A Great Guest Experience Starts With Great Operations
With today’s technology, we live in a world where we no longer own our reputation, and information travels at the speed of light.
The main forms of communications have evolved and submitting and reading information is easier than ever before. This means that information about anything is instantly at your fingertips. So, how does this affect hotels? Guests and travellers now use multiple channels of information to research hotel options, share experiences, and even book their reservations. The way you can affect your reputation is by improving the customer experience.
Review sites are in many cases the primary point of contact for guests, meaning that sites like TripAdvisor and Yelp are frequently visited before potential guests book their stay. New York University and TrustYou reported 95% of hotel guests researched online reviews prior to booking. This statistic alone proves how important guest reviews are to a hotel’s reputation. In 2016, Statistic Brain found 81% of travellers reported that user reviews on these sites are important and influence their booking decisions. TripAdvisor alone has “over 435 million reviews, opinions, and photos” posted by travellers that are accessible to everyone. If a guest has an issue with a room or a negative experience during their stay, they will be sure to post about it. In many cases, companies will respond to negative posts with an apology and often a form of compensation. Wouldn’t you like to prevent the negative posts and ensure your hotel has positive reviews online?
An effective way to influence your hotel’s reputation is to start by managing what you do have control over: your staff, your operations, and your information. Empowering your hotel team with the right information at the right time is key for creating a better guest experience. Give your team increased mobility for on-the-go communication and problem-solving; a tool exclusively with the information they need to get the job done; and the ability to track active trends at the hotel and enhance visibility with real-time communication.
Nowadays we can process, organise, and communicate data faster than ever. We have access to a digital record of work and information, and both information and issues are communicated without language and cultural barriers getting in the way. This means that data can integrate seamlessly with property management systems and other third-party systems.
What’s more, by using the latest operational efficiency tools, your team can improve communication between each department, protect and maintain your assets with preventative maintenance solutions, as well as provide faster room readiness and problem-solving.
Maintenance and smart task management tools are proven to increase the productivity and accountability of staff members in hotels around the world, by preventing and solving guest issues faster and reducing guest complaints and compensation. Users of these tools benefit from improved communication between departments and easier operation with a lean staff.
By efficiently managing information, regularly maintaining it in order to prevent issues, and resolving problems quickly and effectively, hotels can influence their reputation. A great guest experience begins with great internal operations. The best guest complaint is the one that never happens.
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