December 3, 2024
"In this hotel room, the TV isn't just for watching—it’s an escape, a way to unwind from the world outside," said someone who really enjoyed their stay at a hotel. What made them feel this way? What did this hotel provide?
Well, it’s simple: the hotel provided a comfortable room with hotel technology that made guests’ experience 10 times easier and more enjoyable. And that’s all it took for the guest to be satisfied and even leave positive reviews.
In this article, you’ll explore hotel technology trends and learn how to use them to keep your guests satisfied. Let’s start.
Today's guests and visitors are internet-aware and highly demanding. They expect straightforward and fast contact. As a hospitality business owner, you must meet their high expectations to grow your business. How could you do that?
Streamlined Operations: With technology, manual tasks can be automated. Hotel staff can thus be extra organized and productive—they can serve more guests without lowering their service level.
Enhanced Efficiency: For the same reason you’d use a calculator instead of writing down math problems, hotel technology is used to reduce human error, allowing for more accurate inventory, resource, financial, and booking accuracy.
Tailored Guest Experiences: Hotel smart room technology and other innovations allow venues to improve and customize the general guest experience with products and services that fit the specific needs of each guest, typically using data analytics and artificial intelligence (AI). This means finding out and delivering what people want to watch.
Hotel technology trends are changing guest interactions and operations.
Let's explore five of the main developments that are revolutionizing the market.
Checking in wasn’t always straightforward—until recently. This time-consuming procedure can now be done quickly and efficiently thanks to hotel technology.
When everything is done over the phone, hotels typically require guests to check in at the front desk before going to their rooms.
Conversely, when guests use a hotel app to check in, their phones act as room keys, opposing the need for front-desk check-ins. This speeds up the process of contactless transfers, making them preferable and convenient.
These days, everything is online, and app adoption is widespread. In fact, 94% of Millennials use online banking services, with 97% of Gen Zers set to follow by 2027. In the hotel industry, mobile apps make it easy for guests to find their tickets, check in and out, make payments online, look at pictures of available rooms, and talk to hotel staff.
Push alerts are also a terrific method to stay in touch with visitors long after they have gone. According to a 2020 study, 80% of hotel visitors would download a hotel app for these reasons.
Internet of Things or IoT devices are network-enabled physical devices with sensors or software—and perhaps one of the biggest innovations in hotel smart room technology.
Using an app or a voice-activated assistant, hotel guests can adjust the lights, change the temperature, and use entertainment systems—all without complicated setups or confusing controls.
Today, many hotels, lodges, and resorts utilize IoT devices to provide an elevated guest experience that’s seamless, immersive, and tailored to their guests' unique needs. This results in benefits like increased customer engagement, satisfaction, and loyalty.
However, the benefits of IoT extend far beyond the guest experience. Hotel owners can leverage IoT technology to reduce losses, waste, and maintenance expenses, automate supply chain operations, and create additional revenue opportunities—all of which increase profitability.
Today, Hotel managements highly value artificial intelligence because it enables them to analyze customer data and demand trends for more effective marketing plans and tailored packages that satisfy their visitors.
AI hotel solutions can be employed in the background to speed up procedures, reduce downtime through predictive maintenance, and optimize resource allocation. Using predictive modeling, AI-driven hotel technology can optimize inventory management, energy management, staff scheduling, and more.
AI chatbots are also one of the biggest current trends in the hospitality industry. Instead of paying someone to text or answer the phone, hotels can use AI chatbots to handle booking inquiries and customer service requests, providing personalized recommendations 24/7.
Nowadays, smart TVs offer more than in-room entertainment. They also provide hotel owners with new ways to generate additional income.
Allow the TVs in your hotel rooms to boost your earnings and improve your guests’ experience! Contact HotelSmarters to learn more.
Let's explore some of the key benefits of adopting hotel technology trends.
Hotel technology trends like implementing a revenue management platform allow you to simplify and automate payments for rooms, services, products, and smart TV content. This streamlines your billing processes and makes it easy to manage payments.
Technology improves teamwork and facilitates effective task completion by your team. Hotel management apps and platforms can keep staff updated with tasks and let the front desk know when a room is ready.
Certain hotel operations are monotonous and time-consuming. Automation in the hospitality industry has changed that. Such technologies streamline check-in, booking, and housekeeping processes, reducing wait times and human error. Even the tiresome night audit can be said farewell with night audit automation.
Keeping track of guest preferences further enhances service quality, which attracts recurring visitors. You can use customer preferences for various aspects, from room temperature and music choice to preferred kind of pillow, thus resulting in customer satisfaction and, in turn, brand loyalty.
Like all market shifts, hotel technology trends come with a few challenges. But these difficulties aren’t just roadblocks; rather, they inspire ongoing industry innovation.
Let’s look at the table below.
| Challenge | Description | Solution |
|---|---|---|
| Integration and Compatibility | Hotels rely on multiple systems (POS, PMS, reservations, CRM), leading to integration challenges. Data storage differences and outdated tech worsen the issue. | Implement an all-in-one revenue management platform with staff training and customer support. |
| Safeguarding Data | Hotels store sensitive guest information and are vulnerable to cyberattacks, especially with IoT devices increasing security risks. | Strengthen cybersecurity measures, implement strict data protection protocols, and monitor IoT security. |
| Personalization vs. Privacy | AI-driven personalization enhances guest experience but raises privacy concerns. Hotels must balance data use with security responsibilities. | Enforce strong data privacy controls while using analytics to deliver personalized experiences. |
In addition, following the newest hotel technology trends will help you stay ahead of the game. You can project what your clients desire as you develop fresh ideas and apply the latest tools to offer first-rate service. If you want to stay ahead, these hotel technology trends are worth considering.
Ready to take your establishment to the next level? Get in touch with us today!
Hotel smart room technology refers to modern digital solutions and IoT devices put directly into hotel rooms. Rooms are equipped with devices that can change lighting, temperature, handiness, entertainment, and many other services, which can be controlled by voice or apps on mobile phones for the comfort of guests.
The Internet of Things (IoT) combines related systems and allows smart controls in each room, as well as other processes or aspects like checks and services, energy management, and personalized greetings.
YOTEL Singapore Orchard Road is a smart hotel in Singapore that contains smart self-check-in kiosks, comfortable cabins called Sleepstations with adjustable SmartBeds, Technowalls with mood lighting, and smart TVs. The hotel also utilizes service robots, particularly for room service, where specific requirements, such as additional items, are delivered to guests’ rooms.
A smart hotel middleware platform allows easy customization, enabling hotels to personalize their services and interfaces, display relevant ads, improve brand awareness, and meet guest preferences.
A revenue management platform helps hotels maximize profitability by optimizing, automating, and simplifying billing processes. With data-driven insights, hotel owners can implement targeted marketing campaigns showcasing products and services relevant to each guest—all from one central dashboard.
A smart TV management solution turns your regular smart televisions into revenue-generating smart assistants. It provides data insights for better guest engagement with informational updates that are important to your guests, like weather and flight statuses. A smart TV management platform also creates additional revenue opportunities through pay-per-view and advertising.
Co-founder / CTO
Hi, I'm Armen, the CTO and Co-Founder of inoRain OTT, as well as the Co-Founder of HotelSmarters. With 15+ years of background in digital streaming technology, I specialize in OTT strategies and interactive TV solutions, helping businesses maximize their revenue potential. At HotelSmarters, I focus on leveraging tech to transform hotel operations, while at inoRain, I drive innovation in end-to-end OTT solutions. Let’s connect and explore new opportunities!
