Data drives growth for businesses. Whether you’re in the hospitality industry or any other industry, data helps improve performance, growth, revenue, customer retention, and so on. What makes successful companies stand out from the rest is what they do with the data and how they use it to their advantage. Once your data strategy is locked down, then can you move on to the more advanced technology like AI, integrations, digital IDs and keys, and more.
“Data analytics has become the backbone for how modern organizations and governments organize and execute goals.” This article could not have said it any better. Data analytics has changed the way companies and governments have made decisions in recent times as more and more organizations become data-driven. According to the article, there are five key steps to take to become a data-driven company: create a data-driven culture, use data to drive decision making, use self-service analytics tools to make data accessible, use data analytics to get deeper insights, and use data to solve important problems. Once your company has managed to incorporate these factors, you’re one step closer to joining the ranks of data-driven companies. When it comes to data-driven companies, Google has recently integrated even more data into their Google Maps application, as mentioned here. Google Maps has also introduced augmented reality features to the application to integrate local guide reviews and location data. They have even added functions to find restaurants, show wait times, and make bookings through the app as well, as seen here.
After a company has secured its data-driven strategies, concepts like artificial intelligence, machine learning, and digital IDs becomes more of a reality. For instance, chatbots have become the norm when visiting websites for hotels, OTAs, etc. We’ve all experienced the small pop up in the bottom right-hand corner of a website asking if we need any assistance with our booking. That right there is the power of artificial intelligence at work. Have you ever thought about what goes on behind-the-scenes of the friendly chatbot? This article dives into the attributes of a chatbot and how they can be effectively controlled,
which ones affect conversational quality, and how to improve chatbots overall. Another advanced feature driven from data is the concept of digital ID. We’re all mostly familiar with digital key (or keyless entry) for hotel rooms, where your smartphone can unlock your room door through the hotel’s app. Digital ID would allow travel to become even more efficient through digital identity where “travelers would be able to establish an account and then share their personal data in advance with different travel entities, as stated here. With the growth of travelers increasing, features like digital ID would be necessary to keep up with the pace.
Speaking of keeping up with the pace, we’ve created another “Crack the Case” for you to help navigate this fast-paced industry we’re all in. Speed is of the essence in the hospitality industry when trying to conquer your hotel’s best performance results. In order to ensure top performance levels, booking pace needs to be high to secure success. Introducing, “Chase the Pace.” This time, we have presented an example of a hotel who needs to increase bookings this year since an event they rely on yearly has been cancelled. What can a General Manager and Revenue Manager do to increase this year’s booking pace? Check out our Crack the Case to figure out what to do in this situation.
