Transforming the guest experience

Transcription

1 Transforming the guest experience Hospitality Outlook A Samsung white paper on the role of technology in the hospitality industry

2 It s all about personalisation 92% of hoteliers believe that by 2020 guests will expect their stay to be personalised around a set of choices they make before they arrive. 2 The future of the guest experience

3 Hospitality Outlook THE FUTURE OF THE GUEST EXPERIENCE What makes a meal in a restaurant or a stay in a hotel great? The answer is simple: getting a better service experience than you expected. Better service means different things in different contexts in a five-star restaurant it may mean being greeted by name and shown to your favourite table; in a budget hotel, it may mean getting your room key faster. Customers want speed, consistency and convenience, as well as personalisation. Whatever better service means in your business, there s traditionally been only one way to deliver it: to put more staff front of house. The impact of technology Advances in technology mean that everybody can afford to offer a more personalised service. It s easier and less expensive to deliver a better, more personalised experience for every guest. With the latest solutions, you can send individually targeted offers to each customer s smartphone, enable them to skip the queue at reception, pre-set the TV to their favourite channel, and much more. This gives guests the fast, personal service that they re looking for. And it eases the burden on your people, too. The impact on the bottom line By delivering a better, more consistent brand experience, this technology-enabled personalisation can generate increased customer loyalty which translates into higher occupancy rates and ultimately profit. This is what leading IT analyst Forrester calls the age of the customer. They believe that the only sustainable competitive advantage is knowledge of and engagement with your customers. How are hospitality companies responding? To better understand how hospitality companies are responding to these shifts, we commissioned Circle Research to perform in-depth telephone interviews with senior decision makers at hotels across the UK and Ireland. We asked them about how they are using technology from mobile devices to smart TVs their attitude toward innovation, and their plans and predictions for the future. Room prepared to your chosen settings We d like to share with you some of the insight into how your peers (and your competitors) are steering their businesses technology strategies. We hope that you ll find it interesting, and it will enable you to benchmark your existing guest experience and your plans for improving it. Lighting warm Air-con at 21ºC TV tuned into the news Parental controls off 52% of hospitality organisations that we surveyed have yet to implement a strategy for leveraging technology to enhance the guest experience. The future of the guest experience 3

4 The strategic role of technology Our research found clear recognition of the role technology plays in delivering the customer experience: 82% of respondents said that the customer experience of the future will be driven by technology. 68% said that the most successful hotels will have technologydriven solutions at their core. 79% acknowledged that failure to address customers technology needs would result in competitive disadvantage. These findings show that the industry is clearly not just paying lip-service to new technology this is not a case of putting a big screen in the foyer because it looks impressive, or sticking a single Wi-Fi hotspot in the bar. Instead, they see technology as a means to fundamentally change how guests engage with services from booking to checkout and beyond, at a strategic level. Keeping pace with changing expectations While hospitality organisations aren t sitting idle, consumer expectations are always evolving: the standard gets higher every year. They expect the technology you offer to be at least as good as the devices in their pockets, in their homes, and in their workplaces. More than half of organisations we surveyed have yet to implement a strategy for enhancing the customer experience with technology. And many hospitality organisations say they have yet to make use of even quite well-established technologies like: Digital signage (only 43% have adopted) Tablets (only 41% have adopted) Video walls (only 16% have adopted) It s time to look afresh at the potential that technology can offer, and get creative about how you can revamp your operations both to get one step ahead of consumer expectations, and to outpace your competitors. So what s different about the new guest experience? Over the following pages, we ll walk you through an example of what the customer journey could be like. 51% of respondents said that they already use technology, in all its forms,to differentiate from competitors. 78% of respondents said investing in technology has provided real ROI for their business. 4 The future of the guest experience

5 Hospitality Outlook THE NEW CUSTOMER JOURNEY Creating real value for guests means embedding technology into the entire customer journey, and redesigning interactions and processes to deliver more efficient, individual service. 1 SERVICE STARTS LONG BEFORE ARRIVAL The customer journey usually starts at home or in the office. It s already common to book online or from a mobile device using a hotel s app, checking real-time availability and amenities. But this experience will get slicker and more integrated. The booking system recognises that this reservation is from a repeat customer, and immediately applies all their preferences to the booking. And not just whether they like smoking or non-smoking, but personal touches like what temperature they like the room, and whether the lighting should be bright or more subtle. Fresh off the plane, the guest can check in from the taxi on the way to the hotel, and the app will give them a digital key for their room. With this they can skip the queue at the check-in desk just what they need after a long flight. The app can also give them all the information they need about nearby attractions, and events on that week in the hotel will there be time after the conference to attend that wine-tasting? When a room is allocated, technology allows these settings to be applied automatically, ready for the guest to arrive. Customers know they can check in before arrival and skip any queue at reception. The future of the guest experience 5

6 2 FIRST IMPRESSIONS COUNT After a long journey, a pleasantly air-conditioned foyer makes a welcome difference. Even better if, instead of having to queue, interactive digital signage detects the guest and offers a personalised welcome and directions to their room. 68% of respondents expected a positive impact on their business through the ability to immediately update product, service and promotional information to customers. Before taking the lift to their room, they use a touchscreen wayfinding display to scroll through a list of evening entertainment options and check out restaurant options. Cornell s Centre for Hospitality Research has proven selfservice enhances customer satisfaction and increases average daily value. 1 While they are looking at the screen, their smartphone buzzes as they receive a personalised promotional voucher for a free glass of their favourite wine in the restaurant. Already you ve delighted the guest and paved the way for more revenue in your restaurant and bar and without a minute of your reception staff s time. CELTIC MANOR PROVES THE VALUE OF DIGITAL SIGNAGE FOR GUESTS AND STAFF Celtic Manor is a 400-room, five-star resort that hosts both consumers and conference guests. Printing signage was time-consuming, costly and prone to errors. Not in keeping with the resort s exacting standards. Now with Samsung s digital signage throughout the resort, Celtic Manor can update all of the content from a central location, enabling it to display upto-the-minute offers and real-time information like traffic and weather conditions. And event details can be posted to screens outside each meeting room. The resort is now looking at replacing staff notice boards, too. This will make it easier to update employees on the latest events and campaigns. Read our case study 1 Integrating Self Service Kiosks in a Customer-service System, 2010, y Tsz-Wai Lui and Gabriele Piccoli, The Center for Hospitality Research at Cornell University 6 The future of the guest experience

7 Hospitality Outlook 3 A HOME AWAY FROM HOME As the guest approaches the room, a swipe of their phone unlocks the door. Inside, the air conditioning and ultraefficient lighting are already set to their preferred settings. The TV is displaying a welcome message with helpful information about how to contact reception. The guest s smartphone immediately connects to the Wi-Fi hub built directly into the TV and syncs with the desk phone, allowing them to make calls over IP using the wireless network. Tablets for guest services and information are the third most popular in-room amenity. With a little time to kill before dinner, they settle down on the bed to catch up on TV and browse content on the largescreen TV in the room. 82% of our respondents agreed that providing guests with innovative, high-quality and interactive solutions will enhance loyalty and increase room occupancy levels. The evening is drawing in. Without having to move, the guest can use the in-room tablet to draw the blinds, soften the lighting, and turn on the heating. It s the technology equivalent of fluffy towels the little luxury away from home that keeps guests coming back. BLOC HOTELS PUTS GUESTS IN CONTROL Bloc Hotels has a bold technology vision: its rooms are truly integrated smart rooms. Each room comes equipped with a Samsung Galaxy tablet from which guests can control the entire room environment to fit their individual needs: air conditioning, blinds, lighting and TV. And the hotel s free smartphone app allows the guest to stream their personal content to the inroom TV too. And the technology-driven mindset extends beyond the room: Bloc uses the latest computers, tablets, cameras and air conditioning to ensure its staff and communal areas maintain the highest standards. Read our case study The future of the guest experience 7

8 4 EVERYTHING AT YOUR FINGERTIPS While getting ready for dinner, the guest streams some music from their smartphone over the room s sound system, and picks up the in-room tablet to look at the restaurant menu. They can check out up-to-date lists of what s in season, plus information about the quality ingredients you use, allergy and calorie information, and recommendations direct from your chefs and sommeliers and then place their order directly from the tablet. 73% of respondents expected the use of interactive tools like tablet apps to create more selling opportunities and generate positive results. You can at last keep your in-room materials bang up to date even with the day s specials without the expense and hassle of printing in-room packs. The guest heads down to the restaurant, and is seated at their favourite table with the starter (and half-price glass of wine) presented immediately. Digital signage shows an enticing special dessert and an offer on cocktails why not? They relax with their drink while the mood lighting and screens set a calming ambience. And at the end of the evening, paying is just a matter of tapping a button on the smartphone app, which notifies the waiter s tablet that they ve paid, and rewards them with loyalty points automatically added to their account. 8 The future of the guest experience

9 Hospitality Outlook 5 BETTER 6 BUSINESS After a good night s sleep, it s down to business. The guest stops by the business centre to print off some documents. There s no need to worry about USB sticks it s all wireless, with documents released from the print queue by tapping the phone against the printer. JOURNEY S END All good things must come to an end: it s checkout day. In some hotels it s a stressful experience, but not here. The guest catches up on the news over breakfast using the tablet at the table, reluctantly turning down a last-minute offer of a quick spa session. Back up to the room to pack. Into the conference room to meet the client, with other colleagues dialled in through videoconferencing. Everyone remarks that the technology is better than in the office who d have thought? Business travellers are some of the most demanding guests, the ones who notice missing amenities and inconsistent service. If you can keep them coming back, you re on the right path. They use the in-room tablet to settle their bill. There s no key to drop off or anything to sign, so it s straight into the waiting taxi to the airport, booked the night before through the TV. 60% of respondents said that interactive and connected technology would have a positive impact on personalisation of the guest experience. As the car pulls away, a discreet notification buzzes on the guest s smartphone it s a survey of their experience at the hotel, with questions tailored to the facilities they used. The answers to the survey along with the data gathered from their stay will be used to refine their personal profile even further, and hopefully make the next stay even better. The future of the guest experience 9

10 BEHIND THE SCENES While our research showed that enhancing the customer experience was the top driver for investing in technology, hospitality organisations are also focusing on how technology can help increase productivity and make green savings. Productivity gains Energy savings The same technologies that help personalise the guest experience can also free up your staff to get more work done. Digital signage can help you communicate news and instructions to staff as they move around the site. Mobile devices make it quick and easy to track and reorder stock. Intelligent security cameras can automatically track individual faces around the building. Wireless networks combined with VoIP technology keep staff connected anywhere on-site, saving trips back to the office. As well as improving the guest experience, many of these technolgies can also help you become greener. Ultra-efficient air conditioning combined with sensors to detect when rooms are sitting unused can cut energy use dramatically. LED lighting that uses 80% less energy than halogen bulbs, with a lifespan measured in years. 71% of respondents in our survey said that their investments in technology were delivering significant green savings.

11 Hospitality Outlook END-TO-END SOLUTIONS Samsung supplies a wide variety of electronics equipment to the hospitality market. All our commercial products are designed with interconnectivity in mind, allowing you to assemble a full and dynamic system architecture across all devices and appliances. Smartphones and tablets Desk phones PCs and laptops TVs Large format displays Wireless networking Print LED lighting CCTV Air conditioning Washing machines Refrigeration Microwaves START YOUR OWN JOURNEY The journey we ve discussed is possible today: the technology is available right now. We re working with more than 550 independent hotels and 25 hotel chains in the UK to help them take advantage of technology to transform their guest experience and operational effectiveness. Personalisation, interactivity, and the convenience of self-service can help grow your revenue and reduce your costs. Are you ready to seize the opportunity? To find out more about our offerings for hospitality and how they can help transform your guest experience visit samsung.com/uk/hospitality or businessuk@samsung.com

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