By using the right technology, hotels can save time on administrative work, resulting in greater efficiency and freeing up more time for personalization and personal interaction with guests. The demands and expectations of hotel guests have accelerated rapidly in recent years, as has the development of hotel technology.

While it remains a major cultural challenge for hoteliers,  rapid technological change in other industries allows guests to adapt relatively quickly. Whether small family hotels, hotel groups or large hotel companies, the use of technology improves the guest experience and improves hotel operations in many ways.

While today it's hard to imagine a hotel room without a television, each of these developments has been driven by industry leaders who understand the importance of adapting to new technologies.

1. Guest Demand is Changing

Today it's all about convenience, but people still expect a personal interaction that makes them feel valued, which is ultimately the essence of hospitality. Online check-in before arriving at a hotel is a great example of the merging of these two elements. Guests already rely heavily on their mobile devices to search for a plane ticket, a hotel stay, or just their travel destination. and ensuring that the reservation has been made and that the reservation is "set in stone" are the main drivers and benefits they are looking for.

Guests have been familiar with the airline industry's online check-in for decades, and as a result, they can adapt very quickly to this shift in the hospitality industry. Hoteliers should be aware that this is not an entirely new change. of behavior, but rather an adaptation.

2. Cutting the Administrative Work to Create More Time for Personal Interaction

There is a fine line between using technology and offering  related services face-to-face, and hoteliers need to understand this in order to improve the guest experience. By using the right technology, hotels can save time on administrative work, resulting in greater efficiency and freeing up more time for personalization and personal interaction with guests. Eliminate pain points in the guest journey, like paperwork and check-in queues, and let guests take ownership of their stay, or  better yet, let them decide when  to do the “boring” paperwork. Part can only contribute positively to your overall experience. It's no secret that the guest experience begins when you book your stay, not when you arrive at the hotel.

It should be in the hotelier's interest to make this experience smooth and seamless from the start when the guest books their stay. The implementation of new technologies into the current technology stack, such as B. Online check-in does not mean that you have to adapt your hotel. Be fully digital, but rather see it as a choice for your guests  and let them slowly get used to this change.

‍

3. What to Consider Before Implementing Online Check-in

Whether or not new technology is integrated into the hotel's current tech stack is usually in the hands of senior management. However, hotel owners and management need to speak to those who will be most affected, namely the front desk. Most receptionists don't like robotic tasks explaining the same information about the hotel's facilities, drawing a circle on a piece of paper for the guest to confirm and fill out the registration form, and finally calling "Next in line, please." The staff at the reception wants to get to know the guests and  influence their stay by recommending interesting sights or cozy cafes in the area.

There is also a misconception that implementing such a service can take a lot of time and money. Most Red Software as a Service (SaaS) solutions are more or less plug-and-play for the existing technology stack. Hardware is rarely a crucial factor for a hotel to offer such a service as online check-in.

‍