By Terri Miller, Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder, Concilio Labs
Today's hotelier is constantly bombarded with information. In the ongoing effort to keep guests happy, a single hotel may maintain many different systems and solutions in place to keep operations running seamlessly—everything from the PMS to various POS platforms to a CRM and more. Each of these systems, solutions, and platforms represent a potential data goldmine to glean information about guest preferences, purchase habits and even sentiment.
Sometimes, more data is just that – more. Access to this data reveals a larger question for hoteliers: How can you take all this disparate information and put together a strategy that enables you to meet today's guest requirements at a macro and micro level, and optimize operations at the same time?
Data not only exists within the systems that keep a hotel running smoothly, however. It can also be found stored within third-party systems – such as social media. When information is appropriately leveraged, the data should enable the hotelier to make smarter, data-driven decisions, and, at the same time, create a truly personalized and relevant guest experience.
It's not just about recognizing the needs of each guest while they are enjoying their stay — hotels should utilize this data to understand the needs of a guest before they even arrive. With this insight at their disposal, hotels can make informed decisions on how to manage business operations.
But how, exactly, does one do that?
Make Data Actionable
Hoteliers need to be able to unlock the information available to them and determine how it translates directly to their everyday process, beyond the limited confines of a spreadsheet or report. With this in mind, the implementation of a platform to assist the hotelier with managing all this information is key, not only to gain insight from the data but to clarify how to use that insight effectively. By understanding topics each guest mentions on social media and general preferences, a hotelier can ensure their experience meets and exceeds their expectations. On a basic level, it can be as simple as the hotel knowing the guest's travel purpose. While on a business trip, a guest is more likely to feel their time is limited. With this travel schedule in mind, offering on-property food and beverage services makes sense, and informing them of on-property specials may increase the revenue potential of this guest.
Easily Digestible Data, In Multiple Formats
Further, the use of data needs to be visual in nature and available on any type of device. Running a hotel is far from easy, and frequently requires a management team to make responsive decisions on demand, while remaining true to their overarching, strategic vision. With the goal to increase revenues, lower cost, and increase guest satisfaction, having guest and property focused data available in an easy to understand dashboards, enables the hotelier to be continuously flexible and informed in their decision process.
With this in mind, Concilio Labs created the Insight Engine to help hoteliers tackle the task of managing all data that surrounds them. The Insight Engine provides hoteliers with meaningful insights, enabling them to create memorable guest experiences and increase direct revenue. Actionable insights can automatically send prescriptive recommendations to websites, booking engines, and mobile apps – making digital properties smarter.
The platform enables access to critical guest intelligence so hoteliers can better understand their guests and what defines their perception of a positive customer experience. The utilization of dynamic guest profiles, combined with a proprietary Guest Score, provides deeper insights into a hotelier's guests. Concilio Labs' machine learning algorithms calculate a guest's value to the hotel and brand based on attributes such as spend, social influence, and frequency of stay. This comprehensive score makes it easy to understand the real person behind every reservation.
Guests choose to return to hotels based on their experience. They want to feel appreciated in an environment where they feel known, and more importantly where their needs are always anticpated and fulfilled. By delivering the ultimate in service using data as the backbone, a guest is more likely to return to your hotel time and time again. Hotels will be one step closer to winning repeat, loyal customers.
