Alison Guillot
Just when you thought hotel guest texting is impersonal…Think again!
Before we dive in, be sure to visit our ultimate guide to elevating guest satisfaction full of tips, insights and data points on how to improve your hotel service and ensure optimal guest satisfaction.
A recent study by Gallup shows that only 22% of hotel guests were engaged in their last trip to a hotel. This study also showed that an engaged guest spends on average $185 more than a disengaged guest, per stay, at their most visited hotel over the course of 12 months.
Today, generation App often use text messaging more than any other media to share their travel experience. A majority of all U.S. travelers used text messaging, more than any other media, to share their travel experience.
Hotels are partnering with third party messaging companies such as Facebook Inc.’s Messenger app to revitalize guest engagement by providing them 2-way text messaging to interact directly with staff members. Hotel guest texting technology allows guests to receive notifications on room readiness, services requested, as well as personalized offers and promotions tailored to their interests, both during their stay and beyond.
Amadeus Service Optimization Solution (HotSOS), took this process one step further to transform these texts into actionable requests through its open API to integrate with text app companies, such as Zingle, Kipsu, and Alice to name a few. This integration automates guest text messages to actionable and personalized orders in HotSOS to be performed and tracked by staff members to reduce wait times, build guest profiles, and personalize the guest experience during their stay.
Lately, hotel guest texting technology and artificial intelligence so-called Chatbot are becoming a hot topic in mobile. With over 85% of travelers traveling with their phone today, integrating 2-way texting in hotels is still in its early stages. However, hoteliers are starting to realize the benefits of this engagement.
“Management has seen an average of 40 to 100 daily texts from guests seeking assistance with basic requests,”
said Darren Hirsowitz, director of finance & business analytics. “Once a guest becomes comfortable with texting the hotel for their needs, the engagement between our team and guests increases, resulting in a higher overall level of satisfaction with the entire resort experience. The real breakthrough here is the capability to connect with a guest on their terms.
Some may argue that vacation travelers might not be inclined to using text messaging during their stay. But again, would you prefer to just text for extra towels or dial in and stay on hold for the next operator to answer your call?
Learn more about Hospitality Operations Solutions from Amadeus
