Hotel automation: benefits of a growing trend in the tourism industry.

Hotel automation is undoubtedly one of the main trends in the tourism sector. The post-pandemic, marked by digitalization, the search for efficiency and the move towards sustainability, has created a new tourism scenario in which innovation is key to gaining competitiveness. Automation is the number one technological bet along with others such as robotics, sustainability, cybersecurity and privacy, according to the American Hotel & Lodging Association.

Such are its advantages that almost all the hotels surveyed by the Hotel Technological Institute (ITH) in the ‘Feasibility study on the implementation of robotics in hotel operational processes’ consider that the efficiency of their processes would increase considerably if they were automated. The difficulties in finding qualified staff and the constant improvement of robotics and hotel software help to create the perfect ecosystem for the definitive commitment to process automation in hotels. Emerging technologies and contactless are indispensable allies for hoteliers seeking to provide a better experience for both guests and employees.

What is hotel automation?

We understand this concept as a process that is characterized by no or little human intervention to carry out different actions, generally repetitive, being replaced by robots, software, etc. to minimize human intervention.

Hotel automation processes involve the optimization of tasks that are traditionally carried out manually. Through technology, these processes become automated. Hotel software and advances such as artificial intelligence or machine learning make it possible to modernize actions in the daily operations of a hotel. So where before there was a time-consuming task and the consequent wear and tear on staff and guests, today hoteliers have technological solutions that serve to automate key processes in their hotels.

In short, automated management ensures that the hotel’s internal processes are executed correctly, quickly and without human error. It means modernizing service and customer care, which becomes more agile and fluid.

Can you imagine a hotel without PMS? Just as the introduction of Property Management Systems revolutionized the industry decades ago, today numerous software tools allow you to automate processes to revolutionize the day-to-day running of your hotel. If your guests in their own homes are automating more and more of their daily routines, it is obvious that they expect the same from the hotels where they stay overnight.

What can be automated in a hotel?

According to the ITH study mentioned above, some examples of hotel automation would be automated check-in, loyalty processes, lead generation at events, integration with PMS, satisfaction surveys or integration with RFID cards and wristbands. There are many processes that could be automated and that could have a greater positive impact.

Reception

Check-in and checkout or quality questionnaires are processes that can be automated at the front desk of a hotel. Solutions such as AutoCheckin allow you to digitize your hotel’s check-in process, so guests can check in from any device online. This avoids queues at the front desk and relieves the reception staff of workload.

Guest Experience

Some examples are satisfaction surveys, reservations of services inside or outside the hotel, cross-selling, assistance to the receptionist during the customer’s wait. At this point, knowing the guests is the first step to make a hotel grow. With tools such as Captive WiFi Portal generator of First Party Data, guest information is collected to get to know them better and maintain direct contact with them. Satisfaction surveys or reward systems for recurring customers, for example, are automated. This results in the disintermediation of reservations, an increase in customer satisfaction and a significant rise in online reputation rankings such as Tripadvisor or Google.

Housekeeping

Help in transporting the housekeeper’s trolley or laundry trolleys; use of robots to help make beds; use of artificial vision to check rooms… Hotel automation can optimize these processes.

Food and beverage

Hoteliers highlight the advantages of automating cashiering and menu display. Other processes, such as the logistics of getting dishes out of the kitchen, are more difficult.

Events and meeting rooms

Tasks such as capacity control; control of security distances; registration and access control; data capture of attendees; information point on schedules, capacity, etc., can be digitized.

Common areas

The hotel software can help in access management and capacity control even with biometrics; versatile use of the robot in any area of the hotel. A basic service such as WiFi is also of special importance. The hotel’s WiFi network can be fully automated with WiFiBot technology, autonomously resolving possible connection problems and guaranteeing total and quality coverage. This is an essential tool for hoteliers and also contributes to making the hotel more sustainable.

As experts in contactless technology solutions for hotels, Hotelinking provides the industry with key automations for data capture, guest loyalty, increasing direct channel sales or controlling the hotel’s WiFi network.

Hotel automation advantages

Automation of processes in the hotel industry, whether in a small establishment or in a hotel chain, implies an improvement for hoteliers, employees and, of course, for guests. Some of the most important advantages of hotel automation are the following:

• Cost reduction: The initial investment in digitization is quickly amortized. Human resources are freed up to focus on other strategic tasks of the hotel, optimizing resources and increasing revenues. It can also save costs associated with physical formats.
• Sustainability: Automated processes in hotels can provide an important boost to the sustainability of the establishment. Technology helps to increase energy efficiency and reduce the carbon footprint, printing and purchasing of materials, etc.
• Reduction of errors: With hotel software, human errors in daily operations such as data collection and others disappear, as they become automated.
• Increased revenue: Digitalization and automation make it possible to optimize hotel revenue. Whether through pricing systems based on artificial intelligence, with predictive models on demand or through hyper-segmented loyalty campaigns, revenues increase considerably after automating hotel tasks.
• Better guest experience: Eliminate waiting times, provide customers with a better WiFi signal, give them discounts, congratulate them on their birthdays… Technology focuses on optimizing the guest experience, a key point for the prosperity of the business.
• Increased staff satisfaction: By eliminating or minimizing tasks traditionally associated with employees, it reduces stress and frustration and improves the working conditions of workers, who are positively affected by the hotel automation. Because digitization does not mean replacing humans with machines.
• Data control: information is power and, precisely by automating processes, the hotelier begins to build a valuable database that will help to know their guests better, increase their loyalty, improve their analyses and reports and, consequently, optimize the decision making. The different hotel softwares are connected and integrated to form a powerful tool to generate Hotel Data.

To understand more clearly the advantages of hotel automation, we can highlight the case of Zafiro Hotels, a chain of 4 and 5 star hotels with more than 2,900 rooms.

With the implementation of Hotelinking’s Social WiFi, they achieved in a record time more than a thousand direct bookings of recurring guests, more than 2 million euros in the direct sales channel and more than 400,000 euros saved in commissions for disintermediation.

See other real examples of success stories behind the automation of hotel processes.

In conclusion, both small hotels and large chains are betting on technology, hotel software and process automation to survive in an increasingly competitive sector. The advantages are endless, as are the technological solutions that improve the bottom line, guest experience and staff satisfaction. As a hotelier, you surely have in mind what tasks you could improve through hotel automation, so it’s time to embrace these changes!