Independent Hotels can Offer a Digital Check-in Experience
The pandemic has accelerated the use of hotel technology and has contributed heavily to the Hotel Industry’s recovery, by allowing hotels to offer guests an enjoyable hotel experience while adhering to health and safety guidelines. Now contactless technology and other hotel technology have become the new normal, as it allows hotels to offer guests what they crave, a seamless and convenient hotel experience. With hotel technology, hotels can offer a completely digital experience for guests from the moment they enter the hotel, until their departure. Guests now have access to mobile check-in, which allows the use of mobile devices to check-in and mobile key, which is used to access guest rooms and elevators. Mobile devices can also be used to access food and beverage services and to make payments.
Why Should Hotels Invest in Digital Key Solutions?
Recent studies of hotel technology trends found that implementing a digital key solution, also known as mobile key, will increase guest satisfaction scores by 7%. Guests have the expectation of a seamless hotel check-in experience without waiting on lines, a five-minute wait during check-in has the potential to decrease guest satisfaction by 50%. Guests want to access their hotel rooms with their mobile phones, 46% felt that mobile key was the most important feature of their hotel stay. Hotel technology also has an impact on hotel selection, 49% of consumers reported that high tech features within guest rooms influenced their booking decisions. By offering guests access to mobile key, hotels will remove the need to replace RFID cards and can save an average of $1,000 per month. Major hotel brands such as Hilton, Marriott and Accor have introduced a variety of hotel technology that offers guests an enhanced check-in experience. Can smaller and independent hotels offer their guests a similar digital experience as they would get from major hotel brands?
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ASSA ABLOY’s Mobile Access
The right technology provider is key and can enable smaller and independent hotels to offer guests a similar digital check-in and check-out experience as major hotel brands. The ASSA ABLOY’s Mobile Access solution enables hotels of all sizes to offer a digital experience without the need for expensive technology and the cost of replacing locks. Guests can skip the front desk lines by checking in and accessing guest rooms and other areas of the hotel with their mobile devices. Mobile Access solution will appeal to smaller and independent hotels, as it is compatible with the latest generation of classic and signature RFID locks. Unlike other digital key solutions, Mobile Access does not require the replacement of guestroom locks and hotels will only be required to add a small Bluetooth low energy board to locks to enable key less entry. Hotels with older lock systems can also utilize Mobile Access and can keep the majority of the lock’s hardware by upgrading the reader electronics to the latest RFID version before the Bluetooth low energy board can be added. ASSA ABLOY’s Mobile Access allows smaller and independent hotels to streamline their check-in and check-out process and offer guests the technology experience that they desire without breaking their budgets.
Hotels are Investing in Digital Key Sharing Solutions
Mobile key is one of the most popular and sought-after features offered by hotels. Hilton recently introduced its new digital key share service that allows more than one guest access to the same room via mobile key. Hilton first introduced its digital key in 2015 and is currently being used at 80% of their 6,600 properties. Implementing digital key has allowed Hilton to reduce plastic waste by 125 tons. The new digital key share feature is only available to those properties currently using Hilton’s digital key and can only be accessed through the Hilton Honors app. The new feature allows the primary guest to share their mobile key with other guests by sending an invitation. Guests who accept the invitation must be using the Hilton Honors app and must pass a security check before they are granted access to the guestroom and to other areas of the hotel. Once access to the mobile key has been given, the digital key share feature prevents the resharing of access with others.
How Can Hotels Benefit from Digital Key?
The pandemic resulted in a renewed sense of appreciation for mobile and contactless technology. A recent study conducted by technology service provider Criton found that 80% of those surveyed would download a hotel app that would allow for check-in/check-out and
73% would download and use an app that would enable them to access their guest rooms. Contactless technology such as mobile key can have an impact on the overall guest experience and allows hotels to attract guests who are looking for a high-tech hotel experience. Allowing guests to use their mobile devices as a room key, gives guests more control over their hotel stay and provides them with a safer hotel experience. Hotels can enhance the guest experience by making the check-in and check-out process more efficient. Guests will no longer be required to wait on lines or to fill out paperwork in order to check-in. Mobile phones have become an extension of ourselves and guests are accustomed to always having their phones readily available. By offering a digital key solution, hotels will reduce the likelihood of guests losing key cards and getting locked out of guest rooms. Guests can avoid going to the front desk and potentially waiting on lines to replace lost or malfunctioning key cards.