The Hotel Industry’s Transformation and Adaptation Over the Past 20 Years

Over the past 20 years, many aspects of the hotel industry have undergone major changes to adapt to new technology and changing consumer behavior, which led hotel owners to change the way they conduct their businesses. Let’s see how robots or technology in general changed the hotel industry.

At some point, people staying in hotels were no longer satisfied with having an HD television in their rooms. Now hotel guests expect to control their room temperature, contact hotel staff members through text and check out the restaurant menu on their smartphones without having to leave the room.

With the advancement of technology, many guests demand and expect the very latest technological innovations from the hotel they choose to stay in. Of course, we can say the same about other industries as well, but this is particularly true about hospitality industries. A lot of these changes are due to affordable and convenient access to travel agencies and other useful information at the click of a button, which makes current travelers more educated and sophisticated. Therefore, more exigent.

According to an Oracle Hospitality survey, over 64 % of  U.S hotel guests said it is extremely important for hotel owners to invest in technology for a better hotel experience. To stay competitive,  hotel operators have been working on enhancing the guest experience from the moment a guest walks in till the time the guest checks out .   Hoteliers employed high-tech strategies to provide the smoothest experience possible for the hotel guests.  Some hotels provide their guests with a luxury experience during the whole stay. But  Millennials look for a hotel and interact with hotels the same way they look for and interact with brands in other market fields: predominantly online. And obviously, the first thing they do is checking out the hotel’s website. The best online performance increases the number of guests for the specific hotel since it makes it easy for consumers to research, plan, and book travel via web-based desktop and mobile tools. 

Here are  4 current tech tendencies which are shaping the hospitality industry

The digital form of marketing

Digital forms of marketing and distribution costs are the most significant changes the industry has seen over the past couple of decades, such as ads through social networking, Google. Social media has also changed the interaction between the hoteliers and guests. People share information about hotel services and post reviews online. Checking reviews before going away to a certain place is the first thing people do. Reviews help customers determine what restaurant to go to, which transport means to use and which attractions to check. It might seem like reviews are only important for customers, but they also impacted the hospitality market by raising the standards of travel.  Hotel owners are more alert to the occurring problems due to their fearing that a bad review can destroy their reputation in the competitive hospitality market.

VR  became a cutting-edge way to engage with the modern consumer.

VR is a modern day alternative to traditional brochures. Taking hotels’ guest to a virtual hotel tour is a great way to leave little to the imagination.  Not surprisingly, best hotel chains are currently using VR as a marketing tool, hotels such as Best Western.

Robots concierge

All around the world we see robots operating as common helpers in the hospitality industry. It’s no longer a fantasy but the reality. Robots help the hotel staff to reduce time-consuming tasks, and many agree it’s a big innovation and addition to the industry. A great example of the robot implementation in the hotel is the Yotel Hotel in New York. This hotel of 669 rooms boasts with an aptly named Yobot, the robot which takes care of your luggage, as well as space-saving motorized beds and motion-activated air conditioning.

Chatbots

The latest innovation in hotel technology is so-called ‘’chatbots’’.  Since users are now spending considerable time on messaging apps, chatbots have a huge potential in the hotel industry since it allows to interact with a person or artificial intelligence through a chat interface. The system allows guests to get the notification as soon as their rooms are cleaned up and ready to use. As you see, all of the above-mentioned technology trends are reshaping the hospitality industry and help customers to have a better experience during their hotel stay. Have you ever stayed in a hotel with a robot concierge? How was that? Tell us about your experience right below in the comments!