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WHAT'S THE BUZZ IN HOSPITALITY?

Guests Prefer to Speed up – or Skip Traditional Hotel Check-ins

Feb 25, 2020

Checking in to a hotel can be an arduous process for guests, involving long lines at the front desk and hotel staff manually processing one guest at a time. Innovative hotels are rethinking the check-in experience, making it more high-tech, and more personalized in the process. Novel tech promises to get guests to their rooms quicker, possibly even bypassing front desk queues.

Offering both high- and low-tech service options allows guests to choose their level of experience, based on their needs at that time. For those who prefer to talk with a front desk agent, that option remains available. For those who want to serve themselves, check-ins might involve using a lobby kiosk, or it might mean checking-in on the guest's device. In either self-service alternative, technology saves guests from waiting for a front desk agent to become available.

According to Zaplox, recent research suggests that 80% of consumers prefer self-service. Guests are continuously demonstrating a desire for increased mobile functionality for the sake of convenience. When hotels deliver against these expectations, features like mobile check-in and mobile keys elevate the guest's perception of the property. In fact, guests who use digital keys generally rate a hotel seven points higher than traditional key card guests.

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Given the advent of mobile check-in and room keys, the traditional practice of front desk lines and long check-in delays are becoming a thing of the past. Guests and staff alike are no longer inhibited by a property’s manual or time-consuming check-in workflows. With the driving trend in hospitality innovation being the personalization of the guest experience, these new mobile capabilities bring significant value for hotels and resorts around the globe who seek to deliver enhanced guest service.

The mobile check-in experience also creates more touchpoints; translating to upsells and cross-sells for a revenue boost. Hotels extend promotions to guests on their devices during mobile check-in. The promotions consist of room upgrade offers, dining reservations, spa treatments and other suggestive sells that entice guests to spend a little bit more than they would if prompted by a front desk agent.