Technology as a competitive advantage in the hotel industry

As the years go by, both technology is evolving and so too are many sectors such as the hotel industry. Evolution is important to help keep yourself above your competitors and to entice guests to stay at your hotel instead of someone else's. To evolve, many hotels are turning to new technologies to help create a more positive experience for guests and to keep themselves up to date with technological trends.

So, what sort of technological changes have hotels made to keep themselves competitive? From branded apps, mobile room keys and smart check-in options below we look into technology as a competitive advantage in the hotel industry.

Branded Apps

Branded apps are something that not only the hotel industry utilises, but also many other industries such as amusement parks or shops. Hotel guests can download the hotel's app before visiting to see all the different services that they offer. Through the app, you may be able to book spa treatments, see what’s on in the local area or speak to the reception team.

Most apps will be compatible with your mobile device as well as tablets and, of course, will be free to download for guests.

Mobile Room Key

New technology within hotel door locks can allow guests to unlock their hotel room door by their mobile phone through the hotel's app. No longer do guests need to remember to bring their card key with them, and it reduces the chances of guests losing their key as the key is essentially their mobile phone.

The technology within hotel door locks is extremely secure and very reliable, so hotels don’t need to worry about the technology failing on them and guests complaining. If a guest doesn’t have a mobile phone with them (this happens more than you may think) you can still issue them a card key.

Remote check-in & check-out

Never has it been easier to check into your hotel room and check out. With modern-day technology, hotels are able to have systems installed that allows you to check yourself into your own hotel room on arrival and check out. This can be done through a mobile phone app or through a tablet system in reception.

Not only does this help speed the process when arriving and leaving a hotel, but it also means hotel staff can spend time helping guests in more urgent matters.

Smart Room Service

For many years, if you wanted to order room service, you would have a printed menu and must call reception to order your food. Now, with up-to-date technology, many hotel rooms will include a tablet within the room. On this tablet, their personal app will be installed and on this, you can browse the menu and order food to be delivered to your room.

Depending on how advanced the app is, a live countdown may be included so that you can see where in the process your food is - from being prepared to being delivered.

Improve marketing techniques

One of the biggest changes the hotel industry has made due to technology is the way they market themselves. In the past, the best way to get people to see their hotel was to bring them to the hotel itself and show them around. Now they can use AR and VR to show walkthroughs online or create high-quality videos which can be posted on social media and on their website.

Impressive online booking systems mean customers can book rooms via voice recognition or by using their website. Many hotels will increase their bookings by using campaigns on Social Ads, Google Ads, working with influencers or through email marketing.

Staff Apps

As well as having guest-facing apps like those mentioned above, hotels can also have staff apps. These apps help improve the efficiency of the hotel to allow for better customer service. Staff can communicate through the apps, log maintenance issues and confirm that guests have checked out, plus a lot of other features.

As apps are becoming more relied on, more technology companies are learning to create them. This means the price of having your own app created may not be as expensive as it once was.

Above are just a few of the many ways in which technology is helping the hotel industry become more competitive. Over the coming years, we are sure even more innovative ideas will be launched with technology helping hotels to a greater extent than it is now. Just imagine when driverless cars are available, hotels will be sure to use them for their chauffeur service.

What technologies have you seen hotels use that you particularly like? Are there any that you think they will be using in the future? What do you think about the technology from above? The better the technology, the better the reviews will be from customers and the higher chance of future bookings. Let us know in the comment box below.