1.23.2024
Maestro PMS, the leader in cloud hosted, All In One, private cloud and on-premise property-management systems for independent hotels and luxury resorts, conference centers, vacation rentals, and multi-property groups, continues to help elevate hotel operations through expanded communications provided by its Guest Experience Management solution, or GuestXMS. This complete, seamless engagement hub provides hotels with two-way SMS communication between staff and guests, along with expanded internal communication capabilities for hotel operators. GuestXMS’s ability to track and resolve every aspect of guest engagement, from reviews to inquiries and even complaints, all under one program, has improved hotel reaction times and elevated review scores across the board.
Patti Culwell, director of operations at the Texas A&M Hotel in College Station, Texas, said her property primarily uses Maestro’s GuestXMS technology to improve guest-to-staff communication by targeting different audience groups with crucial messaging, increasing bookings while reducing unnecessary or unwanted interactions with the wrong consumers. Once on property, travelers can use mobile contactless check-in options to manage arrival on their own terms, and hotel operators can monitor guests’ satisfaction and activity throughout the stay and react if necessary.
Most recently, unexpected freezing weather across Texas resulted in both surprise cancellations and a wave of transient travelers looking for last-minute bookings. Culwell said GuestXMS allowed the Texas A&M Hotel to quickly adapt to these changes by alerting all arriving guests to demand in the area and proactively creating open rooms by pre-emptively warning the hotel of impending no-shows for prior bookings.
“Maestro’s GuestXMS has been invaluable for managing room inventory by making it easier to communicate with guests and solicit feedback faster and more organically,” Culwell said. “The ability to engage with guests earlier in the stay process has been absolutely effective in improving review scores. Additionally, Maestro’s GuestXMS team has been receptive to our requests for integrations and has quickly pivoted to help improve our operations and make our team’s lives easier by rolling out features just for us.”
Guest Communication Plan is a Must
GuestXMS has also become an essential operational touchpoint for hoteliers looking for ways to remain within reach when guests are in need. Nick Miller, manager of the Resort at Governor’s Crossing in Sevierville, Tenn., said his hotel has been removing phones from the hotel guestroom due to reduced use from travelers. Still, he said doing so without a backup plan could be detrimental and leave operators without a reliable way to communicate with travelers. His answer lies in GuestXMS and its ability to manage communications on a guest-by-guest basis.
“GuestXMS has been a convenient tool for our property,” Miller said. “Now the front desk can become more accessible to guests who are used to relying on in-room phones to stay in contact with operators. We can stay in contact with travelers and even other operators while they are on the road; this increases the accessibility of our team by leaps and bounds. Furthermore, GuestXMS has allowed us to focus on technology and operations strategies guests support and engage with, while moving our operations more securely into the 21st Century.”
Performance Analytics Matter
Maestro’s GuestXMS also provides AI-powered analytics on hotel performance and staff engagement, allowing operators to track performance changes and shifts in efficiency over set periods of time. Venita Yelley, controller at the MCM Elegante Lubbock in Lubbock, Texas, said the biggest surprise since adopting the technology has been its impact on the hotel’s maintenance department. Through improved communications and the ability to manage tickets more efficiently without needless back-and-forth conversations, Yelley said the hotel’s maintenance speed and consistency have both increased.
“The MCM Elegante Lubbock was the first of our hotels to adopt Maestro’s GuestXMS, and since then we have mandated its inclusion at six other hotels owned by our group,” Yelley said. “After adopting GuestXMS, our hotel’s ratings and online reviews have increased by as much as 20 percent all thanks to our renewed ability to address problems prior to guests checking out. Additionally, workers today are more comfortable texting in some environments, and GuestXMS has given them a pathway to leading operations in a way that is most comfortable to them.”
Warren Dehan, Maestro PMS president, had this to say: “We created GuestXMS to help hoteliers better manage their reputations through improved operations, expand oversight of emerging online sentiments, and track and resolve every aspect of this process all in one place. Our team is working diligently to study the ways guests and our peers are continuing to evolve and are collaborating with trusted hotel partners to improve their operational potential wherever possible. Through technology, hotels can continue exceeding guest expectations without losing the prestige and significance that continues to draw travelers to their doorstep.”
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