It is a technology driven world and this is why the future of the hospitality industry is digital. It is noticeable that the hospitality industry has come a long way in the last few years. This has only become possible with some intelligent combination of amazing technology in the recent past. Here, the Internet of Things (IoT) plays a major role. How? Well, it is known that the hospitality sector gains confidence through some amazing customer services.

In order to make the customer services unforgettable, the sector devotes a significant duration of time and invests an ample amount of money in elevating the services to an entirely new level. In that level, the customer becomes ‘delighted’. To make each and every guest feel ‘delighted’ or ‘empowered’, knowing about their likes and dislikes is crucial. This is clearly a challenging task. Here, the Internet of Things simplifies the processes of guest data collection by a noticeable scale.

As a hotel manager, you must become aware of the advantages provided by IoT to the hospitality sector. Let’s discover.

#The Internet of Things helps to convert ordinary everyday mirrors into personal interactive information stations:

This enables the guest to effortlessly manage all the hotel room functions, ambiance and entertainment. Just through one simple touch, a guest will be able to connect with some amazing hotel services. Accessing information like local news/weather report/traffic status becomes possible.

#Autonomous indoor delivery robots lessen the workload for hotels:

These robots automate hotel room services. Through the potential combination of sensors, artificial intelligence and machine learning, these robots operate elevators and navigate crowds while effectively balancing out other tasks (swift room deliveries that assure both safety and reliability).

#Electronic keys help guests in hassle-free check-ins:

With the intelligence of IoT, the development of electronic keys ‘empowers’ the guest to bypass the check-in processes and head straight to their rooms. The electronic key directly is sent directly to the guest’s personal mobile phone a few hours prior to the check-in (after thoroughly checking the name, address, social security number and more). This way, guests do not have to wait at all at the front desk. The tired guests definitely notice this huge flexibility in the hotel services and quickly put the hotel in the good books.

#Intense room personalization helps to strengthen the bond in between the guest and the host:

Gone are the days when a guest was greeted through hand written notes in his/her room. Now, for a 21st century guest, the hospitality sector has joined hands with IoT strategies for creating exceptionally comfortable rooms for the guests. When the guests enter the room, s/he can simply and automatically arrange the curtains, the television will have all his/her favorite channels and the music stations will play all her/his favorite number. Also, the guests will be entering a room with a perfect temperature that suits their mood and comfortable computer chairs to provide proper support. In fact, this concept is more about creating ‘connected rooms’ that ‘know the guest thoroughly and the guests know the room back in detail’

#IoT simplifies a guest’s stay through friendly voice-bots:

The basic intention of any hotel manager is to simply provide unforgettable services to its guests in order to seek guest loyalty for the maximum time duration. To achieve these, the hospitality sector is required to make the guests feel ‘like a ruler’. With Amazon’s Alexa, it becomes easier for a guest to design her/his own comfort inside a hotel room. Whatever the guests require is just a voice away. If the guests want to rest, s/he can order the voice bot to draw the curtains, dim the lights and so on. In case the room services are required, that too could be voiced. This is an amazing way of making the guests feel empowered. When their voice is heard, they feel valid and very practically being ‘listened to’.

#Precaution is better than cure and IoT’s predictive maintenance sticks by it:

The best of location, the best of food and the best staff behavior go down the drain due to technical and non-technical failure. With IoT, any possibility of fatal mishaps or the narrow scope of the slightest of guest inconvenience gets mitigated. It makes sure that the sprinkler systems have the potential to work on time. The smoke and carbon monoxide detectors have functioning batteries. In case the electrical panels, plugs, outlets and circuit breakers are not working for some reason, then the hotel management staff will be informed instantly. With smart sensors, any unfavorable change in the machine status comes under the broad daylight before it gets worse.

On a finishing note:

The Internet of Things plays a major role in the hotel industry because the 21st-century guests want to interact with their hotels in the same way they interact and engage with a close companion. This is the reason why the hospitality sector is becoming digital with every passing day. The guests who check-in the hotels come from different backgrounds thus requiring different things to feel ‘valid’ or ‘special’ throughout their stay in the hotel.

It is the core focus of the hospitality industry to create beautiful relationships with the guests. Thus, through the guest data collected by the IoT sensors, the hospitality sector formulates competitive business strategies in order to rope in the maximum guest loyalty for the longest span of time. IoT assists the hospitality sector in knowing the different choices, preferences, personalities and dislikes of different guests.

Thus, the hotels successfully provide a personalized experience to each and every guest. This was never possible a few years back. Guest data (who have stayed in the hotels previously) is collected by smart sensors. Upon visiting the hotels the next time, the IoT sensors set the room according to the data that has been collected under the name of the specific guests. Thus, personalization reaches an entirely new level. ‘Home away from home’ actually exists for a guest in the hospitality industry.