5 signs a hotel tech stack is outdated

When
thinking about a hotel’s current technology capabilities, what comes to mind?
Innovation? Long-term growth potential? Guest personalization? Open API
architecture? Intuitive design? All of these are essential for operating in today’s
competitive landscape.

Technology
upgrades are proving to be top of mind this year, as hoteliers using legacy
software or those with major gaps in functionality are increasingly worried
about being outperformed. As a result, new global
research from Amadeus has revealed a strong
appetite to spend. Nearly all (91%) travel companies surveyed said they expect “moderate to
aggressive” increases in investment in their organizations in 2024. 

In order to maximize revenue across
the business, hoteliers should focus their budget on elevating the guest
experience using advanced reservations, distribution, marketing and data services. It will take an integrated set of solutions to tackle
challenges hoteliers have long struggled with due to aging technology. Here are five signs a hotel tech stack is outdated, along with tips on which state-of-the-art
solutions to consider instead. 

Guest personalization is near
impossible

Amadeus research shows personalization is not only a top priority for travelers, but for
hoteliers too. Some 85% of respondents from the hospitality sector anticipate that personalization could help them to deliver
more than 5% growth in incremental revenue. 

With so much emphasis being
placed on guest personalization, hoteliers need to build their tech stack from
the ground up, beginning with a central reservations system (CRS) and booking
engine
that can recognize users and returning guests. This will allow them to avoid a
basic, transactional shop and book process in favor of one that offers dynamic,
personalized and tailored experiences.

Hoteliers should think
about offering in-room champagne and chocolates for returning couples, reserved
tee times at the nearby golf course for larger groups or an invitation to join
the hotel’s rooftop yoga class for a guest who always visits the gym. When
travelers feel like a brand knows them and what they want, it increases their
likelihood to book and deepens loyalty.

In addition to the web and e-commerce experience,
guest management systems (GMSs) can be used at any stage of the guest
life cycle (before, during and after stays) to keep guests engaged with unique
and tailored offers or discounts and promotions to incentivize a return trip. 

Upsell opportunities are
limited

Similarly to guest personalization
strategies, hoteliers could be leaving money on the table if they don’t embrace
creative ways to upsell guests on aspects of their stay that are most important
to them.

Today’s innovative CRSs and booking engines can support experiential and added value offers. Hoteliers can create
additional revenue streams during the booking process by monetizing all aspects
of a hotel – spa, pool, bike share program, dining, etc. These assets can all
be creatively worked into pricing and upselling strategies during the shop and
book process.

Additionally, hoteliers can try
incorporating added value offers such as free parking, “percentage off,” flat fee, “one
room left” or “one night free” language to a guest’s search to introduce
urgency, sweeten the deal and get them to convert.

Distribution is difficult to manage

Hotel
distribution can feel overwhelming for people stuck trying to update
information across multiple sites. That will only lead to rate parity
challenges and eat up valuable time. 

Having a channel manager will take a lot of stress out of the equation by
automatically updating rates, inventory, availability and other information
across all channels. Hotels should ensure their channel manager has a wide,
global reach – connecting across all three major global distribution systems (GDSs), online travel agencies (OTAs) and more to
increase their online footprint and gain more visibility and bookings.

Based
on the needs of the property, hoteliers may also want to consider a dedicated
call center staff to complement their current strategy.

Marketing and demand
generation capabilities are missing

For hotels with limited
staff, a strategic marketing plan can be difficult to get off the ground. Plus,
how can hoteliers know if their efforts are truly resonating with the people they
are trying to reach? 

Technology
exists to help hotels drive profitable demand with omnichannel digital
advertisements that are built to target the
right audiences, on the right channel, at the right time. These campaigns can
then be thoughtfully tracked and optimized to achieve a measurable return on
investment.

Metasearch
and search engine optimization (SEO) programs are two additional marketing strategies that drive real
results to get a hotel seen on the most popular internet search engines influencing
travelers.

Data is siloed

With
all of these different systems running in parallel, data-driven decision-making
is critical. But it can be cumbersome to generate reports from individual
solutions, then try and compare the results to achieve an overall performance
picture.

Instead,
hotels need cloud-based integrated solutions that offer actionable insights into hotel
performance, booking trends, pace and best-selling packages and upsell offers.
Multi-views, filters and data exports allow for further analysis and
customized reporting. 

Integrated
and interactive reporting dashboards are a must in a hotel technology stack to
understand which areas of the business are performing well and which can be
improved. 

Hotel
technology is constantly evolving to better support the needs of the industry,
but the most sophisticated solutions in the marketplace today are designed with
intuitive features to make hotel management simple. From large resorts to
mid-size chains and independent to boutique properties, there is technology
available to help streamline operations and support a hotel’s goals. In a few
clicks, hoteliers should be able to activate a new offer, run a performance
report, edit the website or send a loyalty email.