and make the most of the resources available.
Importance of Technology in the Hotel Industry
Protocols such as wearing a mask in public places, routinely sanitizing, and maintaining social distancing are the new normal. In this “touch-free” or “contactless” environment, technological solutions are stepping in to support businesses. To continue business like before, hoteliers are now actively looking for untapped opportunities within the hospitality arena that can be driven by technology. Across the world, the use of technology in the hotel industry is on a rise. With a goal to revive the confidence of travellers and keep the economy rolling, hoteliers are investing in channel management and booking engines that target, acquire, and retain guests. This has led to increased interest and investment in property management systems or PMS.
Growth Of Property Management Systems (PMS)
Smaller hotels and homestay property owners are among the worst hit by the pandemic. To make things worse, there is growing competition from high-tech aggregator platforms. This has led to an increase in awareness about the importance of technology in the hotel industry and a desperate need for a digital, low-cost, easy-to-use solution that can seamlessly communicate across platforms. Hotelogix’s Property Management System provides new hoteliers with the right tools to manage their business. Instead of having multiple specific systems for each stage of a guest’s lifecycle, Hotelogix’s single system does it all. This has dramatically changed “the way of doing things” in hospitality. Owners no longer have to worry about the daily monotonous operations of their business, and can instead focus on creating a memorable staying experience for their guests.
Post COVID-19 Technology Trends In The Hotel Industry To Look For
- Unified Booking Experience
An important use of technology in the hotel industry is the ability to independently manage multiple booking channels in one place. Most hotel owners have their property listed across multiple aggregator websites and booking platforms. These are great channels to gain qualified leads. However, the real challenge is to manage the leads brought in by these channels. Another major challenge is to manage the frequently changing check-in timing, tracking availability, and handling discounts offered under different campaigns. A unified booking experience is an approach that allows guests to make a reservation from any platform on any device. Having a platform that manages all the bookings in one place will help streamline the booking experience. Hotelogix’s Property Management System is an all-in-one suite of tools that helps you visualize all your bookings and reduce cancellations.
- Contactless Check-in/Check-out
Unarguably one of the most common technology trends in the hotel industry that is expected to continue is the use of contactless technology. Even before Covid hit, travellers hated waiting in line with others for minor tasks like check-in. In fact, most young travellers confirmed that they would prefer to check-in and out of their rooms without any help. A large number of travellers also suggested that they would prefer to contact the staff about concerns with the room (if any) only if they could not solve it.
Contactless check-ins empower guests and make them feel self-reliant which is an important part of a positive experience. Hotelogix’s system makes it possible to manage operations across different departments like housekeeping, room service, front desk, etc. to limit contact between the hotel staff and guests. Adopting contactless technology is a subtle way of showing your guests that you are practising the safety precautions. In the post-pandemic world, you can highlight this additional feature in your marketing campaigns to promote a sense of trust among travellers.
- Smartphone Friendly Solutions
Smartphones are an inseparable part of our daily lives. From ticket bookings to our favourite Insta-poses, our smart phone’s memory has a lot of information stored. In fact, the number of smartphone users worldwide has already crossed 3 billion. Therefore, it is important to keep up with the trend and choose a hotel solution that is compatible with smartphones.
Hotelogix’s app-based hotel management combines the benefits of a cloud system with the ease of carrying out operations from your smartphone. Since all your data is automatically saved on the cloud, your staff can work from anywhere, anytime. Moreover, the data captured by the app helps you make informed business decisions. Gaining a deep understanding of your guest’s behaviour can be an asset in improving your services as well as revenue.
- Workflow Automation
Workflow automation helps to improve the productivity of your staff by reducing the time spent on repetitive monotonous tasks by as high as 50%. Workflow automation for hotels lets your staff focus on only the most important tasks. As we move towards a ‘new way of doing things’, hoteliers need to invest wisely in tools that can help optimize their operations and communication. A common example is automating communications sent out to your guests regarding the tidiness, room service, and menu options available. This not only helps you prepare in advance but is a great way to engage your guests and deliver an experience as per their preferences. Hotelogix’s automated marketing and real-time information updates provide a way to segment and target your audience strategically.
Benefits Of Technology In The Hotel Industry Post-COVID
Like all major public organizations, hotels are expected to minimize human contact to guarantee the safety of their guests. Hoteliers are relying on technological advancement to manage these wellbeing concerns successfully. Here are some of the most common benefits that are available with Hotelogix, a cloud-based system that truly provides the best-in-class technology for the hospitality industry:
- A cloud-based 100% digital solution
- Integrates with multiple booking channels
- Balances front office and back-office operations in one simple platform
- Manage your booking 24*7
- Real-time data available
- Improved staff efficiency and optimization
- Automated marketing campaigns
- Housekeeping scheduling
- Point of sale (POS) assistance
How Hotelogix’s Technology Can Help?
Hotelogix is a powerful, all-in-one, comprehensive, full-stack hospitality tool for those in the hotel industry. It reimagines technology in the hotel industry and aims to provide a simple integrated platform which covers operations, branding, marketing automation, distribution along with guest-facing technologies. Hotelogix’s cloud-based digital technology sets it apart from other hotel management software. Hotelogix’s commitment to empower and bring small and medium-sized businesses back on track is reflected in its award-winning customer service.
At Hotelogix, we understand the uncertainty and anxiousness that you are facing as a hotelier right now. And so, we want to help you revive your business. We are currently offering a 75% discount to technologically boost your hotel. Hotelogix is a state of the art product in the hospitality industry and our team works closely with hoteliers to bring the best strategies to ensure an increase in your occupancy levels.
