The hospitality industry is considered one of the most highly competitive. Stable internet and mobile signal boosting for hotels and restaurants are not enough for businesses to maintain their positions and develop. Businesses are forced to be flexible and quickly implement various IT solutions that improve customer experience. In this article, we will tell you about digital solutions that are a must have for hotels and restaurants.
Internet And WiFi
Internet connection is an integral part of the hotel business and an important factor that affects the level of service, guest satisfaction, and reputation of the hotel. Here are the main factors to consider when developing a business.
1. Fixed Internet.
Thanks to a stable Internet, hotel administrators can work with cloud services, and mail, and easily exchange data. This is especially important when it comes to a large hotel chain with a large number of branches around the country and around the world.
All online services will also function without interruption. This is especially important in the hospitality industry. Even on peak days, the booking system will work stably. If there are problems with the stability of the Internet connection, you should use mobile signal boosting for hotels.
2. WiFi for guests.
Fast and free Wi-Fi is no longer perceived by guests as an advantage but as a prerequisite for the operation of any hotel. The absence of this service causes a strong negative, so setting up the system is vital.
Guest Wi-Fi has many benefits. This network is isolated from the one used by employees, reducing the risk of sensitive data being leaked.
During authorization, guests leave contact details, in the future they are usually used to improve advertising activities, analyse repeat sales, and organise a loyalty system. On the authorization start page, you can place advertisements about additional hotel services and current promotions.
3. Virtual private network and storage.
As in any service industry, the privacy of personal data is important for hotel business customers. To avoid leaks, hotels should only exchange information over VPN-secured channels, and store user information on secure servers. In order to independently organise the appropriate infrastructure, a significant investment of resources will be required. You can order a comprehensive service from a telecommunications company, and specialists will set up a system where all data will be securely protected.
4. Conference call.
Most large hotels have conference rooms for negotiations and numerous halls for large-scale business events. Medium-sized hotels also often provide facilities for business meetings. This increases the average bill and allows you to smooth out the seasonality of the business: you can maintain profitability during periods when there are few holidays and a lot of business activities.
In recent years, meetings have often been held in a hybrid format: some participants gather together in the same room, and some join them via video link.
To organise a high-quality video conference, a stable Internet connection is not enough. A whole complex of special equipment is needed: a dedicated communication channel, secure servers for storing recordings, cameras, microphones, speakers, and computers for screen sharing. You can build the necessary infrastructure on your own, but if there is no experienced IT specialist on staff, it is better to contact a telecommunications company, which will equip a turnkey conference room.
Voice Services
Communication in the hotel business between employees and customers is also extremely important. Let’s look at the main tools for building a stable connection used in hotels.
1. Hosted PBX.
The system makes it possible to work more efficiently with incoming calls. If there is an overload at the reception, it will automatically transfer the client to the first free operator.
Technologies allow you to set up a convenient voice menu. Then the client can select the question that interests him (booking a room, organising an event, etc.) and dial the appropriate number. The system will immediately send the person to the most competent employee, who will advise him in detail.
And with a hosted PBX, you can record all conversations in order to quickly resolve disputes, and analyse the work of staff and the most frequent customer requests.
2. Speech analytics.
Recorded conversations are available for automatic analysis using special software. The program identifies keywords and phrases, they show when the client was satisfied and when not. So you can improve the scripts and identify the most successful moments in the work of the hotel.
3. Call tracking.
As a rule, hotels place advertisements on many resources and booking services. It is important for the manager to understand which source brings the largest number of customers. To do this, you can use static or dynamic call tracking.
Surveillance And Control
Organisation of security in the hotel business is also important. For this, technologies for video surveillance and smart devices are used, requiring a stable Internet connection.
1. CCTV.
A hotel is a place with a lot of traffic, so security here should always be on top. Cameras located in the halls and corridors will allow you to track the flow of people, identify suspicious movements of guests and prevent them from entering important technical rooms and staff work areas. The latter is possible thanks to modern smart video surveillance systems. The cameras not only record what is happening but also track specific events: for example, crossing a certain line or the appearance of an unauthorised user in the room. Notification of such an event is immediately sent to the security console.
Video surveillance allows you to control the work of staff. If you connect analytics programs to the system, you can quickly identify which employees spend an unreasonably large amount of time on tasks, and which, on the contrary, cope with the functionality quickly and efficiently.
2. Smart device control.
Modern hotels are filled with a significant amount of smart technology: access systems are often organised there with passes, and a large number of sensors and smart metres are installed. Monitoring the operation of this equipment can be difficult: if the hotel is large, an impressive staff of technical specialists will be required.
The task is simplified by integrated control services: special SIM cards are installed on the metres and equipment, and then, together with the ACS sensors, they are connected to the monitoring system. After that, in a single personal account, you can see the statistics of the devices, check their serviceability, and even remotely control them.
Conclusion
The digital services used by hotels may differ depending on the type and size of the business. Hotel companies are actively following digitalization trends and looking to use new technologies to improve operations and deliver a more convenient and personalised guest experience. If you want to install a stable Internet connection in a hotel and look for mobile signal-boosting solutions for hotels, we recommend contacting UCtel.