Technological Facelifts: Wingate Adapts Kiosk To Meet Guest Needs

By Allison Hearn

There's a lot of talk in the hospitality technology industry about the reluctance of hoteliers to invest in the latest technology offerings, but what happens when hoteliers plunge into the technological tide, and the guests don't come along for the ride?

That's exactly what happened at Wingate Inns International when they installed self check-in/check-out kiosks during the launch of the brand in 1995 and 1996. Now, in an attempt to save a neglected, but potentially useful, technology, Wingate is endeavoring to increase the value and use of their kiosks and trying to bring guests in line with technology by bringing the kiosks online.

Originally, Wingate intended the Express Desk kiosk, or ED, to be an extension of their property management system, both of which were supplied by MultiSystems International Inc. ED exists as an extension, or node, of the property management system, allowing guests with advance reservations to enter the hotel and use the kiosk to pull up their reservation, check in with their credit card and confirmation number, and receive a room number. Through the TESA Entry Systems-constructed key encoding system, a room key is encoded and automatically dispensed through ED's cabinetry. When the guest is ready to leave the hotel, he can visit ED again and use the credit card of his choice to pay the room bill. When the transaction is complete, the guest's receipt is printed out at a dot matrix printer located at the kiosk. Thus, guests can complete their stay at Wingate without ever having to wait in line at the front desk, saving both guests and front desk staff valuable time.

Unfortunately, the guests did not flock to the new technology. Says Keith Pierce, president and chief executive officer of Wingate, "We found that when guests came into the hotels, they typically weren't waiting in long lines. So guests chose to go to the front desk and have a front desk agent process their transaction versus having a piece of technology do it. They always gravitated toward the human." As a result, Wingate's franchisees demanded that the kiosk get a facelift: either enhance it and drive users to it, they said, or eliminate it from the amenity offerings within the Wingate concept. And management listened. "ED was slipping into a coma," says Pierce, "and it was our job to revive him."

Andrew Kraemer, director of technology and revenue enhancement for Wingate, and his co-workers embarked on a strategic mission to improve the value of the kiosk for guests and for franchisees. The solution they came up with: bringing ED online through Wingate's existing T1 lines and turning him into a virtual concierge and valuable information resource for guests.

This month, Wingate brought their first kiosk online at the Wingate in Gordon City, N.Y. Gordon City's ED, which originally had only the check-in/check-out functionality and a guest comment card, has now been equipped, through existing T1 lines, with , an online service that allows guests to find local information on everything from restaurants, to activities, to movies, to bars, to local events.

Once the guest finds what he's looking for, offers a mapping feature that provides easy- to-follow, printable directions to help guests navigate to where they want to go. The new kiosk also features a USA Today national information module, from which guests can access weather forecasts and local and national news. Wingate's reservation page is also accessible from the kiosk. The information is easily accessed from the kiosk touchscreen, is available to guests free of charge and doesn't require a membership to use.

And although Wingate supplies other methods for guests to access the Internet, such as free in-room Internet access for laptop users and television access through a pay model, they feel that ED offers another valuable tool. "Guests don't carry their laptops in the lobby," says Pierce. "The kiosk is really the only place where a guest can walk up and very quickly, through a couple of finger strokes, get into local information." Additionally, it is very easy for the front desk staff to direct guests who have questions about local information to ED, rather than having to spend time looking for phone numbers and giving out directions.

The biggest difference between the kiosk Internet offering and the in-room Internet offering is the amount of access guests have, which is limited as opposed to open. "We want to keep the kiosk penned up a bit right now," says Kraemer. "We want to find out what the customer's reaction is to the information we're serving up right now before we add more functionality."

However, that doesn't mean that ED won't eventually enable guests to access the entire Web and perform tasks such as checking their e-mail from the kiosk. "I don't want them to be able to free surf yet. Surfing the Internet from the kiosk is something I'm taking cautious steps into. It's something that we could look into in the future," says Kraemer.

So far, ED has received a good reception. Introduced at the Wingate annual conference, many of the Wingate franchisees had an opportunity to see the new-and-improved ED firsthand. "We're getting positive results because the franchisees see that the local content information is an important thing to provide to guests. They see that it has value," says Pierce. As time goes on, Wingate plans to monitor ED's success by tracking guest usage monthly. They will also look at feedback from guests and staff to see if the new functionality is enough to keep ED alive.

After the beta testing in New York has completed a 30-day trial to make sure all of the bugs are worked out, Kraemer and his team will continue the installation in Wingate's 99 properties throughout the U.S. They anticipate that the rollout will begin in early July, and should be complete within five months.

In addition to the master plan of creating a valuable amenity for guests and resource for licensees, Wingate's hope is that the introduction of the online information resource will eventually lead guests back to the original technology the kiosk enables: the check-in/ check-out feature which could prove to be a real time saver to the front desk staff. Says Pierce, "We're anticipating that once consumers are directed to use the kiosk for local information, for USA Today information and for reservations, and once they become comfortable with the equipment, they will see that there is a check-in/check-out functionality, and they'll start to use it."

ED's technological facelift may not be quite finished yet. The future possibilities for ED are immense, and Wingate is keeping their options open. Over the next year or two, they may be adding laser printers to the kiosk so that guests can have Internet materials sent to a printer at the kiosk rather than to one behind the front desk, as in the current system.

Additionally, Wingate hopes to redesign the cabinetry of the kiosk to simplify maintenance. And there is the possibility of adding links to local points of interest, such as amusement parks, or allowing broader access to the Internet. "We want to provide valuable services and amenities to our guests," says Pierce. "And those will translate into a perceived value for our franchisees." ED, a virtual front desk agent and now a virtual reservations agent and concierge, certainly seems to hit that mark.