Ms. Stehle

Technology

Hotels Can Benefit From Self-Service Kiosks

By Tina Stehle, Senior Vice President & General Manager, Agilysys Hospitality Solutions Group

Enhanced customer service, reduction to staffing costs, and a better utilization of hotel resources are just some of the hotel benefits obtained by successfully implementing self-service kiosks. Many customers are already accustomed to using self-service alternatives for airline check-in, rental cars and supermarket check-out. Today, customers are demanding the same convenience and ease of use in the hotel check-in process.

Changes in consumer attitudes and in the technology itself have brought about a general acceptance of self-service both in terms of ease of use and overall comfort level. Customers are demanding choices and convenience in order to maintain control over their experiences.

Self-service kiosks are changing what guests expect from their hotel experience and what hotel operators expect from their technology. The demand on many hotel operators is to run on thin margins while simultaneously having to address issues like systems integration, occupancy and customer service levels.

Self-service can boost guest satisfaction and hotel efficiencies when deployed well. Kiosk check-in and personalized service are not mutually exclusive. In fact, kiosk check-in is another avenue for hotels to provide a service alternative that an increasing number of guests demand. Not providing this alternative as a critical component of the hotel business strategy will only impact the guest satisfaction levels and may alienate well-traveled guests.

For hotel operators, the ultimate goal is providing guests with a high level of service. How that service is provided, be it through a quick and easy self-service experience or through interaction with someone at the front desk, is less important than the guest's satisfaction and the delivery of the desired service. Self-service can help hotels deliver that service efficiently, accurately and with high customer satisfaction. Service should not be defined by the amount of time guests spend waiting in line. Hotels face distinct periods of heavy activity. Those periods can be more efficiently handled by offering guests a self-service alternative.

Hotels ultimately want their agents to be less transaction oriented and more customer service oriented. Hotel guests now have a choice whether they want to visit the front desk or use the kiosk to expedite their arrival and departure. This translates to fewer agents behind the desk, allowing them to assist guests in other areas. With today's traveler exposed more and more to the do-it-yourself option, hotels can provide alternatives to their guests.

In addition, Self-service not only automates routine tasks, but it also offers upgrades, amenities and in-house service choices. Today, your guests may overlook these benefits; with self-service you can place a variety of amenities at their fingertips. Self-service can also help hotels handle other challenges, such as up-selling and redirecting personnel to interact more with guests. After implementing self-service, many operators have found great success by moving employees out from behind the front desk either to interact more directly with guests or to help handle orders more efficiently, quickly and accurately. With hotels, the opportunity is there also, say for upgrading to a room with a view at extra cost.

Many hotels have already achieved great success in implementing self-service kiosks by personalizing offers and promotions to guests, such as the ability to offer coupons, vouchers or special messages. Using kiosks, hotels can add another dimension to personalization by making kiosks context-specific. This implies that the system is able to distinguish between specific events surrounding the actual transaction and is capable of responding differently to different contexts of same transaction. Moving service to kiosks in this way will allow the hotels to consistently offer personalized interaction without depending upon the staff. The key however is not to overwhelm the guests with too many options and functionalities.

Unlike airlines, hotels serve a more diverse set of guests with varying expectations depending on the type of properties and levels of service. Hotel check-in is more complex than airline check-in where passengers only have options of aisle and window with potential upgrade to first class. Hotel kiosk design needs to target the specific needs of the hotel guest and the services offered by the property, which varies from hotel to hotel. Understanding guest demographics and preferences is necessary before successfully implementing a kiosk solution.

Like any other point of service, personalization of service experience is important at self-service check-in kiosks too. Hotels will need to adopt new techniques to utilize their data warehouses to provide up-sell and cross-sell to their guests. Many hotels have comprehensive qualitative data and guest preferences that will need to be incorporated. Hotels need to see that such data is converted into actionable information at the point of service to deliver the ultimate guest experience.

Another important item to consider on implementation is the physical location of the kiosk and corresponding signage. A check-in kiosk should be near locations that typically facilitate arriving guests, and where the guests can get assistance from front desk staff and other guest services staff like bell staff without having to go back to a line. Grouping kiosks into banks can assist with the interaction between guest, kiosk and staff. Sufficient gap between kiosks is important to provide guests the required privacy.

When considering kiosks, staff presence can't be completely eliminated. Minimal staff will be required to deal with mechanical issues such as missing supplies or paper jams. They also play an important role in training on usage of the self-service check-in and resolving any guest issues. As the kiosks functionality at the hotel gets more robust and guests become more familiar with them, staff presence at the kiosks can be gradually reduced and diverted to service points which require greater personal interaction. A ratio of staff to the number of kiosk terminals can be determined based on the usage patterns of the kiosks at each property.

Through self-service kiosks, hotel guests can check in, encode a room key, check out and obtain a receipt - all without having to wait in line at the front desk. An internal printer produces both a registration slip and a guest folio. Real-time monitoring alerts hotel staff when paper and key cards are low, and operational settings are controlled from locations the hotel chooses. The solution allows guests to obtain copies of their folios at any time during their stay, without checking out. Guests also can request that folio receipts be e-mailed or mailed to an address based on information in the property management system. Special messages, vouchers and printed instructions can be provided to guests based on management-defined criteria.

By providing self-service convenience to your guests, employees can focus on more specialized guest requests and can proactively assist guests to create a memorable experience for your customers. The hotel self-service solutions combine the self-service expertise to provide a range of offerings to the hotel market.

Tina Stehle is senior vice president & general manager of Agilysys Hospitality Solutions Group. Agilysys is a leading provider of innovative IT solutions to corporate and public-sector customers, with special expertise in select markets, including retail and hospitality. The company uses technology — including hardware, software and services — to help customers resolve their most complicated IT needs. Ms. Stehle joined Agilysys in 2004 through its acquisition of Inter-American Data, Inc. (IAD), where she served as vice president of software services. Ms. Stehle can be contacted at 800-262-3600 or tina.stehle@agilysys.com Extended Bio...

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