Higher guest satisfaction in hospitality industry can create an unparalleled customer experience and is one of the most effective ways to help drive revenue and loyalty. According to the latest insights by Forbes, 70% of the customers would pay more for convenience, and 68% states that a convenient experience alone would make them come back to the same brand.
Understanding such guest behaviour and catering to them will reap benefits beyond substantial income. Enhanced customer service is the key to a better brand image and a more significant impression in the target audience. It brings in more positive reviews for a business, builds better awareness, encourages brand recognition and fosters a solid unique selling proposition to broadcast on media.
In hospitality, many factors affect the requirements of modern guests, commencing from the economic and sociocultural factors to travel and tourism needs going all the way up to digital trends. From the moment a guest browses for a hotel or a restaurant online until they pay their bill and check out, all of the above factors define what a guest expects. For hospitality businesses, the secret for keeping up with these demands lies in good property management software, which enables them to track, understand and respond to guest needs effectively.
So, how can PMS software help with an exemplary guest experience in a hospitality business?
Keeping track of guest needs
Guest preferences can change with time, often shaped by modern trends. The benefit of property management software for the hospitality businesses is that it allows hotels to keep track of the trends that shape consumer needs, the state of contemporary markets and help determine how to meet those needs.
At least 90% of travellers today wish their online hotel booking experience was more personalised. A PMS is designed to capture guest data based on past interactions, provide accurate insights about guests and create a personalised experience. It can maintain guest profiles that keep track of every detail of a guest’s interaction with the business: guests’ preferences, notes, feedback, and even past stay details that can be analysed to bridge any demand/ supply gaps in the hotel-guest relationship.
Specifically, a cloud-based property management software can disseminate guest data across multiple hotel properties, with real-time information to be retrieved and keep the hotel establishment updated on guest preferences, frequency of purchases, needs and requirements.
The benefit of having a centralised database of customer data is not limited to on-site services. These data can be used to optimise a hotel’s marketing strategies and personalise their communication with the guests, launch reward schemes and loyalty programs that are curated for each guest preference and even used to optimise products and services as per purchase data.
Provide a positive guest experience
A holistic guest experience doesn’t end at personalisation. Instead, in the hospitality’s sphere, it’s also determined by the speed of the service, the quality of guest-staff interactions and how convenient a stay or a dining experience was for the guest.
Digitising hotel operations with a cloud PMS system means that a hotel can deploy next-level service modules that provide convenience and comfort to their guests. For example, a good PMS and a web-based booking engine can mitigate issues in the booking processes and eliminate matters such as overbooking and even currency or language barriers.
Guests today expect what the late author and futurist John Naisbitt called a “high tech/high touch” experience. Meaning the success of any technology depends on how deeply it defines and enhance the human experience. With efficiency and personalisation, they also want to be self-sufficient in their interactions with brands.
The ability to self-check-in and self-check-out is one such instance that guests get more control over their stay. Modern guests are more likely to prefer a hotel that allows guests to check in with their smartphone reducing the customer wait time and decreasing the frustration that comes with it. A cloud-based PMS can even go further and make these services accessible beyond the hotel premise, providing the option for remote check-in and check-out, eliminating lengthy queues and smoothening the processes.
Streamline all staff operations
The more streamlined a hotel’s back-office operations are, the smoother the staff can operate in the front end. The technology and smart routines established by a property management solution can not only save time and money but also build better synchronisation between operations and improve staff efficiency.
A PMS with a navigable dashboard can empower the front staff with a quick view of all properties and be in the know about hotel occupancy, arrivals and departure, upcoming reservations and room rates and use the data to respond effectively to any consumer queries, confirm or change reservations as per availability and keep track of responsibilities and complete them timely.
A cloud PMS also has the benefit of updated and backed-up data, so network shutdowns or computer crashes will not cause complete operational downtimes. This means that the hotel staff can be as swift-footed as possible and always provide an outstanding service to satisfy the customers. This is further encouraged by the efficient communication between systems and departments enabled by cloud PMS software and mobile modules; the result is optimised housekeeping schedules, better attention to room service requests, and increased staff availability.
Additionally, integration with other modules like POS transactions can deploy automated payment and invoicing features for a more efficient transaction completion, track hotel performance and KPIs with auto-generated performance reports and reduce the overall workload and human error.
In conclusion: Why should hotels use PMS software?
A seamless guest experience free of friction leads to a higher guest satisfaction score. Using a PMS solution, hotels can empower their staff to deliver what guests desire and drive their business to new heights with satisfied customers.
An excellent service is the beginning of a business’s efforts to scale their operations and expand their audience; generate more leads, turn leads into prospects, prospects into becoming customers and customers into repeat customers.