4 Ways Hospitality Can Flourish With Mobility

9/29/2014
Mobility has greatly impacted the way we work and interact on a daily basis with our coworkers and customers. Mobile devices have empowered consumers to make informed decisions and take charge of their purchasing power. Likewise, enterprises have given employees the means to be more productive, accurate and efficient in their jobs. The rise in mobility has significantly changed the way many industries do business today.
 
One industry that is truly harnessing the power of mobility is hospitality. Before the age of mobile devices, tired, often impatient travelers waited for hotel staff to manually search for reservations, assign a room and process requests for upgrades and extra services. The procedures for training hotel staff, responding to maintenance requests and fulfilling room service orders were not streamlined, which impacted the value of customer service provided to guests.
 
The introduction of mobility enables hotels to provide a better guest service, which ultimately boosts revenue. The added volume of guests during peak seasons puts strain on hotel staff to provide excellent customer service as quickly as possible to more people than usual. Today’s tech-savvy guests expect personalized, premium services and are quick to share their experiences – both good and bad – with the world via social media apps and sites. This move could impact future business in a big way. Here are four ways to include mobility into the day-to-day operations of hotels from AirWatch.
 
Seamless check-ins
Fortunately, smart devices can be seamlessly integrated into existing processes and backend infrastructure to keep guests coming back. Ensuring a quick, seamless check-in by greeting guests at the door with a smart tablet is a welcomed interaction compared to long lines at the front desk. Mobile devices can also give hotel employees the opportunity to display images of an upgraded room or service to guests, an easily executed gesture that could result in additional revenue.
 
Guestroom amenities increase sales and satisfaction
In-room devices can enable guests to control the TV, order room service, request maintenance, make restaurant reservations and more without calling a concierge. Tablets in the room can also be used for scheduling wake-up calls, displaying the morning weather and aggregating local news and events to keep guests informed. With mobile devices, guests are more empowered to customize their own experience.
 
Restaurants go mobile to improve service
Restaurants on property can also benefit by employing mobile devices. Smart devices can be used to book tables, submit food orders, train employees, provide on-table kids entertainment, maintain recipe consistency and deliver faster food and beverage services to guests. The opportunities to upsell increase, as well. For example, if a guest orders a particular menu item, the device can prompt him or her to purchase a bottle of wine or side dish that pairs well with the meal.  Recently, a restaurant used smart devices to facilitate drink orders for customers who just walked in. The restaurant had impressive results: Beverage arrival time from bar to table dropped from 17 minutes to just three minutes. Mobility integration, no matter how small, can drastically improve food service processes.
 
Mobile all the way to check-out
To continue the seamless guest experience, mobile devices can be implemented during the check-out process. Guests can use tablets provided in their rooms to complete the process and submit payment information without requiring a stop at the front desk. Once a payment is received, the housekeeping department can be immediately alerted that the room is available for cleaning. Because the alert is sent in real-time, housekeeping can prepare rooms more efficiently for the next guests. As any hotel manager knows, this is particularly important during peak times when staff is focused on checking in guests and assigning rooms. Moreover, smart devices can be updated when rooms are cleaned, providing employees with accurate, timely room information to provide to guests.
 
Using the power of mobility, hotels and resorts can provide the best experience possible for guests. Hotels and restaurants that have incorporated tablets into their business platforms have enhanced customer satisfaction, decreased wait times, improved sales and increased employee productivity. Hospitality organizations willing to embrace mobile devices and integrate them into day-to-day operations are likely to outpace competitors and enhance customer satisfaction year-round.
 
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